It’s NaNoWriMo!

Wha’s that?

You know, when people try to write a 50,000 word novel in a month. National Novel Writing Month.

I never picked up the gauntlet until now. I was like, I’m busy. I’m in the middle of a novel already—why should I stop and write one ’specially for November, just because some other crazy cats are doing it?

But people told me I could just sign up anyway. 50K is 50K of fiction. “Just call it book two or something.’

And so I said, okay.

And, being me, as soon as I saw my “writing buddies” accumulating wordage, I started racing them. I’ve been writing like a fiend. Like, 25,000 words in the first week. Writing around my emerg shifts. Crouching over my laptop and trying to type one-handed while Anastasia clings to my other hand for the hour plus it takes her to fall sleep. Whatever it takes.

Enough that I pulled a muscle in my back and had to teach two yoga classes while doing sphinx pose instead of cobra/upward dog for the second class.

(Word to the wise: don’t hurt yourself writing. It’s dumb. But if you do, yoga really does help reduce back pain. At least, I can offer myself as anecdotal evidence.)

I’m still going for it. I finished the first draft of Stockholm Syndrome and now I just need to make it, you know, readable. So now I’m going to noodle along, just write a bit each day, piecing it together. I only need to write something like 888 words per day for the rest of the month to get to 50K. I can throttle back, let my buddies race ahead/catch up, and get ready for Kingston.

I’m teaching a seminar on creativity in medicine at CUCOH on Saturday. And they just asked me to teach the intubation workshop as well.

I said, Sure.

Should be interesting.

P.S. Buddy me as dr_sassy on Nano, if you want! I’m at 32,576 right now.

How ’bout you? Do you have any tips? Have you ever hurt yourself doing something stupid? Will I see you at CUCOH? Right on!