Clarion UCSD Write-a-Thon: Update -- Week 1

I was going to wait until the end of week 1 before reporting on my Write-a-Thon progress, but I may be out of town for the holiday weekend, and there is no better time than the present!

As far as my personal writing goals are concerned, here is what I've accomplished thus far:

1) I have written, for at least an hour, every day since the Write-a-Thon began on June 26 (or, 4 whole days in a row);

2) I have written 5,587 words (or 22 pages, going by the novel standard of 250 words per page), which means I am a little more than halfway to my stated goal of 36 pages by the end of the Write-a-Thon;

3) I have completed one rough outline of the main plot (which may be split into two or more novels);

4) I have not begun work on the secondary plot lines on paper, but they are developing in my head;

5) I have worked a bit on character backgrounds for the protagonist and antagonist, and I have ideas for at least four secondary characters.

I would like to clarify that of the 22 pages I've written so far, much of it has been work on backstory, world-building, plot, and character development -- very little writing of the actual narrative has been accomplished. Originally I had wanted to get at least 36 pages of SOMETHING written down; now that I find that to be coming so easily, I am hoping to accomplish a minimum of 40 pages of narrative (that is, actual writing of the story) by the end of the Write-a-Thon, not just 40 pages of any old thing. I believe I can do that much.

I encourage anyone following along with this blog to please consider, if you have not done so already, supporting my participation in this Write-a-Thon with a small donation to Clarion. Even $5 will go a long way if enough people are willing to give.

If you have already donated, you have my deepest thanks! And if you are unable to donate, simply reading my blog and offering feedback or encouragement would be wonderful support!

Thanks for reading!