You Win Some, You Lose Some
NaNoWriMo — National Novel Writing Month
NaNoWriMo started in 1999, right where I live. The guy who dreamed it up, Chris Batty, at the time, lived not too far from where we are in Oakland, California. He had friends in Berkeley and San Francisco. They were writers who didn’t have a lot of motivation to write. The idea was to get together and push each other on to write. Somehow, the idea included 18 more people, so there were 21 people that first NaNoWriMo. It was in the summer, and the next year, they decided November would be a good time for this writing circle.
Now, NaNoWriMo has its headquarters in Berkeley, California.
They settled on November because the weather was typically cruddy in our area in Northern California — word spread. The internet was young, and the idea steamrolled. The next time they got together to write, there were 2,000 interested people — people who fought the loneliness of writing. The idea that misery loves company had taken hold.
People still write all by themselves, but isn’t it comforting to know others in your group are doing the same thing you are? Hammering away at an idea, forming cohesive thoughts, and putting them on paper?
Writing is not something you can do with other people, but the idea of having others near you spend time hitting the metaphysical highway with their heroes and villains, with splashes of artful expression, is a good thing.
In 2000, NaNoWriMo — National Novel Writing Month became a charitable organization. Now, 24 years later the idea to write has expanded past the original November writing month. That one is still a goal of 50,000 words. There is a Spring Camp in April and a Summer Camp in July. Every year. They’ve developed special programs aimed at school-aged kids. They even loan out computers to folks who don’t have them. They work with educators to get the word out and to spark a child’s imagination to believe they can write.
In November 2022, 413,295 participants from six continents participated. Of those people, 51,670 writers won NaNoWriMo and reached their goals. Of those winners, 21,326 children won. Could you imagine being the parent of a kid who won a NaNoWriMo event?
One November, I joined up with a writer’s sprint where, for two hours, we all wrote. It was the funniest thing, but I enjoyed it. All you could see during that Zoom meeting were the tops of people’s heads as they bent their backs and labored away writing at their own projects. I remember the moderator said even to count the words you deleted, but I’ve never done that. That silly little writer’s sprint was proof positive to me that there were other people trying to do what I did, reach a goal.
It doesn’t cost anything. You just join up and commit to write. The flexibility has grown in that you can now do a NaNoWriMo anytime during the year by yourself. I believe the word count goal can also be individualized. There are ways to apply writing during NaNo to already-created pieces you’ve written to take them through a re-writing and editing process. I haven’t figured out how to do those.
Last November, I began a project to write a teaching memoir about channeling, which is something I’ve done since 1993. I hear voices in my head, amusing, teaching, companionable people in spirit. Many times, they stop in while I am writing pieces for Medium.com and I make them a part of the pieces.
One thing I’d like to try is waiting for a fictionalized character to approach me, and maybe we could concoct a story involving them. I thought it would be fun. Maybe I’ll do that this NaNoWriMo, just to see what happens instead of the 80,000 word project to write a book called How to Publish. It sounds like an easier project. At least, more fun.
I remember the first time I lost one of the NaNoWriMo writing events. I signed up to start writing in November, and then it was like the universe got together and threw every obstacle in my way preventing me from writing. I was so disappointed and realized I just wasn’t going to be able to do it. I lost and I felt bad about it.
Then, after time passed I changed my mind about losing NaNo. The intention was there. I tried and saw first-hand how I allowed other things to dictate and take precedence over what I wanted to do. Now, pretty much no matter what is going on, I can say, “Stuff it. Get out of my way. I’m writing.” After that NaNo I learned how to control my life better, especially my writing time. All sorts of learning goes on with a person following their dream.
You must say no to invitations to play with other people. “No, thank you, but I’m writing this morning.” Then, there are the lessons when said people will try their best to distract you. They beat feet all over your wishes, and you have to learn how to be more forceful and insist that you are writing and don’t have time to have a beer or shop or whatever it is that other people want to do with you. Even the lure of the internet is something you need to control. Maybe you say to yourself that you can play after you’ve put in four hours of writing.
Last November, when I started writing my psychic memoir, I was able to meet the goal of 50,000 words. It was the easiest NaNo for me in all the years I’ve been doing NaNo’s. Then, I spent the next month of December on finishing up the book. I didn’t want the project to sleep while I recuperated from writing. That’s when I learned I just can’t let these projects go to sleep. I tend not to pick them up again, which explains the five books I’ve written that are not ready for publication.
I took it to 74,000 words the next month. It needs a rewrite. I need to print it on paper to see how things look like that. I think it really needs to be more like 80,000 to 120,000 words, but right now? I’m not too sure how to do it.
I have learned a lot during the time I’ve spent writing at Medium.com, but it took me participating in several NaNoWriMo's to fix the idea in my head that I was a writer.
Writing during NaNoWriMo is a gift you can give yourself. Even while you are writing at Medium. I am scheduling stories to post while I am going to be writing during the Spring NaNoWriMo camp.
This is one of those stories. I’m writing it on Sunday, March 24, 2024, and will publish it next week, Wednesday, March 27. Still time to encourage others to write during the April Spring Camp National Novel Writing Month.
Thanks for reading. Join us.
The Links: NaNoWriMo — Free Writing Event My Profile at NaNoWriMo NaNoWriMo Channel on YouTube Hearts of Space — Music to Write By