Winds in the East

“Winds in the east, mist coming in. Like somethin’ is brewin’ and about to begin. Can’t put my finger on what lies in store, but I fear what’s to happen all happened before.” – Mary Poppins

It’s November, and we know what that means. NaNoWriMo is in full swing. I like to think of it, my annual month of failure. I’m sure this year will be a different NaNoWriMo month than last year for several reasons, but I’m also falling heavily in Bert’s camp. “I fear what’s to happen all happened before.”

I’m actually doing pretty good so far. I’m no where near where I need to be to finish 50,000 words by the end of the month, but I haven’t totally lost hope.

No. Let’s be honest. I’ll be surprised if I reach the goal. And that’s okay. At the end of the month, I will be further into my new story than I was in October. I’ll have worked hard and cheered on my overachieving friends who will type right past that 50,000 word goal. I will have grown as a writer, and I will have written close to every day. Those aren’t bad results.

What about you? Are you participating in NaNoWriMo? How’s it going for you?

We’re also entering the holiday season, and I want to help readers take advantage of the opportunity to read seasonal stories without the judgment one might receive if you read them in July. With that in mind, I’m going to post reviews of holiday books and even some of my favorite Hallmark Christmas movies.

I think I’ll even give them scores. Jingle bells for movies and Christmas angels for the books. I used a scoring system for my movie reviews last year, and I had fun with it. I think expanding it to my book reviews will make it even better!

The last idea I’m toying with is part top ten countdown, part holiday shopping help. I want to give readers and those who shop for readers ideas to make gift sets based on books. I’ll include my own books, of course, and some of my favorite books from the last couple years. The ideas will be customizable to your budget needs. I’m still deciding whether I want to do these as blog posts, on my Facebook author page, or on my YouTube channel as videos. What do you think?

I’m excited to see where the winds take me in the next few weeks. I want to have fun but also provide inspiration for you as you shop for the book lovers on the list. If I can introduce you to a great Christmas book or movie while I’m at it, that’s even better.

And don’t forget to come back regularly for updates on my NaNoWriMo journey. Find out if “what’s to happen has happened before”? Maybe this time will be something totally new.