NaNoWriMo, what is it?

By Levena Lindahl

Perhaps through October you have been seeing things posted on social media about NaNoWriMo, or National Write a Novel month.  It takes place every November, and the goal is to write 50,000 words, which is the average length of a novel.   If you have ever wanted to write, this might be the thing to motivate you to try your hand at writing your very own novel.

I know that can seem like a lot, but it averaged out to 1,667 words a day, or roughly the length of your typical college paper.  The best thing about this is that it can be about anything!  Do you really love zombies?  Go ahead and write that new post-apocalyptic take on zombies.  Are Victorian romances more your thing?  Make your readers swoon onto chaise lounges with your work instead.  There is no limit to what you can write, and if you are nervous about people seeing what you are doing, just know that you don’t have to share if you don’t want to.  Just post your word counts on the NaNoWriMo site, and keep plucking away at it.  If you want to share, great!  There is a massive online community out there ready to welcome you to the finish line.

I myself am working on this this year, and have a pretty good start going!  Just remember, if you miss a day, don’t give up!  Yes, you are playing catch up, but it is not the make or break sort of situation.  Keep working, and keep trying.  If you get stuck, reach out to people; there are tons of forums designed to help people stuck with writers block on the website, and there is no shame in asking for opinions. 

Happy NaNoWriMo to everyone, and good luck writing your novels!