Thursday, or Thereabouts - November 1, 2018

Today, writers of all stripes and flavours set pens to paper and/or fingers to keyboards embarking on the annual writing marathon of producing a 50,000 word novel by November 30.

"...a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to creative writing. Valuing enthusiasm, determination, and a deadline, NaNoWriMo is for anyone who has ever thought fleetingly about writing a novel."

Check out the NaNoWriMo website for all the details.

This is my fifth entry into the writing room of November. For me it remains a place of good intentions, really good intentions, to write every day, to finish by month's end a sizable section of the memoir I've been working on for... well let's just say I've been working on it for a while.




I'm not a registered participant because honestly, I'm not that driven. My 'Lite' version is a little more relaxed because I've learned, finally, that it's okay to give myself permission to have fun, to accept the better offer when it comes along without obligingly picking up a side order of guilt, and it's okay to attend to my own well being.

To get my writing off to a really good start, tomorrow, I'm off on my annual Fall writing retreat. I'm planning on lots of writing time in the warm company other writers, great food and conversation.

Fern Resort 2016

But here's a twist, a daring twist for me. I'm leaving the storage box, the one full of all the notes, partial manuscripts, and reference material for the memoir, at home under my desk.

For some months now a new muse has been tapping on my shoulder asking to speak. This weekend I'm going to let her write, see what she has to say. So, on this retreat it will just be my pens, inks, and journal books. I have a new fountain pen in my collection. A Bexley joins the Parker Sonnet and Lamy 2000. And there is a new ink colour too - maroon takes a place alongside pacific blue and tender violet. I wonder which pen my new muse will choose. What will be her ink of choice? And come Monday, where will my NaNoWriMo Lite want to go next? Stay tuned.

©2018 April Hoeller