As you know, I committed to NaNoWriMo again this year. I finally hit the 50K mark last night around 11pm.
Here are some of the things I’ve learned from NaNoWriMo over the years:
- I can crack down on myself and write every day – it’s not always easy, especially working 12 hour days, but I can scribble something down during lunch or get up early or stay up later
- 50,000 words isn’t really a novel – mine run about 100K, I’ve learned, so completing NaNoWriMo is a great head-start, but it’s not the end of my journey
- There’s still editing – even once I get those 100K words down, I’m going to have to set it aside for awhile to rest, then get to work editing the thing, which is the hard part for me
- A certificate is a nice thing to have – even if I don’t have a completed novel yet, it’s nice to have that “Winner” certificate to hang on my cork board and remind me that I can do it