(Work-in-) Progress Report: Bob

Word count (to the nearest thousand): 31,000
Status: Still working on the first draft
Attitude: Upbeat

Considering that I’ve been writing Bob for more than three months now, 31,000 words (11,000 more than last time) really isn’t all that much. But the thing is, I spent a solid half, maybe two-thirds, of the past month on vacation and/or stuck. And when I say stuck, I mean fingers-dead-over-the-keyboard, spit-dribbling-down-my-chin, writer’s-block-the-size-of-the-polar-ice-cap stuck. So 31,000 words is an accomplishment. Heck, 31,000 words is enough to throw a party over.

Rest assured, Bob is still very much Not Perfect Yet. But being able to put words and sentences and whole chapters behind me has left me in a sparkling mood these past few weeks. And the farther into this one I get, the more I love the characters and the storyline and just the world I’m (slowly) building. Yes, my excitement for this project is actually increasing, which is unusual. What’s even more unusual is that my excitement is increasing even as it’s taking longer to write. And when I say longer, I mean MONTHS longer; at this rate, I expect to finish Bob’s first draft in about twice the time it took me to produce my others. But that’s all right. Someday, he’ll be finished.

A few more notes on Bob. He’s young adult science fiction (have I mentioned that already?), set about thirty-five years in the future. His MC’s name is Seth Tucker. And he’s set in Las Vegas, which, I might add, is no longer the city of sin but the biomedia capital of the universe.

So how about you? I’d love to hear more about your works-in-progress. Genres, word counts, current status--fill us in.