Along with I don’t know how many thousands of other people, I’m currently involved in NaNoWriMo: National Novel Writing Month. In case you’re unfamiliar with the concept, it’s an international project in which people attempt to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. Sponsors offer small prizes if you win, but the real prize is the satisfaction of a major accomplishment.
I did NaNo for the first time in 2009. Prior to that time, I’d written some short stories, but had convinced myself I couldn’t possibly write a novel. Then I began writing fan fiction (Buffy universe, and about 125 Spike slash stories, thank you very much)–some of which stories were over 100,000 words long. That’s well into novel territory. I was still uncertain about whether I could pull off an original novel, but when I heard about NaNo, I decided to give it a shot.
Here’s the thing: NaNo is tough. You have to average 1667 words per day, and that assumes you don’t skip a single day. But November is also a busy month for me at the day job (I’m a university professor), and I’m often traveling then, plus I’m usually responsible for Thanksgiving, which means shopping and baking and hosting. But I do well with progress charts and daily goals, I work well with deadlines, and I’m a little competitive–even if I’m only competing against myself. So NaNo suits me perfectly.
That first year I wrote my first novel, Stasis. Which exceeded the 50K minimum by 20K words and demonstrated to me that yes, I could do this. The next years I wrote the sequels, Flux and Equipoise. In 2012, I wrote Good Bones, which became my first novel accepted by a publisher. Very exciting!
I stopped doing NaNo after 2013, mainly because I was always writing anyway and didn’t need the push. But I did keep writing. I currently have 22 novels in print, with the 23rd due out next year and the 24th and 25th in progress. Not bad for someone who couldn’t possibly write a novel, huh?
So why am I doing it again this year? My schedule has become even busier than before, with all sorts of obligations landing on my lap. My To Do list never ends. And unfortunately, writing has been too often displaced by tasks that feel more urgent. Grading exams. Going to meetings. Taxiing the kid. Lending moral support to the other kid, who’s attending college out of state. Working on my research project. Visiting the dentist, orthodontist (with kid 2), doctor. Working on promo for upcoming books. And so on. As a result, novel #25 has been languishing. (Novel #24 is a different story; I’m cowriting it with Venona Keyes.)
I’m hoping that NaNo gives me the excuse to bump writing higher on my list, at least for this month. It’s working already. My husband did the grocery shopping this week despite a bum leg so I’d have time to write. I’m temporarily dialing down the promo (but buy my books anyway, okay?). The research project can wait until December. And I’m making good progress on that book.
So what’s the moral of this long story (500+ words that could have been written in my novel instead!)? Two morals:
- Be cautious about assuming that something is impossible. We all have more potential than we give ourselves credit for.
- Sometimes you need to find a way to rework your life–at least temporarily–to focus on the things you want to do instead of just the things you have to do.
If you’re doing NaNo too, best of luck to you. You can do it! And if you’re not, well, now is an excellent time to catch up on your reading, isn’t it?
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Kim Fielding is the bestselling author of numerous m/m romance novels, novellas, and short stories. Like Kim herself, her work is eclectic, spanning genres such as contemporary, fantasy, paranormal, and historical. Her stories are set in alternate worlds, in 15th century Bosnia, in modern-day Oregon. Her heroes are hipster architect werewolves, housekeepers, maimed giants, and conflicted graduate students. They’re usually flawed, they often encounter terrible obstacles, but they always find love.
After having migrated back and forth across the western two-thirds of the United States, Kim calls the boring part of California home. She lives there with her husband, her two daughters, and her day job as a university professor, but escapes as often as possible via car, train, plane, or boat. This may explain why her characters often seem to be in transit as well. She dreams of traveling and writing full-time.
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