It's officially NaNoWriMo season, and I must admit - I'm a wee bit jealous of all of you who are participating. With every NaNo-related blog post or status update I see on the internet, I sigh and think, "I wish that was me."

I know it's for the best that I sit this one out, but I just can't help but feel envious. NaNoWriMo saved my writing aspirations. The rush of competing against such a mad deadline brought the fire back to my writing. And I love every second of every day in November. Even when I'm stressed out and thousands of words behind, I'm loving it.

I'm sad. But on the other hand, I'm thrilled. Because of NaNoWriMo, I am writing again. Because of NaNoWriMo, I have this completed draft to work on and make beautiful. Because of NaNoWriMo, my dream is alive again. And, with this draft, I'm so much closer to making that dream a reality.

So, yeah. I'm sad. But I'm also grateful for the experience, and I will be grateful forever.

With that in mind, I wish all of you crazy dreamers out there who are participating in NaNoWriMo this November all the luck in the world. I hope this month brings you all the fantastic things that NaNoWriMo gave to me.