Four More Weeks

In just four short weeks, it will be November 1, and we all know what that means, right?

That's right.  It's NaNoWriMo!

What's NaNoWriMo, you ask?  Only perhaps the greatest opportunity for high-speed creativity on the planet.  Oh, they also have ninjas and plot monkeys, which is cool, though not always incredibly helpful.

Anyway, here's how NaNoWriMo works:  Starting on November 1, you begin writing a novel.  You can write it using whatever program you wish (I'll be using Google Docs this year, just to mix things up), and whenever you feel like it, you go to the NaNoWriMo website and update your current word count.

Easy, right?

The writing continues until 11:59 local time on November 30.  Your goal by the end of the month is to have at least 50,000 words of a brand-new novel that weren't there 30 days previous.  (If you're still in the "under 18" category, you have the option of going to the NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program site and setting a smaller goal.)

Insane, isn't it?  The thing is, it's not as bad as it sounds.  Oh, there will be good times, and bad times, and -- every so often -- a time for sleep, but I promise you, it's worth it.  What you end up with after 30 days of speed typing with no editing, proofreading, or fixing things isn't going to be Hemingway, but it will be your very own, and you can always fix it up later (there will be a whole series on this blog of my joys and angst at editing my NaNo Novel this year), or not.  This will be my 5th year doing NaNoWriMo, and I've loved every one of them.  The sheer thrill of writing so much in so short a span of time is intoxicating, and knowing that other people around the globe (somewhere north of 100,000 other people) are also doing it makes it all so exciting.

And the best part?  No one is going to judge these, or even see them unless you hand over a copy.  The reason to do this is to do it.  There are no prizes (okay, if you pass 50,000 words, you get to print out a nifty PDF certificate and write your name in), no judges, and no rules, other than that it needs to be a 50,000 word piece of fiction.

So, head on over to the NaNoWriMo website, create an account, and start planning your novel.  The writing fun begins on November 1, and I hope to see you there.

Now, if I could just figure out what my novel's going to be about...

p.s.  If you do sign up on the site, look me up -- jwkrug.