Monday 4 November 2013

Another Year, another NaNoWriMo

I’ve gone and done it. I’ve signed up for a second year of NaNoWriMo in the hopes that it will boost my productivity. It’s ridiculous really. I wrote last time in this blog about procrastination, yet I know I can put in the hours and achieve huge chunks of writing – pleasing writing, that I am more than happy with as a first draft – in a relatively short time, when I set my mind to it. However, it seems that I work much better to a deadline. I’ve always been the same, whether it was essays at uni, or my very long list of projects for work, I become much more productive the closer I run to the line.

My new novel is no different. I wrote my first chapter ready for critique by the writing group in early October – 920 words done. I sorted the plan out in mid October and wrote my second chapter, again ready for my writing group deadline, a week later – another 1423 words written. Today I sign up for NaNoWriMo. It is the 4th of November and NaNo has been going for 3 days. I am already behind. I sit and write, despite the disturbing sounds of builders fitting external insulation to the row of council houses down my street, and lo and behold I have completed 6,026 words. Slightly less that I need to keep on my NaNo track, but at this rate I might even finish early, after all, I only have 43,974 to go. 

Oh, and this blogpost adds another 300 words to my NaNo word count, because one of the good NaNo tips I’ve picked up is that you should include any and all your writing for the month of November. I wonder if that means job application letters too?