NaNoWriMo Update #4

Only one week left of NaNoWriMo friends! And boy do I have a lot of writing to do. With seven writing days left, I have to write about 2,000 words a day to finish on time. Is it do-able? Yes! Does it leave much room for procrastination, indecision, or unexpected interruptions? Not really. But I’m still hopeful that I’m going to reach that 50,000 word goal and have a complete draft.

One of my favorite parts of this experience has been seeing what my life looks like when I take writing seriously. For so long, my own creative writing has been a “when I feel like it” activity, and I never saw much progress or felt much accomplishment from unfinished drafts and forgotten stories. I guess part of my NaNoWriMo experience has been figuring out how important writing really is to me when I get to make my own rules and set my own goals. I have to say that, although there are some other important things that have been a little neglected, writing has become a fun and meaningful part of my everyday. Even with a deadline and a quota, it feels more like a challenge I want to beat than a burden I have to bear.

If any fellow NaNo writers are reading, I want to share some encouragement I found through FastPencil. If you sign up through NaNoWriMo and reach your goal, they offer a free printed copy of your book! If you’re anything like me, you’re dying to see your words on paper and hold them in your hands. I’m even excited to break out some colored pens and sticky notes and get to editing!

As always, here’s another excerpt!

“Who needs a refill before the ball drops?” Will calls. He hurries around, refilling everyone’s glasses as the clock ticks down from three minutes.

“Who’s gonna kiss me at midnight?!” Seth yells, suddenly, and the look on his face is a hilarious mixture of over-exaggerated fear and desperation.

“You just now thought of that?” Jon jokes.

“I see you all pairing up, putting on your chapstick and puckering up, and here I am,” he says. “It’s like a bad music video.”

“I’ve got it!” Will says, running upstairs, making me nervous he’s going to miss the big drop.

He comes running back, holding a large piece of paper. I realize it’s a poster, probably from a teen magazine.

“You can kiss Taylor!” he says, proud of himself.

“There’s no way I’m kissing Taylor Swift,” Seth says. “Well, paper Taylor Swift,” he corrects. “I wouldn’t exactly say no to the real T-Swiz.”

I laugh.

“Thirty seconds!” Anna yells, her eyes glued to the screen. I think she’s focusing on the screen so she doesn’t have to look at Will. We’re all dying to know if he’ll kiss her when the clock strikes twelve.

“Ten!” She says, turning around and raising her hands, trying to get us all to join in.

“Nine!” We all yell. “Eight! Seven! Six!”

Jon hops up from the couch, and he pulls me up to my feet.

“Five! Four! Three!”

He turns my body toward his, we’re eye to eye.

“Two!”

He smiles, and my insides turn like they always do. In a good way. In the best way.

“One!”

And then he kisses me. His hands on my hips, he pulls me closer.

“Happy New Year,” he whispers, smiling at me, his eyes wrinkling in the corners. That’s when I know he’s truly happy.

I smile and kiss him back. I hook my hands around the back of his neck, brushing my thumbs up by his jawbone.

I feel a light tap on my shoulder, and pull away. I turn around to see Scottie excitedly pointing. She has her mouth open in a silent scream.

I follow her finger to see Will and Anna kissing.

Seth gives a little hoot, and they don’t even care. They’re both smiling, kissing, holding each other, just like they should be.

We spend the rest of the night – I mean, morning – dancing along to the performances and eating popcorn. Seth settles in on the couch next to the Taylor Swift poster, and I have to say, they look pretty happy together.

Thanks for reading!

XOXO

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