NaNoWriMo: What is it? Why do it?

(Image take from NaNoWriMo facebook page 2023)

Hello, my fellow anxious writers and awkward poets,

And happy NaNoWriMo, I hope anyone who is deciding to participate this year will be successful and are ablet to get those pesky words on paper. Now for those of you who don’t know what I am talking about and are asking “What the hell is NaNoWriMo?” Let me explain.

What is NaNoWriMo?

NaNoWriMo aka National Novel Writing Month is an annual writing event that originally started in 1999 by Chris Baty and a group of friends in Northern California's Bay Area. The aim of NaNoWriMo is to writer 50’000 words (a Novel), within the thirty days of November. With 413’295 writers participating every year, the local writing challenge as expanded into a global event for aspiring writers every where to enjoy or traumatize themselves with.

Now the rules of NaNoWriMo are simple, from Midnight the 1st of November to the midnight 1st of December you are to write a full draft of 50’000 words. This can be your first draft or a redraft. You can prep yourself pre by outlining, creating character notes and so on, works in progress aren’t officially allowed per the rules. However, no one’s going to stop you for bending the rules to your needs. NaNoWriMo has also developed and changed over the years. Now participants could be writing poetry collections, scripts, graphic novels even fanfiction. The point is to get writers to write whatever genre, format, for public or privet consumption. It’s all about the writing.

Why take part?

Community is a good reason why people join in every year. The reality is that writing is a very lonely hobby when you are in the creative stages. There isn’t much you can do as a group, and discussing your work may not always be possible. NaNoWriMo’s forums and YouTube videos, provides a sense of belonging and knowing you aren’t doing this all on your own. If you get stuck there literally thousands of people, you can go to for tips and tricks to get rid of writer’s block. Or the collective writing sprints done as a group in person or via live streaming, is a good way to encourage each other and keep productive. A quick 25 minutes of pure collective writing followed up by chit chat can keep the excitement up and work to the strengths of a lot of people.

It may also be a good opportunity if you struggle with finding time or being persistent when you don’t have a deadline. Having a clear start and finish for could be just what you need to sit down and get words on the page. Instead of stop starting and editing in your writing time. Which is something I am guilty of and am doing it right now has I am typing this.

Then there is also the fact that it is a challenge with “prizes” which in this case just means bragging rights. You can win a banner to proudly proclaim you won NaNoWriMo, to share with all your friends. Not including the little badges of honor your able to pick up threw out the month, for hitting certain word count milestones, or interesting writing practice. Like writing secretly in public, for example.

But the biggest reason to participate is the fact that if you win, you have a fresh new full draft in front of you. Which isn’t that just fantastic?

To fantastic if you ask some.

Yes, there is some controversy about the idea that you can’t write an entire book in one month. Which is where your right, no one can write an entire book in one month. But you can write a draft in that time.

Yes, there is a difference.

On December the first you will wake up a proud owner of your first second or even third draft. That does not mean you can just send it off to publisher’s willy nilly. It means you have completed one of the hardest steps of the process, but one draft does not a book make. You have editing to go through, redrafting and editing again. You will be doing this until you are sick of your own work, please just search up Christine Riccio's writing-vlogs. You will cry a lot. NaNoWriMo isn’t about creating a full book, its about writing the first draft the book.

Am I Taking part in NaNoWriMo?

Yes and no.

I am not planning on writing 50’000 words in November. I haven’t prepped for it and I know pants-ing isn’t my style. I have tried and it does not work for me. More then likely I will be taking part next year, with a little pregame of Prep-tober to get myself in to it. I will however be setting my self my own writing Challenges.

• Complete 4 blog post within November

• Write a complete short story!

• Write something just for me

Now these might seem like a little thing but as I am coming out of a hiatus of my own making, I think they are pretty good to get going with.

But to those taking part I wish you good luck.

The Overly Anxious Writer