I had set December 31, 2008 as the deadline for finishing draft number one of my yet-to-be-named novel. I’m now stating that there is no way I’m going to finish by then. No way, no how.
I’m okay with that. My original deadline was based on the thought that it was going to take me approximately 110,000 words to complete the draft. That prediction, of course, was based on absolutely nothing other than my pulling a number from a dark place and saying “that sounds good” (okay, it’s also based on the understanding that the average novel is between 80,000 and 120,000 words, with most falling in the 95,000 to 110,000 range).
It turns out that 110,000 words will not be enough to finish the first draft, and I absolutely will NOT rush through the ending to come in around a specific number of words. I will hit 110,000 before the end of the year (as of right now, I’m less than 700 away — I may actually pass the 110,000 mark tonight). I will not finish the book until probably January 10th.
Here’s the thing — it’s okay. This isn’t a brief for work where, if I miss the filing deadline the courts won’t accept it. This isn’t a work under contract where, if I miss the due date in the contract I could trigger some sort of penalty clause. This is a work in progress, and I’m only on the first stage. If I finish on January 10th, instead of December 31st, the world won’t end. My book won’t suddenly turn to a pile of crap. Agents won’t reject me because I missed my own artificial deadline (I’m sure they’ll find plenty of other reasons… 
). All that matters is that I’m close to completing it. All that matters is that I’m going to complete it. All that matters is that it gets completed.
Really, all that matters is that I’m loving writing it.
Hope everyone has had, and continues to have, a happy holiday.
