The Fork In The NaNoWriMo Road

As many of you know I took the NaNo Rebel route and experimented with my NaNoWriMo project this year. I did one last edit of “Heather Darling and the Case of the Clockwork Cannibal” before beta readers take a gander. A goal that I reached yesterday afternoon. Soon I will venture into the second leg of my 2018 adventure. Starting the next book. 

A different book. A different style of writing. A different point of view. A different genre. All new characters. Because I like to mix it up and make things as difficult for myself as possible. Soon it will begin. A venture into young adult fantasy with a splash of historical fiction thrown in. Yeah. Things are gonna get interesting.

You may ask yourself, “Why would she do that?” I have to answer. “Why not?” There are six days left in the month of November. I’m determined to hold Christmas activities off until December at least. Because I’m a grown-up, I don’t want to start earlier and you can’t make me. So there. (Sticks out tongue). 

Instead of Christmas elfing, I want to snuggle up at home with my coffee and my leggings and write about wizards, elves, and stuff. Have you noticed how great I am at using ‘and?’ I am so talented some days that I amaze myself. This morning I had to search for my clean underwear. It was in the freezer. You don’t need to know that. It was the cats' doing, I'm sure of it.

Then what’s the purpose of this post you may ask. Wait a second...(thinking, light bulb appears above head). The purpose of this post is to help my fellow NaNoWriMos as they come to the end of their journey.

Yesterday afternoon, after I finished my edit, after I checked my word count, earned my certificate, and watched the congratulations video, I had nothing. It was three pm and I had nothing. I had no touch down dance. No celebration planned. Nothing.

I walked through my house thinking, “That was so great. I’m proud of myself. Umm...what do I do now?”

Within minutes, everything that felt perfectly balanced was thrown off kilter. I found myself looking for things to do, anything. I cleaned. I cooked. I perused streaming services for an hour until I found something to watch. 

Fellow NaNoWriMos. Be ready for the sudden drop after you have crossed that NaNoWriMo finish line. Stop. Take thirty minutes now and set something up before you finish. Get that celebration planned even if you just go out with friends for a while. Make plans that will fill the sudden opening of time until you’ve had the chance to adjust back to the way you lived before NaNoWriMo. You’re going to need it.

I must bid you adieu. I see something walking out into the clearing. What is it? A white-tailed deer? A wizard? An elf? To find out you'll have to wait for the next book.