Nagging is good, isn't it?

I've begun! My evil friend Scott persuaded me with many wiles and machinations to join up to the NaNoWriMo challenge (National Novel Writing Challenge) to write a 50,000 word novel over November. Actually, all he did was dare me, but be that as it may, my current plight is all his fault. I woke up at 5.30 this morning in a cold sweat.

"It's the first of November!! Get up, you lazy cow and be creative. You have to start now... the year 12s will be beating down your door today because their exam's tomorrow... the kids have their music lessons tonight so you won't get home till 6.45, and by then you'll be too tired to think because I'm here waking you up at this ungodly hour of the morning to nag at you." Sometimes I wish my inner nag would take a chill pill and give me an extra half hours sleep.

But inner panic has a way of waking you right up. So by 5.36 I was sitting down at the computer, cup of coffee by my side, contemplating what lay within me, bursting to be expressed on the page. My inner panic had gone, obviously soothed by the fact that I was up and about. It had been replaced by not much, actually.

I hopped onto the Simple Savings website to see if any goss had happened in the forum. I posted something, and then realised I'd wasted precious keystrokes. The clock says 6.30. Shit. So back I hopped to My New Word Document.

Isn't a new word document such a pristine thing? Like fresh snow. I've seen snow three times so I know. It's almost a shame to walk all over it with my muddy footprints of novel writing. But disturb it I must.

Thirty minutes later I finish. I interrupted myself a few times to feed the animals and give Molly her eye medication. I also made another cup of coffee. But I was flushed with achievement. During that time I'd written 598 words of the worst drivel you've ever read. Don't worry, I'm certainly not going to post it here. Or anywhere. But it's scaffolding. Maybe. But the fact remains that after a break of three years, I'm back writing something that isn't for work. I think this challenge will be good for me. It'll put hair on my chest. Trouble is, the goal is to write 1600 words a day, so I'll have to jump back on at some stage today and keep drivelling.

However, the fact remains that I'm a lucky person, so now that I've started the process, the Great Australian Novel will undoubtedly reveal itself to my inner eye in all its glory. I've also signed up to the challenge where I post on this blog every day. We'll see if the length of the blogs is in inverse proportion to the amount of writing I do on the novel. (I think that's right. I'll have to ask one of my Maths kids today. 'Inverse' is Maths, isn't it?)

It's time to wake the kids now. I'm feeling a bit tired. I could do with a bit more sleep....