National Novel Writing Month

Happy National Novel Writing Month! And also, happy one year anniversary of this blog! I started this blog last year during National Novel Writing Month in order to challenge myself to meet the word count of the contest even if I do not meet the criteria in content. No, this isn't a novel, this is just a miss-mash of all the stupid things I care about and hope other people care about as well. One of my biggest fears early on was that half way through the year, I'd get bored with writing or run out of things to write about and quit all together. While it is true that I've had some lulls in my writing this year, I have never been at a loss for things to talk about and even in those times when I am not writing, I feel guilty about it. That's something at least, right? Writing takes a great deal of discipline which I am always striving for but I don't always have. I am also prone to following my whims more often than not. Some weeks, I'll do an hour of writing every day after work and feel very proud of myself. Other weeks, I'd rather focus on knitting, baking, yoga, reading or honestly, just staring blankly at the television. But writing is a life-long struggle that I feel is worth every bit of effort.

I actually have a game plan this year to make word count. I will be writing on the blog as always but I will also be working on a bit of fiction. This is the first time I have felt the desire to write any sort of long-form fiction since high school. This is very exciting for me! At this point, I don't care if it's good or if it sucks, I just want to get the writing done. I came pretty close to making word count last year and I'm really hoping this will be the one. The only problem I foresee is that I'm going to be out of town a lot. I'm going to be gone tonight through Tuesday and then again for Thanksgiving. It is my intention to bring my laptop in the car with me and write while we drive but there has been some doubt as to whether I will actually be able to accomplish anything that way. The plus side of taking the writing on the road like that, no internet. I'm not going to say nothing is going to distract me. I am a highly distractible human. What I'm saying is that I'm going to make the effort and that's what matters.

So for all of you participating in National Novel Writing Month, good luck and I'll see you at the finish line!