So the #insomnia is still a thing, but I’m making progress.
I’ve started forcing myself to try to go back to sleep in the mornings. So far, I’ve gotten up to 4 or 5 hours of sleep the past two nights–which is kind of a new record lately. Sad, I know, but I’m hoping it leads to a good 6 or 7 hours, even if it’s broken like it has been.
The cat has not been helping matters. He’s “trained” himself to wake me up early, because since I had insomnia when we got him he thinks that’s just how things should be. I’m supposed to be up at 2am–that’s just his perspective–so when 4am rolls around & I’m back asleep, he thinks something’s wrong and comes up by my head and starts crying. Guess I should be glad he’s concerned when there’s a change in my routine…I just wish my routine was less crappy.
It’s definitely going to cut into my early morning writing time, but if I can shift my sleep schedule to go to bed a little later I might be able to get more done in the evenings. Next month my husband’s schedule changes so he can train for a new job position, and that will give me more evening time to write. I’m also participating in #NaNoWriMo this year–my first time joining in this event. It’s scary to think that I’m going to have to try to finish 50,000 words in a month, but I’ve heard many good things about NaNoWriMo so I’m going all-in. I’m not going to write a fresh-from-scratch novel; rather, I’m using a work in progress as my starting point, and just aiming to add 50k words to what I already have. That should give me a decent first draft to start from.
The main issue is that I’m a “pantser”: a writer who goes by the seat of my pants, so to speak, rather than doing a lot of pre-planning and outlining. I do plan a little bit, but with this story I’m still not 100% sure of the outcome. That’s right, I’m not even certain how the story is going to end, let alone how to get from point A to point B. I have two chapters, during the writing of which new characters came out that hadn’t even been a thing when I started. It’s interesting, because I almost get to read the story as it’s written, almost like I was reading the book after buying it from a store. Fascinating to see the process, but also I get to be engrossed in the story without being overly distracted by hammering out plot points.
We’ll see how next month goes. I’m excited to see if I can meet the goal. I may have to take my tablet to work to accomplish more during the day, which will make for some tedious format editing once I’m done (due to the app that I will be using to type). Still, it gives me something to occupy my mind and get the creative juices flowing.