by Alena Wendall, @alenawendall
It’s Nanowrimo month and if you’re like me, you may get a late start. My day job is crazy busy for the first two weeks of every month. That’s 12+ hour days. While I would normally say, lose a little sleep to write—not so much on these days. There is no trying to schedule around it. The first several Nanowrimo’s I tried, were so frustrating.
But I’ve given myself a pass. I can give you one too. If you start late, it’s okay. Just start where you are.
I thought about what I had to do not to get discouraged and wanted to share.
Grab Some Easy Crock Pot Recipes.
Weird place to start right? Nope—nothing worse than trying to get word count in and feeling guilty because you haven’t fed the family. Throw something in the crockpot and walk away. Pinterest has some great recipes. Think-fast and easy. One of my favorites is Crockpot Roast. I usually throw in veggies (onions, potatoes, carrots, celery) 1 cup water, the roast, a pack of Lipton Onion Soup Mix. I dump that in the crockpot in the morning and dinner is ready by 4.
Be Honest With Yourself.
Be honest with just how many days you have left to write. Do. Not. Stress. Yourself.
I love using www.mybrilliantwritingplanner.com, which also teaches you to manage your time. Susie’s block time system is amazing. I go through the days I have left on the calendar and I block out writing time and I shoot for that goal.
This is what it looks like…
Limit Distractions.
If you’re distracted by the internet, turn it off. I receive over a hundred texts a day between work, friends, family and church stuff. I say this in the nicest way possible—think about the end result you want to see versus your desire versus your need to be connected. Then make the appropriate choice. For me it means working in 1.5 hour increments. Break. Get up, check my phone (that is in a different room on silent) and check in at work etc., I stretch a little and then back to writing.
Housework distracting you? That sink of dirty dishes and that pile of dirty laundry? I can’t seem to distract myself from that stuff at home. So I either make that a chore during my break time or I leave the house.
Your local library is nice and quiet or find a Panera, Caribou, Dunkin Donuts etc.
Don’t Edit.
You’ve heard it before. It bears saying again. You can’t edit a blank page. Just write.
At the end of the month you will have more than if you didn’t try at all!
Just do it!
Blessings!
Alena T.
Writing as Alena Wendall, Alena Tauriainen pens contemporary Christian romance novels that always end with a happily ever after. By day, she partners with her lifelong mate Clyde, to run the family HVAC business. She manages both business and family life with four lovable but crazy kids. She is the Retreats Coordinator for My Book Therapy. She is represented by Rachelle Gardner with Books & Such Literary Management. Visit her at alenawendall.com.