Today is the last day of National Novel Writing Month 2014. I participated, and it was a great experience. Starting November 1st, I took paper to pen to get some ideas down.
I must be honest: If I had to judge by word count, I did not do so hot. When it came to the tenacity of following through on ideas, I was on point for the first two weeks. Then somewhere in that third week, I lost focus. I even missed some days. The last week, I wont even bother recounting. Ferguson happened, and I was pretty much done. #MilitantTweets don’t count toward my final word count.
While I came up short my first time participating, it was a learning experience. The importance of writing daily was reinforced, and I did for a good while. Early in the morning, on my lunch hour, and after work in the library. Going back to pen and paper helped with the process.
First: Why didn’t anyone warn me that dialog is so hard? I mean yes, you can throw together a bunch of words that sound like someone might say them, but to have it be convincing is another matter. I feel like I may need to take a class just to get this right. #HesNotReady
Second: Distractions will happen. From all directions. But, despite them, its important to push through. Its about getting something down, and committing yourself to an extended project. It requires a switch of focus for people who are accustomed to getting out quick, and to the point posts. I’d definitely do it again… but just don’t ask me to share anything I’ve written in the past month.
Back to my scheduled posting. How did the rest of you who participated in #NanoWriMo2014 fare?