7-Day Evolution of Writing: IWSG & ROW80 Update

It's the first Wednesday of the month, but not just any month... November, or what I now think of as NaNovember. This year, I finally bit the bullet and signed up for my first National Novel Writing Month. It's only Day 7, and it's already been a roller coaster of emotions. The perfect material for my monthly Insecure Writer's Support Group (#IWSG) post.

I started off strong and determined, saying to myself, "I can do this." 1,667 words a day. Better yet, I decided to try for 2,000 a day so I could celebrate 50,000 words early.

I started off writing linearly, the way I've always written. I even used chapters and headings.

By Day 3, I start skipping scenes and making notes to come back later and add description. I was so terrified to stop writing, so I just didn't. I know the allure of, "I'll just pop over and look something up on the Internet real quick." Next thing I know, I've checked Twitter, Facebook, emails and a couple of hours have disappeared into thin air. 

Day 5. Monday, and my kids had the day off school. No problem. I was on a mission. I got up early and pounded out more words. By the end of the day, I had 9,000 words. I was still feeling like nothing could stop me.

Then came Day 6... Election Day. I worked at my daughter's school, a long-planned fundraising bake sale from 6:30am-8pm with a one-hour lunch break. I kid you not. I was so mentally exhausted at the end of that, but I still opened up my WIP. At that point, I decided to ditch chapter headings and just write. I quickly realized how many holes would have to be filled post-NaNo. Still, I knew I'd rather fill holes than have blank pages.

Which brings me to today... business meetings this morning. No worries. I came home with two hours to spare before kids came home. No lie, the minute I stepped into my house and turned on my computer, the phone rang. School. My sweet middle daughter was having an allergic reaction. I picked her up and went straight to the doctor (all was okay). Well played, Life, well played.

I ended the day at 10,861 words. I'd like to have more.

But, another thing I've learned in the seven short days of my NaNo experience... it's all about the writing. Some days will produce more words than others. It's as simple as that. And, as insecure as I'm sure I'll feel about this writing when I re-read it after NaNo, for now I'm proud of the progress. If nothing else, I'll have a bare bones story that needs details, polishing, and editing.

Name the work that won't ultimately need all of those!

Now, if I could only find time to write AND read blogs and continue to build my author platform. I'm hoping by the end of November, I'll have found a writing rhythm that I can take with me into the months that follow. Then, slowly I'll add back in some of the other things.

Writing comes first.

Why is it so much easier to say that than to make it happen?

Since my only real goal this month is NaNo, I'm staying on track for A Round of Words in 80 Days! (and I'm still writing book reviews for my review blog, Mom in Love with Fiction.)