Hello all,

It looks like NaNoWriMo has started for this year already! It’s day 4 of the yearly challenge to write 50 000 words in only 30 days. It’s definitely a difficult challenge, and new and seasoned writers alike try their hand at beating it.

This year, unfortunately, I will not be participating. I am in the first year of a four-year PhD and am currently deep in coursework at the moment. I am taking three graduate-level courses, and am focused on writing papers this November.

Some of my past NaNoWriMo challenges have borne fruit, however. In 2015, I finished writing Far Patrol in 30 days and in 2012 I finished writing Rangers over Regulus. Far Patrol is slated to be published in July 2021 with Ninestar Press and Rangers over Regulus was published last year with JMS Books.

Maybe I will take part next year. I hope so. Even in years that I lose the challenge, I still manage to get a good chunk of writing done. That includes All the King’s Men, which I failed to finish in 2013, but still got published by JMS Books in 2019.

What I’m really trying to say is, don’t give up! Even if you’re behind in writing or you’re not sure you’ll finish, it’s still worth it to try. And even if you fail this time around, you’re still trying to write a novel, which is a difficult task, but you’re doing it anyway.

I’m rooting for you all!