On this final day of National Novel Writing Month, I have written a total of 45,111 new words in 30 days. My tally for the draft of the novel itself was 38,767 words, and for the 33 Reflection posts, a total of 6,344, for a grand total of 45,111. While the total for the draft itself was a little less than I expected, I really felt that my Reflection Posts helped me to stay accountable. And, in the mysterious way that creative writing often works, I discovered that some of my best thoughts regarding my book-to-be crystallized while writing about the process itself and my progress.

Next steps? For the first time, I’m going to write a detailed outline, scene by scene, of the entire plot. I decided to do this after hearing Amor Towles, author of A Gentleman in Moscow (my favorite of all the books I read in 2018), speak at the Friends of the Hennepin County Library Pen Pals program about how he uses outlines, flexibly, during his writing process. After that, I head to St. Benedict’s Monastery/Studium for a 5-day writing retreat before Christmas.

I do want to thank all of my Facebook friends who sent me words of encouragement during this past month. Thanks for joining me on my journey! 

And yes, tonight my husband and I did have a toast to celebrate the last day of #NaNoWriMo. Cheers!