We are now well into April and as many aspiring writers will know, partway through the first Camp NaNoWriMo of the year. 

Instagram and YouTube are being filled with daily progress reports as would-be authors revise and polish last year’s attempt at a novel in a month or even more ambitiously – attempt a whole new one – and I am wholly envious of these people. 

So why, you may ask, am I not partaking in this creative adventure with them? 

That was the plan. I had hoped to go back to my novel attempt ArrowHeart and completing my first draft of that, alongside plenty of vlogging on the process but unfortunately, plans don’t always pan out the way we want them to. 

For various reasons, the main one of which was my recent hospitalization and pregnancy illness, I have decided to cut myself some slack and not put unnecessary pressure on myself as I focus on my recovery. My baby’s health and my own is after all my main priority right now. 

Besides, with the recent release of The Write Way, I need to focus on advertising that and perhaps should finish mapping out the next book before jumping into yet another large writing project. I also have my novel A Knight Passion to finish and some novelettes to complete under my pen name. 

So there is enough to be getting on with.

…and yet, I feel a heavy nostalgia whenever I think of NaNo and heartily wish I was partaking of the challenge like many of my peers. I really enjoy the enthusiasm others share for their passion projects and the whole experience is just so addictive. There is just something about the challenge of a daily word count that is encouraging and as I previously said last year, something so motivating about the aesthetic of watching other people write via their YouTube channels or images on Insta. 

Are you taking part?

Once again I put this question out to my community and friends – are you taking part in any Camp NaNoWriMo madness? If so I would dearly love to hear from you and cheer you along from the sidelines! Please do drop a comment below with links and social media profiles to follow so that other aspiring writers can be inspired.

If not NaNo, then what?

For me, this month is going to be spent catching up on where I have lagged behind, such as getting out content related to my book and producing what I hope to be inspiring and informative tips and tricks, and writing prompts for my social media platforms as well as giving some much needed love to this blog. 

I also have several outlines that I would like to get fully down on paper, for both fiction and non-fiction books. I am also hoping to be able to carve out some time to work on my latest blog which focuses on learning to parent, as I have been consuming mummy hacks and articles like nobody’s business. 

But one thing I am really focusing on this month is re-embracing creative time that isn’t dedicated to a final outcome. What I mean by this is finding time for the silly things again, such as colouring, storyboarding, journaling and other healthful activities related to expressing creativity and experiencing quite time. 

Anyway, that’s it for me for now. Best wishes to all those doing Camp NaNo. Happy Writing!