Well, it's probably happened to some people already. I know it happened to me.

Let me say that I wasn't doing too much planning - way busy - and that after doing the little planning I did, I realized that the story was not right for this NaNo. Some people do tons of planning and then realize they want to do something totally different for NaNoWriMo. Since I'm so busy right now, I have decided that I will fall back on something that ought to keep me in the competition all the way to the end - the sequel to last year's NaNo. That story came in my head not too long after last year's NaNo idea came to me (which was a few years ago, as was this one). So I think it deserves to be written.

Ha, I haven't even edited last year's novel! I just started looking over it again, writing down what goes on in each chapter. When I finally find the time to edit it, I hope it's a lot better. It's definitely a rough draft now. But it does have the basis for what I'm going to use for the sequel. The story did not drift so far off target - and it won't during editing - than it could have. The sequel also has new characters. And unlike the story idea I was going to use this year, I can actually plan this one in my head and still have a good idea of at least half the story. Let's say that the other one I had in mind needed way more planning than I could possibly give it this year.

So sequel it is.

Many people are writing sequels and sequels to sequels this year, too. Some of them are finishing up trilogies - even series, if I'm not mistaken. I have to say "Rock on!" to those of you who are doing that. (I highly doubt there will be a sequel to my sequel. I think I'm finishing up this two-book series with this one.)

NaNo starts this Saturday. Good luck to all!