Keeping on

As a first-time NaNoWriMo participant this year, I started November with great enthusiasm and lush ideas for my book.  But by last weekend, my energy had fizzled and I was wondering what had happened to all the enthusiasm.

Turns out, this is normal NaNoWriMo behavior.  Many writers, at about the midway point, fade badly.  Their advice:  try a new tactic but don't quit writing.  Make a drastic change in the main character's plans.  Keep going.

So I did.  Today, I faced that blank screen prepared to pound out 1700 bland words.  But I decided to change my POV and write some backstory.  My inner editor screamed but I plowed forward.  In the midst of today's writing, I uncovered a secret among the people that I didn't know before.  This will take some re-writing of earlier scenes but there are secret memories sprinkled throughout the story.

I didn't know.  But I'm glad I didn't stop writing.  NaNoWriMo says, trust the process.  I did, and today it worked.