Living My Dream

Well November has come to an end and I completed something that I never ever thought I would do.  I successfully finished the National Novel Writing Month!  I never dreamed that I could actually write 50,000 in a single month but I did.  I feel pretty proud of myself right now.

To successfully finish NaNoWriMo, one must write, at the bare minimum, 1667 words a day.  Even though I set my personal goal at about 2000 words a day, there were many days that I was not able to write even the minimum.  That made it tough when it came time to catch up.

Some of what I wrote is really junk because the goal was just to get the words down but surprisingly enough there are jewels buried in there that I can use, which is what I was hoping for.  I think the reason is because I took on this project this with the intention of writing as much of GTT as I could.

I’m so glad that I decided to do this because it taught me many things about myself as a writer.  Things like what days are best to write (weekends are not which really surprised me) and what time of day is best to write (it is around lunchtime and in the evening).  I’ve learned that I can write while visiting family during the Thanksgiving holidays, although my word count will be quite low, and I’ve learned that if need be, I can sequester myself to get things rocking and rolling.

But the absolute best thing about this is that it validated me.  It validated my dreams and gave me the confidence boost I needed to finish my first novel.  Before Nano, my goal was to write 1000 words a week.  Well after this month long marathon, I’ve learned that I can write 2000 words a day and when things are really humming, I can write even more.

So to all you writers, artists, and anyone else who is reading this, keep on keeping on.  Chase your dreams whatever they may be and don’t let anyone or anything get in the way.  They are your dreams which have been residing inside of you since the day you were born.  And if I can catch my dream and live it by taking the proverbial bull by the horns, hang on for the ride and write 50,000 words in one month, then you can do the same with your whatever it may be.

Dreams are meant for living so take a deep breath, reach out and grab them.  Then hold on tight through the wild and wonderful ride they will take you on because it is worth it.  I guarantee it.