Why I did NaNo Wrimo last month

 

    I won NaNo WriMo this year. And it feels pretty amazing.

    Do you know the last time I won NaNo? 2011. When my life was even more hectic. (Going to college full-time, 2 toddlers at home, chat moderator, Part of a writing group, book reviewer for 2 professional reviewing companies, and full time care giver to my MIL who had Alzheimer's and Dementia. Not to mention all the other daily life stuff.) My load is much smaller now, so how did I win then?

    The last time I actually participated in NaNo was 5 years ago. Yes, if you look at my profile page it says I was there in 2018, but, I didn't get any word count that year. The last year and the previous years I actually wrote--I just could not get the word count.  It was bad enough that I really thought my Muse was dead. Not just for the creativity of writing, but also in all aspects of creativity. In fact I wrote a blog about the yawning emptiness I felt back in 2018. Click Here to read it. I was in a dark place when I wrote that and it was one of many things that made me sad and stressed that year.

    As this year went sideways and I found myself with much more time when I lost my job, I decided that I wanted to write. I longed to have the writing bug bite me and get lost in a scene or section of my book. And no, that rush doesn't happen during the whole book, but I know it does happen and it is really a rush. I missed it. I missed living in these worlds and being right there with my characters as they shoot off in some random direction that takes me unaware. And honestly for the past few years I didn't feel that. Each and every word I got on paper was simply meh. I felt mentally exhausted simply writing a paragraph. I even tried starting new stories in hopes that they would spark the flame, but they didn't. They ended up being another unfinished failure. I almost gave up my muse as dead. And maybe it was? Perhaps what I write with now is a new shiny adopted baby muse? I dunno. It could be. I used to say that my Muse was the Imagination Movers.

    And then as my muse began dying and becoming more unresponsive to treatment until it became confused and difficult, I thought perhaps it had become Patrick Star when he wrote the song in that one episode of SpongeBob.

    Then there was nothing but the void for a while. There was even a time that I had stopped reading for pleasure. Which I remedied and I continue to this day.

    So here I was with this corps of my muse and plenty of time on my hands, and I decided to do NaNo WriMo (National Novel Writing Month). Nano seemed like a good starting spot because there is an end goal of 50K in 30 days. It doesn't have to be pretty and it doesn't have to be specific. You just write every day. Butt in chair--which I hear is the real secret to becoming a successful author. With that in mind, I remembered what I had learned about forming habits; it takes 21 days to form a new habit and about 66 days to form a new behavior. Alright, sounds like just the thing I need. Nano is 30 days. If I run with the habit and keep writing into December every day I will form a new behavior pattern and will probably finish my novel. This is the main push to do Nano.

    Another reason is the NaNo community. I found that when I was in my writing group M.U.S.E. (Most underappreciated Super Egos) I felt inspired. Sharing my writing and getting feedback and being part of something that the others enjoyed also was wonderful for my creativity. (I think this might be part of the reason I was successful back in the day, honestly.) Hearing four different versions of a story from the same writing prompt was amazing and fun. It gave me perspective and empathy. Mostly, it encouraged me to write and share. Being part of NaNo is kind of like that. I have author friends that root me on and share their struggle. I joined multiple FB groups where I got to interact with other people that are just like me. I gave advice where I knew the answer and got some answers as well. And then there are the prep talks from famous authors that give you a boost and help you realize that they are just regular folks too. This band of brothers and sisters help me want to write and help me feel like I'm part of something more.

    I think it all worked out. I not only wrote every day (mostly) but I won NaNo. And I have been continuing my writing because I want to finish this novel. I also want to finish off all my other forgotten babies that got about halfway before I abandoned them. By the end of next year, I plan to finish all of my WIPs including the first one (Sam Wolfe) who had fought me many times over the years. Then, maybe I'll work on some of the stories that have been bouncing around in my head occasionally yelling at me to pay attention to them. 

    And the best part is that I'm writing for me. Yes, I'll try to publish them, but if they don't make it--that's alright because I actually wrote it and I lived in that world for a while and it'll be out there in the world. And that's enough. That will be fulfilling. Me and my new Muse are at the beginning of our journey together and I look forward to learning more about them and myself.

    Did you do NaNo WriMo? How did you do? How is your Muse doing? Remember to feed, water and cuddle it regularly or it will fade. :D

Has Heather disappeared off the face of the earth? No, it's just NaNoWriMo time again

 

    For a week or so there I was blogging every day again. Really just getting back into the swing of things like a champ. Most of my posts were random, which is the way I like it. Although I did try to make them fairly "author-y".

    Then poof. No more blogs. What happened? First Halloween happened, but then November 1st hit and now it's time for NaNoWriMo. 

    What is NaNoWriMo? It stands for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). And the idea is that starting on November 1st through November 30th, writers of all types (amateurs to NY Times bestsellers), sit down every day and write. The goal is to write 50,000 words in that month. It seems daunting to those who don't write daily or are slow writers, but it's not a competition. It's motivation to help you get your writing done. There are many people that are in the same boat as you who need that extra nudge to get shit done. Some people write more, some write less. Sometimes you hit your goal and sometimes you don't. 

    I have an author friend that regularly publishes multiple books a year. She writes fast and she writes all the time. She still does NaNo because it help re motivate her. I also know others who use it for it's community. At Nano you can buddy up with friends, join local groups and do "write ins" and "Sprints" and you can read pep talks from some of your favorite authors. It helps you feel more connected. It shows you that these authors are just regular people, like you , that had an idea and wrote it down.  They all started at the beginning, just like you.

    And here's a bonus. It's not about how great your first draft is. Generally the first draft is filled with grammatical errors. Or as I read one time; You're first draft is a pile of shit, that's why we edit and do revisions. But you can't clean it up if you don't get it on paper. NanoWrimo doesn't care about how pretty it is. It just wants you to vomit words on paper. That's it. Get the words in. Get your butt in a chair. Noone sees your work but you. All Nano cares about it word count.

    So, yeah, you probably won't see me much. I will try to blog from time to time if I remember something other than my novel over this next month. I will try. But my main focus right now is getting that word count. Reaching 50k by the end of November and finishing this novel. And if I can finish this one. If I can sit and write every day and it becomes a habit, then I can finish all my other poor stories that have been in a coma for years. And maybe even barf out some of the stories that have been trapped in my head as well.

    Have you tried NaNo? If you're an aspiring writer, I recommend you check it out.

See you on the other side. And good luck if you're doing it. :D

https://nanowrimo.org

 

Two weeks of blogging everyday (hopefully) in preparation of NaNoWriMo

 

                           I'm doing NaNoWrimo this year.

    For a while now I have felt uninspired. Even before the pandemic and isolation, I have had difficulty getting up the oomph to sit and write. Some of it has been my husband's health problems, a lot of it over the last couple years was a hectic work schedule managing an understaffed salon. I guess since Covid closed it down for good, I don't have to worry about that anymore. You would think I would have oodles of time to write and I do--technically.  But it just has been a struggle...

    This year I decided that come hell or high water (which both are a possibility this year. heh) I am participating in Nano. 30 glorious days of frenzied writing as I race toward 50 thousand words by the end of November. I stress, but I also work really well under pressure. The one time I specifically remember winning NaNo was during a time that I was going to college full time, had two toddlers, a house to clean, 2 companies I reviewed books for and a writing group that I was in. And somehow, I won. I wrote everyday for that as well as for the writing group and papers out the wazoo for undergrad work.

    If I could do it back in the day, then I should be able to motivate my unemployed, college graduate, teen mom ass into writing successfully this year. I just need some extra motivation--hence NaNoWriMo.

    I don't want to work on the book yet. Somehow it feels like cheating. I know I'll add more words afterwards as 50 K isn't enough for a full length novel. But, I want to wait until November 1st and burst through he door. So how do I get into the rythm of writing every day to get ready?  I don't want to work on other work and overextend or distract myself. And that's when it hit me...

    I'm going to blog each day. 

    I've always enjoyed putting some of the passing ideas I've had out into the world. And I am up in the wee morning hours with hubby when he gets up before the butt crack of dawn and usually stay up a couple hours after he leaves in order to wake my children for online school. What better time is there than when the house is quiet? Hubby is gone, kids are snoozing and even the cats are asleep after an early morning feeding. 

    There you have it. I will be blogging everyday until November first. And who knows. Maybe if me and my muse have a reconciliation, I may continue blogging at least weekly. 

    Let me know if you NaNo.