I was fairly sure I could do it – – but! By the NaNoWriMo word count validator I hit 50,651 words at about 6:55 pm.
And it feels amazing.
I was what they fondly call a “NaNo rebel” – I did not start from scratch (originally), with a blank page and an idea. I went into this with a blank page and an idea and about 75K words already written on a novel (depending on how you count ’em) – and I devoted this NaNo month to writing fifty thousand more words on and hopefully finishing the book that I’ve been dragging along behind me for years. And two things have happened: it’s a damn sight closer to being finished (and I have a clearer understanding of how “magic” works in my world – and I have a name for my country, which I didn’t before) (and I have four more days till the end of the month, two of which are weekend – – I LOVE Thanksgiving!!). And the second thing was: last Saturday I Had An Idea. And did what you’re supposed to do on November 1: I started from scratch on *deep breath, in – – out* a whole new novel.
So, in a way, I’m not a winner. To really count myself a winner, I need to a) finish one book or the other in the next four days (plus five more hours today!!), or b) write 100,000 words.
The wild thing is, I think I can do it. One of them. Maybe both. Right about now I’m ridiculously sure I can do anything.
I only wish I had tried this all those other years I knew it existed and didn’t go for it. All of those jotted-down beginnings I have in notebooks … Some of them might now be more than that.
All I know is this has been a wonderful month. I didn’t participate in the social aspects – write-ins and gatherings and such; after the Board Which Shall Remain Nameless I frankly didn’t want to open that door. Maybe next year – but it seemed counterintuitive to take time needed to reach the 50K and go to dinner or a movie or bowling or what-have-you, and I can’t imagine I would write more in a room with a bunch of other people than I have solo. Maybe next year. The most important thing to me was to do it.
And I did it.
And who knows – maybe I’ve set the groundwork for habits that will carry me through.
I’m pretty bloody happy right now – especially with a full weekend in front of me. So: 50,651 — and counting.
Back to work.
