I'm doing National Novel Writing Month, known as NaNoWriMo, for the first time this year. I'm happy to announce my word count is on target as of this morning. I knew I would skip writing last Saturday to indulge in a day of play, so I knocked off enough extra words in advance to cover the day off.The plan is to do that again this week because I have a local author's book signing to attend on Saturday and I've signed up for a three-hour class on writing the robust scene Sunday afternoon. Those two events could sabotage me if I haven't planned ahead.
All that sounds good, doesn't it--slightly ahead of schedule, a detailed outline nearby, plenty of coffee and chocolate? It's awesome, until I see what the overachievers are doing.
One Colorado published author I know is aiming for a six-day win and plans to write another 150,000 words before December 1st. That's the equivalent of four NaNoWriMos or the first draft of two complete novels. He's been doing this November exercise for several years, which makes me wonder why I'm just now trying it for the first time. It obviously works for those who take it seriously.
I'm in awe of this writer's word count after week one, but my biggest goal for the month is to establish an almost daily writing habit while getting that magic 50,000 words finished. So far, I've surprised myself. Before the month began, I created an outline for the story and blocked out my writing schedule on a calendar, allowing time for special events, grocery shopping, and even a little exercise.
I'll report again in a couple of weeks and let you know if I hit a wall or am still in the running.
Meanwhile, those of you are doing NaNoWriMo 2011, are you on schedule? Are you a veteran or a first timer? What did you do ahead of time to prepare?
And if anyone wants to buddy up, my NaNoWriMo name is PattyPetunia (and my word count as of yesterday evening was 12,195).
