Not that writing left me but after three-years doing a degree in Creative and Professional Writing and taking too many classes on too many types of writing I was glad when my dissertation was in and the results were out (I got a 2:1 BTW). I threw myself into reading and writing about reading instead of originating it as writing is bloody hard work.

I’ve found that I’ve really enjoyed talking about other peoples writing and reading dozens of new voices (actually when I had my stint in publishing I read hundreds but I’m not sure they’d actually count). But there’s always been that little niggle calling me back to the page.

Why now? Well I’ve had plenty of time to recover for one but the overriding factor is that three weeks into this years NanoWriMo it’s my 30th Birthday. And I’m not doing into my Thirties thinking I really should have finished (or more accurately started) that novel.

So on the 1st November 2008 I am participating in NanoWriMo. I am going to aim to complete 50,000 words by the 30th November, which is 1,667 words a day or about 1 hour 30 minutes of writing. I’m not that scared as I’ve written under-pressure (my dissertation!) before but this going to be a good way of blowing away the cobwebs.

Not that I’m going into this blind. My best writing experience during my degree was planning and writing a play for Theatre Writing in my second year. I took a fairy tale, Cinderella and gave it a modern twist. My tutor was brilliant at helping us look at structure, which novelists seem to think they can ignore but someone how subconsciously, and I’m going back to those ideas for my NanoWriMo novel.

I’ve got a copy of The Writer’s Journey by Christopher Vogler and seeing as there is only a week to go I’m going to skim read it and jot some ideas and wing it. But most of all I’ve got to remember as Nike says, ‘Just Do It.’

The plan is not only to discuss my own progress and all the thoughts I have on the process but also the ideas of others. Here’s to the journey.