Another 20K + Tolstoy

The current work-in-progress is up to 80,000 words now, and all is going according to plan. That's not to say there haven't been any surprises along the way. As a plotting pantser, I map out the main events of each chapter before I write it, and I keep the overall story arc in mind, but anything and everything that happens in between is a writing-in-the-moment sort of thing. And that's where most of the fun happens. Supporting characters emerge from the sidelines to take the spotlight, main characters meet a sudden demise, bigger bad guys show up to throw a wrench in the works. Exploring the unknown is what keeps me going.

On the reading front, I've started War and Peace. After successfully tackling The Odyssey earlier this year, I figured I'd give another classic a go. Expecting dense, inaccessible prose, too many characters to keep track of, and a whole lot of period-piece scenes of drawing rooms and battlefields, I've been pleasantly surprised by the humanity of Tolstoy's characters. They leap off the page with all the quirks and foibles of the average person you might meet on the street, despite their Russian names and nicknames. And sure, there are plenty of drawing rooms and battlefields, but somehow the author makes them interesting, too. There's even some unexpected humor sprinkled throughout, which I always appreciate. All this to say, I'm actually enjoying it, and while it might take me a while, I'm planning to read all the way through.