Day 23: I'm a Writer?

Day 23 of 30Word Count: 39,144

So. 117 pages (and/or 39,144 words) of writing have come out of my head. In 23 days.

I’m kind of super hype, kind of in a daze, and entirely exhausted. I think I’m doing it. I think I’m writing a Real-Life-Novel. And honestly, it is completely fitting that it’s happening this way (i.e. super fast/crazy/intense).

Early on, I spent a great deal of time obsessed with other writers. And not just reading their writing; no, I was obsessed with learning how they were writing. Did they have full time jobs? Children? Did they write in the morning or night? With or without an outline? Ending first or ending last?

I thought that if I knew how someone else managed to write a novel, then all I had to do was follow the same steps to write my own! So, imagine my surprise when all my favorite authors preached writing practices and schedules that could never, ever, ever work for me. Ever. At that point, the writing was on the wall (pun intended) — I would never write a novel. Because I simply could not follow in their footsteps.

But then, finally, I stopped obsessing about other writers’ processes and started obsessing about my own. It took me forever to say this out loud and mean it, but now I can confidently say: I am a writer, too. Just like those other writers. I don’t need to follow in their footsteps; I need to make my own. And guess what y’all? I am doing just that! I am a writer, confidently (yet cautiously) (and slightly haphazardly) writing her first novel.

*Just for fun, here’s an inspiring quote that I’ve been living by these past 23 days:

“There are three rules for writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.”