Hello, dreamers. It’s November 30, which means National Novel Writing Month is coming to a close. But what a month it’s been. I may not have finished a novel, but I wrote a lot of one. And I’m eager to keep going.

For me, the past month has been a reaffirmation: a reminder that when I write as myself, I can create something valuable. This is the same story I started last year, but it’s different. It’s deeper, more human. For the first time since 2018, I feel like I found my way into something beautiful. The work is far from over, but this is a strong start. So with that said, here are my parting thoughts on NaNoWriMo 2024:

Aquarius 1

It started slow. I was still struggling to find my voice. But I let myself follow the words, even when they spun off into other projects. And finally, I’m happy with the direction of this project.

When I first began work on Aquarius 1 last year, I knew I had a good story in mind. It was fully-formed, more complete than anything I’d written since Pioneers. I was sure I could do it. But I was struggling to find myself, and it showed. The results felt hollow: I had the bare bones of a good story, but the feeling just wasn’t there. I didn’t let the characters speak to me, didn’t get into their thoughts and feelings. There are people who’ve set out on the greatest adventure in human history, and I wasn’t letting them deal with any of it. I didn’t know much about their lives, their histories, their personalities. I forced the story to go where I wanted, and it suffered for it.

So yeah, I got off to a slow start. When the month began, I was still knee-deep in character notes. But I kept at it, writing side projects while I worked out just who these people were. I realized Karen Hernandez was a loner with a strained relationship with her mother, dejected and full of self-doubt. I decided Anita Powell was a great scientist but a bad parent, who’d spent so much time proving herself and solving problems she’d neglected the most important relationships in her life.

Suddenly, instead of a sure and capable crew that was all smiles and bravery in the face of the unknown, I found myself with a ship full of damaged people. People who were great at their jobs, but caught up in the moment, neglecting their personal lives and traumas. They were flawed, and real. The result thus far has been a much more human story, one that explores the way the human mind processes the unimaginable.

In the end, I laid down a mere six chapters, all of 28,000 words. That’s a far cry from the 50k NaNoWriMo deems a “winner”. But I knew from the start 50k wouldn’t be the end. Not even close. And I feel very good about what I’ve written, and more importantly how I’ve written it.

Now, the crew of the Challenger has faced their first major test, and had their first taste of tragedy. Anita showed how valuable she is, Werner Helling was revealed to be an enthusiastic but vulnerable man, and Karen found out what she’s really made of. Now, with their ship repaired and the damage behind them, they’ll pick up the pieces, and resume their ambitious mission. As will I.

When I’m writing, I always step back and take a break after completing a section of a novel. With phase one in the books, I plan to take some time off from Aquarius 1 for the past week. I’ll be immersed in research for the coming phase. I’ll probably write another short story or two. I’ll work on When We Left Earth, and probably try writing a query letter for Pioneers. But once that’s done, the work on Aquarius 1 will continue.

As for NaNoWriMo, this was a good one. It provided the kick I needed to finally get back to this story, and dream of the future. So thanks, NaNoWriMo. It’s been fun. In the meantime, I’ll keep writing, and posting. So until next time, dare to dream. – MK