Winner, winner! Chicken (turkey) dinner!

Winner-2014-Web-Banner

Yes, that’s right. I’ve been officially certified as a “winner” in this year’s NaNoWriMo [i.e. National Novel Writing Month]. This prestigious recognition goes to writers who produce 50,000 words of a novel in the month of November. Once the text is written, it must be uploaded to be certified for word count. I managed to hit my word count on November 20.

And yes, it’s a big deal–to me.

I seem to do a lot more thinking about writing than actual writing on a daily basis. I have lots of reasons/excuses for that, including a full-time job and many other obligations in my life. [Gotta find out who wins The Voice!] NaNoWriMo is not about brilliant writing, it’s about production. It’s about setting a goal and making a commitment to reaching it. Sometimes I need that. Sometimes I need a concrete reason to write without too much thinking about it.

“But wait a minute, Debra,” you say. “November’s not over for another week.” Yes, that’s right. And I’m not yet to the end of my novel. And this week is Thanksgiving, with a trip out of town and several days away from home.

Excuse me, please. I need to get back to work.