One week left of November, which means a week left of NanoWrimo. Some people will be sitting back now, either finished or safe in the knowledge they’ll be able to make it. But what about those people who aren’t so sure?

If you’re reading this post I’m assuming you’re interested enough in NanoWrimo to still be doing it. If you decided early on that it wasn’t for you, then that’s fine too. It doesn’t mean you can’t write every day, just because you know you can’t hit 50k right now. See these next few days as practice and then think about signing up again next year. Write again anyway.

So, for those of you with bleeding fingers, new found coffee addictions and a fledgling daily writing habit, this is the hard part. If you are behind in your word count it can seem as though there is little point in going on. The moments of self-doubt are almost part of the writer’s code, so know that you are not alone. Now is the time to keep tapping away, not give up. Remember, NanoWrimo is as much about giving yourself permission to write every day as it is to hit the 50k bang on the stroke of midnight as we roll into December. It may not have started out that way, but I firmly believe it is now.

Of course, for a lot of people, 50k will be in sight but the words will start to dry up. This is more likely to happen if you were a free writer than a pre writer, but all is not lost. Look around you. Take an object, a scene, a phrase you overhear and give it to your character. Go with it. You might be surprised where it takes you….

Good luck everyone, keep going and remember – have fun!