Preparing for NaNoWriMo: Cleaning House

So, here I am, gearing up for the massive endeavor that is National Novel Writing Month. And like most WriMo’s, this includes outlining my novel, getting to know my characters and generally lots of other writerly activities. But there is one thing I need to do in order to make sure my mine is focused on the task at hand in November. Something I hardly hear spoken about by other WriMo’s. Cleaning House.

I mean that in the most literal sense of the word, too. I have dishes that need to be cleaned, so that keeping them clean during November is easy and doesn’t interfere with my writing. I need to vacuum the carpet. I need to clean out the cat’s litter box. In short, I need to clean house.

Oh, sure, some of these will still be done during NaNo. Dishes get used despite my best efforts to the contrary. But at least I can make sure they are all clean before the month starts. Clothing will be worn and dirtied, but I can make sure that the piles don’t just get added to the existing piles before NaNo starts. Some things can be skipped during the month, like dusting and vacuuming, but especially if I do them before November.

So, my biggest preparation for the week or so before NaNo is to clean house.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, there are some dishes waiting for me to clean them.

-Chris