It’s almost that time of year, November 1 is right around the corner, and writers or wannabe writers everywhere are gearing up for the fall’s craziest month–National Novel Writing Month. More affectionately known as NaNoWriMo, the month of November witnesses over 100,000 people scrambling to write 50,000 words in one month. Last year there were 119,000 participants and about 21,000 completed the 50,000-word challenge.
It’s no secret that December 1 has become a dark day for agents everywhere. With all these novels being completed at midnight on the last night of November, it should be no surprise that these hot-off-the-press manuscripts land in agent inboxes by nine the next morning. Okay, so given that, sure, NaNoWriMo can get a bit of a bad rap. For one, 50,000 words is a bit short for most novels. For two, these are first drafts written in a month. Most of them have not been edited, revised, vetted and re-vetted. So, unless you spout brilliance on your first go, they probably aren’t ready for the eyes of any publishing professional.
But, there are obviously a ton of great things about NaNo. I wrote my first “book” during NaNo of my junior year of college. Thankfully, I never ever ever showed it to anyone. It was awful, but the reason I did it was because I wanted to see if I had the follow-through and could actually sit down and write that many words. Like a lot of people, I had wanted to write for a long time, I started things, but never really finished them and so, I figured what better time than NaNoWriMo? I’m happy to say I did finish the 50,000 words within the month and after that have gone on to write lots of things, get a fabulous agent, and still continue the writing gig to this day.
So, if you’re thinking about whether or not to participate this year, here are some of the high points you can expect to take away:
1. Awesome pep talks from some really cool authors. Every week NaNo emails a pep talk from a guest author. Usually, these established authors are participating as well and have helpful words of wisdom from the trenches. Plus, the emails are good to save and check out later.
2. Finding a place in the writing community. They have great forums on the NaNo site where you can meet other writers. Some of these may become your critique partners or brainstorming buddies down the road. Maybe you’ll run into people you already know. Also, there are always in person writing sessions set up for different regions where you can meet people in real life. I might actually jump in on some of these since I don’t know many writers in Austin right now. Procrastination is twice as effective in groups, after all.
3. Learning to crush the inner editor. This is something I still have trouble with, but unless you learn to squash the inner editor who doesn’t want to let you write forward before perfecting what’s already on the page, you are going to have a very difficult time getting through first drafts. Allowing yourself to write sentences that just aren’t good can be a valuable skill.
4. Working when you don’t feel like it and writing every day. If Stephen King had anything to say about it, every writer would commit to writing every. single. day. No excuses. NaNo makes you do just that, whether you feel like it or not. Even on Thanksgiving. (Okay, you don’t actually have to write on Thanksgiving, but falling behind is not fun. Trust me.)
5. Giving you a body of work. As the saying goes, “You can’t fix a blank page.” Well, at least on December 1, you have 50,000 words to work with, to fix and making something pretty from. There’s not better feeling than having a big chunk of work out of the way.
I’ve only participated in NaNo once and debating whether or not I’d like to do it this year. I’m sort of tempted. Who is participating this year? What’s the best way to prepare? Educate me. I went into it completely blind last time.
I’ve only done nano once and hit the wall at 21000 words. I’m hoping to finish this year – starting a brand-spankin’-shiny-new-idea. No real outline because I’m a pantser by nature, but I think I’ve a better chance this year because, well, I’m writing more regularly now (mostly) and last year I was trying to write a book I’d been planning for a few years. Too much baggage, I think. But prep? Well, I had goofy exercises on my blog last week… but beyond that? No secrets from me. Best luck to you.
I LOVE NaNoWriMo! I always do it with my students. Well, this year I might be too busy with edits, but usually I do. I wrote my first (and second) novels for NaNoWriMo!
To each their own I guess.
Fortunately, the majority of the writer’s blogs that I do follow don’t subscribe to this “event”, so I’ll be in good company.
Just the same, good luck, but don’t go crazy over it. After all, you’re already writing for the other 11 months of the year, so why should this be any different?
Do it! This will be my third year and I’m looking forward to it more than Christmas and my birthday combined (pathetic, but true)!
The thing I like about it so much is just the “fun factor”. G is right — you write for the other 11 months so this shouldn’t be any different … but it is because THIS writing doesn’t actually matter. It’s just sheer play.
As far as prepping, I only have a reasonable suggestion if you’re not an obsessive outliner. But just take it as an adventure. You have no idea where you’re headed … and you won’t know until about 45k. You may think you know what your book is actually about, but at this kind of pace, it will surprise you when, at 30k, it turns out to be about something totally different. (My 2008 one started as a nice little ghost-in-the-woods story and ended up being a how-to-keep-yourself-from-becoming-a-victim story; 2009′s began as a what-if-your-beliefs-were-proven-wrong and ended up as a why-people-have-relationships-at-all story.) Furthermore, you don’t even know WHY you’re doing it … but you find out around 20k.
I think it’s the best way to just let it out and truly let a book write itself. When it comes to just plain fun, nothing (in my nerdy opinion) beats NaNo!