NaNo…I did it!

I did it!

 

I did it!  I really did it!  Somehow, in November, working like a maniac, tired, in pain, needing sleep, I managed to write over 50,000 words in the 2013 edition of NaNoWriMo!  I must admit, I had my doubts.  When I went 11 days without writing, I pretty much figured it was just about a lost cause.  But then I had a few days of impassioned writing…and slowly watched my word count inch up toward that line.  That line that tells you how many words you should have completed each day of the month.  You know, that line I saw myself so far below for most of the month…yeah, that one.

Then today, when I sat down to write, I needed less than 3000 words to reach that 50,000 word goal.  I knew I only had today and tomorrow to finish it.  The first time I sat down, right after I got home from work, I only wrote about 500 words.  It was then I decided I had to take a nap.  I had to.  After working Thanksgiving then going back in at 5 this morning, I needed sleep.  Driving home from work Wednesday night (I went in at 6 am, worked until 2 pm.  Went home and then came back to work at 7:30 that night, working until midnight to get the money ready for Thursday and then finishing the ad), I was maybe halfway home when I thought to myself I’d just close my eyes until I got to Patterson…whoa!  Yeah, that’s how tired I was.

So I took my nap…about three and a half hours, seriously…then sat down to write…and write…and write…finally surpassing the 50,000 word mark!  How about that?  So, boys and girls, let this be a lesson to you.  If you have a dream, don’t give up on it.  Just keep plugging away.  It sure feels super-duper fantastically exciting to achieve what you set out to achieve!

Write on!

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What a difference a day makes…

…well, make that a day and about 12,000 words.  Yesterday’s post was about me not giving up on my quest to finish my 50,000 words for NaNoWriMo before the end of November.  When I viewed my stats, I laughed because it said that, at the rate I was going, I would finish on January 10.  Well, shockingly, after writing over 6000 words today, I’ve moved that finish up to December 13.  I’m actually now at a place where I need to write just over 2000 words a day to finish by the end of November.  Two days was all it took, two days!  Can you believe that?  I was giddy with excitement after finishing writing for the day today.

Sharing her giddiness with me.

 

 

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I haven’t given up on NaNo

As this is the 17th of November and I only have a little over 12000 words written, you might be rolling your eyes at that statement.  You might be thinking I should just give it up to write again another day.  Why put myself through the stress and struggle of trying to hit 50,000 words by the end of the month?  And maybe you’re right, but I just can’t find it within myself to give up.

Sad but true…average of 722 words per day.

I had to chuckle (a little ruefully, I admit) when I saw my stats after updating my word count today.  It said that, at this rate, I would finish my 50,000 words on January 10.  How about that?  But I’m going to write more than my 712 words per day average.  In order to hit 50,000 I’ll have to write a little under 3000 words a day.  Wow!  That’s a lot, I know.  But still very doable.  I just have to force myself to sit down at the computer a few times a day and actually write something.

Today, when I sat down to write (after we had tornadoes sweep through the area and after watching Indiana win another game), I’ll admit it was a struggle to get back into it at first.  But it got easier as I went on.  I’m still going to do another session yet tonight.  And I have tomorrow off work.  With Clara in school, I shouldn’t have to worry about any little intrusions until 5 pm or so.  The plan is to sit down to at least three long writing sessions tomorrow…more if I feel like it and can keep going.  I’m not giving up.

With almost two full weeks left in the month, I believe I can do it.  I believe.

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Ahh…NaNo completed!! I’m a winner~

Yep, I finally managed to complete my 50,000+ words for the month of November.  I had meant to sit down for 3 sessions today, but ended up not getting any writing done at all.  Then I sat down at around 6 pm and knocked out around 5000 words.  And it was actually a really good stopping place.  There are several more scenes I want to add.  I kind of left out about two years of that little boy’s life.  My plan is to have that novel be about the first five years of his life, then write the next one encompassing his growing up years.  Hey, it’s good to have a plan, right?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I feel a sense of accomplishment and, yes I’ll admit it, relief that I finished.  A big sigh of relief.  Now maybe I can clean my house.  Because when you’re working so many hours six days a week, then writing almost every night, something has to give.  For me, that was housework.  So I have some catching up to do.  Too bad I didn’t do a better job training those crazy cats to clean house.  They may not be much on housework, but they do like their basketball…Scout joined me watching the big game last night.  And yes, for any of you out of touch with college basketball…the Indiana Hoosiers won once again!  Oh yeah!

Hoosier kitty

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NaNo, Day 27…so close, so very close…

Bits of Me… Stacked (Photo credit: smittenkittenorig)

Ahh…yes, less than 5,000 words to go!  This has been a challenge, more so because of the time of year the challenge has taken place than the actual writing itself.  Not that I’m saying the writing has always been easy, but sitting down to write after working 12 hours adds another layer of difficulty to it.  But I’m just about there.  So close…Tomorrow is going to be the day, I can feel it in my bones…or maybe that’s just exhaustion I’m feeling in my bones, my muscles, my brain…nope, nope…it’s the approach to the finish line I’m experiencing!

And for anyone who was curious, concerned, or just plain interested…the zone vice president didn’t stop by our store for a visit after all.  And the thing is, we were looking really good…and at this time of year, that doesn’t last long.  One day is all it takes to sell out an entire side counter and then have to figure out what to fill it with…So yeah, I was maybe a little disappointed and a little relieved…but there’s always the next time~~

Now, who’s ready for some Hoosiers basketball???

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NaNo, day 26 and corporate visitors

hold-a-meeting (Photo credit: bettyx1138)

I’d only been home from work for a short period of time when the closing manager called me to tell me that our district manager had called him and said that he was picking up our zone vice president at the airport tomorrow morning and that they would most definitely be coming to our store…yikes!  Wish me luck, I need a good visit.

I was pacing back and forth, nervous…then decided to sit down and write anyhow.  I’m glad I did.  I somehow managed to write enough to get me over 44000 words!

I don’t really have a lot to say, very nervous about the visit tomorrow, ready to be finished with my NaNo challenge…going to try to get a little sleep tonight.  Hopefully I won’t be awake tossing and turning all night tonight.

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NaNo, Day 25…the end is in sight

IMG_0859 (Photo credit: OkayCityNate)

After working another long day today, I came home, did a few things around the house, then sat down to watch my Indiana Hoosiers play a little bball  (yes, they did win…not even close).  I had already started writing before the game came on, did a little more during halftime, then finished it up after the game ended.  Finished the day with over 2000 words.  I’m starting to think I’ll be able to finish on Wednesday, my one day off work.  (Hmm…unless we get a visit from one of the bigwigs, then I may not get a day off work…oh well, I’ll deal with that if and when it happens…no need to obsess about something that may not even happen, right?)

The writing was pretty easy again today, maybe because this is a scene I’ve played over and over in my mind.  Anyhow, I’m definitely going to hit that magical 50,000 word count mark in the next few days.  Ahh…and then I think I’ll sleep for a day or two!

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Just about made it through the Thanksgiving weekend and NaNo day 24

English: DC USA, Target, Black Friday (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Today was another wild and crazy day at work…ya just gotta love retail the weekend after Thanksgiving!!  But we’ve almost made it through the busiest weekend of the year.  Of course, next weekend will be busy too.  And the weekend after that…But I’m starting to get a glimpse of that light at the end of the tunnel…The district manager stopped by for a visit again today.  Thankfully, he said we looked good, everything is full and things are going well.  So, maybe just maybe, this will be a good thing for my future with the company.  Keep your fingers crossed, okay?

I was so tired when I got home last night that I couldn’t write one single word.  But I think I kind of made it up tonight…almost 3000 words…and some decent stuff, I think.  The  stomach-churning kind of good, if you know what I mean.  What I’m writing right now is really one of the biggest, most emotionally draining scenes in the entire book…I’ve thought about this for quite some time so it’s nice to actually get it underway.  It’s not finished, not by a long shot, but I’ve got it sounding the way I’ve imagined it…and that has put a smile on my face.

I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving.  Started your shopping yet???

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I’m thankful for day 20 of NaNo

nanowrimo, goal day 20 (Photo credit: paloetic)

Seriously, I had a good day of writing today.  It was one of those days when the writing is easy, words form without a lot of effort, you don’t have to give it a lot of thought.  And I ended up with a little over 2000 words, still have that little cushion to help me as I continue working toward that 50,000 word count.

Once I finally got out of bed today, I forced myself to make the trek to Kroger to purchase a few more things for our Thanksgiving work feast…bottled water, bottled tea, soda, chips, candy, snack cakes and crackers, and a big old spiral sliced ham (which I did bake this evening…the house sure smells good).  I dropped everything off at work where young Chris told me the district manager had called for me.  So I meandered toward the office, talking with customers on the way.  When I called Steve, he told me we had a conference call scheduled for this afternoon and wanted to know how things were going.  We chatted for a few minutes then parted ways, he to make the trip to Illinois, me to check on the schedule…another call-in to try to find a replacement for.  I got all of that taken care of, added a few more shifts to use up the hours that I had left over, gathered all of the requests-off and schedule info so I could work on the schedule at home later in the day.

Then I went back to Kroger, the one closest to where I live, to pick up a few things I needed for home.  I finally made my way home with half an hour to spare before the conference call got underway.  After participating in the 40 minute conference call, I got the ham in the oven, laundry in the washer, dish water run, and finally sat down to eat something.  After working on the schedule for a while, I did a couple more things around the house then decided to get down to the business of writing.

Whew! One of my work buddies told me I looked tired…hmm…I wonder why?!  What a great day off!  What did you do today?

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NaNoing despite it all…

English: Indiana Hoosiers logo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Another twelve-hour work day…and still didn’t get everything done that I wanted to do…but then, when do any of us ever manage that, right?  I’m scheduled off tomorrow, but I’ve been debating whether or not I should go in for a few hours…If I do, I won’t have another day off until the middle of next week.  I need to work on the schedule, but I can do that from home.  And I sure would like to sleep in…no alarm clock, no leaving the house in the dark and coming home in the dark.  I’ve almost convinced myself to take the day off.  I’m going in at 5 am Wednesday, working with my downstocking team, going home to take a nap, then coming back in around sixish to make sure the ad gets set completely and correctly.  So…a day off tomorrow?  I sure would like it!  What to do?  What to do?

I’ve been so tired after working, that I’ve skipped a few days of writing here and there…still ahead of schedule on my NaNo novel…not by a lot, but still…I sat down to write tonight, planning to get in about 1000 words.  I feel pretty good that I managed to write almost 1700 words, despite being tired, despite being stressed, despite being a little nervous about work.  Writing somehow makes just about everything run a little smoother.

And now that my Indiana Hoosiers have won their game tonight, I’m giving some serious thought to heading upstairs to bed.  ‘Night, all!

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