So last time I wrote, I mentioned that I was going to be doing my own version of NaNoWriMo for the month of June and I thought I would give a little update.
1. NaNoWriMo is HARD.
Okay, so I knew this going in, but I don't think I fully understood just how hard it would be. I have so much more respect for the people who have successfully (or even unsuccessfully) participated in NaNoWriMo. It's so difficult to sit down and write that much every day. Of course, some days I wrote more, but other days I have been checking the word count after every sentence.
2. I'm terrible at consistency.
Okay, so here's what happened. June 1st came and I wrote *whispers* absolutely nothing. Yep, that's right. I went shopping for my sister's birthday gift and did not write. However, I compensated the next day by writing double. I then stayed on track for a couple of days. Then I had a weak day: I only wrote 400 words. No biggie, right? I can just make it up the next day. I definitely did not do that. I have also missed an entire week due to father's day, getting sick briefly, editing the completed manuscript, and other complications (including a seminar I took at my college that took more time than I thought it would and good old-fashioned laziness).
3. I'm extra-critical of myself.
I've definitely been beating myself up about not staying on track, but I'm learning to get better about that. I'm getting back on track today and not worrying about the time missed. That was part of the point of doing this not during actual NaNoWriMo: no pressure. Even with missed time, my manuscript has nearly tripled in length. I have written 2 complete manuscripts, one almost complete, and started this one and this is the first I have ever outlined. It's a rough outline, but an outline nonetheless. That has made it a lot easier to keep going. Thus far, I haven't had any cases of writer's block, which is basically a miracle, so my delays have been partially out of my control and partially in my control. I can't do anything about the out of control stuff, but I can work on my motivation. I'm going to try keeping to a writing schedule so that I write the same time every day. Unless I get super crazy, this won't be done by the end of June, but there's still a very real chance of finishing in early July and starting edits. So that's my goal.
I'm working on fueling my self-disappointment into better action in the future. It's a learning process! But what better way to learn than with something fun like writing? So off I go to write!
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