BY KATE FUEYO, Tampa Preparatory

They say the second week is the hardest--your adrenaline is gone, you're getting sick of finding new words for "said", and whatever stash of junk food you've accumulated at the beginning of the month is starting to run out. Every NaNo blog and inspirational website says the same thing about getting through these crucial seven days. Get ahead! Motivate yourself! Beat the game!

I stare at my stagnant word count, stare at each inspirational blog post, and think, I hope you get writer's block, and those of you with Macs get the beach ball of death. Shut up.

Needless to say, I'm not ahead. I'm the opposite of ahead, which in NaNo land is not behind but panicking. I'm a good 3,000 words, translation six pages, away from the coveted "goal accomplished" point on the NaNo bar graph. Of all months to be packed with tests, quizzes, projects and good movies I actually want to see for once, it had to be November.

I'm so mad that I want to throw a hissy fit. I make up for it by writing a character's death scene, and it makes me feel a little better. Ah, the glamorous stress-relief tactics of my lifestyle.

During these moments of Zen, I reassure myself that I finished last year, and at times I was so ridiculously off the mark that I considered sending McDonalds my job application. I know there's a possibility that I might not finish, and I try to settle myself to that. Only 20% of all participants do hit that treasured goal, after all. Not reaching it doesn't make you a failure. It just makes you an eighty-percenter. Stash your draft on a thumb drive and tell yourself you'll finish it eventually. Save your pride.

Still, I crack my knuckles and do my best to get back to work. I am the King Arthur of noveling, and I'm not going down without a fight.

(Unless, of course, I have to finish my history project.)