It's NaNoWriMo Time

In 2004 I learned of National Novel Writing Month. Here, thousands of writers virtually gather and head toward a 50,000 word goal. I had a timeline and several scenes from following the writing exercises in Pumping Your Muse and considered the challenge of finishing the work in one month. It was like playing connect the dots. The timeline told me where I was headed and the exercises not only developed characters but also put together a fantasy world. Today, that book is Windwalker.

Last years manuscript has undergone the first round of edits and rewrites. I hope to have it submitted by the end of the year.

So what about this year? This year's story idea stems from a walk I took with my grandson. I try to encourage my grandchildren to use their imagination, and it doesn't take much. As the story progresses, I may tell you more. I can tell you it all started after a light rain and walking around puddles one street over. I said to my grandson, "Imagine if you jumped into a puddle and fell through. Would you be falling up or down?"

So what does all this have to do with losing weight? It's easy to let life's circumstances become excuses for why we don't make healthy food choices. I'm hoping that now that I've established the habit of moderation, it will reflect in my writing life as the heat turns up and I churn out 50,000 words on top of all the other deadlines. Stay tuned. We'll see if it happens.

Donna Sundblad, author of Pumping Your Muse and
Windwalker