Losing your writing;

Hi,
So another post i posted recently was about nearing the end. Well rather ironically a little while after I'd posted that I discovered something that made me actually truly made me cry. When I had been writing in a separate word document in order to count my Nanowrimo word count I had accidentally copied over about 6000 words twice. Which meant that instead of my word count being 53,000. It was actually 48,000. You have no idea how much it pained me.
But something good came out of it. I realised how much more story there is to go before I actually finish and can start the sequel. I've gotten back up to almost 53,000 words again and that made me ecstatic! I realised something that's supposed to happen to them that I hadn't seen. and I think it's going to give the sequel and the characters more depth and reason for the sequel to actually be happening. Which is amazing in the end.
but while it came out great for me you might not always work out that way. Especially if another scenario of losing writing happens and you lose words that you actually did write out. (This has happened to me as well.)
In that case it's a little harder, which is why after every secession of writing I have I always try to make a note of what happened in the story world up to that point just in case. Like on a sticky note, or notepad or on a separate word document (Although I don't do that since my main problem is that my computer crashes and doesn't save said word documents meaning that this method would only cause further annoyance on my part) For example say if over a period of time or words my characters got into an argument, met an enemy and figured out their love for each other (completely hypothetical first thing that came to mind) I would write - in short hand- as much about each of those things as possible, from some things they said that I liked and want to make sure stay there if I do have to re-write it. and the Major plot points about said events. But sometimes I am not all that organised and the words just flow out of me so quickly that I need to just get them on the page so I'm not fussed about writing things down in short hand to give future me a little bit of a break! That darned past me she's always screwing me over!
But I think that even if you do lose your work you yourself after wallowing in self pity for a while can make something better than what it was before, a more edited, cleaner version of it that will hopefully cause you less trouble for the future versions of you that have to edited the first draft that you right now think is the most amazing book you've ever written but that future you will groan at every typo, plot error, and unfulfilled foreshadowing. So Overall don't sweat it, all first drafts can be re-written anyway.

Love,