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melissatregliaI just got this in the Camp Nano newletter. I thought it'd be an appropriate bit of cheerleading for those who've hit a plateau in terms of word count (like me).
Dear Writer,
I recently met a woman named Ruth who approached me with her head hung low. “I’m sorry, but I failed NaNoWriMo,” she plaintively said. “I only wrote 10,000 words.”
I hate to hear such words. They disturb me like few others.
“You didn’t only do anything,” I replied. “You bravely signed up to make creativity a priority for a month in a busy life. You dreamed up a fantastic novel idea. You wrote thousands of words. You established creative momentum in your life. That’s huge!”
And then I did the math. If Ruth writes 10,000 words per month, just 330 words per day, she’ll reach 120,000 words in a year—plenty for two novels. She didn’t fail; rather, she embarked on a creative quest. Sure, she’d hit an obstacle, but she just had to pick herself up and keep going. Overcoming obstacles takes practice, after all.
Tenshi Akui said it best in the Camp forums: “I've always felt the purpose of NaNoWriMo isn't really winning but the actual act of writing. After all, you are doing this for yourself and sometimes it's just the small achievements that mean the most.”
[snipped]
Let’s wake up tomorrow and set new goals for May. Let’s keep writing.
I made 25k words in my Nano goal before I plateau'd out. But every little bit is still a step forward.
Dear Writer,
I recently met a woman named Ruth who approached me with her head hung low. “I’m sorry, but I failed NaNoWriMo,” she plaintively said. “I only wrote 10,000 words.”
I hate to hear such words. They disturb me like few others.
“You didn’t only do anything,” I replied. “You bravely signed up to make creativity a priority for a month in a busy life. You dreamed up a fantastic novel idea. You wrote thousands of words. You established creative momentum in your life. That’s huge!”
And then I did the math. If Ruth writes 10,000 words per month, just 330 words per day, she’ll reach 120,000 words in a year—plenty for two novels. She didn’t fail; rather, she embarked on a creative quest. Sure, she’d hit an obstacle, but she just had to pick herself up and keep going. Overcoming obstacles takes practice, after all.
Tenshi Akui said it best in the Camp forums: “I've always felt the purpose of NaNoWriMo isn't really winning but the actual act of writing. After all, you are doing this for yourself and sometimes it's just the small achievements that mean the most.”
[snipped]
Let’s wake up tomorrow and set new goals for May. Let’s keep writing.
I made 25k words in my Nano goal before I plateau'd out. But every little bit is still a step forward.
