That's right, today before lunch, I wrote the last 500 words to win Nanowrimo. The last three weeks have been a whirlwind. I've written two short stories and over 20k on two different stories. 

This is the fastest I have ever written, and I'm going to try and push for more. I'd loved to come out of this with one completed work. Or if I really stretch, two.  I've never walked away from Nano with a complete story. I've gotten a few close, but never complete. I never had enough time to complete something within the month. I have a few commitments for the release of Owned for Christmas which I need to work on (because I've been ignoring them for the last three weeks to reach this goal), but I'm going to keep reaching, keeping trying to complete both of these.

Owned Forever: 19,698
Hot-N-Ready: 3,329
Good Girls Always Finish First: 21,084
Once Upon a Prom Night: 6,004
Total: 50,115

Today I had my best writing day of the whole Nanowrimo experience. My plan was to get to 40,000 words by the end of the weekend. I got in some good writing on Saturday. For whatever reason the words were flowing, and I managed 3290 words that day. Bringing my total to 38,364. So I knew this goal was not only in sight but easily within my grasp. 

On Sunday though, the words were not flowing as easily, but I managed to get in the 1,636 I needed to hit my goal before heading out to Panera for a dinner and writing session. That's when the magic started. I got another 2,000 words at Panera before I was done with my meal. And then what did I do, I went home and wrote some more. Bringing my total word count for the day to 5149. Amazing! I never write that much, but going somewhere like Panera or Starbucks is one of my tricks of the trade to beef up my word count.

Several of my author buddies that write full time talk about getting these kinds of numbers, but I never thought it was possible for me to do. I just don't do it. Ever. But now I'm rethinking that whole idea. Maybe I can't do it every day, but I can definitely hit that kind of number. Maybe there's even more I can do. Maybe I can write full time, maybe I can be prolific like some of my friends. Only time will tell, but right now, all possibilities seem available for me.

Total word count: 43,513

Last night I crossed over the half way point. That's right, I have written 25,000 words in a little over a week. Its pretty amazing. I don't think I could do it all the time, its really taking the energy out of me but it does make me think what could I do if I just put more effort into it. If I just focus a little more.

In the next year I'm going to be trying to focus more on my writing, and I want to try and remember how much I got done this week. How much I really can do when I want to.

Total: 25459

Nanowrimo week 1 is complete and I've done a great job of keeping my word count up. My lowest count day is 1746, which is still above the Nanowrimo daily requirement. Every other day was hit or exceeded my personal goal of 2147. All and all this year has been great. I've got some good progress on some stories I want to get into my publisher soon, and I'm loving it.

Yesterday I pushed myself and managed to hit 20041 words before I crashed. Not a bad word count for 7 days worth of work. My goal is to get half way done by the end of the weekend. Next week is going to be a little harder. My boss will be back, so I'll probably have to work some more (boo!) and I have some personal things going on at the house I have to take care of before my guests arrive, but this great head start only makes those things more possible.

We're really starting to get into the heart of Nano now, and my energy is starting to wane. I got my words in yesterday during work, even exceeded my goal of 2174 (The number of words it takes to be done by the day my parents arrive for Thanksgiving) but not much more. I really pounded through the words, and got what I needed, but by the end of the day I was exhausted. I barely wrote anything at home. I watched a little TV, made dinner and fell asleep. 

That's one of the tricky parts of Nano. Its a marathon, not a sprint. And finding the right amount of energy, fortitude and rest. It was really important to me this year that I get a good start, which I haven't always done in the past, because of my commitments. And I've definitely achieved that good start. Now I have to start giving myself a break and letting myself relax and enjoy this process.

In upbeat new, I finished the first draft of Hot-N-Ready. This is a short story that I plan to submit to Romance Divine as part of a free read anthology they are doing. Right now its pretty short, which was the point, but I'm sure when I go to edit the word count will go up a little bit. I believe in free reads, giving people a chance to take a sample before buying the whole cake, and have been successful with them in the past. I'm thrilled that Romance Divine thought of me for this opportunity.

Hot-N-Ready: 3329
Owned Forever: 9526
Total: 12855

Nanowrimo Day 3, otherwise known as my first day back at work, was hard but not as bad as I would have expected. Thankfully my boss is on vacation this week so its an easier transition into working while writing like a crazy person than I've had in previous years. It definitely took me longer to get my words in yesterday than the days before, but I still managed to 3139 for the day. Though I did have to motivate myself with a pumpkin latte treat, that I didn't even get, because by the time I hit 10k it was too late to head out to Starbucks for my yummy treat. But I'll get it shortly, now that its finally cool enough to enjoy. 

On top of that I received edits on Serving Madame: Monsieur's Turn. I am a working writer, and my priority is to publish books and maintain good relations with my publishers, over winning this contest. So edits and emails from my publisher have to take precedence over nano. Thankfully the edits were quick and just grammatical so I was able to get them done and back to the Romance Divine quickly as well as get my words. Making Day 3 overall a very productive day.

Owned Forever: 8449
Hot-N-Ready: 2072
Total: 10521

Day 2 of nanowrimo was almost as good as Day 1, thanks in some part to daylight savings time, which gave me an extra hour to write. I also went to a local write-in held at the Panera down the street. I know these events don't work for everyone, but for me they are great. I got down at least 1500 in an hour and a half. Not bad word count for that time. And I got to eat my favorite yummy black bean soup too. 

All and all I ended up with another 3071 words for the day, bringing my total word count up to 7382. But the real test is coming up. Going back to work. I know I won't be able to get the same kind of words in that I can on a weekend. But I just need to make the most of my time and get in as many as I can.

Owned Forever: 5856
Hot-N-Ready: 1526
Total word count: 7382

Its that time of year again. Nanowrimo! This year I'm really trying to get as many words done as fast as possible, because I'm hosting thanksgiving this year, which means I'll be busy for the end of the month, and unable to breakaway from family to get down some last minute words. Luckily for me, the first day of nano fell on a Saturday, giving me lots of time to get ahead on my word count.

As is my tradition, I stayed up late and started Nanowrimo with a bang. I got down 1760 words before bed that night. I got up the next day and continued to bang them out for the rest of the day. I ended last night with a total word count of 4311.

Hot-N-Ready: 1276
Owned Forever: 3035

I'm over at Sweet'n'Sexy Divas talking about my secrets to Nanowrimo prep. Some of the tips you've probably seen before, but I think there are a few that are new and different. Each year I seem to learn some new tip or habit to help me improve over the previous experience.

Stop on by and let me know your tips for winning Nanowrimo. I'm always interested in learning a new tip. And I hope you'll learn something new from my list too.

http://sweetnsexydivas.blogspot.com/2014/10/nanowrimo-prep.html

It's now official. Owned for Christmas is under contract with Totally Bound Publishing. It will be available for preorder on November 14th with a digital release of November 28th, perfect for your black friday shopping.

I'm so excited this story has found a home. After my Naughty Holiday List series I thought it would be quite some time before I wrote about a holiday again, but my characters always have a way of proving a liar of me. Kate, Grant and Daniel came to me almost out of nowhere (after reading a submission call, a recurring instance for me, see blog post below), and refused to let me ignore them.

This story explores themes I haven't delved into before, including a menage with two brothers (don't worry, there is no touching between them) and the dissolution of a BDSM relationship and the way that break in trust affects those involved. Plus there's some good kink cowboy tricks thrown in for fun.

I hope you'll stay tuned to learn more about these characters and how this Christmas will be their best ever. More tips and excerpts will be coming soon...