Gurgle.

So, NaNoWriMo has been something of a disaster this year. Between my litanies of physical complaints, I have also had the most unbelievable string of unusual distractions and challenges crop up throughout the month. I’m going to save myself some time and trouble and just blame Hurricane Sandy.

There are four days remaining, and I have 30,000 words left to write. While technically doable, I tend to be a rather deliberate, plodding sort of writer, so I’m not sure how realistic the goal is. I have already scraped through every note and partial outline and random margin squiggle for ideas, and I’m feeling a bit uninspired.

This could have been avoided in large part if I had taken the time to outline the full novel before November began. Unfortunately, we are none of us in complete control of our time, and my other commitments did not allow for that preparation. This was still a good experience, though, since I now know that I need to begin outlining far in advance of next November’s attempt. If you are like me and do not have a steady and easily-anticipated schedule, you may want to join me in my planned year-long brainstorming session.

All I can say is that all the terrific ideas I have are all jumbled together into a mess because of the lack of planning. I don’t think I’ll be able to untangle the skeins before the end of the month, but I’m still plugging away. It may be a lost cause, but the ultimate purpose of NaNoWriMo still holds true: it’s one of the best ways to motivate yourself to sit down and write, and whatever my final word count, it’s still more progress than I would have made otherwise.

The deadlines lie thick upon the ground for the remainder of 2012, so I’ll take whatever I can get.

Good luck to my fellow WriMos as we reach the end of another National Novel Writing Month. May your pens be swift, and your wit abundant.