I've been thinking a lot, lately, about the many iterations of the Taoist aphorism that "a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step": How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time; Rome wasn't built in a day; Little by little; Day by day; That Shel Silverstein poem about Melinda Mae eating a whale.
(A quick digression—does anyone else have a bunch of these illustrations permanently stuck in their head? Silverstein's illustrations weren't as haunting as Stephen Gammell's eerie black and white images in Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, but both have lodged themselves deep in my brain.)
The reason these phrases have been running through my mind, probably obviously, is because they provide a pretty apt framing of what it's like to write a novel. Much like eating a whale, or walking a thousand miles, the thought of writing tens of thousands words is daunting—but to revise and rewrite all of those words one, two, three, four or many more times feels nearly impossible.
It's not, of course. Lots of people do it. And they do it by putting one word in front of the other.
These are very simple instructions, which can be both comforting and frustrating. Whatever I'm experiencing with my writing on any given day, bad or good, the directive remains the same: Having trouble with rewriting a scene? Put one word in front of the other. Feeling discouraged or overwhelmed? Put one word in front of the other. Riding a high and typing up a storm? Put one word in front of the other. Just starting, or midway through, or nearing the end—put one word in front of the other.
So that's it. That's the directive, the secret to finishing big things, and I could leave this ramble there. But, if you're interested, I've found a couple of corollaries that help to keep me sane.
The first is that when something becomes a mantra, it is at turns encouraging and annoying. It makes me think of this episode in season two of How I Met Your Mother ("Arrivederci, Fiero"), in which the gang reminisces on their memories in Marshall's car when its odometer hits 200,000 miles. In one of the scenes, a young Ted and Marshall drive across the country, and the tape player in the car is stuck on the Proclaimer's "I'm Gonna Be (500 miles)". They are, throughout a montage, delighted and dejected while listening to the song—and it's during this sequence that Marshall says something which has stuck with me for years and which I find to be inescapably good advice: "It comes back around."
The second is that portion size matters when eating a whale. No one but Melinda Mae, apparently,wants to spend 80 years eating it bite by bite. I certainly don't want to spend 80 years writing a single novel. Yet at the same time, Melinda can't eat her whale in a single sitting, and I can't squeeze out more than a handful of thousands of words on any good day of writing. So there must be some in-between that sees the feat accomplished in a span of time that feels reasonable. For me, it's about a thousand words a day. If I can write at least a thousand words a day, I'll be done with this revision by the end of 2025, and done with the next draft by the end of March, which is my 30th birthday. That seems attainable.
Put one thing after the other. Know that motivation will come back around. Find a pace that feels approachable. That's just about all the big picture knowledge I've gained while learning to write. It's simple, and not new, and immensely difficult, and very worthwhile.
I hope framing it this way might spark something for you! If not, I hope it will at least build empathy for why I'm taking so long with my novels!
☕ Project Curses
The new draft of Curses is sitting at just under 30K words, which means I've officially crossed the quarter-way mark, even as my projected word count continues to inflate. I'm also kind of hitting my stride—the past couple weeks have been the smoothest and most productive so far, despite including some of the most difficult chapters to revise (the first ~40% of the book will require the majority of my changes). So things are going well (knock on wood!).
Based on my current progress and pace, I think I'll be able to reach out to y'all in either late-November or early-December with some information about signing up to be a Beta Reader (i.e., being someone who reads an early version of the novel and provides feedback). Until then, I'll just be putting one word in front of the other!
Novel Progress Bar
% revised
♟️ Project Rift
Work on Project Rift continues to go well, but it's slow going as it's been on the back burner for both myself and my co-writer. Even so, we're closing in on 20K words, or, very roughly, 20% (it's still really hard to know how long this one will be). We'll both be able to devote more time to it toward the end of the year, and it's heartening to see that we'll have somewhere between a third and a half of a draft when we do.
Novel Progress Bar
% drafted
⏳ New Short Story (Untitled)
Last month I completed a new short story, "TADA!™", which I think turned out really well. It's currently on submission to a handful of literary magazines, and while it will take, conservatively, a few months to hear anything back about it, I hope to have news to share with you soon.
That story will also be part of the portfolio I submit to MFA programs this year, which is good—I want my portfolio to feature my strongest, most up-to-date writing. Which is why I'm also writing another new story, which is currently untitled. It's in its early stages, but I'm excited about it!
These two stories, along with some excerpts from Project Curses, will make up my portfolio for most of the programs I apply to. It's exciting to have that figured out, and it means that I'll be able to start submitting applications soon (because obviously I needed more to do!).
📚 Reading
The Book of Records by Madeleine Thien | I almost hesitate to recommend this book, because it's one of the more challenging things I've read this year—and that's including all the Camus, Kafka, and Borges I read in the spring. But I am recommending it, because it's really, really excellent, and worth the challenge. Describing the book is challenging too. It's speculative in the sense that the primary viewpoint character, Lina, and her father live in a liminal space called The Sea, where refugees and migrants stop on their journeys—sometimes for mere hours, and sometimes for many years. But it also features three intertwining historical fiction narratives about Hannah Arendt, Baruch Spinoza, and the Chinese poet Du Fu, and also delves into parental relationships, climate change, and philosophy. There's a lot going on; there's a lot that I know I missed, or that went over my head; and yet, I still received so much from this story.
Deadbeat by Tame Impala | Tame Impala has been an indie staple for years, and while that status is deserved, I still didn't expect just how much I'd dig this new album. It's different. It's vibey. It's drenched in somber tones and self-reflection, but also layered with danceable beats and layered hooks. It's good. I've listened to it maybe four times now and I'm still digging it. If nothing else, put the single "Dracula" on your Halloween playlist—and if you're already a fan and want a treat, watch the acoustic NPR Tiny Desk set.
From the Pyreby The Last Dinner Party | I really dig The Last Dinner Party—I'm not sure whether it's their theatrical energy, or their winding, allusive lyrics, or their commitment to a particular and dark aesthetic, but they've got something going for them. They describe their sophomore album as a collection of stories bound together by the album, and that feels apt. Definitely worth a listen—and definitely a great album for spooky season!
🍿 Watching
The Chair Company| Sarah and I love everything Tim Robinson does, and this new show is no exception. The tone of the first episode is somewhere between the sketch-style awkward encounters of I Think You Should Leave and the kind of creepy, unsettling humor of Friendship—which I know doesn't sound appealing. It won't be, to some folks—which is fair. It's not usually the type of humor I'm drawn to, either. But it works, in the most ridiculous, weird, wonderful way. We're eagerly anticipating the next episode!
In the frame: A lovely fall hike with friends to the evocatively named Graveyard Fields.
I don't have a good idea for today's Show & Tell that doesn't involve a bunch more words, so I'm cashing in my quarterly get-out-of-jail-free cat picture. Enjoy!
Hooray for cool weather and open windows! Weasley says hello!
Enjoying Coffee Chats?
Visit the links below to support the newsletter and discover more of my writing 👇
💌 Share the newsletter with a friend → Hit forward!
📬 Send me your questions, ideas, and suggestions → Email me
Hi there! I hope you’re doing well, and that, wherever you are, crisp, cool fall air is kissing your skin, and the scent of leaves and sun are filling your nose, and that you’re finding some peace in a not always peaceful world. Autumn is intermittent for me, right now (peace, too, though that’s a topic for another time). Back home, in Asheville (home? Can I call a place I’ve lived so briefly “home”? It’s the place where my things and my cat are, at least), the mornings have been misty and...
Hello! So, as you (hopefully) already know, it's Monday, and Monday is, obviously, not Sunday. This is coming late, is what I'm saying—but I have a good excuse! This weekend was full of family and fun and good food and hiking and all of the other things requisite for good mental health. It was a sorely needed reprieve during this period of continued uncertainty. Which brings us to today's reflection on uncertainty and sureness. I'll say up front that I don't have any particularly great...
Hi! Jumping right in: Yesterday, Sarah and I were fortunate enough to attend the 25th annual National Book Festival, hosted by the Library of Congress. This was and is a big deal to me for a couple reasons: First, because this was our first visit back to DC since making an ultimately very healthy move under less than ideal circumstances. It was wonderful to reconnect with our friends here and lovely to experience this event with so many of them (love to all of you!). But it was also hard to...
