NaNoWriMo Part 2: Why?

I've never had a yearning to be a writer. English was not my best subject and creative writing has always been a great struggle. I've done all kinds of technical writing and I'm really good at it. I can teach and explain things in great detail. But too much tedium in storytelling will kill it. So why would I want to be a part of National Novel Writing Month?

1. Doing something creative is better than doing nothing creative.
2. To learn something new about myself and creativity.
3. Why not!? There's nothing to lose.

Since I released my right brain in 1999, I've constantly struggled with giving it freedom and license. My left brain demands structure and knowledge, organization and a plan. My right brain wants to walk along the beach at sunset and paint on the walls. But Lefty always find excuses for not running away on a sunny day or making a mess. It doesn't take much of this before Righty screams, "I've got to break free." So why not write a novel.

A real foe to my creative pursuits is time. Time to yank out paints, take classes and spend hours in the studio experimenting. To battle this, I've tried to find small creative outlets so that I'm doing something, even if it's not canvas and paint. Blogs are one of those small outlets I can do just about anywhere, anytime. SoulPerSuit also helps because of its mini art projects created on playing cards. This week I folded a couple of pieces of origami. It took less than 30 minutes. Righty was so happy.

So maybe I'll learn something about storytelling. Maybe I'll respect writers more. I hope to find a NaNoWriMo group to meet with regularly during the challenge and maybe I'll just use my enthusiasm and focus to encourage others on to their own dream of writing a novel. That's time well spent.