Percentage: 66.25 (104% of target)
This is the closest to the actual target I have ever been in NaNo. This time last year I had a word count of 42,786, in June's Socnoc I was just under 40k, and in 2010 I was on 43,479 - so I am around 10k less than what I normally have at this stage. I've gotta up my game! But as you can see, I am still ahead of the lead, so that's something.
I've also been writing this story in a different manner from my previous ones - usually I start at the beginning and write until the end - but here I've been jumping back and forth, fleshing the story out here and the story out there. So... we'll see where it goes.
Also, I just added up all my blog posts for November to see what their word count amounts to - and deleting the extracts that I cut and pasted it comes to 6,379 words. Therefore, if I wrote in my blog less and my story more, I would be On Track with previous experiences.
Still, in 2002 and 2004 I had given up at this point - so that's something.
And in 2003 I had 45 117 after deleting around 5000?!!!
I guess I didn't have a full time job then!
Had to stay at work until 8 pm tonight because it is the phone system change over. This was not conducive to writing, although I did take my laptop in, I thought it would be better for me to deal with stock, on account of the fact that they were paying me to wait for the techies to finish doing their techie stuff. Then I had to test to make sure the techie stuff had worked. Did a bit of writing on my break, further developing the characters of Rata and Maia, the kaka sisters.
“Come on,”
said Rata, “follow me, I'll show you around.” She nudged him with
her head and took flight, Maia and Tiriki following after her.
It did not take
long to fly the circuit of the enclosure.
“This is the
feeding table,” she explained, landing on a large wooden platform,
over which rose a little roof. “The Provider fills it with seed
every evening, and usually puts greenstuff and sweetstuff on it in
the mornings. I like the orange bits the best – carrots and
oranges.”
“I prefer
apple,” added Maia.
There was one of
the males feeding there as they landed, a large and powerful
specimen. He regarded Tiriki with ill disguised contempt.
“This is Toka,”
Maia said, landing beside him and lowering her head so that he could
preen her. “He's my mate.”
“And don't you
forget it,” muttered the large kaka. Tiriki shivered at the
aggression in his voice. A few sparrows clustered around, gobbling up
the fallen seed and Toka chased them away.
“And here's the
sweet-water,” Rata hung from one of the inverted glass jars,
licking at the liquid that spilled from it. “It's full of sugary
goodness,” she explained, flapping her wings to keep balance.
Tiriki flew up to
the tops of one of the enclosure's trees. Its trunk had been bisected
a full beak's width from the wire ceiling.
“The Provider
trims them,” Rata explained, joining him. Sugary water glistened on
the tip of her curved bill. “To stop them breaking through the
wire. Tiriki flew up to cling upside-down from the ceiling, but the
wire was thick – too thick for even a strong kea beak to damage.
Whoever
created this cage, he though.
Did a very thorough job.
“Come on,”
Rata called, “there's more to see.” Once again, she was off,
Tiriki took after her. Sure, it wasn't that big a cage and he could
show himself around, but he rather enjoyed her effervescent company.
“And these are
the nest boxes,” she said, landing on a tall wooden box, attached
to the trunk of the tree. “This is Maia's,” she added. Tiriki
stood on the little perch and peered into the small hole.
“Cosy,” he
said. There was a simple latch and hook attached to the front. “Is
that how the human opens it?” He asked.
Rata nodded,
opening her beak to say a little more when suddenly Toka flew at
Tiriki, bowling him from the perch and sending him sprawling.
“Stay...
Away... From... My.... Nest!” He said, speaking slowly and loudly,
as though he considered Tiriki an imbecile.
Tiriki struck the
ground, turned it into a roll and stood up, shaking the dirt from his
feathers. “I was just looking,” he said. “Besides, it's not
much of a nest if you can't hatch eggs in it.”
Toka appeared to
consider that a dire insult, and dropped on Tiriki like an inelegant
falcon. Tiriki tumbled out of the way.
“Toka, Tiriki,”
came Maia's voice, heavy with pleading. “Please don't fight.”
“Why not?”
Toka growled. “This little fellow's a right real upstart. Just out
of his fledgling feathers and thinks he can do as he pleases. It's
time somewhat taught him a lesson.” But he relented, flapping up to
perch atop the nestbox and glare down at Tiriki.
“Come on,”
said Rata, “I'll show you my box. Not that it's much use, at the
moment, as I haven't got a mate,” she paused, stepping closer to
Tiriki and eyeing him. “Yet.”
Tiriki shifted
away, uncomfortable. “I'm only a yearling,” he reminded her.
“Young and free – no mate for me.”
“Pity,” Rata
sighed. “But I'll wait another year.”
Tiriki snorted.
“Try three. That's how long it'll be.”
“Oh,” the
young female looked disappointed, then she shrugged. “I spose
there's not much point really, is there? It's not like we're anything
more than brood hens. Lay 'em and lose 'em.” She gave him a
friendly nip. “Come on, betcha can't catch me!” And then she was
off again, flapping and clowning through the branches.
(Rata's a flirt and Maia's in an abusive relationship)
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