Okay, it’s been a while since I have posted any information about my new novel here. I just finished 66,667 words (exactly,) so I am officially 2/3 of the way though my first draft. Actually, I am past page 300, so that would indicate that I am about 3/4 of the way through. However, I am concentrating on word count rather than page count. Thankfully, I am meeting my weekly goals and pounding out the story in my copious free time. It is only by meeting my daily goals that my weekly count adds up. I couldn’t imagine trying to catch up 4000 words in a day or two.
My reading plan mentioned earlier this month was inspired with the article “My Novella Dilemma: Making the Case for a Maligned Form” in the July/August 2009 issue of Poets and Writers. Several novellas were listed in the article, and I decided to pick up as many as I could find.
I just finished reading “I Am Legend” by Richard Matheson. I had seen all three movies, four if you include the “controversial ending” version of the 2007 film. The book was much better than all three movies. In my opinion, that’s a shame. Three differnet screenplays, three different directors, three different actors, and none of them captured Robert Neville’s lonlieness, dread, madness, hope, and final surrender quite as well as the novella.
Next up, “Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck. I have not seen any movies based on this story. However, I kinda remember reading it in high school. It’s one of the few books I remember from my English reading assignments, along with “Lord of the Flies.” I’m looking forward to this one.
– Brennan Harvey