“Why do I need a warning about NaNoWriMo?” my husband asks.
NaNoWriMo 2019 will be my second month of writing 1,667 words a day. My username is still Crookham, if you’re also signed up for the challenge.
I suppose my husband, after a baby in 2017 and 2018, is ready for this temporary month of voluntary sleeplessness. He’s ready for my mind to be elsewhere, for my chores to slip, and to order takeaway because I forgot food existed.
At least I’ll have something more interesting to chat about than baby poop.
What I’ve learned since last NaNoWriMo is that a novel should really be at least 60,000 words for a traditional publisher. So I’m prepared to also spend some of December reaching that minimum.
This book is exciting to me because it has something in common with Gender Chasm- a divided nation. It will also showcase what I’ve learned about pregnancy and newborns while these things are still young in my mind.
Would you ever attempt NaNoWriMo?
Wish me luck,
Update: I have decided to postpone writing my novel in a month until January. Another writing opportunity came up, a fellow writer needed feedback, my workload increased… Mostly I felt unprepared to write and although I was willing to try “pantsing” and see what ideas popped into my writing, the idea of editing a book not based on an outline I could reference was too intimidating.
When I think about my decision, I don’t feel relieved of the creating because I know the stress of daily writing will happen in two months instead (although January does have a built in “cheat day” since there are 31). Instead, I feel relieved that I am going to work on a project with my level of quality structure from the beginning, rather than forcing in plot after the first draft. This is how I know it’s the right thing for me to do.
Ashley Crookham's Writing 