Final Wordcount

37,667

Reflections

1. Whew, it was a long, long month. It didn’t help that the light was diminishing day by day and we were hit with floods like we’ve never seen on the coast. I didn’t expect to be living in a “state of emergency,” while I did my little project. Heart-wrenching stories from all over the province were impossible to ignore. People died in the mudslides. Homes and whole towns were lost. Farmers had to abandon their livestock.
2. I was so burned out by the end of November that I didn’t even want to open my computer. I considered trying for 40K, but chose to write this blog post instead. I’m done.
3. One major problem was that to continue to keep high word count averages I extended my plot in several directions but couldn’t complete threads because there wasn’t enough scaffolding for them. It became impossible to untangle my spidery mess of a plot. Normally, I would spend time working each plot thread out, but being focused on word count I didn’t want to take that time. The good news is that the draft will be useful as it is. I have another novel to complete first, and then I’ll come back to it and work out the plot.
4. I learned that I can get a lot of work done in short sprints. My favorites are thirty minutes long.
5. I enjoyed reading the inspiring writing quotes from authors.

How Did I Do?

I’m happy with the word count. Normally in a good month, I would be hitting 30 K, so I beat that number. The true test will be if I’m happy with the finished project six months down the line.

Will I do it again?

Never say never, they say. Me? I’m not so sure. We’ll see how I’m feeling next October. But, probably not.

Do I recommend it to others? Yes. You can’t help but learn something about yourself and your writing practice when you try it.

Thank Yous

I’d like to thank the Nanowrimo organization and our local Victoria chapter for offering daily guidance and inspiration.