Thank you, NaBloPoMo

We made it!

Thirty-one posts later (one a day, plus a spare), this blog has successfully reached the end of National Blog Posting Month, more affectionately known as "NaBloPoMo". Even better than that, not all of my entries sucked. I'm not sure what the final statistics are regarding the percentage of original participants who managed to complete the month without missing a single post; I suspect I am in the minority. But that's not really important.

When I began this particular post this morning, somewhere in the back of my mind I had thought I would write about how difficult it had been to come up with fresh material every day, and whine about how tired I was and how much I was looking forward to a day of not having to post. Then I stopped and realized I was missing the point entirely. NaBloPoMo is about stimulating creativity, sharing, and building community; it's not supposed to be a forced death march (the "post or die" logo notwithstanding). Yes, there has to be a focus, and the post-a-day mandate is a tangible way of encouraging folks to update their blogs regularly without merely saying "you know, you ought to write more often". But even if we didn't post every single day, it doesn't mean we failed. We made the effort; we contributed, and had fun with it, and if we missed a day here and there because it stopped being fun, then that is as it should be.

I began to realize something about halfway through the month: for a while I was struggling with writing (as I often do), not knowing what to say or thinking that it wasn't "good" enough. But at some point I said to myself "what the hell, just do it", and when I did, I found that the words started to flow more easily, sometimes becoming a stream of consciousness that bounced nearly effortlessly out of my head, off my fingers, and onto the keyboard as fast as I could type them. To any writer, amateur or professional, this is a feeling of pure, ultimate joy ... the writer's reason d'etre. I believe this is what NaBloPoMo celebrates as much as anything, and I am grateful to have had that experience.

I also want to thank all the new folks who have stopped by here this month; you may notice I have added a number of new sites to my Blogrolling list, and I feel like I've made some cool new friends as well. I've also enjoyed visiting the other participants and reading what they have to say. There are a lot of talented, interesting people out there that I probably would never have discovered had it not been for NaBloPoMo. I hope the Randomizer sticks around, as I'd like to continue to keep up with those on the list after this month is over. Finally, let me express my appreciation to M. Kennedy and all the other folks who put the considerable effort into organizing this affair; you guys have done a great job. (Hey, I started this thing off with a grovel, and by Grabthar's hammer, I'm gonna end it with one too.)

So Thank You NaBloPoMo, and I hope everyone reading Wind In The Wire has a great holiday season and will come back and visit me again soon.

By the way: in case you're wondering, this does not mean that tomorrow I won't totally be observing "NaNoMoFoBloPo".