NaNoWriMo

National Writing Month is upon us!  The best part for me, is from now until March 31 there is a promo code with Ingram Sparks for free uploads in acknowledgement of so many people taking the writing challenge to write their first book.

I did not find writing a book difficult since everything I needed seemed to fall at my feet. The universe certainly has been supportive of my writing journey and for this I am grateful.  Always I have on my mind the plot or characters coming in my next book. Every story I hear, every person I meet, and every dynamic I am involved in, some part of me is thinking about how I will use it.  Indeed, my little hand held recorder I use to record my thoughts, is humming much of the time!

Ingram Sparks Lightening, for those who do not know, is the printing and distribution service which has been getting on board with the whole print on demand method of self publishing so many folks have been getting involved in.

It means I upload to their site, fill in their forms and they will print my book when contacted.  They will also distribute to Amazon and other places both on line and in brick and mortar stores if I wish.  I have not decided how I will deal with this issue. I am still working out how to create an online presence, which I will have in place before I put my book out there for the first time.  Writing books is one thing, having others find those books for sale, is another. I have three decent books I am reading on how to do this, all with helpful tips and suggestions I will take into account when I can really settle in to write. This will happen from Dec til May while I am house sitting in Ecuador.  At this time, I will be alone with the puppies, a donkey and some chickens with a few chores and plenty of time to delve into everything fully.  In the meantime, I will not do this challenge, it is not what I feel is necessary, there is so much I am already motivated to do.

For anyone who has ever wanted to write a book, (this is my third and first one I will put out there), then the Nano challenge is a great way to go about it.  Thing is, for me, even though I can be not very fussy on these blogs, when it comes to my actual writing I put out there for sale, I am not going to do it and just knock it off one month and put it for sale a month or so later. 

The learning curve and mistakes I have made in the course of my first book, I don't think I could have processes or proceeded with in just a few months.  Writing it down is one thing, going back and proofing/editing, choosing a writing stye (CAN or UK or US) is something that takes time. Even deciding on character names, ages, time of year, finding consistency and accuracy in research is all time consuming. There is no way I could write a book in Nov and publish it by March 31. I would not be happy with it.  I originally intended the book I wrote to be just for me, and it was only after other's reading it, that it was encouraged to become more.

I think there is more than one way to approach writing a book, and I have grown in my understanding of what I am doing as I learn more, and this is why it is taking so long. I will continue to make mistakes, however now, I am also correcting them.

This approach may not be for everyone.  Some people will be pleased to have anything on paper, and they may be happy to say "it's good enough" which is a phrase my son began bringing home from school from his teachers and was banned from our home.  My book will certainly not be perfect however I intend to make it more "than good enough".

For you, it may not matter, and that is fine, or like myself, things may just continue to interest and excite you and the learning may become more and more of a gift which puts off the inevitable publishing.  Either way, enjoy the ride because it is an interesting one.