[[_SITE/Artemis and the Prince|Artemis and the Prince]] i took the majority of February off from work to focus on writing my novel. Although I didn’t reach the (foolish) goal of mine to complete a first draft within this time, I’ve learnt the following: - Caffiene and Brute Force is the most effective technique. - Deadlines do not work because I rely on Emergence to create my work. - BUT it is important to show up and do the work. Every day. For me, waking up at 6:30 keeps things simple. - A combination of outlining and discovering is the way to go. I crave the discovery element, but need to ‘scout the woods’ to give me the space, the mental model, to work with. This will most certainly evolve with time. - The story exists with clarity in my mind long before the right words are put down. It is critical to remind myself that the shit I’m shovelling in the first draft is nowhere close to this vision, no matter how excited I am about the story. Otherwise I will be disillusioned when I re-read my work. - Accordingly, I wonder if I empathize too much with the fictional characters I have created. It leaks into my day to day life. On one hand I feel this is good, as if I care about them so will you. But I still wish to lead a semi-normal life. We’ll see how this evolves. - I have decided to go all the way with the story. I did not choose to write a novel to censor myself. The vulnerability scares me, but hey, it’s a fantasy novel, not an autobiography. There is that layer of separation. Writing this brings me relief. I always set up a needlessly large mountain for me to climb, and am disappointed in myself. This is something I hope to change. There must be a healthier way to create art. Cheers.