Well, hello again, WordPress — it’s been way too long! I could say that I’ve been absent for nearly a month because of my preoccupation with school and NaNoWriMo, but that excuse wouldn’t fly. The voluntary hiatus was mostly due to my absorption in several newly-discovered series, foremost of which is J.R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood books.

Plus plain laziness, I guess.

I’ve got a number of coffee post backlogs; however, before I get into those, let me close a valuable chapter in my life: my first NaNoWriMo experience.

The funny thing is that I actually have two or three drafts that I typed out here during the last few weeks of NaNo. I never finished them because I kept having WiFi issues. Anyway, there’s no point in posting them. I’ll just say it now–I won the NaNo on my first try! Last November 28, I bid my laptop good night after validating my 50,697 word count, thereby attaining my purple bar. By the official end of November, I had 55,420 words. None of those included “The End” yet, though. It looks to be a couple more months in the works, and that doesn’t include the editing process.

I remember reading an article debating the pros and cons of NaNoWriMo. I agreed with some and shook my head at others. I suppose the significance of this project depends on your own motivations for doing it. Some go into it for the writing practice and to see if they can achieve that 50k word count. Others do it with the end goal of getting published.

Here are my top ten reasons why you should try–and win!–NaNoWriMo (assuming that you’re actually interested in writing a novel, of course):

10) It’s an excuse to inhale coffee by the carafes (unless, like me, you’re suffering with GERD and are trying to get by with just half a cup every other day).

9) It’s also an excuse to gorge yourself on all types of junk, ahem, brain food. You DO need fuel for all those late nights at the laptop, after all!

8) It’s another excuse to park yourself at the nearest cafe with strong air conditioning and free WiFi for hours on end while looking appropriately busy.

All joking aside…

7) Participation is free and open to all.

6) If you take it seriously, it’ll get you into the habit of writing everyday, whether it’s just 100 words, the recommended 1,667 or over and beyond.

5) It’s a free pass to shelve all your grammar concerns in the meantime. For that one month, all you have to think about is getting the story that’s been in your head for months in writing. Worry about your grammar and fact-checking come December and the months after that.

4) The community of fellow writers supporting you and commiserating with you all the way, especially if you get involved in your local region’s activities such as write-ins and word wars (granted, I wasn’t able to participate in any of these. Maybe next year).

3) The pep talks from published authors. There’s nothing like getting advice from those who have been where you are and have become what you want to be.

2) The satisfaction of seeing your stats rise everyday until you finally hit the purple bar (and the bragging rights that come with it).

Above everything else, here’s the main reason why most, if not all, people join:

1) Because you love writing and there’s no better time to get started on your novel than right at this moment.

Now, it’s onward to finishing the novel. I already know that I’ll be scrapping and rewriting a lot of what I have so far, but that’s better than nothing, right? Before that though, there’s the holidays to get through. Just eight days ’til Christmas! I’m not done with my shopping, and the killer traffic in Metro Manila’s not helping, either. Anyway, I’ve got to get going for simbanggabi (midnight mass), another one of our traditions. I promise to put up a new coffee post tomorrow. Happy holidays, everyone!