National Novel Writing Month Comes to an End
Everybody has a novel inside them. Everyone has the ingredients to create a story to share. The only missing piece for many is some motivation. National Novel Writing Month provides just that for story-tellers around the world. Commonly referred to as NaNoWriMo, the month of November encourages writers to reach the goal of writing a 50,000-word novel in just 30 days.
“NaNoWriMo is actually a really good experience. If you haven’t done it before, you should try, even if you don’t really think you can finish a book,” said senior Zoe Priest. “Being able to be in a supportive community where people are writing, where people are helping each other, and being able to be in a community where you can try something that seems outrageous is not only a lot of fun, but is a big accomplishment.”
This task may seem intimidating to many; the pressure is on to write an entire novel in a month. However, the goal is not to write a bestseller, but to just write. For example, award-winning novelist John Green used NaNoWriMo as encouragement to write a novella about zombies and corn.
“I didn’t really know what to do, so I decided to just throw a bunch of crazy things together and see what happens,” said Priest.
Many of the 306,086 users signed up on NaNoWriMo.org to participate in 2013 will succeed, and others will not. The 50,000 word goal can take up a lot of time and attention, so participants may not make their writing a priority.
“[I tried it] about four years ago. I just couldn’t keep it up,” said English teacher Jeff Church. “[I had] grading and life gets in the way. I tried doing it over the weekends, but it [didn’t work out.]”
Though it may be daunting, NaNoWriMo is a good source of encouragement for writers who need a little push to get their ideas on paper.
“Just do it. Jump in and see what happens,” said Church. “It’s good to have a plan. If you can set out a couple hours a day, that’s what it really takes.”
By: Molly Thal Editor-in-Chief