And so it begins. Here’s today’s progress on the battlefield adventure about a widowed nurse from a Confederate hospital aboard a west-bound train pulled by a Union war engine — now with military intrigue, steampunk Texas rangers, undead political separatists, murderous plots, bushwackers, bandits, sabotage, and epic scenes of mayhem:

Project: Dreadnought
New Words: 2306 (it’s a start!)
Present Total Word Count: 2306 words
Goal: 100,000 words

Observations: I’d be astonished if this comes in under 120,000 words, but I may as well keep the goals modest for now. Though I have much of this story sketched out, I’m still not sure what the scope is going to look like — which may sound lame, but there you go. Let me try it this way: I know the shape of the story, I just don’t know what color it is, what size bra it wears, who does its hair, or where it buys its shoes. Okay. Yeah. That’s not very helpful either.

Ludicrously long and temporary first sentence: “Down in the laundry room with the bloody-wet floors and the ceiling-high stacks of sheets, wraps, beddings and blankets, Vinita Lynch was elbows-deep in a vat full of dirty pillowcases because she’d promised — she’d sworn, and on her mother’s life — that she’d find a certain pocket watch belonging to Private Hugh Morton’s father before the wind-up device was plunged into the tubs of simmering, soapy water and surely destroyed for good.”

Resolutions: Must average at least 10,000 words a week on this. MUST.

Things Accomplished in Real Life: Chugged through dayjob editorial duties which are a bit of a bear right now (stupid screwed up digital file with loads of stupid errors); straightened house; investigated sinkhole outside my kitchen window and took pictures; ran to Walgreens for yet more allergy medication; printed out some forms that I need to mail; did not take a four-hour nap again.

Reason for Stopping: I have another potentially-important-creative-project on my plate right now too, and I need to change gears for an hour or two.