Nov 24 2008
A Letter From the Leader of the Insane Asylum… I mean, NaNoWriMo Members.
Chris Baty was kind enough to send out his weekly pep talk. I’m always glad to have any kind of encouragement, but I have a couple of comments about this particular letter.
1. Chris wrote, “Between my apartment and the Office of Letters and Light, there is a monster of a hill. I bike to work, and I always take a long route that steers me safely around the behemoth. I do this because I have the calf muscles of a goldfish, and because I’ve developed an aversion to feeling like I’m going to die first thing in the morning.” He tackled this hill and, “A day later, I’m still buzzing, and feeling more alive than I have in months.”
The goldfish line is classic. However, I have a very large, very steep hill just outside of town which I have purposefully climbed. The next day, I’m in excruciating pain. “Buzzing” the next day over a massive hill climb makes me think that Chris might be one of those brave/daring/insane souls who find swimming in freezing water in the dead of winter “exhilarating”, a five mile run “refreshing”, and writing 50,000 words in a single month “fun and–oh, wait. I signed up for that one.
2. He wrote, “In just one week, the sun will be setting on this year’s NaNoWriMo. As the light of the contest starts to dim in the final days, we will likely still be out on that hill, still struggling towards 50K.”
Oh thanks, Chris. Like we need the pressure. The clock is ticking down, the end is nigh! No stress there.
3. He wrote, “The world needs your book.”
Um, A+ as pep talk rhetoric. F- as touching on reality in any way, shape, or form.
4. Chris wrote, “The threshold for winning is 50K, but the climb towards it changes markedly at 35,000 words. This is the point when you’ve written enough of your novel that the course tilts downhill again, and you begin sailing towards the finish line.”
Wait, let me check…. No. No sailing going on here. Slogging, sighing, painfully dying. No sailing.
5. Chris wrote, “When you finish reading this email, write 250 words. When you have a spare moment at work or school, write 250 words. Every page you write gets you one step closer to a literary achievement that will be a source of pride for years to come.”
Yes, on the first part. On the second part, I think that should read, “A source of editing for years to come.”
And, finally:
6. Even Chris is at 30,019 words. I feel so much better. 
