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#NaNoWriMo: Crossing the Finish Line

posted in: Writing Life 0
By: smittenkittenorig

So, some of you might be participating in NaNoWriMo (the National Novel Writing Month challenge) this month. If you’re not, maybe you’re still working on a novel, novella, or short story and you’re having a hard time with it. I have seen several of my writing buddies below par for the challenge, and I am technically there after not writing at all today. Still, there’s something important to keep in mind when dealing with a bad writing day (or month).

It gets better.

I had moved on to another project after the piece I decided to complete this month ended with only 25K for my November total. I’ve been plugging along at a good pace, and the words have been flowing when I sit down to type, but today? It wasn’t happening. I sat down at that keyboard for a couple of hours trying to figure out where to go next (I am a panster, and don’t intend to change that, especially after my one attempt at outlining failed when a character decided to exercise their free will). The frustration was building and I just kept seeing those minutes tick by with no words to show for it. Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore. So what did I do?

I shut down. I gave myself permission to have an off day and immersed myself in a review book instead. I’m loving the story, and it’s even in the genre I am writing, so I’m hoping it might get the creative juices flowing. Even if it doesn’t, I’m enjoying it and my brain is thanking my for the escape.

This isn’t the first time I have struggled during NaNoWriMo, or writing a project at other times. One year I lost over 2,000 words after a flash drive died. Other NaNo months, I haven’t even gotten an idea period until at least a week into the challenge. Other months (outside NaNoWriMo), I got so busy with proofreading, networking, and other stuff I needed to do that I have gone weeks or months without getting a word down on the page, or only manage to get a page or two done. Some people seem to be offended by the “writers write” thing, as if these long breaks somehow make one less of a writer. They feel bad about it. They punish themselves for not writing.

Well, I’m here to say that it doesn’t matter if you take long breaks in between, as long as you keep coming back. Push through those hard times, or take a rest if you have to. It doesn’t matter. As long as you love writing, and don’t officially say “I quit”, you are still a writer. You still can make that story work.

I admitted defeat today, but tomorrow is another story. I will keep going, and cross that finish line. So will you.

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Jamie White is a music addict, book lover, pet servant & NaNoWriMo survivor. When she's not busy writing posts for CultureShock, she's taking pictures for her photo blog and spending time with her husband and pets. She released Stains on the Soul and Clutter via Pagan Writers Press in 2013.
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