Scribbling Saturday: NaNo Panic

Twelve days into NaNoWriMo, I have written over sixteen thousand words, which is no mean feat. But it has not been easy. I want to offer some words of encouragement to anyone who may be struggling, or who is afraid to try.

I am trying to turn historical fact into historical fiction, and it is much harder than I expected. I didn't realise how much research I would need, and I keep having to stop and look something up. There is so much I can't make up. So my 1700 words a day is taking several hours, and other important things are getting left out. I have reluctantly decided that I have to limit my writing time, because some other things are important.

Does this mean that NaNoWriMo is too hard? No!
Does this mean that I am a failure? No!

NaNoWriMo is a means to an end: it gets you writing, and writing lots. You always end up with more material than before. Material you can re-work, add to, adapt. Material that is not intended to be fit for publishing, but that you can make something out of that is fit for publishing. Last year I didn't make it to 50,000 words, but I ended up with 32,000 words of a novel which I didn't have before.

So, unless a miracle happens, I will not be making it to 50,000 words this year. But I'm still excited about what I will achieve!