Camp NaNoWriMo Update: July 1st – 7th4 min read

‘Tis the season for crappy drafting and learning how to write all over again. I’ve decided once again to take on July’s version of Camp NaNoWriMo. I haven’t won a NaNoWriMo since 2015, but this year I’m coming in with a brand new book idea.

On top of that, I’m actually telling people about my idea? Like, more than just strangers on the internet? I actually told a couple of my IRL friends (who’ve been supportive and like the idea). So I think that’s part of what’s got me feeling more motivated to write than in the past three years.

So what is my super brilliant idea? Despite my Camp NaNo profile’s placeholder of “People do things and stuff happens,” I am working on a (vague) pitch/synopsis as I write random scenes as they pop in my head.

So here’s what I have so far:

Paxton Reeves is the first transgender player to be brought up from the Minor Leagues to play professional baseball for the Philadelphia Phillies. He’s only been contracted for one season, which feels more like a year-long audition than a dream come true. Between being misgendered in sports articles, tested for steroids three times as often as the other MLB players, and everyone from sports reporters to game announcers to his own teammates hyperanalyzing his every move and stat, Pax is convinced he’ll be sent off the team due to a fabricated scandal or a mental breakdown beyond his control.

But there is some light in his life. Lindsay, the sister he hasn’t been close with since she went to college decides to take a job in Philly to be closer to him. The second baseman, René seems to be the best friend, and ally, Pax has on the whole team. Not to mention, this boy named Oliver might make his time in Philly off the field worth-while, even if it’s all temporary.

After all, Paxton only has about six months—maybe longer, if he can help pull an underdog team that’s been in bad shape for a few consecutive seasons into the playoffs—to prove he can play on the same level as the cis men who want to send him back down to the league where dreams of fame and fortune in sports die.

Onto the statistics!

How am I doing?

So I started off fine those first two days! I was right on track, but the excitement of NaNoWriMo wore off real quick, because after the second day, I took an unintentional four-day break.

Fortunately, my goal is small enough that slacking off a few days hasn’t made it unmanageable yet. I’m only aiming for 20,000 words because this is such a brand new idea. I don’t have anything resembling a plot, and honestly, I’m probably going to be doing more research than writing this month. My hope is that I’ll be able to write some random scenes inspired by my research as I go along and that they’ll eventually form a plot without me realizing. I’m really relying on the possibility of an “A-ha!” moment, is what I’m saying.

At least, for research, baseball isn’t a sport I have to learn how to play. I played eight seasons of softball from elementary to high school, and I’ve followed the Phillies for most of my life. So I have the rules down. But I haven’t played a game in six or seven years, so I still have to refresh on mechanics and best-practices.

But the most challenging part of this will be that I obviously have no idea what it’s like to play professional baseball. This is where I’m trying to find books, movies, documentaries, fiction, non-fiction, literally anything about the MLB so I can get a sense of what it’s like. I know this month is only a first draft, but if I continue this WIP, I’d really like to have the resources at hand to make this feel as authentic as possible. But I do suppose I’m getting ahead of myself! Back to writing some scenes bouncing around in my mind!

Are you doing Camp NaNoWriMo this month? What’s your project about?

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