A Month-Long Challenge

I decided to do something a little nutty this year. I decided to sign up for NaNoWriMo. That’s National Novel Writing Month for those who don’t know. It’s a challenge, really. A challenge I take upon myself to write a 50,000 word novel in a month. That averages out to 1,667 words each day.
Every day. For thirty days.

On good days, this is not a problem. On good days, I can bust out over 500 words in less than an hour. I’m in the zone, the story is vividly playing in my head and the words are flowing onto the page.
The only problem is I’ve been having fewer and fewer good days.
Maybe it’s burn-out from long night-shift hours at the day job, or stress from the pressure to submit Seduction to the editors and agents who’ve requested it, or even a lingering effect of the writing drama earlier this year. No I didn’t say anything about it here, no I won’t say anything about it here. Let’s just say my faith in people I trusted my writing to was severely put to the test.
Whatever it is, I have been off my groove and reluctant to write. I keep telling myself I’ll finish, that I’ll give myself a deadline to work towards. Yet multiple deadlines have flown by.
So, in a desperate attempt to get my writing groove back, I joined NaNo. I’m hoping that a big push with my OCC friends is what I need to get my head back in the game. They are my writing tribe. My support system and cheering squad. When I don’t feel like writing, they are there with words of encouragement and write-ins…with wine!
So this time around I’m not aiming for 1,667 words a day. This time around I will be using NaNo to establish a routine. One I can use on Day Job days. Hopefully by the end of the month I’ll be squared away and back on track.
**If you’re participating in NaNo this year and would like a buddy, you can find me here.