It is now nearing the end of the NaNoWri month, and no doubt many clever and tremendously hard-working writers out there are about to complete and submit their 50,000 words.

I am not one of them, though at around 33,000, which is maybe half a novel, I’m feeling relatively pleased with myself.

Has it been worthwhile?

YES.

Partly for the reasons explained in my last blog, and partly because

• there have been many times I’ve come to a complete halt and while I would normally have shoved what I’ve done into a bottom drawer (figurately) to get back to later (or not), on this occasion I have ploughed on.
• there’ve been several times I’ve needed to research something – WW1, the Suffragists, spying in the 19th century – but rather than nipping out to spend several hours or days in a library I’ve done a quick flip through my history books (and yes, Google) and ploughed on. Research and adjustment can come later.
• not allowing myself to go back on stuff means I’m not getting as sick of re-reading my own writing as I usually am.

Will the end result constitute a viable novel? Maybe, maybe not. Once it’s done, all 70,000 or so words of it, that’s the time for the bottom drawer.

CONGRATULATIONS to everyone who has kept at it throughout the month, whether or not you’ve achieved your 50,000 words. As the NaNoWriMo website keeps telling us: WE ARE AMAZING.