Because November is nearly upon us, I’m pausing my ABC series for a post about NaNoWriMo. For those of you who are concerned that my keyboard is broken or that I failed to proofread before publishing this post, NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. It takes place every November, and participants attempt to complete an entire 50,000-word novel between the first and last days of the month. Sounds crazy, but believe me, it’s incredibly fun. If you want more details, check out their website.
I know there are many writers out there who are debating whether they have the time, energy, ideas, etc. to participate, so I’ve compile a short list of reasons why I think NaNoWriMo is beneficial to help the decision-making process. (Bonus: The reasons alliterate!)
Creativity
Most writers write a brand-new novel during NaNoWriMo, although many instead commit to completing 50,000 words for an existing project. For many, NaNoWriMo is a chance to try something out of their comfort zone, to play and be creative. I loved this idea, so the first two years I participated, I paused my work in progress and started a fresh project, with the goal of trying something new.
The first year, I wrote a science fiction novel. That was new territory for me (as you know, my favored genre is fantasy), but I decided to push the envelope even further. I wrote from the points of view of several characters, as is my custom, but one character in particular was special. This was an alien who did not have language. Instead, he communicated telepathically, although with impressions and sensations rather than words. To convey this, every chapter from this character’s perspective is stream of consciousness, written mainly with nature-based metaphors and similes. At times I felt very poetic. At others, I feared that if anyone read what I wrote, they would either think I had lost my mind or had decided to try my hand at being one of those pretentious literary hipster types. You know, the ones who sit on street corners with their typewriters and offer to compose a poem for you for a few bucks. (Ok, I’ll admit it:, I’m secretly jealous of them.) Whether my attempt was successful or not, it made me stretch myself and try my hand at a new writing style. I haven’t returned to that novel after NaNoWriMo, but maybe I will someday. There’s something special about that concept in my mind.
Last year, I again put aside fantasy in favor of science fiction. This time, I decided to try something new by combining the science fiction genre with one of my other loves: a cozy mystery. I enjoyed the experience, and the novel felt a bit less chaotic than the previous year, but I do feel that it missed some of that spark. Regardless, it was a fun experience.
This year, the stars aligned, and I am actually going to use NaNoWriMo to begin the final book of my fantasy trilogy. (If you’re curious about this story, you can read the first chapter of the first book in my trilogy by clicking here.) I’m excited, not only to bring this story to a close, but to use November to fast-track the creation of this first draft.
So I ask you, do you have a story idea tumbling around in your brain that you’ve never given yourself permission to actually write? Why not use this November to try it? Say you want to try NaNoWriMo but don’t have an idea. Check out my brainstorming post for some tips to get you started.
Comradery
Most people would use the word community, but I prefer comradery. The beauty of NaNoWriMo is that, across the globe, writers are all striving for the same goal: Get the words on the page. They don’t have to be pretty; this is a first draft. Just. Get. Them On. The. Page.
This comradery became very real for me last November. I had traveled back to Colorado (my home state) for a work trip/family visit. One afternoon, in an effort to escape the work dinners and family time, I stole away to a Starbucks to get some writing done. Latte and coffee cake in hand, I opened my laptop and resumed working on my sci-fi/cozy mystery. As I was tapping away, a barista started wiping tables next to me.
“NaNoWriMo?” he asked me suddenly.
“Yeah,” I said, surprised but pleased. “You doing it this year?”
“Nah, too busy right now.”
“I get that,” I said.
“Well, good luck,” he said and resumed wiping the tables.
It was a short, maybe thirty second conversation, but the random connection and unexpected comradery with this complete stranger made my whole trip.
NaNoWriMo is organized to encourage writers to write together. If you check out their website, you can add other writers as your “buddies” (Feel free to add me! My username is bthompson09.) and search for your own local region (Shout out to the Seattle region!). In the past, regional groups would meet in-person at coffee shops and libraries for writing sessions. This year, because of the lovely coronavirus, all events will be virtual. (Honestly probably better for us introverts!)
Writing is typically a solitary business, you inside your own head.
Writing is typically a solitary business, you inside your own head. Why not grab the chance to be inside your own head but with other people?
Commitment
Bet you saw this coming. The biggest reason I do NaNoWriMo is to recommit myself to my craft, particularly my daily writing habit. I know I sound like a broken record on this subject, but daily writing has honestly had the most profound impact on my writing practice.
“But, 50,000 words in a month… that’s craziness!” you say. I thought so too the first time I heard it. But, like everything else in life, once you break something down to smaller goals, it becomes achievable. Fifty thousand words in one month equates to two thousand words per day. I’ve found that if I sit down with a plan in mind, I can pound that out in half an hour to an hour. The NaNoWriMo site is great for tracking these word counts and transforming them into a fun graph. If you track the time you spend writing, it will even calculate your average words per minute, which the nerd in me loves.
Writing every day, rain or shine, holiday or no holiday (yes, I know Thanksgiving is in November), is oftentimes a difficult and frustrating process, but I always reach the end of the month proud of what I accomplished. Is this your time to recommit to your writing practice and attempt the 50,000-word journey?
I hope my reasons are helpful as you consider participating in NaNoWriMo this year. Even if you decide to try but don’t “win” (all participants who complete 50,000 words are considered “winners”), at least you seized time for your craft and made the attempt!
I will take a break from my NaNoWriMo project midway though the month and post some NanNoWriMo-related thoughts and encouragement. You’ll also likely see me tweeting about my progress and posting words of encouragement throughout the month. That’s all for now, though.
Happy writing!
THE QUILL & THE INKPOT 