Heptadecagon

Author's Note: The plan for November is to update my readers on my daily NaNoWriMo progress. It's a way to connect with you, of course, but it helps keep me accountable, too. Please also note that I've added the date that NaNoWriMo predicts I will be done, assuming I keep my pace. The tally: 1. How many words I wrote on November 10, 2016. 3001 2. Did I make the word count goal for the day (1667 words)? Yes 3. Am I on track to finish by November 30, 2016? Yes 4. I will finish by: November 16, 2016 (I didn't write enough to stay on track for the 15th.) Distracting thought of my day: My competition with myself. I have buddies who are also participating in NaNoWriMo. They are all doing very well, but how well? I can't tell you. I don't check their word counts as those numbers mean nothing to me. But my own numbers? Well, I'm constantly thinking, how many more numbers can I post? And while I didn't think I could replicate last year's success...

(Author's Note: The plan for November is to update my readers on my daily NaNoWriMo progress. It's a way to connect with you, of course, but it helps keep me accountable, too. Please also note that I've added the date that NaNoWriMo predicts I will be done, assuming I keep my pace.) The tally: 1. How many words I wrote on November 9, 2016. 4021 2. Did I make the word count goal for the day (1667 words)? Yes 3. Am I on track to finish by November 30, 2016? Yes 4. I will finish by: November 15, 2016 Distracting thought of my day: Videos. When I'm very tired and frustrated, I tend to listen to music or watch videos that make me laugh. I also write, which is why I managed over 4000 words plus a Huff Post piece yesterday. (Why, did I just promote myself? Yes, yes, I did. I'm so proud! I'm getting better at this stuff!) But that writing has nothing to do with the videos I watched: a couple of Bob Ross, a few music videos, and some classic True Facts vi...

(Author's Note: The plan for November is to update my readers on my daily NaNoWriMo progress. It's a way to connect with you, of course, but it helps keep me accountable, too. Please also note that I've added the date that NaNoWriMo predicts I will be done, assuming I keep my pace.) The tally: 1. How many words I wrote on November 8, 2016. 6059 (That's a new record for me.) 2. Did I make the word count goal for the day (1667 words)? Yes 3. Am I on track to finish by November 30, 2016? Yes 4. I will finish by: November 16, 2016 Distracting thought of my day: The election, of course! And because I was trying to avoid social media all day, and blessed by the fact that my children were home and occupied, I poured all of my energy into writing (as evidenced by my word count). And by energy, I really do mean ALL of it: I began at 4:56 a.m. and wrote until 5:56 a.m. I left for work early so that I had another 45 minutes to write before teaching lab. While Melina ...

(Author's Note: The plan for November is to update my readers on my daily NaNoWriMo progress. It's a way to connect with you, of course, but it helps keep me accountable, too. Please also note that I've added the date that NaNoWriMo predicts I will be done, assuming I keep my pace.) The tally: 1. How many words I wrote on November 7, 2016. 3294 2. Did I make the word count goal for the day (1667 words)? Yes 3. Am I on track to finish by November 30, 2016? Yes 4. I will finish by: November 18, 2016 Distracting thought of my day: Constipation . Yes, that's right. I'm admitting (again) to that lovely problem, the one that pops up from time to time in this aging body of mine. The words might be moving, but other parts of me are not. Probably because I'm sitting more, eating more unhealthy foods (at least five slices of pizza on Saturday alone), and drinking less water. So over the next 23 days (that's all that's left of this challenge!), I'...

(Author's Note: The plan for November is to update my readers on my daily NaNoWriMo progress. It's a way to connect with you, of course, but it helps keep me accountable, too. Please also note that I've added the date that NaNoWriMo predicts I will be done, assuming I keep my pace.) The tally: 1. How many words I wrote on November 6, 2016. 3615 (Thank you, Daylight Savings Time.) 2. Did I make the word count goal for the day (1667 words)? Yes 3. Am I on track to finish by November 30, 2016? Yes 4. I will finish by: November 18, 2016 Distracting thought of my day: Cats. Thanks to my own feline friends, I'm waking up really early. As in, before-the-butt-crack-of-dawn early. That's great for word counts. Not so great for my mood. Hence, the foray into best cat commercials.

(Author's Note: The plan for November is to update my readers on my daily NaNoWriMo progress. It's a way to connect with you, of course, but it helps keep me accountable, too. Please also note that I've added the date that NaNoWriMo predicts I will be done, assuming I keep my pace.) The tally: 1. How many words I wrote on November 5, 2016. 2853 2. Did I make the word count goal for the day (1667 words)? Yes 3. Am I on track to finish by November 30, 2016? Yes 4. I will finish by: November 20, 2016 Distracting thought of my day: I must confess to being a bad mom with this thought. I must also confess that cuss words are used. So if you're letting your little one read this over your shoulder, place a gentle hand alongside his or her cheek and turn it away from the screen. NOW. Okay then. Like most authors, I try to make my dialogue authentic. Which means if I'm writing about a 25-year-old man, then I will try to speak like a 25-year-old man. (Yes, I...

(Author's Note: The plan for November is to update my readers on my daily NaNoWriMo progress. It's a way to connect with you, of course, but it helps keep me accountable, too. Please also note that I've added the date that NaNoWriMo predicts I will be done, assuming I keep my pace.) The tally: 1. How many words I wrote on November 4, 2016. 2718 2. Did I make the word count goal for the day (1667 words)? Yes 3. Am I on track to finish by November 30, 2016? Yes 4. I will finish by: November 20, 2016 Distracting thought of my day: The level of my fatigue. That's right, as I knew would happen, I'm getting tired. I jump out of bed so early these days (yesterday, the clock read 4:36 a.m.) that by about 3:30 in the afternoon, I'm spent. And for what? A crappy draft of a novel that might never go anywhere? I'm crazy, right? Yes, I am, but if this is crazy, I'm going to grab it with both hands and not let go and I'm pretty certain I'm bringi...