Why I Resisted the Pull of NaNoWriMo

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I was tempted. Very tempted. In fact, I have something to confess - for three days I tried it. What is it that I speak of?  NaNoWriMo. Fellow writers, it's not just the season of giving and expressing thankfulness, it's also the season where writer's bleed out 50,000 words during the month of November. And I almost couldn't help myself.

But why did I resist? Well, one weakness I must admit that I am still trying to conquer is my love affair with the first draft. Like a wild-eyed street artist, I can type, text, and handwrite with the best of them. Short stories get stuffed into notebooks. Drafts lay in wait on my computer and even on my phone. But when I'm done? Like a careless lover, I toss them to the side. I forget them. I don't call. I unfriend these stories and have even blocked one or two from contacting me again.

The temptation to NaNoWriMo pulled me in, but I stopped myself. My personal mission this year has been to conquer my weakness in rewriting. It's been a long battle and I've run into a lot of excuses along the way. Yet, I am proud to say, I have stuck with it. I'm not where I'd like to be, but I am almost there and I'm in a much better place than where I've been in the past.

So, on November 4th, I stopped my NaNo urge and continued rewriting one of two short stories that have run the gauntlet with me this year. My personal goal this November may not be 50,000 words but it's to end the month with two short stories I have edited and can *gasp* *scream* share with others.

For those who are NaNoWriMo'ing, my hat's off to you and maybe this time next year I can actually NaNoWriMo with a much healthier relationship with my stories. If you are in a similar boat as me, and using this month to edit and rewrite, the lull of the NaNo siren is a strong one and many lyrical sailors have been pulled toward its cries. So resist that urge as strongly as you can.

Are you doing NaNoWriMo this month? Or are you editing and rewriting like me?

Be sure to follow Nicole Pyles and her writing journey on Twitter @BeingTheWriter.