NANOWRIMO: The Aftermath and Lessons Learned

Well, NANOWRIMO was not exactly what I'd hoped it would be. As usual, life happened and I was beset by health issues and sick kids.

I did get about 6,000 words into the novel (fantasy) I was writing. I also began a new short story this past month (horror/scifi), and have about 4,000 words, and I will need another 1,000 to finish it off, which I hope to do this week. 

This may be the most I've written in any month. Pretty good for me!

This is only the second time I've attempted NANO. I will not do it again. The reasons are:

• I learned much of what I needed to learn--for example, yes, I can write every day (at least a little!) for two weeks in a row. (That's where my streak ended when I was sidelined with back and neck pain.)
• I learned that when you DO write more frequently, it is easier to keep up your enthusiasm, and easier to see yourself improving.
• I learned that the NANO forums and particularly the Facebook page were a colossal time waste. The messages coming through to the FB page were mostly inane. My local forum was not at all user friendly.

I will continue to write more frequently. I will continue to foster relationships with other serious writers. 

I will get the short story draft done this week, and run it past my critique group. Then, I have a market I may submit it to if it passes muster.

Then back to the novel.

I'll do my best to stay focused, and get these projects done.

And know that life is always going to happen.