Join Me! Write a Novel in a Month!

If you just read my last post, here's what I'm leading up to: Have you always said, I'm going to write a novel! Then, you never did? There are a lot of people like you who want to, but why don't you make the commitment?

I'm inviting everybody to participate in National Novel Writing Month. It's in November. Here's the deal: Write 50,000 words from midnight Nov 1-31st. There's a method to scramble your manuscript [Oh, don't do it before saving a COPY!!], then you may copy it over to the NaNoWriMo site for word-counting. If you make it, you'll be in the minority, but what have you got to lose? Check it out! Go up there now, before you lose your courage--what's that? What do you have to write?

Any kind of fiction. It'll count if you type the same word 50,000 times, but do you really want to waste THAT much time?? Just write. No proofing, no editing, nothing to slow you down. Just you and that white, blank file on your PC's word processor. Fill it up! People from all walks of life have taken up the challenge, and done it! What this is all about is to quit procrastinating and commit to writing every day for a solid month. Think you can do that? You can't write the first word until after midnight Nov 1. The site lets you set up now. You can put your Home Region [mine is Georgia Everywhere Else, 'cause Cuthbert's not listed. But, I also joined the Atlanta GA Region and the Dothan AL, and a couple others just for fun. Your word count grows as you go, and it helps the Region's Word Count. You can make friends who are doing this crazy stunt, too [this is my first time]. You can submit a title and your idea ahead of time, but you can't actually write the first sentence until Nov. If you can't wait, write now!! Then write another one in November.

Then, another site sponsors an editing event for December. Some people have discovered a best-selling novel doing this. Could it be you?

Check out the site and read up. Every person who finishes gets a free proof copy of their manuscript from Amazon's affiliate Print on Demand Publisher, CreateSpace. I want one!!

On the website's home page, there's a link to the 2009 Badge. Go get one, and commit to write the Great American Novel this November! Hey, it can be about anything! Science Fiction, Romance, Horror, Mystery, Children's, etc.

You saw how awful my writing was when I got started. My teenage versions were much, much worse. What can you possibly write that could be worse? The best part of this project is, you don't have to let anyone read it. At the end, if you don't want anyone to read it, you can dispose of it or hide it on your computer under a cryptic filename like DeleteMe. But, my advice to you is, a writer cannot judge his or her work. You will underestimate or overestimate your talent. Let the reader decide, how good it is. If you're brave, you can post excerpts on the NaNoWriMo site and fellow NaNoWriMos can tell you what they think. But, don't get your feelings hurt if someone's mean. They might just be jealous of your talent :) Or, they might not have gotten their feelings hurt yet. There's something about the Internet that brings out the worst in a few people, but most people are nice. Everyone has a bad day at times. I have posted my stuff and been sharply criticized, and it's hard to post it again after someone scalds you verbally. Don't listen to the meanness. Hold onto the positive comments. Don't take lack of comments for disinterest. Don't be quick to give up, or to delete what you wrote. Writing is a solitary activity, and a satisfying one. I write to forget about my daily physical discomforts. Most of the time, it works pretty well. It's a great catharsis for stress, and a way to travel without leaving the house. My daughter, Maggie, enjoys my stories. Who knows, maybe someone else will :) But, it's a wonderful feeling to hold your book, fresh from the printer! I'd like to hear from those of you who commit to the NaNoWriMo! I hope every one of you win your Proof Copy from Amazon's CreateSpace! Good Luck!!