It says Dispatches From the Querying Trenches, but maybe it should be re-titled Dispatches From the NaNoWriMo Trenches. Let Kirsten tell you more....
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So that was November.
The month I took on and ‘won’ NaNoWriMo.
For the uninitiated, National Novel Writing Month is an annual creative writing project that takes place during November with the strapline ‘the world needs your novel’. Participants attempt to write 50,000 words between November 1 and November 30 and my writing friends were signing up left, right and centre.
At first I was cynical. I wasn’t entirely sure the world did need my novel – after all, there are plenty of fantastic novels out there already, aren’t there? And 50,000 seemed an awful lot of words. It took almost a year to get to that point with my first novel - how could I possibly cram all that writing, all that thinking, all that angst-ing into one measly month? And a 30 day month at that. What if the muse didn’t strike? What if I rushed out of the gates with 5,000 words a day and ran out of steam by Bonfire Night. What if I left it until the last minute and attempted an unseemly and ultimately unsuccessful gallop to the finishing line. Either way, I was dooming myself to failure.
Nonetheless I signed up. I was 23k words through my second novel - a love story set on an archaeological dig - and progress was slow. Even if I only completed 10,000 words, it would still be a result. Plus everyone else was doing it and I didn’t want to miss out on the fun and camaraderie. (I know, I know - I’m such a ‘follower’…)
Well, what a great, big whirlwind of a month it’s been.
720 hours later, I have added 50, 016 words to ‘Muddy Milly’ (working title!) and have pretty much completed the first draft. And it’s been brilliant.
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There is something very freeing about the manta ‘ don’t get it right, get it written.’ With my first book, I spent hours polishing the same old passages - passages that didn’t even make it into be final cut of the book. With NaNo there is little time to vet what you’re writing - you just push on. You write whether or not the muse has bothered to turn up but with the characters and story always front of mind. I found it much easier to crack on than on previous occasions when I hadn’t turned the computer on for the best part of the week. I accept this isn’t for everyone but I believe it made me braver and ultimately a better writer. The characters took on a life of their own and decided to go off-piste on a couple of occasions. A couple of new characters made an appearance. I even wrote my first sex scene!
I’m so chuffed to have completed the challenge. Like many of us, I don’t have a whole load of control over some aspects of my life at the moment, and it’s been great to prove to myself that I can still take on and finish projects. Plus, in the eternal quest for agents and publication, writing is so often all about rejection or ‘failing’. It’s lovely to ‘win’ for once.
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The certificate has pride of place on the fridge. I’m showing my stats to anyone who will look – and even people who would rather not. Even the teens have said well done! |
The support and camaraderie part was everything I hoped it would be and many thanks to Sue, Moira, Jane, Karen, Tara, Cath, Kate, Alexis, Jan, Julie, Cass, Catherine and the bunch from Reading Writers for making it so much fun. I couldn’t have done it without you guys. We are all winners and may all our writing dreams come true.
Here’s to doing it all over again next November.
In the meantime, a very happy December to you all and I’m off to start my Christmas shopping!
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Comments (33)
And 'welcome' to the world of writing sex scenes! :)
Well done you!!! This adventure sounds like it has been very exciting AND fruitful!
The principle behind this challenge seems to make sense. I am very glad you have found it so motivating. I also appreciate your thought about behind glad to be a winner in this instance.
Jane x
We used to have an archaeological society at school - my abiding memory is going all over Yorkshire visiting various sites in a battered old van, sitting on benches in the back. Every time it went round a corner, half the occupants would lurch across and end up on top of the others, which was quite entertaining for a mixed group of teenagers! It wouldn't be allowed nowadays of course. Hope Muddy Milly has as much fun!