NaNoWriMo 2021 Reflections
Well, I did it – I won NaNoWriMo 2021! I hit the 50k mark around 11am on the 30th November. By the time I typed ‘the end’, I had a final word count of 51,122.
What I wrote for NaNoWriMo
I really enjoyed writing this story! It was set in Edwardian times (specifically 1909). It’s a historical mystery romance, that starts out with my main character Penelope having just got married to David as part of an arranged marriage. They once knew each other as children, but that was a long time ago.
However of them have approached the wedding with broken hearts. Though David treats her with kindness, her heart still beats for another. Just as a friendship between them begins to form, Penelope becomes embroiled in mystery as the secrets of the past threaten to catch up with the present. Penelope must uncover the truth if there is any chance of happiness for her and David…
The Writing Journey
It’s been a busy month, what with NaNoWriMo, celebrating my fantasy novel Lottie’s Locket turning one and getting my Christmas short story ready to share for December (more on that later)
I wrote for NaNoWriMo most days in November! In fact I only missed one day, I averaged around 1700 words a day and I usually wrote it in the afternoon my time during my hangout call I do with other authors (thanks to my lovely colleagues keeping me accountable!) I might have slowed down a bit on some days to go back and change some things, but I got there in the end! 🙂
It was also fun to try a different style. I wrote in 3rd person, which previously I’ve done for books for older children like Lottie’s Locket. However for adult books I’ve tended to write in 1st person, eg my Celtic era historical fiction series or a couple of other adult nano projects. So it was interesting to write an adult 3rd POV – and I think this may have led me to write in a different style, too.
What’s next for my NaNoWriMo project?
Well, you might be wondering what’s coming next. I’m planning to not touch it now for a month over December, so I have fresh eyes for it in the new year. Then I’m going to edit it during the ‘Now What?’ NaNoWriMo challenge, focussing on next steps for your novel.
After that, well, at the moment I’m thinking of using it as a free short novel for newsletter subscribers, to potentially connect with readers and so they can get to know me and my writing a bit.
If that’s the case, I might be sharing it sometime next year, maybe in the summer. Watch this space!
How about you? If you participated in Nano, how did you get on? I’d love to hear about our project! Remember, of course, that you won simply by writing more words than you had at the start of the month!
Thanks for Reading!
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Till next time,
Maria 🙂