NaNoWriMo -- cheering from the sidelines

NaNo is like a disease. No, it's not a genetically engineered microbe waiting to infect an unsuspecting populace. This disease seems only to effect writers. It's 'National Novel Writing Month' and many of my writing friends have succumbed. The goal is to write a novel in one month, 50K minimum wordcount. For some writers, it's the push they need to write effectively. I'm not one of those kinds of writers.

I plod. I write, revise, analyze, and re-write. Writing is a recursive process for me. To be successful with something like NANO, I would have to try to write flat out without reassessment. It seems too much like starting out a long road trip without a map and an itinerary. Perhaps it would be useful as an exercise, but for this year, at least, I will be cheering on my fellow writers through their NaNo goals.

But in honor of the spirit of NaNoWriMo, I am going to dive back into 'MindBlind' with a goal of 5K/week. If I can catch the same kind of wave that made writing 'Wings' such a joy, I can finish 'MindBlind' (at least a first draft) by spring.