NaNoWriMo: Why Do It?

NaNo, who? NaNoWriMo, what? Why?

Who and what is NaNoWriMo can be summed up as:

"National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30.

Valuing enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft, NaNoWriMo is a novel-writing program for everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved.

Because of the limited writing window, the ONLY thing that matters in NaNoWriMo is output. It's all about quantity, not quality. The kamikaze approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, and write on the fly.

Make no mistake: You will be writing a lot of crap. And that's a good thing. By forcing yourself to write so intensely, you are giving yourself permission to make mistakes. To forgo the endless tweaking and editing and just create. To build without tearing down.

As you spend November writing, you can draw comfort from the fact that, all around the world, other National Novel Writing Month participants are going through the same joys and sorrows of producing the Great Frantic Novel. Wrimos meet throughout the month to offer encouragement, commiseration, and, when the thing is done, the kind of raucous celebrations that tend to frighten animals and small children." --Taken from the NaNoWriMo Official Website

The why do it, is a different for everyone. Some do it for fun. Others do it to get their projects completed. Still others like the opportunity to get that idea from their brain to the page. Regardless of the reason, NaNoWriMo is a great chance to network, get support from fellow writers and let your creativity flow.

So turn off your inner editor and let your ready and willing writer out.