[Writing Post] Got Ninjas?
Wow. Look at that. December 1st. NaNoMo is officially over. What now? (You know, besides panicking over Thanksgiving not cleaned up and Christmas prep already behind?) Not sure what to do with the NaNoMo project? Most of the editing is daunting, or maybe the project isn’t quite done but not sure where to go? Maybe it’s time to send in the Ninjas. Everything is better with Ninjas (and Bacon). No really. Ask anyone.
Though bacon only provides a tasty treat, Ninjas are actually a really useful resource. A writer friend on Facebook recently posted that she was at the point of her story where she hated everyone and everything. It was time to nuke the whole town or send in the Ninjas to kill everyone. What’s not to love about that?
Ninjas are a great tool – both literally and figuratively. Literally, they’re limited to stories dealing specifically with Ninjas, but that can be quite fun. Figuratively, they’re much more useful to the writer. Figurative Ninjas let you get through your problem spots without guilt, despair, or agony. The Figurative Ninjas let you say “Enough. Move on. I’ll fix it in ‘post’.” (That’s media talk for editing – which is where you’d fix those transitions from Ninja Breaks.)
I love Ninja Breaks – even though I haven’t used them extensively. I do have a couple of places where I knew I was meandering through a scene and not getting anywhere. I employed the Figurative Ninjas to stop the scene in its tracks and start a new one. I’ll ruthlessly chop up that scene and smooth out the transitions when I do an editing round. But without the Ninjas – I would still be stuck in that cycle of meandering writing. Now I have both a fresh perspective. Ninjas can also be used in the editing process if you’ve discovered the Wonderful World of Writing Crap. Ninjas can cut through the crap and let you get to the important parts of your stories.
So don’t think you have to write your story from beginning to end (it helps but isn’t necessary). If you find yourself in a hole or rut or just hate the story at that point – send in the Ninjas. Ninjas make everything better. Ninjas and Bacon. And yes, I was going for a record for the use of the word “ninjas” in a single article 8-). Have fun. Write hard. And Fear Not the Use of Ninjas.