Nano November

It’s that time of year again. Time for pumpkin spice everything, crisp fall air, and cozy sweaters. It’s time to fill my punch card at my favorite coffee shop at least twice. Time to throw my inner editor in a box and hide her under the bed. Time to fill empty pages with the words rattling around in my brain. It’s November and it’s time to write a novel. It’s time for NanoWrimo!

NanoWrimo, if you’re not familiar with it, is Nation Novel Writing Month. It’s an internet based creative writing project that has been happening every November since 1999. Participants can ‘win’ Nano by writing at least a 50,000 word manuscript between November 1st and November 30th. If you break it down, that’s 1667 words a day for 30 days. This will be my fourth year participating. My 2014 win I self-published in 2016, I won again in 2015, that novel still needs a little work, and last year I worked on a novel that has been percolating since I was a teenager. Although I gave it a valiant effort, the buying and selling of our house got in the way. I still managed to write a little over 35,000 words, but I didn’t finish, and I didn’t win. I still have more of that story to tell though, so I’m giving it another go this November.

Today marks the first day of week two. I’m a little behind, but it’s nothing I can’t make up. My first week of Nano was filled with a sick kid, followed by a sick me, a chess tournament, and just the day to day of having two kids, a husband, animals, and a full-time job. That’s what it’s really all about though isn’t it? Nano is the little push that some of us need to get those words on the page.

I’m taking it one day at time, one word, one page. I’ll make it. I have a story to tell. If you’re plugging along with me, writing your novel too, know that I’m rooting for you. We can do this.