I long for those days at the beginning of the month when my inspiration was high and my fingers were a blur over the keyboard. I rejoiced every evening as I updated my word count on the NaNoWriMo website, and it told me I would actually be done before December. It motivated me to return to my word processor and annoy my husband with the constant clack of the keys. (It didn’t really annoy him. I don’t think. I mean, he comments sometimes on how fast I’m typing, but I think he’s being supportive. Right?)
Now, as the middle of the month has come and gone and my word count has gone stagnant, I feel that I might have marooned myself in NaNo land. I took a few days off, ostensibly because I had a wisdom tooth pulled, and surely that’s reason enough for any sane person to set the laptop down for a bit and do some Netflix binging. People do it for less.
But the writing experts aren’t lying when they say you should keep a steady writing habit. I do this most of the time, and I really do feel that it keeps the creative juices flowing. It might also keep my mind churning with awesome story ideas when I’m supposed to be sleeping, but that’s a side effect I must endure.
My short sabbatical has turned into an entire week. A week! One quarter of the month has been lost to days of only eating soft foods, a tiny bit of freelance editing, and a few (okay, several) spontaneous naps on the couch.
This is why, even though I absolutely DO NOT feel like writing, I’m doing it anyway (and my husband is asking me why my clickety-clacking is going so slowly tonight). I might not be writing anything important or particularly creative, but there are words appearing on my screen right now. And I’ll take what I can get.
Ashley O'Melia, Author 