Monday, July 11, 2016

The Greatness of NaNoWriMo

The Greatness of NaNoWriMo

I've heard a lot about NaNoWriMo in the past, but this month I decided to give it a shot. (Well, kind of. I was halfway through a novel when the month started, so my goal for NaNoWriMo was to complete the first draft, rather than write an enitre book in a month.)

For those of you who don't know, NaNoWriMo is a month-long project where you attempt to write a novel in one month. I've always been a little skeptical (and a little jealous) of authors who can write a book that fast, but I decided to try it out this month.


Typically, NaNoWriMo is held in November, but every April and July the organization holds two "camps" where you do pretty much the same thing, only during different seasons. 

I'm only halfway through the month, but I'm already a pretty big fan of this process. There a lot of different little quirks about NaNoWriMo that I think will really appeal to all writers, no matter their personal writing process. 

At the beginning of the month, you set a word count goal for yourself that you hope to accomplish. Generally, it's 50,000 words, but you can make it more or less based on your personal preference. Make it realistic. Then, NaNoWriMo pairs you up with other writers working on similar projects as you (this is called a cabin) so you can collaborate with one another and motivate and support each other while writing. They also have these fantastic things on Twitter called "word sprints" which are basically thirty minute bursts of writing where you bust out as many words as you possibly can. 

And above all else, NaNoWriMo helps you write a book. Fast. I think that's why I love this so much. Personally, I'm the kind of writer that has a really mean inner-editor that's always doubting me. And when I'm working on just cranking out as many well-written words as possible, I don't have the time to pay attention to that snarky inner-editor. So instead I just write. And write. And get closer to finishing that first draft. 

Granted, the first draft is nowhere near perfect, but its done. Complete. And ready to be rewritten, edited, and revised. 

Which, I think, is every writer's goal. 

So if you're looking for a way to finish your novel (or just for something to do) try out NaNo next time. Even if you don't reach 50,000 words, you're still writing. And that's what's important. 


Much love, 
Dawn Avachat

2 comments:

  1. Great tip! I struggle with finishing my first novel, so hope this helps... Good luck, Sunblock581

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  2. thanks! hope nanowrimo helps you out!

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