Hey, everyone. November is behind us, and another National Novel Writing Month is in the books.
I honestly didn’t know if I could do it – writing a minimum of 1667 words per day to reach 50K by November 30.
But…
Drum Roll Please…
I did it! On November 29, I crossed the line of 50K words, ending up with a total of 50,215. (My cats are happy that I’m not ignoring them as much now that it’s over.)
Little Bit is never too far away when I’m writing. He thinks he’s helping.
Cold Dark Night, the first book of my upcoming Legends of Madeira Series, is by no means finished. I need an additional 25K words to reach my goal. A lot of the words I wrote are pure garbage. There’s lots of telling and not showing, a few repetitive passages, and (as it often happens with me) the story took on a bit of a different twist than I expected.
Even on November 29, a new idea sprang in my head that I hadn’t counted on. However, I think it will make the story stronger in the long run.
I’m glad I took a break from blogging and most social media. I’m not sure I would have made my word count if I had been busy keeping up with comments and visiting other blogs. I limited my time on social media, mainly posting updates on Instagram.
Tucker: “Is she sitting at that computer again?”
Now that December is here, I’m back to blogging, although I’m going to have a limited schedule this month. I don’t want to lose the momentum I have for my WIP, and I would like to finish the first draft by the end of this month.
I learned a lot by doing NaNoWriMo. In January, I plan to write at least one post about my “adventure” on Story Empire.
A big thanks to Mae Clair for encouraging me to participate. For those of you who participated and made the goal, congratulations. If you didn’t reach 50K words, don’t despair. Every word you wrote puts you closer to a finished first draft.
And now, here’s a small (unedited) excerpt from the story. (Mae, the first part is for you.)
Tami sat in the porch swing and watched Jason as he walked to his car. At over six feet tall, he had several inches on her in height. His dark brown hair, brown eyes, square jaw and the slight cleft in his chin was enough to make any woman swoon. He also filled out a pair of jeans nicely, she noted as he scurried down the steps.
“Aren’t you getting uniforms?” she asked.
“They are supposed to be delivered to the station today. I’ll bring them home tonight.” Jason unlocked his black Camaro, then got inside. He flashed her a grin as he backed out of the driveway. Sometimes shades of the cocky detective she first met in Driscoll Lake still showed.
She’d neither liked nor trusted him at first, believing he was too self-serving to do his job adequately. She’d even gone so far as to hire a private detective to look into her sister’s background, hoping he would come up with something that would help solve the murder.
Tami took a sip of coffee, then inhaled the fresh, morning air. The dry, arid climate here was much different than Driscoll Lake. Madeira was in the high desert, but forested mountains were nearby. Many people thought this was the prettiest part of the state.
She had to admit she wouldn’t miss the humidity of Northeast Texas. The trees and greenery were another matter. However, they were in a region where the Rocky Mountains met the Great Plains. The mountainous region of north-central New Mexico wasn’t far away.
Okay, lots of work to do, but I’m pleased with the start. Did you participate in NaNoWriMo? If so, did you make your word goal? Would you participate again?
19 Responses
Congrats. Joan! I did make 50,000 and it was my first time. Whew! I’m glad I did it. I have a lot of editing ahead, too. There was more telling and taking naps…lol.
Congrats, Denise! I have lots of telling in my story and still more to go, but I’m glad I participated.The challenge kept me motivated. Now to motivate myself to finish the last 25K words this month!
Congratulations on completing NaNoMo, Joan. I didn’t take part but did knock out some great word count myself too. Good luck with the rest of the book 🙂
You have had some awesome word counts this year, Harmony! I learned that I can do a lot if I set me mind to it.
Yay, congrats on making 50k! My Nano story came up short, but i’m not too worried because I figure I can fill it out on the second draft. That’s what Januarys are for.:-)
Absolutely! I figure any number of words written is better than none. I want to finish my first draft, then get back to a short story that I’ve decided to publish alone. It’s a prequel to this book, so I have to publish it first. Lofty goals for next year but I need to challenge myself. Congrats on participating!
I didn’t participate, and know NaNo is not for me. My writing time is too sporadic. I didn’t write much either, since my friends were all offline and I didn’t have anyone to share with. It was timely, and I dedicated myself to promotions. I did add the last chapters to Grinders, but that’s about it. I have a quality weekend ahead of me, so I could get some new words down.
But you’ve written lots of words this year. I couldn’t keep up that pace all the time as long as I’m working.
I work, too, but the flex schedule is a godsend. Not everybody gets that advantage.
That is nice to have. I’m fortunate to have lots of vacation time.
Me, too, but I don’t always use vacation for writing. I do that, but not always.
Congratulations, Joan, on this great achievement. My writing has been slow during November as it is a very busy time of year for me work-wise.
Last year, I hardly wrote any words in November. It is a busy time of year, but I was determined to try. Thanks to a lot of encouragement from others, I managed to make the word count. Now to finish and edit!
Congratulations on winning NaNo, Joan! I’m so excited for you!!
I’m still playing catch up for November, but hope to be back online next week and diving back into my blogging schedule. I can’t wait to read this book when it’s finished. I love that you’re keeping some of Jason’s cockiness from his early days. THANK YOU for the shout-out and for sharing a Jason excerpt. I loved it!!
I thought you might like that part! And THANK YOU for encouraging me to participate. I wouldn’t be this far along with the book if not for NaNo.
Congrats on crossing the #NaNo finish line, Joan! That is no small feat! I did not make the 50,000 and I honestly don’t know if I’ll participate again, but I’m very glad I did this time. At least it got me back to my story. I hope to finish my story by the end of the year, but with all the holiday stuff, who knows. At any rate, what you accomplished is amazing and cheers to you!!
Thanks, Jan. It’s not something I would do all the time. No way could I keep that pace as long as I’m still working full-time. Even if you didn’t make 50K, I still consider it a success for you.
Hearty congratulations, Joan! What a great start. And I love that title. I already want to flip the book open and read the flap.
Thanks, Jacqui! The draft is a mess but I’m happy to have gotten this far. Now I just need to get my momentum back. 🙂