NaNoWriMo

This post was originally published November 2, 2023.

November is National Novel Writing Month, also known as NaNoWriMo. Every writer knows that the hardest part of the job is sitting down and writing. Whether it’s resistance, writer’s block, or a hundred other things that also need to be done, there’s always something that keeps us from actually getting the words on the page. As a solution, a bunch of writers got together over twenty years ago and pitched the idea of National Novel Writing Month. During November, writers support each other as a community to write 50,000 words in 30 days.

NaNoWriMo is actually a nonprofit and several famous authors have written their books during the month, including Marissa Meyer’s Cinder and Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl. There’s a bunch of ways to get involved, but for me, it’s always been a call to action to sit down and write my book.

Except this year I don’t have a book to write.

I just finished the first round of editing on my novel and have sent it off to trusted individuals for a second pair of eyes. As far as my book goes, I’m in a waiting period, and if I’m being totally honest, it feels amazing. I have spent several NaNoWriMos trying to write 50,000 words—okay, maybe 30,000—no? What about 10,000—5,000? So, it turns out I’m a pretty slow writer. I spent a few days back in college going on my own writer’s retreat, which meant I was locking myself in the library all day and writing. I’d reward myself with McDonalds and a trip to the movie theaters that evening. But after a full day of dedicated writing, I might be able to reach the 1,667 word count that needed to happen every day to write 50k in a month. Doing that with other responsibilities? I could never figure it out.

The spirit of NaNoWriMo always stuck with me though. Each year, I revise my goals and try to come up with something attainable. I may not always accomplish the goal, but I do always write more. This year, I’m working on my blog, and while nothing may seem different from your side of things (yet), I’ve got a lot of future plans that are going to require a lot of work on my end. As of now, I write my blog posts the week they come out. It’s not my favorite system, as it doesn’t allow for much flexibility in my schedule.

This November, I’d like to change that and write a backlog of blog posts. If I can give myself an extra month, that would be amazing. I already know that some changes will be coming next year, and I can’t wait to share them, but for now, I just need to get the words on the page.