This is the view out my back door. I've seen lots of sun rises this past week while taking care of puppy. Last night I did something crazy.
My friend Pam and I decided to sign up for National Novel Writing Month or NaNoWriMo for short.
It starts November 1st.
If you don't know anything about it, I will try and give you the quick skinny on it.
In 1999, a bunch of guys out in California decide to try writing a novel in a months time.
Why? To pick up chicks.
Or at least that was one of their reasons. They had 21 people participate that first year. The next year there were 140 people, and the year after that it jumped to 5,000. (he blames bloggers for spreading the news--yeah! go bloggers!). Last year they had over 119,000 participants! You can click here if you want to read more.
This thing is huge and there's quite a support group out there. You can sign up for local support. They have forums and get togethers, and it's happening all over the world.
So the challenge is 50,000 words in a 30 days.
Yes, I have no idea what that even looks like or feels like. I expect pain, frustration, the urge to quit on a daily basis.
Pam and I are talking about setting up rewards for small goals met. Most of mine will involve carbs....lots and lots of carbs!
I'm also hoping to meet some new people in my area who are a little crazy just like me.
And the best part, is actually writing something (even if it stinks--it doesn't matter). It's something that I've always wanted to try but have never taken the time to do (hence the blogging).
Speaking of blogging, I expect my blog to suffer some pretty severe neglect in the month of November. That's part of my reason for writing this (begging you to not give up on me). Of course, the other reason is motivation to see this thing through. The more people I tell, the bigger my fear of full blown humiliation if I quit. That maybe what I need during week two (or so I've read).
Is there anyone out there who would like to try this with us? It will be fun.....or at least that's what I've been told.
I'm expecting the sound of crickets.....
thanks 
thanks 
18 comments:
I have heard of lots of other blogger that are doing this. Sounds interesting, but I'm not brave enough to commit to something like that!!
It just seems like too much rushing to me. If I want to write something, I do not want to rush through it!
Good luck! Sounds like more work than a puppy!
I am SCARED! But exhilarated too! I'll put the link up on my blog too, then link it back to yours so they can read what it's all about.
Get ready! I feel like I'm in training for something big...I'm gonna go it a Power Bar!
Go *eat* a Power Bar!
I am already in the process of writing a novel and I think I have something good. Don't want to rush anything and ruin it. But we'll see how many words I can churn out. I don't think I will sign up I'll just lay low for a while and continue writing...
You are right, blogging does help you write now...it helps me too!
That is an awesome challenge! I might have to join in on that one...or not
I'm behind you 100%.This is big! I hope you tell us little snippits on how it's going!!!
This sounds like fun! ...I'm actually thinking about *maybe* trying it. I don't consider myself any real kind of writer, but it could be fun just to try. :)
I think it's a TERRIFIC idea! More power to you. You can do it, and I'm proud of you for jumping in!
I was tempted to join and even checked the rules, but as it turns out, a devotional book isn't really what they're looking for. Besides that, I think my genre might be better suited to taking a little more time with it. =/ (AKA.......I need time to procrastinate.) HOWEVER, I do have a big thing coming up, which I'll be writing on soon.
Good luck!
Fiction... I can't write fiction...
Nonfiction essays... now maybe I could do that.
50k words of blog posts in 30 days... hell yeah!
I might actually have to try that. Best of luck!
Yeah! I am signed up for this as well. Very excited to finally complete it this year.
I have read Chris Baty's book and even thought about signing up once or twice, but 50k words in 30 days? Plus Thanksgiving. And in your case, teens and a new puppy. Lord, you are motivated. I think we'll see less blogging and more writing. 50k words is not for the faint of heart. G'uck, and we'll all live through your trials and tribulations. By the way, once you blog it, you HAVE to do it. That's a rule of blogging. 50k words, even if complete trash. Then, if you;re really brave, you can post it (or sections of it) for us to enjoy. Have fun and love those photos of Geneva, Illinois.
unfortunately i have a lot of crap inside of me - a novel is not one of them! HA! good luck to you though!
that is fun! I am scared for you though.
Wow! This is a quite an undertaking. But it might just be the catalyst you need to tackle your goal of writing a novel. Good luck and I'll be anxious to hear how it goes. And no worries, I'll be hear when you get back.
That's a pretty cool thing to try but there are still crickets over here in Michigan.
Oh my gosh, I really want to do this but at this exact moment, one more thing to commit to may get me committed!! I will keep checking with you to see how you are doing and I will be your cheerleader the whole way!!! Good luck! Although I don't think you need it!
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