NaNoWriMo gives aspiring authors a chance to try their luck

Have you ever wanted to write a novel? Is it hard for you to find the motivation to simply sit down at a computer and write? Would a challenge inspire you to work harder? What about entering a competition? This is the goal of NaNoWriMo: to allow writers a chance to hone their skills, compete against others, and hopefully come up with the next great novel idea.

NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month, is an event that takes place throughout the entire month of November. During NaNoWriMo, aspiring authors put their mental and physical health on the line and strive to write upwards of 1,600 words each day until they complete a 50,000 word novel by November 30th. (For context as to just how many words participants must complete daily, this article is only about half that: 890 words). During NaNoWriMo, writers can keep track of their word count on www.nanowrimo.org; successful participants earn virtual badges and trophies for their work every time they complete a milestone. At the end of the month, several sponsors offer publishing and editing services to NaNoWriMo winners.

National Novel Writing Month is a beneficial and fun event for students and other people who are considering becoming authors in the future. It is open to all people ages 13 and over, and the event (along with associated events like Camp NaNoWriMo and the Young Writers Program) is free to people both in the United States and abroad.

After the event, participants are encouraged to revise and edit their stories, then to share them with friends and family. Online publishers offer their services to authors willing to pay to have their manuscripts looked at. The website itself even offers a “Now What?” page to give winners or even just unsuccessful participants ideas of where to take their manuscripts next. Who knows, maybe their novel will be the newest Young Adult literature craze! All there’s left to do is get their ideas out there and see!

Giving insight into the actual mechanics of the NaNoWriMo, AHS Junior Brooke Kozar gives her opinion as one of many potential young authors who has attempted the challenge this year. She has been wanting to attempt NaNoWriMo for several years, but has finally decided this year to take on the momentous challenge. “I just decided on a whim to actually try it this November,” says Kozar. “I'm not sure how well I'm going to do, but I figured why not at least try? What do I have to lose?”

Kozar illustrates some of the challenges of striving for that 50,000 word mark. “I've found that having enough time to write is the hardest part for me,” concedes Kozar. Homework, her job, and her two AP classes make it hard to find any down time to write. She also adds that in order to complete the challenge, “you have to really love your novel idea; if you hate your idea, it won't work.” Writers who grow to hate their characters, plots, or storylines won’t have the motivation to get to that final, fulfilling keystroke concluding their piece.

“I don't know anyone who has succeeded personally,” says Kozar, “but my friend Carli decided to try it with me this year.” It is the duo’s goal to also continue to participate in the event in later years. This year, they got off to a relatively late start, so it seems as if neither Kozar nor her friend will be able to ‘win’ NaNoWriMo this year.

“You're technically supposed to get to 50,000 words,” notes Kozar, “but I'm going for 10,000 words at least since I only have 5,000 right now. I think I'll definitely do it again next year but hopefully I'll be more prepared.”

Carli Reitz, fellow writer and AHS junior, agrees that the competition is much more challenging than it first appears. “For the first week or so, I struggled with choosing a topic to stick to,” explained Reitz. “I'm more of a short story writer, so focusing on the same topic for a whole novel proved to be quite a challenge.” This gives more insight into the nature of the challenge and how it can be a very different beast for two similar students with different writing styles to take on.

“I'm a bit behind right now, at around 12,000 words,” says Reitz. “I've heard stories of people who wrote the entire 50,000 words in the last weekend, so I think I might end up doing that. Hopefully I'll make it in time! If not, it's certainly been a good experience in just how tough it is to write a novel, and I think i'll definitely be participating next year.”

Despite the fact that fully completing the challenge this year seems to be unlikely, Kozar says that she is also glad she has attempted NaNoWriMo this November. “It's been fun watching my story grow and evolve as I write it,” she explained, and she is excited to see how the finished product will turn out.

National Novel Writing Month can certainly be a challenge and even a burden for aspiring students to take on. With these difficulties, though, comes fulfillment, better writing, and hopefully even a finished novel! Future authors, get excited for next year’s competition; I look forward to reading your books someday!