Four NaNoWriMo Lessons for a Magical November
A short collection of lessons on making the most of your writing time for this November and beyond.
You don’t reach 19 years and over a million words written as a NaNoWriMo participant without learning a thing or two. That is why I’ve decided that in anticipation of this year’s event, I wanted to put together a little guide of some of the NaNoWriMo lessons learned that will hopefully be of service to both those who are new, and for seasoned wrimos who have perhaps struggled to reach their goals. But first, let’s unpack what NaNoWriMo is, and what it isn’t.
NaNoWriMo is the shortened term to describe National Novel Writing Month, which is both an annual writing event, and a literary non-profit organization that encourages creativity year round. They got their start in California in 1999, when writer Chris Baty and some friends decided they wanted to take on the daunting task of writing 50,000 words in one month. What began as a challenge amongst a small few has become a global phenomenon, with hundreds of thousands of wordsmiths around the world diving in each year to bring their stories to life.
NaNo (as the participants fondly call it) has become such an important part of my life that it may as well be my favorite holiday of the year. As mentioned at the beginning of this piece, I’ve been participating every year since I was 14 years old. In that time I have won some and lost some, written short stories and full novels, and I’ve also served as an ML (aka regional organizer) for my area for the last 8 years. I’ve learned a lot the hard way, and so my hope with this article is to share with y’all some of those lessons, so that you might avoid some of my pitfalls, and make the most of your NaNoWriMo quest, should you choose to accept it.
Balance Patience and Discipline
Think about everyone you’ve ever met who has said to you, “I should write a book one day!” Well, participating in NaNo takes that one day and makes it THIS day, so you get to become one of those people who instead says, “I wrote a book!” That takes dedication, and a commitment to consistently coming to the page, even when there are other things you could be doing. Even if you can’t carve the time every single day, there’s always little spaces and moments where you can find time to prioritize this creative endeavor you’ve signed up for.
"Participating in NaNo takes that one day and makes it THIS day..."
However, that does not mean you shouldn’t be patient and understanding with yourself. There are going to be days where your remaining bandwidth is zero, and that is more than just okay. That’s called being human. Families, jobs, health conditions—we all have important things in our lives that require our attention, and at the end of the day, NaNoWriMo isn’t mandatory. It is, and should always be, something you are doing because you want to be doing it. So when it becomes too much, have the kindness and patience with yourself to put the pencil down until you find yourself in a better headspace to come back to the work.
Go Where the Muses Guide You
One of the best decisions I ever made as a NaNo participant was simple—write whatever the heck I want, when I want. These past three years especially have been extremely freeing, because I allowed myself to jump around from project to project. Wherever I felt inclined to create is where I let the muses carry me. Some days it was my novel in verse, others it was a fan-fic idea that took over my brain.
Telling myself, “I must write this and only this,” can certainly be an effective strategy for some, but it isn’t the only strategy, and if you’re someone who prefers a more chaotic approach, know that there is a place for you in NaNoLand, and you shouldn’t be afraid to chase whatever story is calling you.
"You shouldn’t be afraid to chase whatever story is calling you."
It’s Dangerous to Go Alone!
This is a big one. If you look at all the years I have participated in NaNo, the majority of years where I didn’t reach my goals were the ones where I went at it alone. The true heart of NaNo is the community that is has created, and whether that is buddies you make online through virtual communities, folks you meet in person at write-ins, or even just that encouraging non-writer friend of yours who you talk into texting you reminders to work on your project. Finding someone, or a group of someones, to support you and be there for you during November is a game changer that cannot be overstated.
Be Proud of Every Word
Last but far from least, I’d just like to address what I’ve found to be the biggest myth that needs dispelling, which is that if you don’t write 50,000 words in 30 days, you’ve somehow failed.
While that may be what the challenge began as, the thing it has become now is so much more about just encouraging every participant to prioritize writing, whatever that looks like for you individually. If your goal is to edit 10k? Great. If you want to spend the month finishing a short story? Fantastic. If I can impart nothing else to you, dear reader, let it be that the most important NaNoWriMo lesson you can learn is how much your story, whatever it may be, matters. Every word further is a reason for celebration.
"...your story, whatever it may be, matters."
I hope this guide was of help to you, and gave you that push of encouragement you need to give NaNoWriMo a try this year, whether you’ve never done it before, or are giving it another shot. When you tap into this community, give yourself the freedom to write what you want, and dedicate yourself to the words, you’ll find you can be pretty damn unstoppable!
Sign Up for NaNoWriMo
This post was originally written for Elixir Verse Press, the recently launched indie press where I serve as a Co-Founder and Director of Communications. You can check out our website here, and also visit our ‘Answer the Call’ page to learn about the open submissions for our virtual lit mag, the Elixir Verse Equinox.
Find out how you can support our first year of publishing endeavors by reading Unlock the Magic at Elixir Verse Press.
Want to read more of my work? Check out my latest book, UNVEIL ME: the complete duology & other poems, which features my first two full collections, as well as a number of new poems.
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