Big Girl Panties

Posted on by Rebecca Wallick

Pull up your big girl panties and just do it.

Write, that is. A novel.

So, NaNoWriMo starts November 1st. What’s NaNoWriMo, you ask? A nonprofit that “…believes in the transformational power of creativity. We provide the structure, community, and encouragement to help people find their voices, achieve creative goals, and build new worlds—on and off the page.” NaNoWriMo is shorthand for National Novel Writing Month.

The goal is to write 50,000 words of a novel in the 30 days of November.

It’s a way to hold oneself accountable to a writing goal while receiving support from others attempting the same thing.

I’ve toyed with this goal in years past. This year, I’m going to jump in. And by stating that publicly, I want to be held accountable.

writing meme

I’ve never tried writing fiction. All of my writing has been nonfiction – one book, countless magazine articles and blog posts. Yet when I read, I read fiction. I’ve always been amazed and awed by authors who can create characters, even whole worlds, out of their imaginations.

Can I?

I’ve been fleshing out a story, the characters, working through some of NaNoWriMo’s warm-up exercises, flexing my writing muscles and my imagination.

writing meme

It has occurred to me in recent months that it might be fun to write alternate endings to several scenarios I’ve experienced in real life. Why not create the endings I hoped for, the ones I prefer to what actually happened? Create a character who does and says what I wish I had?

Oh my. The possibilities are endless. This could be fun.

writing meme

I’m girding, collecting the requisite bravery to start.

I hope you, blog readers, will keep me honest by asking how it’s going. I’m a terrible lier, which means I’ll work hard to have a valid answer that demonstrates progress when you do ask. So ask me. Please. Keep me honest and motivated.

And wish me luck.

Published by Rebecca Wallick

I delight in exploring the national forest near my Idaho home on foot, whether trail running, hiking, or xc skiing, with my two dogs by my side, taking photos of nature and wildlife. An author and freelance writer, I love observing and writing about the natural world, and dogs, and am a long-time contributing editor at Bark magazine. I used to practice law for a living. I much prefer the writing life.

9 thoughts on “Big Girl Panties”

  2. This i bold. Like you, I’ve written countless nonfiction pieces (well actually I’ve counted them), but a total of five fiction pieces — and those are thinly veiled nonfiction stories that I’ve embellished or changed the makeup of the characters. It would take me the whole month of November to even come up with a plot.

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  4. The key to this is 1) write, 2) let your character live his/her own life — I’m sure he/she will let you know before long. It’s amazing how little control we really have over that when the character begins to live. Makes it a fun ride. 3) have FUN.

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  5. I love this idea! I have also had a novel idea floating around in my head for a while. I think I may join you on this challenge and see where it takes me 🙂 Thanks for the motivation!

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