NaNoWriMo 2011: It's official, I've won!

Even though I hit 50,000 words several days ago, "winning" for NaNoWriMo didn't start until the 25th and, what with the holidays and all, I frankly forgot to verify until today.  However, I've amended that and it is now official: I have completed NaNoWriMo for the second year in a row, which means I'm 2-0. 

As I said in an earlier post, this doesn't mean that my novel is finished, though.  I had intended to keep writing throughout the month, but I've been taking a much needed break.  Now that Thanksgiving is over and I'll be back to my normal routine, I'm going to start working on my novel again.  I'll also continue to blog and post excerpts.

While I am relieved and excited that NaNoWriMo is over and that I managed it, I'm now turning my thoughts to ABNA, which will happen in a matter of months.  From now until then, I'm going to be editing and finishing my manuscript so that I can submit it in the Young Adult category of ABNA.  I'm very hopeful that this manuscript will garner some attention, and I'm going to continue to keep my eye on the prize: my dream of seeing something I've written in print.

I'd be remiss if I didn't thank my husband here.  He's been so great about taking care of some of the parenting duties so that I could have some extra time to write.  As always, he's been a constant source of support and encouragement, reading the manuscript and offering me his thoughts on it.  When I get worried and self-critical, he's good at bringing me back down to Earth.  Thank you so much, honey!

And thanks to those of you who've been keeping up with my blog and following me on Twitter.  It's exciting for me to see unfamiliar names in my followers, and it's gratifying to know there are people out there who are interested in my work.  Knowing you're reading inspires me to push myself harder, so that I can continue to draw you in as, for me, that's the greatest reward of all.