National Novel Writing Month (commonly denoted as NaNoWriMo) is one of the most insane things I have ever attempted to do. For those who don't know what NaNoWriMo is, it's essentially the challenge to write a whole novel (50,000 words) within the month of November. See? Insane. But throughout this turbulent month, I've learned a lot. Here's the 30 things I learned while writing a novel in 30 days:

1. Writing a novel is hard.

2. But also so insanely fun.

3. Nothing ever turns out how you planned.

4. But sometimes those spontaneous deviations from your plot turn out even better than what you had planned in the first place.

5. 1,667 words is a lot more overwhelming of a number than it sounds.

6. First drafts are probably some of the worst things ever written.

7. But it's okay for your first draft to suck.

8. When writing a book, you have to do a lot of research (like a lot, a lot).

9. Sometimes you'll have to worry about whether that research will get you on a government watch list.

10. It's remarkable how many words you can write in a day if you try hard enough.

11. No matter how busy you are, if you prioritize something, you can find a way to get it done.

12. Writer's block is constant and persistent.

13. You just have to write anyway.

14. Characters won't always do what you want them to do.

15. But this just means they're developed enough to have a mind of their own.

16. You need to stop waiting for tomorrow, and do it today.

17. Even if you fall behind by several days, if you try hard enough, you can still finish on time.

18. You need to turn your inner critic off, and just get it done.

19. You can always make improvements later.

20. You can do a lot, in a short amount of time.

21. Actually, you just do a lot in general.

22. Writing is exhausting.

23. Mentally, emotionally and physically.

24. If you want something, you have to devote yourself to it.

25. There's never going to be that "right moment," stop waiting for it.

26. You don't have to let the rest of your life fall by the wayside when you're working towards a goal.

27. Somehow, you can still make time to study, workout, cook, etc.

28. You're just going to have to get a really good planner.

29. You will want to die.

30. But it's all so worth it.