NaNoWriMo: Half Way There

Are you doing NaNoWriMo? Then this is your half way mark. There’s fifteen days left to complete your goal, and to learn. How have you been doing? Take fifteen minutes today to reflect on your progress and see if you can improve the process. Work smarter, not harder.

Keep going

No matter how many words you’ve written, you still have two weeks to write. Three years ago I became ill the second day of November and barely wrote for a week. I was over 10k words behinds and didn’t know how I was going to make it. But I did. I kept writing and stopped looking at my daily word count. I wrote during my lunch breaks, during my commute home, and after dinner. Even those few minutes of writing will help you to reach your goal. Even if just a hundred words you quickly jot down. It all counts.

If you have a feeling you’re not going to make the 50k words, I still urge you to keep going. This month is about you and your writing, but also about the process of writing. If you want to be a writer (and publish more than one book), you’ll always have setbacks. I can name a million reasons not to write today, but I learned not to listen to them. I learned how to work around setbacks and find a way to write.

NaNoWriMo is just that. A challenge for you to get creative and commit. Not just in your writing, but toward your goal, your dream. Find a way to achieve that and you’ve won NaNo, regardless of your word count.

A personal celebration

Today is a special day. Not just because it’s Dellybird‘s birthday (go wish her an awesome day) and the release day of Pokemon Sword and Shield. It’s special it marks the ten year anniversary of my first major pain attack. The one that made me think I was going to die. When I was having these awful chest pains and doctors told me they didn’t know what it was and couldn’t help me, I made a list. A really short bucket list with only three things I wanted to do. I wanted to publish a book, go to Japan, and see giant pandas for myself. Today I crossed off the last thing of the list. I saw pandas in Ueno Zoo in Tokyo, Japan.

I achieved the goals I set for myself, even if they seemed impossible at the time. Some people even said they’re more like dreams than goals, specifically referring to my book publishing goal. This was actually one of the easiest goals. Saving up the money to go to Japan was harder with a house, wedding, and family to take care of. Seeing pandas became much easier this year when a local zoo welcomed two pandas for an extended vacation. But still, publishing a book was easier. Why? Because that was the thing I wanted the most.

Despite my university years, working full time for years, and declining health, I managed to publish a book. You can do it if you want it bad enough. Some dreams are worth chasing after, it’s worth sacrificing something to make it happen. It’s up to you to decide what it is. Can you sacrifice a hobby or an hour of sleep? Maybe not go out drinking with your buddies every week? Are you willing to invest in yourself and your dream?