Ever since I was little, I’ve always loved telling stories. I experimented with writing short stories, poetry, songs and of course, the ever-daunting novel. I love to write, and I’ve always wanted to create a book-length project, but I never could seem to get far on one before giving up or losing interest. Plus, I had trouble finding the time to sit down and crank out the many thousands of words it takes to complete a novel. It seemed impossible.
Until NaNoWriMo.
A friend introduced me to NaNo sometime in high school, and it has totally changed the way I’ve approached the writing process since. I’ve learned so much about being a writer, about myself and about what I am capable of if I put my mind to it. The best part is, you don’t have to be a writer to participate! All you need is a desire to try something new.
But what is NaNoWriMo? I’m glad you asked! NaNoWriMo (short for National Novel Writing Month) is a non-profit organization created with the purpose of nurturing writers young and old around the globe! They have year-round activities, including Camp NaNo to keep the fun going during the summer months, but its cornerstone event takes place every November.
Once a year, thousands of writers gather together on NaNoWriMo’s online platform to spend one month working on a writing project of their choice (novels, short story collections, poetry, journals, etc.), with the goal of writing 50,000 words by the end of the month. You heard correctly. 50,000! Sounds impossible, right? Wrong!
In November 2018, I “won” NaNoWriMo for the first time, against all odds. But, even if you don’t meet the official word count goal, there’s a lot more to NaNo than just the competitive aspect.
- Creating community
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Readers and writers alike gather in NaNo’s online forums to discuss all things books, writing and more! Participating in writing groups and forums gives you the opportunity to surround yourself with people who support your goals. It’s a great opportunity to chat, make friends, play games and bounce ideas off of each other.
- Practical resources at the ready
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During National Novel Writing Month, as well as Camp NaNo, you will be well-supplied with pep talks, virtual care packages and other resources written by your fellow writers to help encourage you on your journey towards 50k. If you need advice on plotting, worldbuilding, getting inspiration or just a little motivation, NaNoWriMo will have something for you.
- Interactions with published authors
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One of the great things about NaNoWriMo is that they always bring published authors in various genres onto the scene for participants to learn from. Sometimes they solicit them to lead virtual activities, write pep talk content and even do live Q&A sessions, giving NaNo participants the chance to tune in and submit questions to their favorite authors. Some authors who have participated in the past include Marie Lu, Erin Morgenstern, Jeff Vandermeer, Jenny Han and many more!
- Word sprints
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This is one of the things I most look forward to about NaNoWriMo. Members of the NaNo team take turns taking over the organization’s social media accounts to lead word sprints and virtual write-ins all throughout the day (and night). The staff actively engage with participants and hype them up, which makes the writing sessions much more fun! Each word sprint involves responding to one of the creative writing prompts the staff comes up with, getting down as many words as possible in an allotted amount of time. It’s an interactive race with no actual exercise involved.
- Wordcount tracking
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NaNoWriMo has an awesome feature where you can track your word count, and it will chart your progress as well as provide you with a daily word count goal! This goal will update automatically depending on how ahead or behind you fall throughout the month and lets you know exactly how much you need to write to meet the 50,000-word goal by the end of the month. It’s a great way to keep yourself on track and stay informed about where you stand.
- The chance to learn new skills
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By participating in NaNoWriMo, you’ll learn a lot about time management and productivity. You’ll discover strategies to help yourself work more efficiently, and come up with creative ways to balance productive time with personal time. NaNo is all about self-care, and you’ll quickly find that taking some strategic breaks will increase your efficiency and make you feel better about yourself and your work. All of these are important skills that will transfer over to your everyday life all throughout the rest of the year.
- A feeling of accomplishment
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When you complete your first month of NaNoWriMo, whether you reach your goal or not, you will walk away feeling proud of yourself for trying something so awesome and so difficult. NaNo teaches you that you can accomplish anything you put your mind to and will give you a newfound sense of confidence in yourself and your own abilities.
All of this is also completely free for anyone to enjoy from home. It’s almost too good to be true!
In the age of COVID-19, online events like NaNoWriMo are a great way to have some safe, indoor fun, while also getting to experience something new. So, if you’re feeling adventurous, give it a shot! You have nothing to lose, but so much to gain.
Edited by Pamela Gores