Write ‘til Christmas

The writing community is alive and well on Instagram. Through the platform, I have connected with dozens of writers, all at varying stages on the road to publication. Their support has been invaluable as I toil away on my manuscript, riding the many peaks and troughs of a writer’s journey.

So when a member of our chat group proposed Write ‘til Christmas as a variation on the popular Nanowrimo (National Write a Novel in a Month in November), I jumped at the chance to get words down while being accountable to the group.

Nanowrimo is a great concept, one I have attempted several times. But, for me, cramming 50,000 words into 30 days is too much of a pressure cooker. So the three month Write ‘til Christmas timeline was more realistic.

On the 1st of October I started with 6,000 words and today, a week out from Christmas, I am sitting at 41,000. It has taken a huge effort and a lot of head space, and my kids and partner are sick of my being only half in the room. But despite falling short of my 50,000 target I am delighted to have made such dizzying progress.