NaNoWriMo is here!
It’s that time of year again! November is here, which means for many writers, it’s time to dive into National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo for short. For the uninitiated, NaNoWriMo is an annual event where participants try to write a 50,000-word novel in 30 days. While that may sound like a daunting task, there are plenty of reasons why you should consider giving it a shot this year. NaNoWriMo, which stands for National Novel Writing Month, is an annual event during which writers from all over the world attempt to write a 50,000 word novel in just 30 days. While that may sound daunting (and it is), participating in NaNoWriMo can also be a lot of fun. After all, there’s nothing quite like the camaraderie of fellow writers banding together to reach a common goal. Plus, it’s a great way to jumpstart your writing career. Here are just a few.
Read more- It’s a fun way to challenge yourself.
- You’ll make new friends who are passionate about writing.
- You might surprise yourself and find that you’re a natural storyteller.
- Even if you don’t reach the 50,000-word goal, you’ll still end up with a first draft of your novel that you can revise and edit at your leisure.
- It’s a great excuse to eat all the chocolate and wine you want! (Ok. Maybe it’s a great excuse to get out of your comfort zone and try something new).
- There is nothing better than the feeling of crossing the finish line and meeting a writing challenge head-on!
- And finally, even if you don’t win (which, let’s be honest, may not be likely if you work full time, take care of family, have other hobbies…you get the idea), it’s still an accomplishment to be proud of—after all, not everyone can say they’ve written an entire novel in 30 days!
Aside from all the reasons I just listed, there are some pros — and some cons — to participating in hell month.
The Pros of NaNoWriMo
There are plenty of reasons to participate in NaNoWriMo, even if you’re not sure you’ll reach the 50,000 word goal. For one thing, it’s a great way to get into the habit of writing every day. Even if you only write 500 words, that’s still 500 more words than you would have written if you hadn’t participated in NaNoWriMo at all! And who knows? Once you get started, you may find that you can write more than 500 words per day after all.
Another benefit of NaNoWriMo is that it forces you to sit down and actually write your novel. It’s easy to talk about writing a book someday, but it’s much harder to actually do it. By setting a word count goal and giving yourself a deadline, NaNoWriMo gives you the push you need to finally start (and finish) that book you’ve always wanted to write. I just wished I had learned about NaNoWriMo when I started writing Dark Awakening. Maybe it wouldn’t have taken me 10 years to write!
Finally, participating in NaNoWriMo can be a lot of fun! There are online forums where you can connect with other writers, there are local events where you can meet up with other participants in your area, and there’s even an annual awards ceremony where successful participants can receive prizes and recognition for their achievements.
The Cons of NaNoWriMo
Of course, there are also some drawbacks to participating in NaNoWriMo. The biggest downside is the pressure to produce large quantities of text in a short period of time. This can lead to quantity over quality, which is a tough pill to swallow for any writer. Additionally, because NaNoWriMo participants are notoriously bad at proofreading their work (after all, they’re focused on meeting their word count goals), many novels written during this month are rife with typos, plot bunnies and grammatical errors.
There’s also the sleepless nights, foregone exercise regimens and the infamous “NaNoNine” (nine pounds of weight gain that are a constant companion and parting gift for your hard work and sacrifice.
So what do you think? Will you be giving NaNoWriMo a try this year? I hope so—I’ll be participating myself, and I’d love to have some fellow writers to commiserate (and celebrate!) with along the way. Best of luck to all who decide to take on this challenge—I know you can do it!
And if you’re looking for a writing buddy, stop by my page! I’d love to connect.
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