NaNo Land VS The Looney Bin

Many of you know I've taken on the challenge of writing 50,000 words this month in the NaNoWriMo Challenge. National Novel Writing Month. A month of early mornings--or late nights, whichever the case may be. A month of wracking your brain for plot and characterization during the day so that when you get a chance to put fingers to the keyboard, your story can fly. A month of insanity.

I'm sure a challenge like this is a piece of cake for someone who...
1) has no children
2) doesn't work full time
3) doesn't belong to a church that they are involved in
4) doesn't have a puppy who needs to be on ADHD meds
5) doesn't do holidays...Thanksgiving is coming up--who planned this NaNo, anyway?
6) basically, doesn't have a life.

So how am I doing?  Let it show you what I've done so far. (check out my NaNo Stats here)

Nov. 1 : 1785

Nov. 2 : 344

Nov. 3 : 2503

Nov. 4 : 1534

Nov. 5 : 433

Nov. 6 : 2364

Nov. 7 : 1835

Nov. 8 : 530

Total: 11,328

You need to write 1667 words a day to complete (and win) NaNoWriMo. I am behind. I now need to write 1758 words a day to complete my mission. It's do-able.

What I've learned thus far from this NaNo-y experience:

1. I do have time in my day to write. I had thought I couldn't find time, but you know what? I am very clear headed at 4:30 a.m. with a large...um, LARGE, cup of coffee in hand.(the additional sugar from the tons of hazelnut creamer is a plus)
2. You do need a big supply of caffeine on hand. Whether it is coffee, tea, a Route 44 Diet Dr. Pepper from  Sonic, caffeine is a huge part of navigating NaNo Land.
3. Support from the family is a plus. One day my husband cooked supper while I pounded away on the keyboard after work, trying to catch up after a lousy word count the day before. Yeah, I know, a husband who cooks...sorry for those of you who don't have that tool.
4. I need to go to bed earlier. I need my sleep. Period. If I'm going to get up earlier, I need to go to bed earlier. This is a bit of a challenge with nocturnal teens in the house, but they understand this crazy journey I'm on, and have let me be. (FYI, my husband is on call if a parent is needed.)
5. There are many people doing NaNo and can be a great support and encouragement. Just look on Facebook, Twitter, NaNo's forums...there's lots of people doing this same crazy challenge who can sympathize and encourage you. At work yesterday, a 5th grader came up to me and said..."You're doing NaNo, aren't you? I am too!" Woah! I didn't know there was a "Junior NaNo" going on! Way cool.
6. If I don't make my word count, it's not the end of the world. I'm not going to be carted away by the NaNo police if I don't win NaNo and get my 50,000 words in. The deadline is enforced by me. I can be as hard or as lenient as I want. The point is writing everyday, a habit I am trying to develop.

NaNoWriMo is not for everyone. It is difficult to write that many words a day when life is full. But NaNo is a great tool for those who need a little push to get writing. It's been great tool for me in finding a writing time that works. If I'm going to be serious about writing, I need to just write, regardless of the job and other responsibilities. NaNo is helping me do that. Sure, there's a bit of insanity involved, but then again, doesn't every writer have just a touch of craziness? We wouldn't have it any other way, would we?

Has anyone ever done NaNoWriMo? If not, how do you stay motivated to write each and every day?