ROW80 Check-in 7th December

To kick off this weeks post I am going to announce the reading challenge I am going to take part in next year.

Yes that is right. I am going attempt to read 100 books or more in 2012!!! I am currently on my 62nd book of the year so it would be a big challenge but that is the point of challenges isn't it? They are meant to be a CHALLENGE!!

Here are the rules:
Challenge Details

• Timeline: 01 Jan 2012 - 31 Dec 2012

• Rules: Read 100+ books in 2012 (any genre)

• You don't have to select your books ahead of time, you can just add them as you go. Also if you do list them upfront you can change them, nothing is set in stone! The books you choose can crossover into other challenges you have on the go.

• You can join at anytime. All books read in 2012 count towards the challenge regardless of when you sign up.

• At the beginning of Jan 2012, you will find a link to specific month to add your reviews.
• Audiobooks do not count, but all other formats are accepted.
• Only fiction, no non-fiction.
• This challenge can crossover to other challenges.

I am really excited about this challenge, maybe because I have finally made a decision about the year ahead. No writing decisions yet, still thinking.

 

Now, I have been pondering and musing about NaNo and everything I learned during the process and it is about time I posted my thoughts. Here are some of the main things I discovered in the month of November.

 

1) Writing in chunks works for me. Especially when I have a target word count in mind. I wrote for a short period most mornings even though mornings aren't necessarily my best time. I liked having some of my word count under my belt and it helped me mull over my story as I went through the day. The rest of my words were in the evening between 7 and 8pm. I liked having a writing routine.

 

2) Writing with others helps. In my case this was writing during sprints with other ROW80ers/NaNoers coordinated on Twitter. Knowing other people where sitting and writing made me want to write and importantly KEEP UP with them! It was so great and seeing people's half time scores made me want to keep going so I could be up there with the biggest word counts. Next NaNo I would like to write at write ins etc. as I didn't do this during this NaNo this time. I may be more ready to come out of my writing closet next year!

 

3) Telling people helps. I told some of my close friends and family I was taking part in NaNo and they were so supportive. It made it alot easier to slope off and write because they knew what I was doing and also it gave me an added incentive to win.

 

4) Plan, plan, plan. I planned my outline, my plot and my characters complete with photos of famous people who looked like them. I planned my time and my food. I went off course at times but I was glad I had a course to try to stick to.

 

5) I can do it. I doubted myself a lot in the build up and during NaNo. Could I make myself write when I was tired, hungry, poorly, stressed? Yes I could and I did. Could I really write everyday? Yes. I have only been blogging and writing since June this year and I worried it was too early for NaNo but it turns out, it wasn't!

 

6) Think ahead. I never left my desk without knowing the next thing I would write. I was going to try the technique of stopping mid paragraph or sentence but this didn't work for me. I did think of the next scene and made a note of it so I never sat staring at an empty page. This was invaluable especially in the morning when me coffee hadn't done its magic yet.

 

So there are my discoveries. I loved NaNo and had been looking forward to it since I started blogging and actually writing. Now I have CampNaNo in my sights!

 

I hope everyone is having a wonderful week!