I Did It!!!

Somehow, I managed to finish NaNo two years in a row.  This undertaking definitely takes stamina, courage, and determination.  It’s not easy to make this happen, especially during the month of November when we have a holiday and perhaps family visiting.  There’s always lots of prep work when you’re entertaining guests, cooking, cleaning, and shopping, etc.  That extra added onto daily life events doesn’t leave a lot of room left over for creative endeavors.  Then, when you really think about it, is any month any better?  In today’s world, we have a lot going on in our lives all the time.

I received a note from NaNo that said over 300,000 people signed up this year.  Out of that amount, 41,940 writers made it to the end.  You reach the end by writing 50,000 or more words by November 30.

The thing about NaNo is that there is a whole community of support should you need it at any time during the process.  The writing community there gives you pep talks and if you’re stumbling over something, you can go to their blog and get the answers you seek.  They’ve got all the categories covered when it comes to helping you reach your goal.  There’s even tracking so you can see how far away you are from the finish line.

 Free Clipart

I don’t partake in any of these forums because I don’t want to use my writing time conversing with other writers if I don’t have a particular problem to discuss.  I sure don’t mind helping others out with their problems, but I usually try to use the little writing time I have strictly for writing.  It’s a different story once I reach my 50,000.

For those of you who would like to enter but shy away because you think its undoable, please think again next year.  I know they recommend that you write everyday, but this isn’t necessary as long as you can make all your writing time count.  I was thinking about my NaNo project even when I was doing other things.  I made notes for my WIP in my head, or on scraps of paper that I had in my pocket. 

There is one thing to stress and keep in mind.  When you right you need to be in create mode only – DO NOT, under any circumstances, edit as you go.  I always hit the keyboard running and would crank out between 3,000 and 5,000 words at a time.  Tell yourself you can do it because you can.  Another thing to keep in mind is the fact that you’re writing a first draft.  Believe me; you will need to fix many things later.  That’s okay.  The purpose is to write, letting creativity take over while avoiding distractions – not an easy thing to do.

I salute all of us who took on this creative endeavor.  Even if you didn’t finish, you’re still a winner because you tried, so you didn’t procrastinate and say “maybe next year”.  On top of that, you also started a novel and that has to feel good because at least you’re making it happen.  You’re writing.

Now we can all breathe again and say, “thank God that’s over,” but I hope all of you will finish what you started and not just put it away in a drawer.  Now’s the time to tie up loose ends, polish it, do rewrites, have it edited, and eventually published.

On another note, I’m still taking care of a sick cat and organizing things to move in the spring, depending on how fast the house sells.

Comet is now getting children’s Benadryl along with her heart and water pills.  We have a humidifier running day and night and hoping she gets over this soon.  So far, she’s been a little trooper about taking all this medicine, but she isn’t crazy about us cleaning up her nose all day long.

Comet

We did go out very early the day after Thanksgiving for the first time since we’ve lived here.  It was still dark outside with tons of stars twinkling away in the sky.  The thermometer on the patio said 34 degrees, but on the north side of the house, there was ice on the windshield we had to scrape off before we could even get in the car.  What was going through my mind?  We had to scrape ice every morning in Alaska.  Someday, I’ll write more about those years.

Alaska Sky in Winter

We covered the rest of the plants today because by Wednesday, we’ll be in the deep freeze for a while.  The last forecast is for fourteen degrees at night with low thirties for a daytime high.  Ugh!  Drag out the sweatpants, thermals and fleece.  I definitely won’t be a happy person to live with.  I swore when I left Alaska that I was done with that, but this time I really mean it.  This is fine for all you snow and ice lovers, but this is not me.  At least by February the worst of it will be over with for this year.  I’m counting the days.  As I'm writing this tonight for posting in the morning, it's started to snow.