Today's the day, folks! My final entry for Camp NaNo has been submitted resulting in 55,688 words written for Project A and an full edit of Project B during the month of July. I'm thrilled to bits with my achievement; I'll be honest enough to explain why.

I usually blog regularly during a NaNo month to update you guys on my progress. This year, I opted for weekly Instagram 'lives' because low and behold life threw me an bloody 'big obstacle' on day 9!!!! You know how it is, life is tootling along just lovely and then bang! Out of the blue comes the unexpected pulling the rug from under your feet. The long and the short of it was I experienced a retinal migraine, but initially on attending A&E they thought it was much nastier and life changing (I can't even bring myself to type it).

Me being me, I took to researching all I could on the subject as I needed to understand the hows, whys and wherefores. During that time, I was grateful to have my daily NaNo projects to take my mind away from my health. After 19 days of non-stop research and sleepless nights - I was given the all-clear health wise and a final diagnosis of 'retinal migraine' was awarded on 27th July. Phew, what a relief! 

As an author nothing is ever wasted - I've told you that before, haven't I? There was only one thing I could do with my newly gained knowledge. So, I changed a plot line for one character in my Project A and they too suffered a medical emergency, though much, much worse than mine. There is always a silver lining, folks! Always.
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Many authors don't read their reviews as negative remarks or ratings affect their creative muse. We've all been there, the one negative remark blots out the 20 compliments you are given. I have always read my reviews, I hope I always will. I find them useful in many ways. Firstly, as the initial reaction to my books - always a relief when my dedicated readers are happy. Secondly, I note the particluar elements which they enjoyed and highlighted; these become the ingredients for future books. My plot ingredients tends to be love, life and laughter with a sprinkling of loss. The settings, locations, character traits are frequently commented on by readers and again, I take note of any helpful snippet.

I'm not saying is doesn't 'sting' when you receive a negative review, but I can't please all readers with my style of story telling. No artist ever can! Monet didn't paint a waterlily which pleased us all, John Lennon didn't pen the perfect song and Rodin couldn't capture the human form - if they can't, I certainly won't! 

Today is the day! I'll hibernate for the month of July working towards my writing goals. Last night, I stayed up until midnight as is my habit for these challenges and wrote until one in the morning.  

Goals:
Project A - 50,000 brand-new words
Project B - an editing task on a 98,000 word manuscript

I've stashed a load of teabags in the cupboard, the freezer full of fish fingers and have a pile of post-it notes detailing my plot. So, I'm good to go!

I'll update my 'home page' counter each day and via Instagram 'Live' each Thursday evening. 

If you're an aspiring author, why not join in by opening a document and setting a feasible goal for the next 31 days. Or get onboard by visiting NaNo and officially signing-up for the month.