And yet another project

It's November. For thousands of writers that means it is time to write a 50,000 word novel. Not necessarily a good one. Not necessarily one that anyone will ever read. The most important thing is to finish it by the end of the month. Then you can go back and turn it into a masterpiece.

The idea is to blast through writers block, overcome your inner editor and free the story teller.

I really don't have time to do this. And yet here I am for a second year, stuffing writing into the thinnest cracks of time in my hectic life.

I'm a writing about Aggie, a ten-year-old who has left her bustling city life behind for two blissful weeks in the forests of New Hampshire at summer camp. She's planning to finally pass the swim test so she can go to the dock in the middle of the lake, climb to the top of the camp's tall pole and kiss a boy for the first time. She's headed for way more adventure than she expected as her cabin heads up to the mountains for an extended hike.

I thought about having aliens land in the middle of camp but decided that was just a little too far out. I'm a journalist so any sort of fiction writing is a stretch for me. I have a hard time straying away from the things that could actually happen. Maybe next time.

For the record, I did not go back and edit the novel I wrote last year. I still plan to. I don't know if it's good enough to sell or if anyone else would be interested in it. I had fun writing it and I really like my main character.

What I really like about Nanowrimo (National Novel Writers Month) is the challenge to do something beyond the ordinary. It's a chance to push myself in a way that I don't get to do very often. There are times I would rather just watch television, but inevitably, once I start writing I get totally lost in the story and hours pass by.

I'm already behind - to keep the pace, you have to write 1,666 words a day. I'm at 10,591. I think I can catch up, however.

I felt like I needed to declare publically that I've taken up the challenge again. That way, I am more accountable. Hopefully, someone will be watching to see if I make it and that will make me try harder.