k e e l y | d u n n

Little Haters

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Check out one of my absolute favorite vloggers Jay Smooth laying down an “L” for his Little Hater, and getting us creative types back on track.

This is a follow-up to an earlier funky little ditty that I highly recommend for everyone to listen to before launching into a writing session.

*begins to desk dance*

Day 30: A Dedication To More Cowbell

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I didn’t write today, but I did hang out in the chat room and congratulate all the Wrimos passing the finish line as the deadline approached. In truth, it was more fun than ringing the cowbell at Steeps myself.

So in honour of all my YYCNaNoWriMos, I’d just like to say: I think what we really need here is more cowbell.

Well done, all of you, and thanks for sharing your November with me.

Day 29: Nailed It!

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NaNoWriMo Day 29
NaNoWriMo Day 29

That’s it. One day in advance, according to plan, I completed my second NaNo challenge of 100,000 words.

Except that it’s so not over. Now, the real work begins. As Chuck Wendig so eloquently put it:

Writing is about more than that one month.

Writing is about more than the first draft.

Your work continues. Hell, the work just begins. You fought the first battle of a very long war.

Fuck winning. Hell with losing. This isn’t over by a long shot.

So: here’s what I’m asking you:

How’d it go?

And what’s next? Do you have more to write?

Then what? What’s your plan?

I have that plan. It won’t be as fun as having word wars with Wrimos, but I’m going to do it because I’ve fought that first battle.

Day 28: Really

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NaNoWriMo Day 28
NaNoWriMo Day 28

Really? 95,000, on the button? Really?

Really.

I have a plan. I won’t be writing on Friday as the #epicstepson has his season opening basketball tournament, I have resos for dinner with a good friend, and various errands to run throughout the day. Tomorrow, an alarmingly large group of Wrimos will descend upon Steeps Tea and drive the other patrons batty by alternating 5 minutes of giddy shouting with 20 minute periods of complete silence other than the clickety-clacking of our keyboards.

In the company of those few friends, I will write 5,000 words. I will ring the cowbell I stole from the S.O.’s percussion collection, and cheer even more loudly when my buddies win their own personal word wars, whatever those numbers may be. I will sip organic yerba mate and feel great that I met two word goals, while acknowledging that really, I’ve just gotten started.

Really.

Day 27: Light At The End Of The Tunnel

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NaNoWriMo Day 27The hardest thing about NaNoWriMo has not been the writing. Sure, struggling through plot holes left gaping due to an incredible lack of planning skills on my part hasn’t been nirvana, but it’s nothing compared to writing 4k a day and then facing down 50 words in an #epicnanoblog post.

Once I’ve hit my 100k target on Nov. 30, I’ll still have another, say, 15k to write before I’ve gotten through my embarrassingly sketchy plot arc. I then have what I’m told will be a painful month or two just to read what is undoubtedly a cringe-worthy first draft. Then, more months of revising and polishing before I’ll let a real editor or a mentor have a gander. So the light at the end of the tunnel is not for the end of NaNo, as I’m just getting started writing the novel for all intents and purposes.

Nope, the light is beckoning me from the black creative abyss that swallowed up my #epicnanoblog posts weeks ago. After Nov. 30, I shall never tweet your hashtag again and for that, I will be extremely, extremely grateful.