Rocky VI: Balboa Writes a Novel

It seems like November is flying by.

It's almost alarming, the rate at which December is swiftly approaching. I have so much writing on my plate it's difficult to think about anything else; the date in my mind has hovered around the 7th or the 10th for awhile now, refusing to note the march, or rather quick-step, of time.

Let me list for you the writing I need to finish by December:

• 19,397 more words of my novel
• An essay on rationalism (this is due on Tuesday)
• Two essays for Boston University
• Two essays for George Washington University
• Various installments of the research paper due for my capstone (which is also this novel- why I have to write a research paper on writing a novel is beyond me)
• Two short essays for Tufts University
• An essay for University of Southern California

I'm beginning to feel like Rocky, an underdog up against all of the work life is throwing my way. That's how Rocky was, right? He was a writer? I haven't seen the movies but I know the gist.

This list is more for me than for you; I'm sure none of you care about my workload. But if I don't get more organized soon, I'm bound to drop the ball somewhere, and I'm absolutely determined to keep all of my balls.

Don't pretend you weren't thinking it.

One unexpected boon, however, is that after writing massive amount of words every day (I've skipped at least two days that I remember, of course, but they were usually followed by 3K+ marathons the day after- like today) the piddling 250 word essays seem almost comically short.

Doesn't mean I want to do them. Right now, my novel eclipses everything in my eyes, which is dangerous because it is a total fantasy that this will turn out to anything good or remotely publishable. I would never expect my first-ever novel to be anything good. But since writing is what I want to do with my life this seems like the most important first step, way ahead of college.

Of course, since writing is what I want to do with my life, it follows logically that I should get used to writing all kinds of things, including college essays. The conundrum.

I'd like to post an excerpt for you all, but since my character still has not gotten her lazy ass out of her house and on the road, nothing jumps out as especially important.

Exposition-heavily yours,

Abby