NaNoWriMo

[MaiAriSquee]

This month is National Novel Writing Month!

From NaNoWriMo:

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.

In 2008, we had over 120,000 participants. More than 20,000 of them crossed the 50k finish line by the midnight deadline, entering into the annals of NaNoWriMo superstardom forever. They started the month as auto mechanics, out-of-work actors, and middle school English teachers. They walked away novelists.

So, to recap:

What: Writing one 50,000-word novel from scratch in a month's time.

Who: You! We can't do this unless we have some other people trying it as well. Let's write laughably awful yet lengthy prose together.

Why: The reasons are endless! To actively participate in one of our era's most enchanting art forms! To write without having to obsess over quality. To be able to make obscure references to passages from our novels at parties. To be able to mock real novelists who dawdle on and on, taking far longer than 30 days to produce their work.

When: You can sign up anytime to add your name to the roster and browse the forums. Writing begins November 1. To be added to the official list of winners, you must reach the 50,000-word mark by November 30 at midnight. Once your novel has been verified by our web-based team of robotic word counters, the partying begins.

I think this seems pretty cool, so I've signed up and I'm going to try to do it. I thought some of you might be interested to!

EDIT:

MDbers joining the fray

(MDb SN ~ pen name)

-MaiAriSquee ~ MaiAri
-Steamlord ~ Steamlord
-Rediwing ~ Fallenarms3
-Sylux ~ Eyes of Argus

[Steamlord]

Yeah, I'll try it. Although I'll probably run out of steam well before the 50,000-word mark.

(Get it? "Steam?" "Steamlord?" Heh... )

[Redwing]

I'm using this as an excuse to buckle down and work on my videogame screenplay. I should have starred today, but I had some major computer issues to sort out...

[MaiAriSquee]

Awesome! How about we share our SNs so we can be Wrimo network buddies and keep track of each other? I'll make a list in the first post!

*waits for the rest to come out of the woodwork*

Well, I do have a ninety-page metroid fan-novelization that I haven't touched in almost a year. Could I add eighty-five pages in a month?

Probably not.

[MaiAriSquee]

Well, I do have a ninety-page metroid fan-novelization that I haven't touched in almost a year. Could I add eighty-five pages in a month?

Probably not.

I was waiting for you!

Why not try or start something new??

I guess there are other novella-length ideas I have that I could try. Not sure if I can pull any of them off by the end of November, though.

Hmm.

Anyone think this merits an irc channel?

[Emperor Ing]

120000 shitty novels...

Wow, it's like a voluminous library of... crap.

[Redwing]

120000 shitty novels...

Wow, it's like a voluminous library of... crap.

YOU'RE RIGHT NO ONE SHOULD TRY TO MAKE ART THEY ALL SUCK

I mean, sure, yeah, but at least people are writing, and that's cool.


My sn: Fallenarms3

My sn: Fallenarms3

Is that AIM, or Skype?

[Redwing]

My sn: Fallenarms3

Is that AIM, or Skype?

NaNoWriMo. wwww.nanowrimo.org uses a login-based system, which also allows you to buddy-up with people you know by screenname.

My sn: Fallenarms3

Is that AIM, or Skype?

NaNoWriMo. wwww.nanowrimo.org uses a login-based system, which also allows you to buddy-up with people you know by screenname.

Okay, just friended you. I'm Eyes of Argus.

[MaiAriSquee]

I've added both of you and started the list up top.

120000 shitty novels...

Wow, it's like a voluminous library of... crap.

You should join us, then there'd be 120001.

[Steamlord]

My screen name is Steamlord.

[Will Keaton]

I have heard about this before and was intriuged by it. However I have many stories that I want to tell and I'd be cheating if I entered with something that I'd started working on before Nov. first and continued on after the deadline. A few years from now I may enter using the guidlines. The anything-goes no-holds-barred kamikaze stroytelling would work well for telling the story of a certain someone I know.

Also. Where are the enrtries from previous years? I wish to gaze upon them.