Writing (or not) in 2014

So. January. It's now officially been a month since the end of NaNoWriMo, which means I can officially open up my most recent NaNo Novel and give the poor thing a read through.

I'm having one of those going-down-the-big-slide-at-the-park moments. I'm curious and excited, but also concerned about how this all might turn out. NaNo novels, at the first read, always seem to be a mix of surprisingly decent prose and shockingly awful word crafting. I know for a fact that the last 2,000 words of 2013's effort fall into the latter camp, as I had finished the meat of the story already and was just trying to write some nonsense before the deadline to hit 50K. Still, I liked my plot and I think it has a lot of potential, so I want to see if I can make anything of it.

January being a good time to recommit to one's goals, it might also lend itself to tackling this new project.

Because I don't have several other projects already in the works.

So, rather than face up to the boatload of work waiting for me, here are a list of my Top Ten Favorite Ways to Avoid Writing in 2014:


  1. Browsing Pinterest for writing articles, writing memes, and inspirational artwork and pictures for writing. And also for fattening recipes and pictures of Tom Hiddleston, for which I feel no shame. 
  2. Staring at Facebook.
  3. Watching Graham Norton clips on YouTube. And then Craig Ferguson clips. 
  4. Reading women's fitness magazines and pretending that I will get up early to workout the next day. 
  5. Watching obscure British t.v. shows and movies on Netflix. 
  6. Shopping online for shoes and bags that I never actually buy, and books that I end up buying too many of. 
  7. Sleeping in front of the t.v. 
  8. Reading. 
  9. Cleaning. That's right, I will actually clean my kitchen or do laundry rather than put nose to grindstone and get it written. It's a new level of pathetic, I realize.
  10. Read blogs of other writers I admire and bemoan the fact that I am not super rich and famous with a dozen bestsellers, and then go browse Pinterest again. 

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