NaNo Update – Week 2 (A Little Late)

Who’d a thunk when I agreed to this endeavor that I’d be able to claim Mother Nature got in the way of my NaNo production? Well, it’s true. In case you haven’t heard, the great November Nor’easter tore up the central east coast last week. And I just happen to live right where it landed. Lots of rain, high winds, and extreme high tides wreaked havoc on the area. And knocked out the power in my house for about 18 hours.

Now, I wish I could say this is the sole reason for being about 15K words behind. But we both know I’d be lying. So, some self-doubt mixed with a television addiction, and plain old procrastination would be the real culprits. And a persistent cold. My head feels like it wants to roll off and out the door. And I’m considering letting it go.

There will be some traveling on the agenda for the next couple of weekends, but I’ll be home alone all next week, and that includes the holiday. That means writing my little heart out and though I’ve no delusions of hitting 50K before month end, I’d really like to at least double my current number to finish the month with a minimum of 30K.

If I pull out a miracle, closer to 40K would be a dream.

How is everyone else doing? Still liking the story? Ready to throw the comp out the window? Eaten your weight in chocolate? (Raised hand!) Vent or celebrate here and we’ll all support each other.

Quick First Week Update – NaNomania

The first week isn’t technically over until after tomorrow, but my weekend is looking busy so I’m throwing this up now. The bad news is, I’m a tad bit behind. The threat of a head cold required a night of cold medicine intake which resulted in sleeping the night away. All of it. So, one slow night and one zero night means writing like a fiend tonight and tomorrow. I’d really like to at least be caught up before week two starts.

The good news is, I’m having a blast. Turns out, being able to tell yourself you don’t have time to second guess, and meaning it, works wonders. Can’t remember a minor name you used 12 pages ago? Put [look back for name] and move on. Know that you need to add some info to the first two scenes to make the motivations clear? Make a mental note and keep those fingers going.

Talk about freedom!

I’m seeing parts of the story I’ve never been able to see before. Thinking of goals and motivation without wanting to jump out a window. And looking forward to having something substantial to revise. Crazy. I also wrote the most words in one night that I've ever done when 2000 words flowed onto the paper last night. I'm still wondering where all those words came from.

Would love to hear how everyone’s first week is going. Is the story writing itself? Are the characters running amuck? Anyone brought in an alien abduction just to spice things up? Fellow NaNoers want to know!