Nanowrimo 2020: Week 4

 

Day Twenty-Three

I got through quite a few words today but honestly it was a struggle. I don't really have much to say about it other than I am so close!

Word Count: 48,150

Day Twenty-Four

I did it! I somehow got my last few words down and I feel awesome. I am so excited to actually be done. It is far from a work of art and probably should never actually see the light of day but I'm pretty happy with himself for actually finishing it and having another year behind me!

Word Count: 50,021

Nanowrimo 2020: Week 3

 

Day Sixteen

Today went well. I don't know that I have much to say today. Truthfully I think I have a little nano fatigue but I'm pushing through it. 

Word Count: 28,837

Day Seventeen

I tried to get through my word count this morning but to be honest I was pretty tired and I'm actually a little under the weather, so I was definitely short. I got through my word count today though. I am officially a day ahead, which is good so I could maybe take Thanksgiving off if I wanted to which was kind of the goal. Last year I finished with a week to spare (I really loved my story last year), but that's not happening this year. I'll take a day though. Maybe I can gain a little more ground in the next couple days but we'll see. I'm just proud I have stuck with it because it's been a struggle this year. 

Word Count: 30,685

Day Eighteen

Once again I didn't get my word count in before my morning writing time was over, so I had to play catch-up later. I actually thought it would be a lot harder to get my words in today than it wasn't. I'm maintaining my one day plus a little lead and I don't want to have to use it yet so I just keep writing. 

Word Count: 32,370

Day Nineteen

I'm coming too close to the end of my outline for my liking. I have already gone back a couple times to add in more details and I know there is quite a few places I can go do that, but that doesn't mean I want to spend a full week and a couple thousands words doing it. I got my word count today and I'll just keep getting those words down. 

Word Count: 34,054

Day Twenty

To be perfectly honest I'm very ready to be done. And actually I am almost done. I'm almost done with my outline which means it's going to be tough to get the last ten thousand words or so, but I'll get there. But I'm getting excited about how close I am actually getting to finishing this and completing my fourth Nano. 

Word Count: 37,055

Day Twenty-One

Well I finished my outline and now I'm back into my story going back through and hoping I can make the last 12,000 words materialize! Of course I did get a bunch of writing done today so I found some places to add more into. I'm so close to the end that I just want to spend all my time writing so I can be done. It's like when I'm reading a really big book I get so close to the end and I just read a couple hundred pages in one sitting because I just want to be done. That's how I'm feeling about writing right now. 

Word Count: 40,752

Day Twenty-Two

I did some serious writing today. I am so close to being done and I am so excited. It's such an accomplished feeling when you realize you wrote 50,000 words. Not all of them are perfect and not all of it makes sense but you did the best you could to put this story together and it's a good feeling. And I am pretty excited about how close I am to that now!

Word Count: 46,012

Nanowrimo 2020: Week 2

Day Nine

I had a slight late start today but even with starting later than normal (for a week day) I still ended up just being about 200 words shy. So it definitely wasn't hard to get the last of my words later. I will say that I am definitely not ahead this time around. I keep thinking of spending some time getting myself ahead but as much as a struggle as this has been so far, I don't know if that will happen. But for now I got my word count in and I feel good about that for a Monday morning. 

Word Count: 16,229

Day Ten

I had a bit of trouble getting into writing today. I just couldn't seem to focus this morning but I got through my word count. Not much else to say about it. I'm making good headway with my story and my word count. 

Word Count: 18,012

Day Eleven

Another day of writing and today was a bit harder. I just am feeling a bit stuck. I ended up going back and adding more to the beginning even though I have finished my story yet. I just got myself stuck and needed a change and that seemed to have helped adding in detail at the beginning. Regardless I got there for the day. 

Word Count: 19,733

Day Twelve

I almost finished my word count this morning so it didn't take very long to finish in the afternoon. Not much to say about today. I'm almost halfway through this novel and I feel good that I haven't just stopped yet. I'm really determined to finish again this year!

Word Count: 21,419

Day Thirteen

I should have known that writing wasn't going to go great with it being Friday the 13th and all. But I made it through it. Normally I do all my writing first thing in the morning and just finish up later in the day as needed but today I had to get new releases up in my shop and that took most of my morning. So I didn't get more than 200 words written. Which meant I spent my evening writing which is much harder with the kids wondering around. But I got it done and I don't think it was completely wasted words either. 

Word Count: 23,130

Day Fourteen

I am almost halfway there and I feel pretty good about that! I thought about getting myself to the halfway point today but for some reason today was really hard to get any words at all, but I got there finally so I'll just be content to hit halfway tomorrow.

Word Count: 24,835

Day Fifteen

I'm not going to lie, today was a struggle. But I'm halfway through so let's celebrate that!

Word Count: 26,680

Nanowrimo 2020: Week 1

 

Day One

Today was tough. Normally I am ready to go come the first because I just want to start writing. It wasn't that I wasn't ready for this year. I was all set actually but there was something about heading into this year that I was dreading. And after writing for a bit then erasing it all because I had rambled and literally wrote the same thing for three paragraphs, I just needed a new start. Honestly it's not a great way to start this project!

Word Count: 2042

Day Two

Day two in the books! Today was a little bit less of a struggle than yesterday. Maybe it was just that it was the first day and trying to start a story can be really challenging. Even when you are trying not to self-edit as you go, you still want to have a strong start. And I was really struggling with any start. But today I got a bit more into a groove. I wrote most of my words first thing in the morning for about half an hour before the kids were up, then a bit more mid-day and finished in the evening. It's definitely a bit challenging with the schedule I do have, but I'll make it work. And I got a bit more than 1,667 words so I definitely feel good about that!

Word Count: 3803

Day Three

I wouldn't say that today went a ton more smoothly than yesterday but it was better. I think I am slowly finding my groove. I worry a little that I will have to go back like last year and add more details in in order to get to my 50,000 words by the end of it but I'll deal with that later. I think I am slowly getting back into the habit of just writing and not worrying too much about the editing and that it sounds perfect and makes complete sense. I'm just working on getting the words out of my head and onto the page. I think that went better today and hopefully I will have found my stride now and get into a groove moving forward. 

Word Count: 5484

Day Four

Today went pretty well. I was just shy of my goal for the day (by 50 words) in my 30 minutes of writing first thing in the morning. I am starting to get more into my characters and really define their personalities and I think that is definitely helping with my story. For some reason I am still struggling with my main character. I haven't quite figured out her personality exactly so it's changing slightly as I write, but I'm trying not to focus on that and just keep writing and getting the words on the page. 

Word Count: 7261

Day Five

Another day in the bag. And really today went pretty dang well. I flew through my words. I slowly getting my characters together and I'm feeling better about how my writing time is going and where it is all going from here. 

Word Count: 8995

Day Six

I didn't get writing as quickly as normal this morning because Rob and I chatted for a bit, so I wasn't able to get all my words in before it was time to switch into mom mode. So I had to struggle through my word count later in the day. And struggle I did, although I did finally get there. I am just so unsure about this novel this year. 

Word Count: 10,757

Day Seven

Today was a Saturday so I didn't get to writing until halfway through the day and I can't say that I like that. I have a lot more trouble focusing so late in the day. It was quiet time so the kids were actually all in their rooms and it was quiet, but my mind kept wondering to other things I wanted to do that day making it hard to stay on task. But I was determined to get my words in even if it took me all afternoon. And it did take me a bit longer but I got there even with extra words to boot. 

Word Count: 12,835

Day Eight

Today wasn't exactly easy but I got through my word count. I don't know why I am still struggling so much with just getting the words down. I think I'm pleased with where things are going mostly, although I'm a little afraid that I will be having to go back and add in more details throughout my story in order to get to my word count like I did last year. I'm hoping not but I don't feel confident that I won't. 

Word Count: 14,563

Preptober 2020

 Well that time has come again. It's time for Preptober! Which means that we are only one month away from Nanowrimo. It's hard to believe it's that time again. And I'll be honest I'm a bit nervous about this year because I definitely don't have as concrete of a story idea as I did last year but I'm going to do my best and see what happens. This will be my fourth year doing this.

To be perfectly honest I had thought about not doing it this year. This year has definitely been a different kind of year so I was nervous about taking on something else because for one I had no idea if my kids would even be in school this year and I wasn't sure I could take on both. Emma is more of a handful than she has been before. I keep pretty busy with my shop. There's just a lot. But in the end I decided I wanted to do this because this is one of those things that I do for me and I need this. I'm going to do my best to not pressure myself. If I don't win then that's okay. I'm okay with that. I'm going to give it my best shot and be happy with what I do do. 

But this isn't about nano. This is about preptober! Just like in years past (check out 2018 and 2019 (apparently I didn't do a post about it in 2017) I have been putting together a notebook to keep my brain together basically. I have been doing this same type of notebook and setup for the previous two years and it has really gone so well. So I didn't really change anything for this year. 

This notebook cover definitely doesn't have anything to do with my story this year but it's super cute and I love this notebook from Planner Press, plus this blank notebook is just asking to be used. 

I always have this overwhelming desire to make an index. And that part of me is apparently much stronger than the part of me that actually uses it, but I have it and will fill it out. I do have to number all my pages myself which is fine, but then I can quick reference something if I really need to. 

The next page is my checklist. Truthfully this page doesn't change much from year to year, but prepping is pretty much the same for me each year. I don't always do everything like making a playlist but really just find music that inspires me along the way. But you never know when I might want to jot down the music that did help inspire my story along the way. 

To be honest I did an awful job making this tracker this year. I don't know what happened but it was horribly spaced and just looks awful but it's still functional so it doesn't matter. This is also exactly the same as last year because this format worked really well for me. 

After the tracker I start to get into the story part of my notebook. Again I always have a place to jot down title ideas but I rarely end up using it. It really does end up being a waste of space because either I just make one up quickly as I go or I already have it one so this is a bit of a wasted page but I feel like maybe one time I might need a brainstorming page for the title and I'll regret not having this page so I make it. 

Next I have a place to come up with my plot ideas and write a synopsis. This year I hadn't started filling out my notebook so I didn't have to blur anything out but this is definitely a used page. As is the character names. I usually jot down name ideas I like and most of the time try to use them but also come up with extra names for minor characters so I have plenty of options for my story. 

Next is my setting page. I haven't really used this page too much in the past but I actually think I will get good use out of this page this year because of the way my story is. Then again I have that playlist page that sometimes I jot down songs that have inspired me as I have written so when I have to go back to edit I can go back to those songs too to get back into it. 

And the last thing I have already done is my character profiles. These will take up quite a few pages. I use as many as I need per character, which changes every year based on what my major characters are. So I will use as many as I need. 

Then after the character profiles I will start my outline. I don't do a majorly detailed outline but I definitely do main points to keep my focus and make sure I have an idea of where my story is going. I had a really good outline last year and it was a huge game changer for me. I tend to try to just let the flow of words happen as I write but having the outline helps keep my story heading in the right direction.

Then the rest of the notebook is for notes or any kind. I am always jotting down something or adding something. It's definitely useful. I like having a notebook for each of my nano years even though I could probably reuse the notebook from last year. It just feels good to start fresh with a fresh story idea this way. And I am excited about this year even if my story isn't as well developed as it was last year. I still look forward to a month of writing next month regardless, and a month of prepping this month!

So are you doing Nanowrimo this year? And if you are, do you prep or do you just fly by the seat of your pants when it comes to writing?

Nanowrimo 2019: Week 4

Day Eighteen

Today was tough. Today was my first true day of going back to the beginning to start and work more details in. There were times when it was easy to add those details in like when I knew I needed more in describing someone and there were times that I wasn't sure I was really missing any information in the scene. It's going to be a long way to 50,000 but I'll work my way there. I still love my story and I might continue on with it and move on to editing it after Nano but for now I just want to hit 50,000.

Word Count: 38,673

Day Nineteen

Today was less about struggling to find the right place to add my words and more about just struggling to focus. I just couldn't get my act together today. But I just got to my 1667 words. Pretty much my aim for the rest of the month is to just hit my word count goal for each day and unless I feel really inspired, that's good for me and will help me continue it get done before Thanksgiving which is the goal. So despite my lack of focus today, I did it. I hit my goal and I'm still ahead.

Word Count: 40,344

Day Twenty

Today went pretty well. I'm going back and adding in details when needed - which is a bit slow going. But I have added in a few scenes here and there that I have actually really liked and I think it really adds to the story and the characters. I can't believe how close I am to the end. If I stick with my current schedule then I'm done by Sunday which is an exciting thought especially since next week with Thanksgiving is such a crazy busy week. So that's my goal.

Word Count: 42,068

Day Twenty-One

Today was a struggle. It was less about the actually writing and more about the fact that the kids didn't want to nap. I also had a pounding headache. It was just one of those days. But I got my words in and I am so crazy close! I realized that I probably won't be done on Sunday if I just stick to 1,667 words a day and it would be Monday. But my goal is to be done Sunday. I'm getting this sucker done so I can be done before next week which is going to be a crazy week. But we'll see how that goes. But for now I am done for the day and I got my words in.

Word Count: 44.069

Day Twenty-Two

Today was more of the same. I'm just going back through. However today I'm aiming to do as much as I can which meant I got well over my goal. I'm really wanting to finish this off this weekend, so I'm pushing through. I'm feeling a bit frustrated by what I'm doing now. I wish I had planned this better but I'm where I am and I'm going to finish this out strong and get it done!

Word Count: 46,974

Day Twenty-Three

I straight up didn't think it was going to happen. I got all the way through my story and I still had over 1,000 words left but I had another scene that I could add to. And I got it done. I'm proud of myself and I did it early which is even better. I do like my story but I'm not sure I want to see it for awhile. So I guess this is my last post about Nanowrimo this year because I completed it with eight days to go still. I feel proud of myself for sticking it through because I was struggling at the end to find the right places to add the words that I needed. But like I said I don't want to see this story for at least a month then we'll see how I feel about it after that.

Word Count: 50,006

NaNoWriMo 2019: Week 3

Day Eleven

I don't know what the deal was with today but it was a struggle to hit the word count but I did it! I don't think I did any quality writing but I did the best I could and if I were to do more with this story, I might not keep much of what I wrote today. It just was okay. It was a tough writing day. But I hit the halfway point so that's exciting!

Word Count: 25,513

Day Twelve

I'm carrying on with my outline today and I'm still struggling some. I guess this is the third week lull because writing just isn't coming easy today. But I'm trying to add in my details and give it attention. I still love my story but just feeling blah about the actual writing today.

Word Count: 27,311

Day Thirteen

I didn't get started writing until pretty late today. I had other things that I needed to take care of so I didn't end up writing until late afternoon and had to finish that evening. It wasn't as hard to get to that word count today as it was the last two days but man this week has been a little rough.

Word Count: 29, 010

Day Fourteen

Today's writing probably came the easiest than it has all week. I'm at a pretty exciting part of my story though so it all just came out naturally and easily today. So that's at least something.

Word Count: 31,162

Day Fifteen

Today went pretty well and I'm excited about where my story is. However I am getting really nervous because I still have over 16,000 words to go and I'm almost out of outline. Not good. So there's that. But that's a problem for a different day. For now I'm just going to focus on the story I have going on and deal with that later.

Word Count: 33,291

Day Sixteen

Well I only have one more scene to go then I have finished my story. Yikes! I think my problem is that I have been doing a really good job of just writing and not self-editing too much but sometimes I am still self-editing in the sense that I am not adding enough details to scenes. Which means I already know several areas where I can go back and add much more details. And before I have only one more scene left in my outline to write, I will have to go back. It definitely takes a while when I go back through and have to work like that to get my word count in. But I'm several days ahead and thank goodness for that. Today's writing went well though. It was an exciting scene though and one I was looking forward to so it was fun writing today!

Word Count: 35,297

Day Seventeen

I have finished my story. I have to admit that I love my story and I like my writing but it's not the best writing I have ever done. Some of that was because my heart wasn't in writing today and some of that was because I just didn't know how to phrase what I wanted to say. Endings are hard. And what's even harder is figuring out where to go from here. I guess I go back to the beginning and figure it out.

Word Count: 36,974

NaNoWriMo 2019: Week 2

Day Four

Again today I made huge progress. I honestly didn't think I would because I had a lot of work to actually get done but the beauty of my job is that I can cut stickers and write at the same time. I have to take a break and get the next sheet cutting but I love my story so much that it was easy to get back into my story again each time. I probably should have done some design work today but I am so excited about my story and where it has taken me so far that I just want to write. So that's how I spent a lot of my time while working today and I loved it. It was a very good writing day!

Word Count: 12,550

Day Five

I wrote as much as I could today. I just kept sneaking it in between working and kids and life. Although now I'm starting to wonder if I need to go back and add more details in places where I skipped by earlier in order to actually hit my word count of 50,000 by the the month. I have had to do this in the past so it wouldn't be a shock. I don't know I haven't decided what I'm going to do yet.

Word Count: 14,909

Day Six

My goal today was just to hit the 1,667. I did that at least. I mostly went back and started adding in more detail where I had rushed through before and I feel good about what I did today even if it was a little less than the previous days.

Word Count: 16,677

Day Seven

I spent half of today adding in more details and the other half adding in more. I have decided that since I have about five days ahead or so I'm aiming to just keep at 1,667 words a day to not overstress myself about writing (unless I really want to write more) and because I don't need to do more than that (and I have other things I need to take care of around the house and with my shop. Today went well and I hit where I was aiming. So I feel good about today.

Word Count: 18,357

Day Eight

Today went really well. Again I just aimed for my 1,667 words since I had other things to take care of. But it went well getting there. I added in another scene that I had originally planned for in my outline but just came up naturally in the story and fit well. I will admit that I have times that I worry about finishing my outline before I actually get to my word goal but I'll deal with that if that happens and just keep writing and let the story take me where it does. I'm still loving it and I love my characters. All those things makes it so much easier to actually do writing every day.

Word Count: 20,120

Day Nine

Today went well. I hit where I aimed to hit. After doing some work on my outline some more I found a couple places where I want to add more character development scenes so instead of proceeding forward I am now going back to add in those scenes. I'm definitely liking it more because I feel like I am getting a better feel for my characters and you can learn more about them which means you care a little more about them earlier in the story which means you are more interested and invested in them. Needless to say, today was good with the added scenes.

Word Count: 21, 984

Day Ten

I was actually lacking some motivation and inspiration today. I really thought about not writing at all today. But I want to keep my five day lead because I want to be done before Thanksgiving so I sat down and told myself to just get to my word count goal today. I did that, but I don't know how I felt about what I wrote today. It was only so-so but I guess that's what happens when you force yourself to write when you really aren't feeling it.

Word Count: 23, 775

Nanowrimo 2019

So here we are again. It's time to write that novel. And since I have enjoyed it the last few years I wanted to do it again this year despite how terribly busy I am so here we are again! This year I'm going way outside my element and I'm actually writing a murder mystery. But I thought it would be fun to do something a little different and of course I had the idea so I'm going with it. So here we go...

Day One

I have been itching for November 1 to come along. I have loved doing Nano the last few years and along I am so busy I was so ready to actually start writing. I do feel like I cheated a little however because months ago I started working on this story and wrote about five pages before I just didn't give it anymore time. So I'm not starting from complete scratch but actually using those five pages as a jumping off point. So this first day I went back through and used those beginning pages but I added quite a few things from my outline. But still I was more than ready to get back into this story and actually get writing. I got a bit written today - first day inspiration always helps with that. So I feel good about where I'm heading with this story and I can't wait for more writing days.

Word Count: 4,170

Day Two

Day two can sometimes be really hard because it's just so hard to get the same excitement on the second day. Just like I have in the past years I am aiming to get as much done in the first few weeks as possible, so that was my goal ending into today. I wanted to just write. It was a Saturday so I needed to just get as many words down as possible. I got a stuck a few times today but then I just tried to remind myself that it didn't have to be perfect. It was just about writing the words. It's all about putting words to page and just writing a first draft. So that was what I aimed to do today and I feel good about my word count today.

Word Count: 7,087

Day Three

I didn't start writing until midday then I just kept writing. I think this might actually be my favorite thing I have ever written. Maybe? I like the characters a lot and I really put a lot of work into my prep which I think has helped put the story together as fast as I am already. I think I have really gotten better at just writing and not worrying about making it perfect since this is my third time around doing this. I had a really good day of writing and feel awesome about how the day went overall.

Word Count:

Preptober 2019

Nanowrimo is just around the corner which means it's time to start prepping for it. It's preptober! I'm actually pretty excited about Nanowrimo. I have done it for the last two years and have realized how much I have missed writing and just love taking the time each day to do it. But it is a lot of work and getting to 50,000 words is no easy task. So I want to make sure I am as prepared as possible. Each year I have put together a notebook that will help me get through Nano and all the writing I need to do. And I must say that each year I have gotten better at figuring out what I need in a notebook.

This year was clearly no different and I wanted to show you what I have in my notebook so if you are interested in doing nano you can do it now and get yourself ready for November. 

This year I got my notebook from Planner Press and I am in love with it. I can be pretty picky about the paper texture but I really like writing in this notebook and the cover is pretty dang cute!

I started with an index even though I don't often use an index. I guess I figure this might be the one time I do.I don't know. I started with one and if I use it great, if I don't whatever.

Every year I have had a checklist in the front. And ever year it pretty much says the same thing. There might be other people out there with other things on their list but this is a pretty basic and that's about all I need.

I have to have my calendars. I think it helps to see what's coming. October is a very busy month which I guess that means it's a good thing that November is the month where I actually do the writing. But it's good to see how much time I have to work on things.

Who doesn't love a good tracker? I like to see how much I have done in a day and how much I still have to go. It's just fun to fill out each day.

I then add a story section. None of this is filled out because I didn't want to have to blank everything out, but I'm now slowly getting things filled in.

To be perfectly honest I have no clue why I add a title ideas section. I never really use it but maybe one of these times I will.

The plot idea section is where I'm writing the brief synopsis of my story. And the character names page seems pretty clear too.

For some reason I rarely fill out the setting section although I might actually do it this year. I have started working on a playlist for writing. Mostly I am just using Spotify playlists (which by the way is the only time I use Spotify) but I like to jot down a few songs that I really like and will go back to over and over.

I don't want to say the last section because this isn't but it's the last one I have titled out. This is where I will be writing out character profiles so I have an insight into each character. The last section is the outline. I used this last year and I really liked having it. I'm not really much of an outline person but it's nice having a direction when you are trying to get to a word count each day. 

So there you have it. My Nanowrimo notebook. Despite how busy I am, I still plan on doing Nano this year and I am truly excited about it. 

NaNoWriMo 2018: Week 5

Last week of NaNoWriMo! It's been a successful week! The fact that I got to the end and it met my goal made it very successful. I'm pretty proud of myself and feeling good about how I did overall despite my desire to quit somewhere in the middle. But I got there and it's been a good last week.

Check out Week One, Week Two, Week Three, Week Four.

Day 26

Another successful day of writing. I hit my word count goal. It would have been nice to get over that number but I just didn't do it. I wrote a little during naptime but then not again until the evening and by then I was so tired that I just didn't have it in me but to hit my goal. It's going well. I'm so close now and I am also so ready!

Word Count: 44,528 (1,244 for the day)

Day 27

Today's writing went really well. I am so close that I can almost taste it and I am so ready! I wrote mostly doing quiet time and a little bit in the afternoon after I picked Addison up. I let them do some dancing to some YouTube videos so I took advantage and just kept writing. I hit my goal for the day and feel good about where I'm at. It's hard to believe there are only 3 more days left.

Word Count: 46,041 (1,513 for the day)

Day 28

Another good day of writing. I got a lot written today and I am close! I am so pumped and ready to be done! Maybe I'll finish tomorrow! Only 2,002 to go!

Word Count: 47,998 (1,957 for the day)

Day 29

I came so close today! I'm right at the end of nano and right at the end of going through my story and adding in where details needed to be added. I'm pretty proud of what I'm done so far and so close to being done!

Word Count: 49,567 (1,569 for the day)

Day 30

I was determined to get my writing out of the day early in the day because I was afraid I was going to get myself stuck since I was so close to the end! But I did it. I'm not exactly sad to put this story behind me. It's been a good month and I'm still proud of myself for getting to 50,000 and sticking with it when I did want to quit a few times. It will almost be weird to not writing tomorrow but I'm also okay with it.

Word Count: 50,037 (470 for the day)

NaNoWriMo 2018: Week 4

I got through another week of NaNoWriMo is behind me! It has definitely been a bit more challenging this week since I spent most of the week going back and sorting through what I had already written in order to get my words in. By the end of the week I found a place where I left a pretty big plot hole so I found a good place to add in a couple additional scenes and the words definitely started coming faster. It's hard to believe it's almost over but I will admit that I am definitely ready.

Check out Week 1, Week 2, and Week 3 to catch up.

Day 19

Well good news and bad news. I got a lot of writing done today (plus I was productive with shop stuff and I got a lot of cleaning done) but the bad news is that I got to the end of my outline and I still have 13,977 words to write to get to 50,000. I guess I'll be going back and adding more in. This is definitely a new challenge I wasn't expecting but I guess that's how that works when you don't plan well. So oops. Oh well, it's probably good that I have such a lead because that gives me a little more leeway to find those places to add another scene or more words in to get to my word count. I was sparse in some parts in description so I have a vague idea of where I can get some words in. But for now I'm done writing and pleased with where I got myself.

Word Count: 36,023 (2,200 for the day)

Day 20

Well I'm definitely being challenged figuring out how to make my story more than it is. I basically am going through the story from the top and adding in more dialogue and additional scenes. It's just proving to be more difficult than I expected. Or actually just as difficult but it bums me out that I didn't plan out my story a little better. This is definitely going to be a challenging next ten days.

Word Count:  37,326 (1,303 for the day)

Day 21

The challenge continues. I have basically worked out how much I need to write in order to get to 50,000 and win NaNoWriMo and I got a little over that today. It's definitely taking longer because I'm reading back through it and adding things. So yeah not great, but it's the best solution and I know there was a lot that I skimmed over in the first place that I can add now so that's where I am. Today's session went pretty good. I added so much needed dialogue and I don't feel like what I'm adding is just fluff but giving my story more background and information.

Word Count: 38,517 (1,191 for the day)

Day 22

Happy Thanksgiving! No writing.

Day 23

I had to get back at it today. My goal was to get to 39,955 words today so I opened my document and started working. It's definitely slow going going back through and sorting through what I have already written but I knew that I could do it. And I knew there were areas to add more details and I was able to find some of those spots today and got my word count in. I'm definitely tired though.

Word Count: 40,045 (1,528 for the day)

Day 24

Another day of writing. Normally I work on my story during naptime but I didn't end up doing that and found myself working on my story much later than I would have liked. I definitely prefer working on my story earlier in the day, although I think that is only because I have to go back and read though and add as I go. That definitely makes a difference. But I got to my goal today and I felt good about that. I'm making my way through my story and feeling good about where I am. But boy I am ready for a break aka December.

Word Count: 41,411 (1,366 for the day)

Day 25

I wrote earlier today and realized that I had a bit of a plot hole today and that got me a lot of words today. I still have some major holes to fill in and I think that will really help with my word count. The words started flowing again today although it was a bit challenging because I was going off the seat of my pants without an outline or a complete view of where I was going. But I feel like it was going well and it's going in the right direction and it will still sync up with the rest of the story I already have written.

Word Count: 43, 284 (1,873 for the day)

NaNoWriMo 2018: Week 3

Another week of NaNoWriMo has passed and it went pretty good. I got a lot of writing done and I certainly can't complain about that. Overall I'm feeling pretty good about how it's going but I'm certainly nervous about what I'm going to do with my outline coming to an end but my word count not quite there yet.

If you want to catch up on my first two weeks, check out Week 1 and Week 2.

Day 12

I got to writing a lot earlier today. I figured I would do some of my writing earlier in my day during Connor's naptime then do the rest in the evening, but I definitely got a lot more done than expected. I'll take the extra words. I just like keeping my two day lead. I like the idea of being able to take Thanksgiving off and/or being done earlier. So I just keep writing. Today it was easier to just not think and just write. Maybe last week I was just stuck in a weird transition part of my story all week long and I just couldn't figure how to keep the story moving. It definitely went smoother today.

Word Count: 23,749 (2,026 for the day)

Day 13

Another day of writing done! I wasn't really feeling it but I wanted to get my words in for the day. I think I'm actually losing interest in my story a little bit. But I'm not giving up. So I went to writing and I think it went well. Well, it definitely went well. I was able to get over my goal for the day and I have officially hit the halfway point in my overall word count goal. So I think I had a pretty successful day!

Word Count: 25,234 (1,486 for the day)

Day 14

Today's writing went well. It all flowed really easily today. I got all my writing done at naptime today so I took the evening off which is really how I like to do it. Not much to say about today. Still feeling a little blah about my story these days but I'm still working through it because it could just be that I'm burnt out about writing in general. I'm definitely looking forward to taking a little time off in December (and probably January - we'll just see how long it takes to get back to writing after having a baby).

Word Count: 27,084 (1,849 for the day)

Day 15

My goal today was just to keep my two day lead. I didn't want to do much more than that and even at one point I thought about skipping that goal and playing catch the next day. But I got there and it still feels good keeping that lead. It's hard to believe I'm over halfway there. I will admit that I'm a bit burnt out of writing but I'm going to keep pushing through because I definitely want to win again this year.

Word Count: 28, 439 (1,355 for the day)

Day 16

Another day of writing. Again the words seemed to flow easily. I had no problem keeping my two day lead which always feels good. I want to keep that lead. Although I have been struggling with my story as whole I have tried not to overthink and just write just for the art of writing. I will say that I'm ready for a break for sure.

Word Count: 30, 287 (1,848 for the day)

Day 17

Today went well. I didn't write until later in the day but when I did sit down to write it went really well. I actually almost got to three days ahead. At this point I'm wondering if I'm going to run out of outline before I hit my word count. We'll see. I'm just going to keep working and figure it out as I go. I guess it's a good thing I have such a lead.

Word Count: 32, 940 (2,653 for the day)

Day 18

I really didn't want to write today but I really didn't need to do much since I had written so much yesterday. But I wanted to keep my lead so I did a little bit of writing today. At this point I'm quite sure I'll run out of outline before I hit my word goal so I'm going to go back and maybe add a scene or two and see where that gets me. It'll be interesting. Makes me glad I have such a good lead at this point.

Word Count: 33,823 (883 for the day)

NaNoWriMo 2018: Week 2

Here's a recap of the second week of NaNoWriMo. It was honestly a tough week but I got through it and kept writing. If you want to read up on week 1, check it out here.

Day 5

I had some usual writing today because I actually did some writing on my iPad while waiting for lab tests today. Let me just say that typing on an iPad is less than ideal but I got about two words written while I was there so that was better than nothing. It was a start to my writing day. I did some more writing a little later that afternoon which is what actually got me to my word goal which keeps me two days ahead. So I was pretty pleased about that especially since I wasn't sure I would be able to much writing at all today.

Word Count: 12,298 (1,968 for the day)

Day 6

Today was the least amount I have written so far this month. I just wasn't feeling it. My goal was merely just to stay two days ahead for when I have days way worse than today.

Word Count: 13,564 (1,356 for the day)

Day 7

I wrote today in order to forget about the day. I just needed to ignore everything from today so I wrote to escape today. I was definitely doubting that today was going to go well but I feel like it went pretty well overall. I can't complain about it even if my brain feel frayed.

Word Count: 15,384 (1,820 for the day)

Day 8

Truthfully I didn't care to do too much writing today but once I finally sat down, the words flowed pretty quickly. I was able to write much more than I thought I would be able to today. I'm glad I did spend the time to write. I needed a creative outlet.

Word Count: 17,261 (1,877 for the day)

Day 9

I didn't start writing until much later today. I just wasn't feeling it but I wanted to at least do a little bit of writing today but my heart didn't completely seem into it today. This is just not my week - but I'm trying to keep at it!

Word Count: 18.411 (1,150 for the day)

Day 10

I really didn't want to write today. But I did but I definitely struggled. I got some words but I'm just shy of my two day lead. At least I got a little bit done today which is better than nothing.

Word Count: 19,819 (1,408 for the day)

Day 11

This just hasn't quite been my week of writing. It's definitely been a struggle this week. It was tough again to sit down and write and I didn't do it until later this afternoon, but I did do it. My goal was to make sure I was keeping my two day lead, so I'm pretty pleased with how this week went overall even if it was a bit of a struggle. But I got my words written today. I just have to turn my brain off and stop overthinking.

Word Count: 21,723 (1,904 for the day)

NaNoWriMo 2018

Another year of NaNoWriMo has come and I'm ready for another year. I will admit that my story isn't as solid in my head as it was last year. But I'm going to give it a go anyway. I really did enjoy last year. I liked the challenge. I liked that I had a goal and it made me want to write.

Like I said my story isn't as solid in my head this year so I don't really know how it's going to go, plus I have some focusing issues with this pregnancy. But I'm going to do the best I can and if I end up doing this and hating my story, so be it. I did the best I could and I can be proud of that.

But anyway, here goes another year!

Day One

I was actually excited about getting into writing. But then the day came and I just stared at my blinking cursor realizing I had no idea how to start my story. That's not a great start. But then I realized I was overthinking this and I just needed to start writing. This wasn't going to be a masterpiece out of the gate and I was just thinking too much about how to make it perfect from the start. Yes you want a strong start but if you overthink and never start then you don't really have a start (that makes sense, right?). So I just started. It took me about 30 minutes to get to my word count for the day but I wanted to give myself a headstart so I wasn't done for the day. I'm in my third trimester, I'm bound to have bad days so I wanted to have some leeway just in case. So day one was all about not thinking too much and just trying to get into my story (which I don't love as much as last year's).

Word Count: 3,189

Day Two

Rob actually took the day off so I started writing much earlier in the day. Although since I did so much writing yesterday I quickly met my word count goal for day two, but I still wanted to continue to keep myself ahead - bad pregnancy days happen and I really want to win again. I wrote randomly throughout the day and was actually pretty pleased with how the day ended. I got myself a little more than a day ahead which I desperately want to keep. If I can get even further ahead I would be pumped. But for now I'll take my day ahead and declare today a successful writing day.

Word Count: 5,791 (2,602 for the day)

Day Three

Another day of writing and I was still feeling pretty good heading into today. Physically maybe not so much but I was still feeling pretty inspired and ready to get ahead and get some story down on paper (or screen in this case). I think actually I was so eager to get ahead because I was solid in my story so I thought the more I wrote the more it would start forming together and I would be able to see the story take shape. I wasn't sure how it was all coming together by this point but the more I wrote the better I felt about it all. I felt like day three went well and I didn't face any writer's block and the story just kept flowing so I let it.

Word Count: 8,453 (2,662 for the day)

Day Four

I can't say that I was overly excited about writing today, but I also realized that I was about two days ahead. I was definitely excited to learn that. I thought about taking the day off all together but I was feeling okay today and didn't want to lose the momentum I had during this first week. I needed to just keep going, so I wrote. My goal was to keep my two day lead and get to 10,002 words but I actually got more than that then decided to take the rest of the day off. For a story I didn't have a great grasp on I've been pretty pleased with how this story is coming together so far.

Word Count: 10,330 (1,877 for the day)

Preptober // Happy Friday

November is known as the National Novel Writing Month, also known as NanoWriMo. For those interested you aim to write a 50,000 word novel during the month of November. I had heard about it two years ago but since it was already into November by then I didn't do it. But last year I remember - a couple weeks into October but I remembered. So I started prepping with what was left in October so I could take part during the month of November. (You can read about my daily experience here: Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5.)

I definitely remembered this year and during the last week of September I actually started setting up my notebook for ideas, outlining and character sketches. I wanted to be all ready for Preptober, which is basically just prepping for NanoWriMo during the month of October. 

And truthfully I need all the time I can get this year because my idea is definitely not as strong and formed this year as it was last year. I still love my story from last year and actually just finished editing the first draft during the month of September (it took me awhile to get back to it for various reasons I'm not going to get back into today). I definitely need the month of October to form my story and figure out my characters. 

But today I wanted to show off my Preptober notebook. Some people don't like to plan and just sit down and start writing during November and just go with it. But I'm afraid I will get so lost that I will end up losing track then get discouraged and stop. I have a lot going on this year and quite frankly I have pregnancy focusing issues so I need all the extra help I can get so I wanted to spend as much time planning as I could. 

I have a notebook from last year too where I did a little prepping and wrote down a lot of notes. But I wanted to start fresh with a new notebook with a new year to keep everything separate. So I got me a notebook and started setting it up with what I thought would be useful information and prep information to help me be successful during November. 

This is just a basic notebook from Target. I loved my notebook from last year but it wasn't spiral and it didn't even stay open very well so that was a bit frustrating. Although I always prefer dot grid in my bullet journal I wanted lined for this notebook because this was pretty straight forward and I wasn't going to be doing any doodling or crazy anything, so I figured lined would be easiest. 

Just like with all my notebooks I put together an index page so I could quickly refer to something when I needed to. I have thought about color coding but I can't seem to decide, so for now I'm just sticking with the index for reference (I do have to number my own pages which I'm just doing as I go along then going back and putting them into my index).

Next is my preptober checklist. These are just things I want to make sure I establish/do before November. I give myself my deadlines for things like my plot and character sketches. I also have basic things like figuring out the point of view and putting together a writing playlist. This is something that is exactly the same as last year (other than the dates) and I can always add to if I need to. 

Next I have an October and November calendar setup. This is just the basic bullet journal style. I just wanted to have dates and what is going on over the next two months so I can see what kind of time I have and figure out how to work out writing and prepping during that time. November is definitely more open than October at this point but that doesn't mean it can't fill up fast and having an idea of your time during helps when trying to write a certain number of words a day. 

Next is my Title Ideas page and my Plot Ideas page. I obviously blocked off my ideas because I don't want to share what I am working on, but these two pages are pretty straight forward. I think it's good to have somewhere to jot ideas down when you need to. 

At this point I have no idea what I am going to name my characters but you have to start somewhere. I have a two-page spread where I can write down any names I hear or see that I like as a possibility. I didn't blur these out because just because they are on the list doesn't mean I will use them as a character, it just means I like the name or am toying around with using the name. 

These pages are all reference pages I copied from various websites that I thought would be useful when developing characters. The first of those is character achetypes that I got from tamicowden.com and this lays out characters and their personalities and even gives you some idea of what kind of characters to think about in popular culture when writing. It's definitely interesting to look back at your favorite books now and think about the development of those characters and where they fall. 

Then there is 33 Ways to Write Stronger Characters. A good story has good characters and it never hurts to have more ideas in how to write a good solid character. This one I got from well-storied.com.

The last two pages come from 16personlities.com which basically breaks down personality types. On this site you can take a free test and find your personality type. It doesn't necessarily hurt to take the test from your character's point of view and and find out where your characters fit in. You want your characters to be as well round as you can and by knowing about their archetype and personality type, it hurts make those strong characters. 

Next is my settings page. I probably should have let more room for this settings in order to build my world. If I'm choosing a real place then this is a great place to write down locations and research what those places look like. If I'm building a world then I can draw maps and design my world anyway I want. I haven't decided where my story is located yet but in the future I will probably give myself more room to build that world. 

Next comes my all my plot information. This is first similar to the character archetypes, only its for plots. This just gives you a reference of how to look at your story and what you for your plot to convey. 

Then comes a basic drawing of a novel. It's just a visual reference to see how things may fall within an act (if you break it down into a three act story) and how to develop your story.

These pages are just putting more detail behind the plot visual. These page talk more about each act and each section within an act and what should happen during those sections. Another good reference if you need guidance of where your story should go. 

I also wrote out some information about point of view. Before you start your novel you should really choose your point of view so you can stick with it throughout the book and make your story more consistent. Although it's information I already know I thought it would still be good to have a quick reference, just in case. 

Next comes my tracker. You could probably put this near the front of a notebook if you wanted but I just stuck it in wherever. I have two different trackers this year. One to color in as I hit a word count goal which is basically where I should be after each day since the goal is to write 1,667 words a day. The other tracker is a way to see how many words I am able to do each day and breaks it down into more information. However you think would be useful to track is definitely what I recommend. If you just want to write until you get to 50,000 words then go for it. 

Then I have a place to write down songs that I feel go along with my story and inspire me this NanoWriMo. It's nice to have a reference since when I go back later to edit, I can reference those same songs for that same inspiration and quite frankly I may not completely remember all those songs a few months from now. 

The last thing I have written out/am willing to show off in this notebook is this character profile. This is just a quite reference I will use when I start to develop my characters. 

So that's it. Next in my notebook is a bunch of post-it notes that I have jotted down ideas and such for my story for when I start writing out an outline and my character sketches. I am just in the beginning process of that but it's still early in the month still. 

I'm really looking forward to NanoWriMo this year. It's hard to say how well I will due considering I will be due in December and there is just a lot going on. But I want to give it a go again this year. 

But I wanted to share my Preptober/NanoWriMo notebook in case you wanted to take on NanoWriMo and needed some help getting started or for some inspiration. 

Have a great weekend!

Happy Friday!

NaNoWriMo 2017 Week Five

Day Twenty-Seven

I am definitely losing my motivation. I just didn't want to write today. It was just one of those days but I got to work and got my word count done anyway. It was definitely a little harder today especially since I'm getting towards the end of my story and that's always the hardest part for me. So there's that.

Word Count: 45,184

Day Twenty-Eight

Only a few days left and I am so close. This is super exciting but it is also making me nervous because I'm definitely losing my steam. My story definitely needs work and I want to get into that but I'm just trying to finish the story at this point (then I plan to take a little break before I start editing and see where it goes from there). It's tough making myself sit down and write. I'm at a point where I'm trying to get to the point where I'm wrapping up my story but I'm also trying to make sure things make sense and I have it all wrapped up. Turns out I'm struggling with this part a lot. Just keep writing.

Word Count: 46,913

Day Twenty-Nine

I am so close now! And I'm really excited about how close I am. I'm ready to be done and have a little break but I'm also excited about how close I am. There is part of me that really doesn't want to write and there is part of me that just wants to plow through and finish. It's very conflicting. So I try not to think about any of it too much and just get words down.

Word Count: 50,006

-------

I did it with one day to spare! I am feeling pretty awesome about this! I wrote a novel in 29 days. Of course it needs a lot of work, but I'm taking a break. I not going to look at it or think about it during December and come the first of the year my plan is to print it all out and start the editing progress and go from there. Maybe I will make something more of it or maybe it will just be that first NaNoWriMo novel I wrote but I'm pretty proud of myself and what I was able to do. November was busy and I didn't want to write everyday but I buckled down and got it done.

Apparently I can write a novel if I set my mind to it and have a goal for each day. I just needed a little direction and focus and I was able to do something pretty awesome. So now I'm going to take a writing break.

NaNoWriMo 2017 Week Four

Day Twenty

I have gotten myself into some kind of writing corner and I'm feeling stuck. I'm not going to to go back and fix it now so I'm just going to keep writing ahead and fix it not during November when I'm just trying to hit a word count. Yikes! So yeah write on. Today was a little back and forth on it being successful. I had to write myself out that hole I got myself into to make it work so I can finish out the month, so that was a bit tough but once I did, it went smoothly so that's something. Still don't have my day lead back - sad!

Word Count: 33,530

Day Twenty-One

I got a ton written today so yay to that. But I still don't have my day lead. But I wrote and I got some good writing done today.

Word Count: 36,041

Day Twenty-Two

I failed a bit at writing today. I just couldn't really get myself to write too much - only 800 words. I just couldn't focus and I'm having trouble with where I'm at in my story so it's hard to really get going. Plus kind of a round mom day so not awesome.

Word Count: 36,841

Day Twenty-Three


So Thanksgiving. A little bit tougher to get my word count in and in truth I was heading towards bed about to admit defeat and already imagining having to make up the 750 some words I was short the next day or so and feeling a bit panicked. But I decided to do a little writing before I went to sleep and managed to get about 200 over my word count goal for the day, which was definitely a relief for me. So there's there. Gobble gobble day is a tough day for writing - next year I definitely want to be a day ahead!

Word Count: 38,571

Day Twenty-Four

Maybe the day after Thanksgiving is even harder than Thanksgiving itself. Basically I'm just plain tired so yeah not wanting to write too much. But a word count is a word count. I think when I'm tired it's even harder to write because for one I'm not processing as well so the ideas are lacking and two I'm also overthinking and not just writing but trying to edit and make it perfect as I go. So yeah today was a bit of struggle, but you gotta do what you gotta do.

Word Count: 40,035

Day Twenty-Five

Oy. Apparently I'm feeling a bit burnt out because I just couldn't get myself to sit down and write. I ended up writing pretty late to get my word count in but I did get it done. Can't lose steam now - I'm so close!

Word Count: 41,762

Day Twenty-Six

It was another late start to my writing. I had other things to take care of during the day which meant I didn't even to writing until the evening. I was a little worried about getting my count in but the words came quicker than I expected. I'm so close to the finish line. I can't stop now even if I have some serious plot holes and I seem to be digging myself into holes and out of them like crazy. Just gotta get it down!

Word Count: 43,665