NaNoWhatNow?
If you are a writer (or friends with one), it’s likely that at some point, you’ve heard or seen NaNoWriMo (pronounced NAN-OH-WRY-MOH) thrown out somewhere on the internet or in conversation. If you’re like me the first time I heard it, you probably just nodded along or liked the post that mentioned it and went on your merry little way, completely content with not understanding that particularly strange looking piece of gibberish. Strange though it may be, NaNoWriMo is a hallowed annual event that many writers countdown to and prep for all year long.
From a writer who has now participated in three NaNos (as they are affectionately called), NaNoWriMo is an annual event that has become a global phenomenon for writers ready to hold their feet to the fire and risk getting burned by their own zeal. But for the layman who may still be trying to pronounce the apronym, NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month.
Each November, thousands upon thousands of writers of all ages, backgrounds, and experience levels gather on https://nanowrimo.org/ to set a goal and write like they are Alexander Hamilton and they are running out of time.
The goal for NaNoWriMo is simple she says, knowing full well just how difficult it is to complete NaNoWriMo. For the month of November, participants endeavor to write at least 50,000 words for the sheer thrill of having written a novel in 30 days. That’s right—winners don’t get a prize beyond the satisfaction of a job well-done. And bragging rights.
Now, let me clarifying something here: writing an entire novel in 30 days does not mean that it is finished by any means. This is the ROUGHEST of rough drafts, the one that Neil Gaiman was referring to when encouraging writers to let the first draft suck. Because in truth, the first draft will suck. And not in the cute “Oh my gosh, it’s so awful, but I know it’s great so please validate me” kind of sucking.
It’s the kind of sucking that makes you wonder why you ever wrote in the first place.
It’s the kind of sucking that has you questioning if you’ve ever had a grasp of your native language a day in your life.
It’s the kind of sucking that results in you deciding that you should never attempt to write anything ever again longer than a brief acronym in a text message.
It is terrifying and thrilling and awful and liberating all at once, and I encourage everyone who has ever thought about writing a book to participate in it at least once.
This year, Spellbound Publishing House, LLC will be hosting a little in-house competition for all our writers and apprentices who participate in NaNoWrimo as well as hosting occasional write ins. So if you’re interested in participating, following along, or just watching as a group of writers absolutely reach the edge of madness trying to write 50,000 words in 30 days, make sure you are subscribed to our newsletter and following our social media.
Then, comment below and let us know are you participating in NaNoWriMo this year? If so, tell us about your project! If not, have you ever participated in NaNoWriMo before—or would you ever want to participate?
