I did it, the deed is done! That is right, my friends, about two days ago I finished my 50,000 words for July and have validated my Nano project. Cue the parade! …oh, so I forgot to put one on back order? My mistake. Okay then, I guess a nice little victory dance will do.
And maybe just one more move to bust…
How do you celebrate an epic win, one where you snatched victory right out of the mouth of defeat at the last second? Do you pull up a chair on the edge of Mount Doom and warm your toes by the heat of the volcano? Or parade through the streets of Panem, delivering chaos to the Capital? How about walking into your happily ever after with the love interest of your choice, conveniently ignoring the banalities of the every day- like the dreaded laundry? No, I for one have a much better idea that does not follow in the footsteps of my literary heroes. You take a well deserved break (hence why I’m just now writing this post a few days later instead of proclaiming my victory the moment I hit validate). It was relaxing really, not having the word count hanging over my head. I took the dog for a walk without running through the plot lines I would be delving into later that night. I played with my Snapchat (I know, it’s silly, but its a mild obsession that I just can’t help- how else would I know what I would look like as a Dalmatian or with a can of gummy worms on my head? Besides- the cat eye filter inspired a whole new attempt at eyeliner- a failed attempt, but I tried and that is the point!)
Last night, to celebrate my only true day of complete freedom, I went out and had a tasty adult beverage with my dinner of crab wontons and pineapple fried rice. After that delicious treat, my fiancé had a terrible lapse in his judgment: as the aforementioned adult beverage was still swimming through my bloodstream (it was just one drink, so don’t worry- no issues of public intoxication here), he took me to Target to get the new bedding I have been talking about for weeks. As most women are well aware- alcohol and shopping, while ridiculously fun, usually results in a lot of stupid ‘gifts’ for yourself coupled a sad wallet. This is a lesson he learned after Cinetopia was built into our local mall (for those that do not have the theater franchise, it is a ‘luxury’ style movie theater that serves some alcohol in specified theaters- highly recommended if you are in the mood to splurge a little bit, as they can be a bit spendy). After one memorable double date in which the four of us shared a pitcher of Lost Coast Tangerine, my best friend and I dragged our men into a couple of our favorite stores that happened to all be on the walk out of the building. There is a slight possibility that I walked away with some fantastic Harry Potter memorabilia (which I still adore), and, for reasons still unknown to me, a conical straw hat. Lucky for him, I did have enough common sense not to buy the E.T doll that was half my height. Needless to say, he knows better than letting me go into a store after happy hour.
After some serious contemplations over the need of a Hulk fist coffee mug and a vintage Iron Man poster- for my office at work of course, the walls have been bare since I ‘moved in’ to it. My fiancé claimed his own personal victory when he got me to walk out with only the bedding we had gone there for. In fact- he managed to do this twice, because we wound up going back an hour later to pick up the one thing our bedding didn’t come with. As it turns out, just because the bag says ‘eight piece set,’ there is a very good possibility that six of those pieces will be pillow cases and you will still be in desperate need of sheets. You live and you learn.
After that lively adventure I allowed myself to lay in bed and binge watch one of my ‘shame shows.’ So called because very few people ever get to hear what it actually is that I’m watching. Even I know when my viewing pleasures are a bit sub-par. It felt good to take a night off without feeling the stress and pressure that comes from knowing you should really be working on something else.
Now that the ‘vacation’ is over- what is going to happen next? After we roll up our virtual sleeping bags, sign one another’s yearbooks and hop onto the pretend bus that will take us back to our regular lives- what is the plan now that Camp is coming to a close? I bet you can guess the answer.
Drum roll please:
MORE WRITING!
That’s right, it is time to get back into my regular writing groove. I am ready to hop back into the driver’s seat, re-energized and ready to go. My Nano story is still nowhere near completion. I need to do a bit more plot sketching after some changes I decided to make, and then I can move along with it. After that I will probably put this one up on the shelf to marinate for a little while as I begin editing an older project. It’s tough because I have a whole list of new ideas that I would love to get started on, but I need to finish up some of the older projects and get them ready for the terrifying step of beta reading.
And of course, there will be many more posts than there were this past month. I regretfully apologize for the sudden plummet in content this past month. It was the first time I have ever attempted a Nano while keeping up with a blog, and needless to say- it was a learning experience. I had hoped that I would be a natural, but there is a bit of a curve here. I think I will be much more prepared for when November rolls around. My dear friends will not be stuck with a once or twice a week post.
This Nano was a whole new world of learning that I didn’t realize I needed. I met some fantastic people in my little Cabin writing group, and I am so thrilled that many of them seem to be on board with continuing the group even after Camp has ended. I adore my writerly friends, they make me feel accepted in a way that is hard for me to find in my offline world. I also learned a valuable lesson in time management and balance, one that I know will probably still take a bit more time to completely figure out. I suspect you will be hearing more about this once I figure out the tricks to it. I also walked away with a ton of new ideas that I have to get down before I lose.
So cheers my friends, to another successful month, in spite of all of the little roadblocks and difficulties. The task is complete, I am ready to hit the re-set button and start over again. That’s the funny thing about writing- there really is no ending. The story continues, whether on the page or off. So may the words find you well. Don’t forget to take some time to stretch out, relax and enjoy. As for me, it’s time to get back to the work that I love. But first- let’s have one more victory dance before we start, shall we?
Tipsy Typer 