It’s that time of year! Time for the ambitiously creative and the creatively ambitious to abandon their hobbies, social lives, family members, basic hygiene, and episodes of Modern Family (OK maybe not episodes of Modern Family), in order to pursue the ultimate goal:
Writing a novel.
In a month. In a month with a major holiday. In a month with a major holiday with only thirty days. (Tell me again who picked November?)
The novels that have been spawned by NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) are legion, and some have gone on to great success, including Water for Elephants.
Are you going to NaNoWriMo it up? And, hopefully, after you NaNoWriMo it up, will you NaNoEdMo it up in December? (That’s National Novel Editing Month to you).
I’m hard at work on Jacob Wonderbar #3, so while I have a head start and probably won’t finish in November, for all intents and purposes I am participating.
And this week I’m kicking off Year 2 of NaNoWriMo boot camp, including topics on how to start a novel, how to stay motivated, how to find the time, and much more. Stay tuned!
Last year’s boot camp topics:
Choosing the Right Idea
Goals and Obstacles
How Do You Power Through?
Editing As You Go
Good morning Nathan! Yes! I am going to do it. It will be my first one. And I just posted on my blog about NaNoWriMo! And tweeted! And seen your link there too! Good luck! And have fun!
K_Einsel
I'm doing it. For the first time EVER. I'm aiming for 2000 words a day, staying off the internet until I have reached this quota. It's worked so far. I've already written 2041 words (I'm Aussie so we start earlier). NaNo started in my timezone little over an hour ago.
I'm giving it a try for the first time. I'll be having a baby midway through the month, and if it's anything like last time, I'll need something to do during the endless days and nights of just sitting around nursing and healing.
I'm using a light little romance novel outline I planned out earlier in the year. I figure it's about right for 50,000 words. Haven't actually finished a novel since I was 19… 10 years ago… eh, we'll see.
I'm Nano-ing this year so looking forward to your boot camp. Not sure about editing in December, might need to let the story/book steep a bit then tackle it in Jan. On the other hand I could prop get in there and do…something! Cheers and Happy Nano-ing!
No. I'm in the midst of writing one anyway. The NaNo phenomenon kind of bugs me anyways so I doubt I would participate in the future.
short answer: yes
long answer: Even though I'm having surgery at the end of November and powering through revisions from a smart and (gently) ruthless beta reader, and even though I have about a two sentence germ of an idea, yes, I'm doing NaNo again. Why? Because it works. Every book I've completed (two now) I started at NaNo. Didn't finish them in a month, but that's not the point. The point is to start. Now. It's totally empowering. It's the Writing Olympics. Good luck to everyone participating!
I'm in! And me and my buddies have instituted a Word Count Race to make it more interesting…=)
I'm in!
I'll be doing NaNo. It's more of a "butt in chair" building the habit thing than a hoping to hit 50K thing for me, but it would be nice to finish the whole book in a month.
Like you, I have a WIP, but I don't call it a NaNo because I started writing it last summer. Although I do expect to have the first draft finished by the end of November.
Yep, yep, yep. I'm participating.
Though I'm not playing by the rules, either. I'm making this "Josie's Novel Finishing Month" (JoNoFiMo???)
I've set out to finish up my major WIP as well as draft out a couple of MG novels that I started but have consistently shoved off my desk since then. I even forced myself to do some prepwork, despite my loathing of all things outline.
Hopefully by the time I start taking the turkeys off the law (not real ones…) I'll have 3 books in the can. 🙂
This will be my 4th NanoWriMo! I've won every time so far so I'm really hoping to continue the streak.
These people who have started are making me a nervous wreck though. I have 12 hours of work tomorrow so I will be late to start and probably start behind.
But I also took a week vacation in November SO that's going to help balance things out.
I'm in, too! I'm also not starting a brand new novel in November, but am finishing a WIP (like Mr. D) and hopefully beginning another novel I have outlined. I know it's not strictly in tune with NaNoWriMo since I'm not working on a single new project all month — but I think that, so long as I strive to write 50,000 words in November, it's close enough to be a participant! 😀
Good luck to everyone!!
I'm on chapter four of a MG WIP so technically it won't be a NaNo, but I figure the spirit of NaNoWriMo is to write as much as you can and I sorely need some inspiration to do that so…let's see what happens. Looking forward to your bootcamp also!
Yep, this will be my six year doing it, second year as my region's municipal liaison. And despite it starting tomorrow, I still have NO CLUE what I'm gonna write this year. *panic*
Nope. I've always wondered why they picked November with Thanksgiving in it. I would have selected March, with 31 days and no serious holiday. I'm in the process of querying, so my next novel is put off until later. I don't feel I need to slather words on a page in one month. I can do the work on my own time. But if you do, good luck.
Yes, I'm participating. I blogged this morning about how well it was going so far, then realised it was still the 31st of October. I felt like a character in one of my own satires.
Hey Nathan,
This is going to be the year for us. This is our third November as official writers, or so we call ourselves, and it is time we ran the marathon with everyone else. I'm all stretched out and ready to hit the asphalt.
Good luck to all that are participating and away we go!!!
I'm not participating this year. I've just spent two weeks in the revision cave and need a few days of sunshine.
I have set daily writing goals for Novemeber to play along at my own pace.
Best wishes to all you Nano-ers!
I am NaNo-ing. This is my 4th year, with 3 previous successes, and I'll be working on my 4th novel. Fancy how that works out!
I'm not doing NaNo, having done it twice in the past I think it's a giant pain in the lower back. Besides, I don't need to write faster, I need to write better. : )
Nano-ing for the first time! Can't wait to juggle classes, homework, and a book. It sounds awesome!
I'm in. This will be my 4th NaNo and, hopefully, 2nd time I hit the 50k mark.
I'm having a go at NaNo for the first time, with a story I've been mulling over for a few months.
I'm simultaneously quite nervous and excited. I'll be checking out this here Boot Camp certainly!
I'll be a WriMo for the first time – very excited and kinda nervous. I'm certainly not as prepared as I could be, but that's part of the fun. 🙂
Sort of. I'm aiming to finish the draft in November. But I've got a good head start.
No. I'd rather indie publish with amazon and take my chances there, where I control everything.
I'm pretty sure I won't finish a novel in November (with its major holiday and my sister's wedding and that weekend conference I'm attending) BUT I'm gonna give it a shot anyway.
I'm going to go for it this year. I intended to last year, but failed miserably and let other things distract me. This year I vow to pump out something, even if it's crap. Gotta start somewhere! 🙂
I am going to use Nanowrimo as an excuse to finish (or write a huge chunk of) my WIP. I too have a head start, and my goal is to write as much as I can, getting as close to the finished draft as I can.
I'm in for my second run at it. I finished last year, chopped up the draft and then kind of left it's disassociated parts laying around.
This year I have a plan, a headstart and some useful experience.
I think a "What Genre are You Writing For NaNoWriMo?" poll would be interesting.
I'm doing NaNo for the first time because I had a break in projects — and I'm trying to break the 500-word-a-day habit.
Happy Words to all participants.
I'm in–irresponsibly maybe, cuz I have a book contract on a non fiction title but hey–I have 24 months by contract to finish that one. So November is Fiction!!! and you are so right. December is Editing! Good Luck All.
No, I did NaNoWriMo last year and hated that I couldn't edit along the way. This November is a NaNoEdMo for me since I have about 3000 words left in my WIP and I have to get it ready for my writing group by the end of the month. It's also query month since I've been avoiding doing that for months. That's a deadline I can live with.
NONaNoWriMo for me. That said, I wish Good Luck to those who challenge themselves with this month long writing spree.
It's an excellent way to find out if you really can write that novel, albeit in a mad dash. . .
I've got other plans. . .
I LOVE writing this way. Won my first in 2009 and will do this every year. My writing group does one in June, too, we love it so much.
No on NaNoEdMo though. I have a deadline on something else I need to finish writing in December, then a final edit for my ABNA project in January… erm… I might have a joining thing…
I'm unsure. I'm so close to finishing my current MS, I'm so tempted to plow through that. I set a goal for myself to be done with it by the end of the year, and ready for submission by Spring. Thirty days may not seem like a lot of time, but it is.
Also, it starts tomorrow and all I've got is a name. No plot, no location, no crux. Just the name of a girl.
I will most definitely be participating. I don't always "win," but I give it the old college try every year.
Of personal interest, I have "won" twice–and both books were finished and picked up by a trad publisher. So, here goes nuthin'.
Yes, yes, yes! I have very vague idea what I'm doing but I'll use it as an exercise: "not sticking to a strict plan". Besides that I have to finish major revision of my first novel (also a beloved NaNoWriMo baby), because I'm supposed to show it to my publisher before the end of the year.
Well, I have a webinar up at the nanowrimo site… but that's probably as close as I'm getting.
I'm not doing NaNo per se, but I am trying to outline a few novel ideas right now and hope I'll get started drafting one of them soon, so I can at least produce a significant amount of content! I'm a bit of a slow writer, though, and 50,000 words in a month just doesn't sound like my cup of tea. Rock on to those who are participating, though!
November's a busy month during the school year, because that's when students start working on their final projects and e-mailing me to ask stuff like, "Can you just tell me what to write so I can get an A?" So I've never been able to participate, unfortunately. I didn't know that December was the month for editing. Maybe I could try it, because that's when things start slowing down a little.
I'm confused and lost and … huh? How does this NaNoWriMo thing work?
No, I'm not blond, just been in the cupboard too long…
This is my first NaNo, so I'm not sure how ambitious I should be. If nothing else, it's a great motivator to pump out more words that I would have otherwise. I'm writing a traditional regency romance.
Yes. Somehow, on my iPad on the bus commute, late at night after everyone's asleep, weekend mornings. Despite summer's beckoning and my Mom's broken hip, I wrote 12,000 unplanned words for Camp NaNoWriMo this year. This time, I've got most of a beat sheet to keep me focused. Strap on your helmet, snug down your tunic, here we go!
Yes Sir, I am doing it this year. It is my first time. So very pumped!
M
When NaNoWriMo started, I remember being excited about it.
But it's been around for a while now and I've never heard anything significant come from anyone who was part of it. If I'm wrong, please let me know. Maybe I missed something.
And no one knows what it really is. It's starting to look like a fringe gimmick to me. I guess it's good experience, but writing a novel in a month is hard for the best. And I would imagine most who enter start thinking about it at least six months ahead of time (you know who you are) and say they wrote the book in a month. Who could prove they didn't?
anon-
I'd say WATER FOR ELEPHANTS was pretty significant.
I started a short story last year and then it turned out to be a novel and now a year has gone by and it still is not done. I hoping to use this month to finish it.
I started another short story to have done before november and I didn't do it. I tried setting a word count and now it's doubled.
I CAN'T WRITE SHORT STORIES!!!
I'm probably participating like you, Nathan. I'm revising a couple manuscripts, then trying to decide which to enter in the next year's Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest, and which to to shop around to literary agents and publishers again.
November is a great month, generally speaking, for concentrating on such work. Good luck to everyone else participating.
Best,
Terin