I’m behind, and I know it, and I won’t get caught up for three days at least, maybe a week, but I will write 50,000 words in November! I just finished 22,682 a few minutes ago, and if you let me pretend I’m on Central Standard time, it’s only 11:44 pm on November 16, so I’m only 3,090 words behind pace. In fifteen minutes, I’ll be working on a deficit of 4,757 words.
My excuse, which isn’t an excuse as much as it is reality, is that I’m in Washington, DC with my wife on a business (her)-research(me)-vacation(both of us) trip that started on the 12th and runs through most of the 20th. I’ve tried to write in between visits to Civil War battlefields, where I’ve gotten numerous ideas for more stories. I’d like to try my hand at historical fiction, maybe with a suspense element, and I’ve loved the Civil War since fourth grade. Thank you again, Mrs. Hoepner (my teacher). The last day and a half my wife and I have visited Mt Vernon (George Washington’s home) and Monticello (Thomas Jefferson’s home). I’ve added a few more story ideas from those places as well.
The point of mentioning this trip is that writing always seems to be interrupting something, or vice versa. Few of us write our entire waking day. Most of us work 8-10 hours, have families, other interests, and obligations, and fit writing in when we can. November is no different, and even more so since Thanksgiving celebrations often take up most of that weekend. For example, we’re having family stay with us that weekend, so again my writing time will be at a premium.
But I’ll peck away, an hour here, fifteen minutes there, and probably many, many hours during the last week of the month. But I won’t despair. I still have loads of material yet to be written, dozens of scenes still untouched, and plenty of ideas to put on to paper as the first draft.
Hang in there, Wrimos! Don’t let a lost day cause you to give up. Write an extra five hundred words tomorrow, an extra five hundred the next day, and an extra 667 the third day. Then plow ahead to the finish line.
I’m still in great spirits about NNWM and you should be too. November’s half over and I’ve written almost half a novel! That’s one hell of a good start on a great accomplishment. See you next week–hopefully we’ll all be on track.
How’s your November going? Did you plan this NNWM or are you an avowed pantser. Anyone change sides from pantser to plotter or reverse? What recharges your writing batteries when you fall behind in this challenge?
I wish you the best of luck with your NaNo! Even though you’re a little behind, you can catch up if you spend an entire Sunday afternoon in front of the computer. 😉
I reached 50k on November 14, and hit 54k yesterday. I pressed myself really hard and now my brain froze. It was worth it, though. :-> You can read about my experience on my blog. I published two NaNoWriMo posts, and now I’m featuring other participants and their experiences. Here’s a short link: http://bit.ly/T1SZJz
I’m a regular pantser. However, this year I vowed to try my best to plot out the action. That was actually easier than I expected, probably since I’m writing the sequel to my first novel. I still pantsed my way through about 50% of the scenes, but the rest was planned out, and for me that’s the secret to NaNo success. Because I spent the week before NaNo planning out the first part of my project, I was able to sit down and write 10k on the first day, and 5k on the second one. It’s the fastest I’ve ever written in my life!
So good luck to you all! Bye!
Congrats on reaching your NNWM goal so soon, Nadine. I’m jealous, but will write my electrons down to their quarks by the end of the month to reach 50k, too.