Tuesday, December 01, 2009

NaNoWriMo -- Abort


Anyone who actually reads the columns along the side of my blog may have noticed that this month was National Novel Writing Month and that I attempted to join in. Somehow, I stalled on Nov. 8 at 6,548 words. Well, I know how and it has to do with teaching and grading and parenting.
If I was trying to write 50,000 words in a month then I made a dismal attempt and failed miserably. However, since my novel is already in progress, I added those six thousand words to my work in progress and I'm at 38,000. In addition, think I really know where my book is going now. So maybe I'll look at it as adding 6,548 more words to my novel rather than a failure.
Next quarter I'm teaching even more hours, so what I absolutely need to do is get prepared for the winter break and plan to write like crazy for those two weeks, even though the kids will be home and my parents may come visit.
You don't think that's setting myself up for failure, do you?

5 comments:

BFF said...

You could never fail

Stephanie said...

I guess that depends on how you define failure.

It seems to me that any amount of writing you do during that 2-week time period is a good thing, right?

Just write. Don't put so much pressure on yourself for something that you love. It will all come together eventually.

Congrats on the progress that you made in November. Can't wait to read it!

Linda said...

I think it's great that you even started and that you now know which direction in which to take you novel. It's more than I've done and I am retired.

You Had To Ask said...

Learning to happily, peacefully, live in between the "doing nothing" and that brief moment when "you've just accomplished a goal" is something I read recently and of course looking at someone else is the easiest way for me to understand it. (smile)

I think the author was trying to point out how much time we spend in a space we might call "...Chasing that euphoric feeling that will happen when I do blah blah...." rather than enjoying the day, today, whatever I doing or not doing.

Your writing is wonderful, whenever you do it and however many words it take. Your writing seems to come from your life, so you have to live it in order to write, which you are doing.

Sorry...I am such a sermonizer..I wonder if there is 12 step group for people like me.

Paulita said...

Thanks for that reminder about not always running for the next finish line.

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