I did it! I completed NaNoWriMo this year and wrote 50,000 words during the month of November. Were they amazing? No. Were they passable? Also no. Were they completed? Yes.

That’s the funny thing about writing. I don’t always enjoy it, it’s like pulling teeth some days. But I always enjoy having written. Something about delayed gratification, I guess. I am well on my way to finishing my 3rd book just this year, and that is way more than I ever expected at the beginning of 2023. Ending the year by winning NaNo is the cherry on top, and I’m trying to ride the momentum train as long as I can. I also got a t-shirt because I am normally terrible at celebrating accomplishments. Conor was like, “Are you excited you’re done?” and I replied, “Well, I still have 30k left to write before the draft is done, so kind of?” I’m a pro at moving the goalposts.

I’ve never written a thriller before, so I knew this book was going to be challenging. Since NaNo ended, I’ve added another 12,000 words to the draft, with about 20,000 words left before the rough draft is finished. Holding a thriller plot in my hands is like scooping up dry sand at the beach. I’m barely hanging on and trying not to lose the pieces escaping through my fingers. If at the end I haven’t lost too much of it, I’ll consider the rough draft to be a success.

This project has three 1st-person POV, each with a different/distinct voice, everyone has a secret, everyone in the story must have motive for the crime committed, everyone knows different things at different times and I have to reveal it all at the correct pacing for the genre. There is a past mystery to solve, and a current timeline I’m also working with. The two need to tie together. Oh, and each character needs a complete and satisfying story arc.

There are 76 tabs open in my brain at any given time. Christmas. Celebrations. Correspondence. Family. Gifts. A 6-year-old’s unicorn birthday party to plan.

So yes, I bought a t-shirt.

Love,

Taylor