All Things Audry: The Crazy Thing I'm Doing in November

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

The Crazy Thing I'm Doing in November

Some of you may have heard of this crazy, insane thing called by an equally crazy, insane acronym:

NaNoWriMo

That would be National Novel Writing Month in which for the month of November, a writer completes an entire novel. Yep, an entire, full length novel written in 30 days (as opposed to an average of nine months). It's the fast food of writing, a marathon of the brain.

So, I'm thinking of actually, really trying ... no wait, not trying ... doing it. There I said it. I have written it here on my blog, so now I am committed to this goal. Yikes, but what if i give up after day 3? Then, what? What if I can't find the time because I refuse to neglect my children, my husband, the housework and everything else? What if what I write is terrible and I decide to delete the whole thing after the month is over? Maybe there's a more productive way I should spend my time ...

First the dream: I write the first draft of the novel I've been pushing around for over six months.
Bigger dream: I set it aside until after the holidays, read it again in January, revise it, ask a few friends and family to read it, revise it again and send it off to agents.
Biggest dream: There's a go-getter of an agent out there who loves it, finds a credible publisher who also loves it, and this time next year, I'm writing a completely different blog post about success entitled, "She Lived Happily Ever After. The End."

Now the fear: I waste my time coming up with excuses to keep busy rather than write. Then, I start to write, but hit a major writer's block. Suddenly, the whole month is over and now it's the busy holiday season and I've lost my window. I live with regret that I never wrote that third novel that finally could have opened doors to a rewarding writing career. Yikes!

Finally, reality: Bring it on, NaNoWriMo! There will be multiple typos. I may lose sleep. I may fall short of a full length novel in a mere 30 days because Thanksgiving happened. But, I will climb that mountain of doubt and cross the finish line with my head held high. My head will not be propped on a pillow as I am imagining right now, but held high with my arms outstretched in victory... I hope. No, wait, I know. Sigh!