#nanofree day 30: Finishing off the month with a relatively modest 2660 words written. Which by my count gives me a total of 63418 words written in the month of November. I'm sure for pros that's just a light month, but for me it's not half-bad. Calling it a win!

#nanofree day 29: 3175 words written. We'll see how the month finishes out tomorrow!

Orca was more powerful and dangerous than anything else. So much...that its pilot could not control it. Let Orca be a lesson. Don't try to take everything on yourself. Don't be so focused on 'being powerful' that you're crushed under the weight. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

#nanofree day 28: we're in the final haul here. 2311 words written today. See how many I can get in for this final weekend.

#nanofree day 27: only 1746 words written, but I did have the whole meal and family thing to do today. I am at about 55,000 words for the month though, so either way I'm doing all right.

#nanofree day 26: 3769 words written. Which is a step down from the pace I had been doing over the weekend, but I am trying to figure out an ending scene that is effectively a post-it note saying "IDK, end goes here or something."

#nanofree day 25: 4054 words written. By my tally so far, I'm within a few hundred words of 50,000 for the month. See if I can get over that threshold tomorrow.

#nanofree day 24: 3688 words written. A step down from what I was doing over the weekend, but Mondays are busy days for me. We'll see how the rest of the week goes...the end of the month is coming up fast!

It's hard to stay focused sometimes. The rest of the time it's impossible. #writerslife

#nanofree day 23: 6394 words written. I haven't been this locked in since I sat down to write Wild Rose. We'll see how long I can keep this up.

"IDK, I'll just write whatever and see how I do." Which led to Day 22 of #nanofree: wrote 5407 words in a day. Don't know where this level of productivity came from, but why not, I'm feeling motivated again.

#nanofree day 21: 2629 words written. My normal writing time has been getting taken up with life stuff, so now I write things down during downtime at work. So it goes, learn to adapt and find free time wherever you can.

Lacking heavy firepower, Bloodhound faltered against other 'Mechs. Yet Bloodhound was very good at supporting units that couldn't see what it did. Even if you're not the strongest, remember anyone can still stand up to support their friends. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

#nanofree day 20: 1480 words written. Hard to concentrate on a single project, but glad to be able to keep up momentum and write every day.

#nanofree day 19: wrote 1441 words in Matryoshka and another 1330 words in my lore document. Not a bad day, all told.

#nanofree day 18: wrote 1922 words. Me: do the words count if they're in a lore document I'm writing in support of the main WIP? The manager of nanofree, who is also me:

#nanofree day 17: only 538 words in Matryoshka, but I have a new direction. I generally go into a story with a vague idea and let the plan show up as I go through the first draft. That plan is slowly becoming clearer.

#nanofree day 16, wrote 712 words in a different WIP to try to clear my head. Busy with other things today, but powering through to try and get something done in the writing scene.

#nanofree day 15: only wrote 353 words in the Skyless WIP. Apparently I'm at the stage of my life where weekends are _less_ fun, because they're when I play catch-up on everything I can't get to during the week.

#nanofree day 14. Wrote just 637 words in Matryoshka, but that was the ending scene...now I just have to write all that stuff in the middle to _get_ to the ending. Also wrote 1330 words in the Skyless WIP, taking some notes and trying the Chapter 1 opening for the nth time.

Struggling both to get its weapons into range and to avoid overheating, Pillager was deeply flawed. Then upgraded equipment made it a versatile fighter. Stay true to yourself, but rebuild if something's not working. It's how you become great. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

#nanofree day 13: wrote 1714 words in Matryoshka. A first pass on a very difficult scene...I suspect I'm going to have to rewrite it in the future.

#nanofree day 12: Wrote 1645 days in the Matryoshka WIP. Would have written more, but I want to be able to sleep, and I've gotten up to that scene. You know. _That_ scene.

#nanofree day 11. Tried to get back in the saddle after a rough day yesterday. 1218 words in the Matryoshka story. Realized I don't have to write sequentially, so I skipped ahead to this scene.

#nanofree Day 10: well I was going to get a bad day eventually. Just didn't have a chance to sit down today. Just 119 words written today, all in the Matryoshka WIP.

#nanofree day 9: wrote 1667 words in Matryoshka, and 75 in Skyless. (it was just one bit of descriptive text). Been in a daze all day, so I'm counting this as a win.

#nanofree day 8, put in 1568 words in the Matryoshka WIP. This was a tough one, since the day started early and I was writing half in a daze at the end. But it's important to keep working.

The challenge of meeting a writing goal isn't the total word count, it's facing the days when you know you're slow and you just want to close the story and play video games. Pushing through. 1284 words written today in #nanofree, split between Skyless and Matryoshka WIPs.

An ambitious design held back by constant technical problems, Scourge seemed trapped in a loop of testing. Then Scourge was re-worked into a good general-purpose fighter. Speed bumps can hold back a good idea. Stick with it, see your dreams through. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

#nanofree day 6: another one of those days where "stuff kept coming up." 1335 words in the Skyless project, and finished another project I'm not counting words on.

#nanofree day five. Kind of a weird day, couldn't quite focus on one project today. But ended up doing 1600 words in my Skyless WIP. Writing about someone drowning on a boat, tons of fun.

#nanofree day 4: Doing all right, wrote the first big action scene in Matryoshka. 1681 words today.

#nanofree day 3, was able to focus up a little bit more today. Matryoshka: wrote 1224 words.

#nanofree day 2: With my schedule, it's really a shame that the first two days of this #writing test for myself happen on a weekend. Hopefully I will be more productive during the weekdays. Skyless: 227 words written Matryoshka: 579 words written

First day of #nanofree was a little rocky as I had obligations to deal with, but got some stuff done. Skyless: 842 words written Matryoshka: 542 words written #writerslife

Raven was slow, weak, and jammed by its own experimental ECM gear. But designers stuck with it until the solution came, giving them a truly groundbreaking 'Mech. Give the bad ideas a chance, you might just be missing one piece. And Happy Halloween. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

So November is upon us, and NanoWriMo was replaced by Novel November. I don't feel like an official contest, but I still have my unofficial #NanoFree challenge: write as much as you can in November. Only rule: no AI beyond a spell-check or a random name generator. #amwriting

An effort to revolutionize BattleMechs, Gestalt faded away with its cybernetic creators. Yet Gestalt was a high-power striker that gave its pilot unique options. Always take the risk to push forward. That's how you find something truly amazing. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

Dismissed as a relic, Vision Quest was sidelined and forgotten. Yet Vision Quest was a highly capable Heavy 'Mech that fought to the bitter end. Don't accept that your time has passed. Hold the line and push forward. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

An effort to make the perfect Zombie 'Mech, Gotterdammerung kept its pilot incredibly safe, but in emergencies pilots could not escape from it. Learn from this one. Protect yourself, but don't have walls up so strong you can't get out. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

Great Wyrm did nothing wrong, but was still pushed aside by OmniMechs. Yet Great Wyrm was capable and popular enough to be revived when it was needed. Falling behind doesn't mean you've failed. Hold the course and play to your strengths. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

A mishmash of rare parts, Prometheus seemed a huge boondoggle. Yet Prometheus' unique construction actually fixed its interface system and made it a Solaris legend. Don't give up because you're flawed. Sometimes flaws give us our strength. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

A golden child of the SLDF, Mongoose was singled out, losing the tech that made it special. Yet Mongoose still retooled and carried on. Life beats you down. The question is whether you'll give up, or move on with what strength you can muster. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

An explorer in a universe full of warriors, Marco disappeared without a market. Yet Marco allowed some to dream of doing something other than war. Not everything is a reason to fight. Sometimes it's best to step back with your friends and breathe. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

Naga is a cautionary tale. Made to force Clans to use artillery, it was weak. Some Clans ended up accepting artillery, but all discarded the Naga. Don't force an idea. Be patient, let your creativity prove its worth, and you will find your place. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

A black sheep of the early OmniMechs, Gargoyle Prime was fast but lacked any real punch. This belied other configurations that made it truly fearsome. If you seem bland, it just means you're finding your place. You can still surprise people. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

Sling was celebrated in its time, only to disappear in the wars to follow. Yet it went on to inspire multiple other designs through history. Stand tall and do what you know you're good at. You'll make your mark and inspire others to follow. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

One of the Mackie's lesser-known spinoffs, the Koschei faded away with time. Yet making the Koschei strengthened the Capellans infrastructure and forced them to learn. Try that project. It might fail, but you'll still grow into someone stronger. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

Using outdated strategies like bracket fire and slow groundspeed in the 3080s, Penthesilea seemed obsolete at the start. But Penthesilea is a tough, self-reliant Heavy. Don't give up because you're not flashy. Stick with what makes you strong. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday

A cursed 40-tonner, Targe was a 'Mech that struggled to fit in. Yet Targe was a high-speed striker that could keep pace with lighter units while weathering hits from bigger ones. When it feels like you don't fit, keep moving. You'll find your place. #battletech #GoodFeelsFriday