Hit 50,000 words on my novel draft last night and honestly didn't think I'd make it

I've been chipping away at this fantasy story for about 8 months now, mostly after work in my little shop office. Last night I crossed 50,000 words and it felt pretty unreal because I'd quit two other drafts around chapter 3 before. The thing that surprised me was how much the writing prompts in this community actually helped me push through the boring middle parts. I kept coming back here when I got stuck on a scene or dialogue and found a prompt that sparked something. Has anyone else hit a personal word count milestone that took way longer than you expected?

2 comments

2 Comments

emmap1611d ago

omg congrats that's huge!! 50k is no joke and the fact you stuck with it after quitting other drafts makes it even sweeter. the boring middle is literally the hardest part for me too, it's like you hit that wall where the initial hype wears off but you're not close enough to the end to feel the finish line. honestly i think the writing prompts thing is kinda underrated for that because they force you to jump into a random scene or dialogue without overthinking it, which is exactly what i need when my brain is stuck in planning mode.

miab1610d ago

oh man, "the boring middle" is like the perfect way to put it. it's that weird slump where you know the story but you just have to push through the scenes that connect everything and it feels like a chore. i've definitely quit more than one draft right there because it just felt pointless. and yeah, writing prompts are such a good trick for that. they pull you out of your own head and let you just write something dumb or silly or scary without the pressure of "this has to be good." it's like a warmup for your brain. glad it's working for you too, seriously, every word counts even if it feels like a mess in the moment.