Coming soon: NaNoWriMo

So what in the world is NaNoWriMo?

You may have heard writers talk about it - maybe even just calling it NaNo.

NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month, a thirty-day challenge to write 50,000 words during the month of November.  NaNoWriMo began in 1999 with 21 participants and has grown to over half a million on six continents.

As the name implies, it began with that first group of people encouraging each other to write a novel in November, but some of the current half-million people write non-fiction and are affectionately referred to as NaNo rebels.

I stumbled upon NaNoWriMo in 2010 and have been participating every year since.  That first couple years I tried to write a novel - or at least tried to pretend that’s what it was - but have since discovered that I’m just a NaNo rebel.  I have now completed the challenge 13 times.  I have even published two of those projects.

I started out with one basic goal really - simply to make the word count of 2000 words every day - and I learned SO MUCH in the process.  Participating in NaNo has been instrumental in helping me build a consistent writing habit and has taught me many things about myself.

NaNoWriMo has evolved into a very cool movement with lots of fun stuff.  I’ve always loved the hype created with charts and graphs and writing buddies. More recently they have added merch and swag - from coffee mugs and posters to shirts and puzzles and even books.

It’s not too late to join the NaNo challenge. In fact, why don't you go to the NaNo site and sign up - so you can get in and see all the cool stuff.  

Or if it really feels too big for this year, maybe at least get your feet wet by trying out some alternatives.  But don’t give up too quickly; okay?

NaNo, NaNo!