NaNoWriMo

Dear Friend,

The first day of November has arrived and with it the challenge of the month for all writers. NaNoWriMo.

NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month which is a great challenge for writers to finally get working on those novels we have been putting off all year... or all our lives, if you are like myself at all.

This year will be my fifth attempt at the challenge, and hopefully the first year I actually complete it.

The goal of NaNoWriMo is to write approximately 1 667 words a day, every day, for the month of November so that by the end you have written a grand total of 50 000 words.

In the past when I had attempted this challenge I always dropped out due to life. Either I would end up not having enough time to write everyday, or it would be because my mental health took a negative turn and I simply could not bring myself to keep up with the challenge.

The pandemic aside, there is nothing really special about this year to help me actually achieve my goal, however I believe this story is one that should be told and so I am not going to give up. I will keep trying no matter how many years it takes.

If you are entering the challenge this year, I wish you the best of luck. Whether you are a pantser, like myself, who prefers to wing it once November arrives, or a planner who preps for the challenge a month or more in advance, I hope you remember to have fun, take self-care breaks, and do not forget to let your friends and family you are indeed still alive and simply just finally working on that novel.

I believe everyone has a story within them to tell. I do however acknowledge that telling our stories is not always an easy thing for us to do.

The story that I am attempting to write this year, the same story I have been trying and failing to write for the past, I do not even remember how many years, is one of those tough ones. It is a story that will likely be as hard to read for some as it is hard for me to write. If I had to tell you how many times I have attempted to write it, how many times I have tried and failed and tried and failed, you might think me crazy. One might try to tell me to simply give it up. Try to write another story, an easier story. I cannot do do that. I have tried, however every single time, I feel as though I am failing myself and failing the child who is the protagonist of this story. I simply cannot do it.

I feel as though this story needs to be my first. As though this story, right now, is the most important one to tell of the stories I have stored up within me, and believe me, there are many. So I will keep on trying to tell this story. No matter how many times I fail. No matter how long it takes.

So if you try this year and you do not finish, or feel you have failed, I hope you do not give up either. I hope you keep trying, I hope you keep writing. Your story is one that deserves to be told. Do not let anyone tell you otherwise.

If you take on this challenge, no matter your outcome, I hope you will be proud of yourself. Be proud that you took that first step, that wrote those first words. Be proud of how far you came, no matter if you went all the way or could not get past the first sentence. Because the truth is, writing is much harder than it looks. And every single word is a great achievement.

Be proud.

And Never give up.

Love Always,

Brennan