Last week at this time, I had completely talked myself out of doing National Novel Writing Month. I had just released Lovecraft's Curse, and I knew that November was going to be crazy for me already. There are changes afoot at my day job, and I coach my daughter's basketball team, which was starting the first weekend in November. Between that stuff and recording/editing/producing the Secret Identity podcast every week, I knew that I would have absolutely no time to do NaNoWriMo.
So of course, on October 30th I signed up for NaNoWriMo.
Why? Because as I saw everyone on Twitter and Facebook gearing up for the big challenge, I started thinking about the pros and cons of NaNoWriMo. And the fact is there are so many pros, and the only con is the pressure I put on myself. The pressure of not actually hitting the 50,000-word mark.
So because I was afraid of not being able to finish, I was going to miss out on all of the great stuff that NaNoWriMo brings. The amazing sense of community, of being a part of this wonderful writing challenge. the constant motivation from other writers, and great Twitter accounts like NaNoWordSprints. Or the knowledge that I am working on a writing project every single day, and I get to be immersed in that world for 30 days straight.
Now don't get me wrong. I write all the time. There's always a project I'm working on. But rarely do get to dedicate 30 straight days to working on something, because the rest of my life takes precedence. With NaNoWrimo, I'm making a commitment to prioritizing writing every single day.
So, I am currently on day two of NaNoWriMo, and I am working on the sequel to Lovecraft's Curse. And it feels great. Whether or not I actually hit 50,000 words this month is less of a concern to me than in years past. I'm just glad to be back in this world, with these characters, creating new stories for readers to hopefully explore and enjoy.
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