Not a November Novel

I’m not writing a novel this month.

NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month had been going for years before it collapsed after a series of allegations. I’m now too scared to Google what they were, but it was enough to take down an annual event that had been going for years and that had meant a great deal to so many writers. It was a wonderfully simple challenge, write 50,000 words during the month of November and be part of a supportive writing community who share the same struggles. I never managed it.

My attempts at NaNoWriMo failed every time. Sometimes I didn’t start because I was already halfway through something and didn’t want to break off. Sometimes I forgot because of family stuff. If I even started, there was usually a crisis and I was diverted. The worst was when I had allowed for the family holiday but failed to take into account the dislocated shoulder that I managed to get falling downstairs. I decided a while back that while it meant a great deal to many writers, it wasn’t for me.

Now that the main organisers have gone, there are plenty of other people and organisations stepping up to provide the same structure and community. It’s a wonderful idea and I’m wishing all taking part all the luck in the world. I’m staying well clear, though, for this year. I don’t want to risk any more bad luck.

Instead, this year I plan to spend November sorting through half finished series, editing the vast swathe of text that I have been meaning to edit for years and spending some time planning out some more stories. I may even try and get ahead with the Monday Flash Fiction so that I know that there’s plenty to enjoy in the run up to Christmas.

Lisa suggested that I perhaps put all the White Hart stories in one book to consolidate everything and reassure people that they hadn’t missed a chapter. When I dumped all the stories I can find into one Word document, there were over 200,000 words. That is a lot of editing, but I hope to at least manage an eBook by the end of November. Goodness only knows what a physical collection would look like, not with that many stories. After all, I’ve been writing about the White Hart, on and off, for over a decade.

I hope that you enjoyed all the stories with Kane over October. I always love looking back at those. Kane is one of my favourite characters. However, it’s back to normal and I’m aiming for the usual idea of Monday flash fiction, occasional Wednesday chat and maybe a review or two on Fridays. And once I’ve tidied up my ‘to write’ list I’ll be back to writing properly after November. I’m not sure where I’ll be starting, but I worked out that if I wrote a book a month (which is ridiculously unfeasible), I have over two years’ worth of ideas for novels, and those are ideas that are more than just a random thought or a sentence or two but ideas with something of a plot behind them. In real terms, I’ve got plenty to be getting on with.

So wish me luck, and if you have any requests, like more from the Forgotten Village (see, I do listen to you, Lisa), please drop a comment. Thank you for stopping by.