The Five Stages of NaNoWriMo (Star Wars Style)

Hey guys, Kate here! Sorry for my absence, but I’m sure as many of you can relate, it has been a crazy month trying to keep on top of NaNo! I’m a little ashamed to admit that I am behind—between school and work, I’ve had a hard time getting in my daily word count. Nevertheless, I’m a fairly good sprinter, and I just got to keep utilizing my tips and tricks, so I know I’ll just have to put in some crazy days towards the end of the month!

Although this is my first year participating in NaNo, I have written over 50, 000 words in a month and witnessed Leah’s various NaNo wins, so I felt pretty comfortable writing this blog. We’re just over halfway through the month, so let me know if you’ve gone/are going through these various stages.

You don't know what you're getting yourself into, young one

1.) The Eager Padawan (Nov 1st-5th): you’re freshly plucked off the barren desert planet where you haven’t written anything recently, or been stuck editing, or just been working on the same thing. You see a new horizon: a huge challenge that you are SO ready for. You got your lightsaber…er, pen, at your side and you are ready to kick some butt!


2.) The Disgruntled Jedi Knight (Nov 6th-15th): Okay, maybe this Jedi thing is a little harder than you thought. Maybe you’ve fallen behind, or are just barely making your word-count. You’ve stared at a blank page for longer than you’ve been writing, and your fingers are starting to cramp when you first wake up. And the rest of the month looms like a desert full of Tusken Raiders ahead.

3.) The Desperate Dark Apprentice (Nov 16th-25th): Calling it “overwhelmed” is saying the least. You’ll do anything to make the first half of the month worth all the hard work, even join the dark side. You hate this book, this month, the world. Now, the rest of your life starts to slip away as you realize your daily word count is only getting bigger and bigger. And yet, a dark pride rises in you. As the dishes start to pile up, the book is the only thing that matters,

4.) The Dark Sith Lord (Nov 26th-29th): Sun…what…what is that? You’ll do anything to complete your word count, even kill younglings if you need to! You’ve truly given yourself to the power of the NaNo. There’s so much writing that needs to be done, and yet life wants to get in the way. Sweat pours down your neck at every moment, for every second away from your laptop is a second wasted. Your eyes are bloodshot, your hands tremble, and the end gets closer and closer.

My allegiance is to my word count, to the completion!

5.) The Redeemed Master (Nov 30th): You did it. Yes, yes, possibly at 11:59pm, you did it. You wrote your 50,000th word and finally the Force is brought into balance. A sense of relief, pride, and exhaustion hits you. It’s been a long journey, and possibly you weren’t always at your best, but you wrote like the true Jedi master you are.

Good luck NaNoing everyone! Let me know how it’s going in the comments!