This past November I’ve been on a journey to write 50,000 words in one month, and on Sunday, I hit my goal. Got a certificate and this cute little badge. I was very proud of myself because I had some monumental distractions to overcome. First of all, I have a new little granddaughter who is absorbing my brain. Then, we went on a family vacation to Cape Cod. Then there were various hair-raising visits to the doctor, all of which went well, but occupied a certain amount of mental space. Then there was Crime Bake and Thanksgiving. Oh, and on Nov. 7, my third Maggie Dove mystery, Maggie Dove and the Lost Brides, was published. So the fact that I wrote any words is remarkable.
Not all 50,000 of the words I wrote are fabulous. I suspect that by the time I’m done, I’ll wind up using about 10,000 of them. But even the words I cut will have helped me to get to where I needed to go. I know what the book is about now! I know who the main characters are and what’s worrying them. I’ve got a pretty good idea of how they talk. Best of all, I know where the novel begins and where it ends. (The middle is problematic, but it always is.)
I would have figured out all of that eventually, I think. I didn’t need to do it in a month, and yet I find NaNoWriMo so energizing. I think better under pressure. I’ve noticed that when I’m in a friendly conversation, I can’t remember the names of half the books I’m talking about. But when I’m teaching a class, I remember everything. It’s like my mind needs pressure to work.
For the next few days I’m with my granddaughter. She smiled at me for the first time! And then I’ll read through the 50,000 words and begin figuring out what to do. I’m excited, and I can’t wait to see what happens. So thank you NaNoWriMo community.
How about you? Did you take part this year? How did it go for you? Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.