National Novel Writing Month continues. As I promised last week, this post is about winning.
Since I’ve won 100 percent of the times I’ve participated, I might know a little bit about this subject. (That sounded a little pompous in my head. I didn’t mean it that way. Really.)
The truth about NaNoWriMo:
There are no losers.
That just harelipped my cousin (*winks at the silly Okie*) and some others who think everything needs to be black and white. Win or lose.
Sometimes it really is about the way you play the game. Or in this case put your seat in the chair and churn out the words.
The Point of NaNoWriMo
According to the creators of National Novel Writing Month, the point is to have fun. They value enthusiasm and determination and see that both are required to complete a 50,000-word novel in 30 days.
What about working on deadline? Some people think that’s an extra motivator and stimulant. Well, they’re all about that at nanowrimo.org.
In short, writing is a creative pursuit with the power to imbue writers with stronger character and impart truth to readers.
Here’s their mission statement:
National Novel Writing Month believes in the transformational power of creativity. We provide the structure, community, and encouragement to help people find their voices, achieve creative goals, and build new worlds—on and off the page.
Whatever you believe about writing a novel, the point of this exercise is to expand your horizons beyond a single project. Think bigger. Think bolder.
What is the point of any creative pursuit?
Winning NaNoWriMo
If you verify a document of 50,000 or more words before midnight on November 30, the NaNoWriMo gurus will declare you a winner.
And there are prizes for winning.
Most of them are free trials of discounts for writer-specific software and services. For example, the folks at Literature and Latte have sponsored every year I’ve participated. They generally offer Scrivener at 50% off to winners.
Wish I would have known this before I bought it at full price. Of course, that happened a year or so before I every participated in the national month of insanity.
I’m hoping they will offer their new iOS application for half off to winners this year. I really want to try it out since I use my iPad for writing almost as much as I use my computer. And it travels SO much easier.
Everyone Wins
Everyone who participates in NaNoWriMo can walk away as a winner.
And not just because plenty of sponsors offer freebies and discounts to all participants.
Attempting to write at a professional pace for a month teaches you many valuable lessons.
To name a few:
- The knowledge you can write every day and not just when you feel like it
- The ability to push past the roadblocks while writing
- Learning to write fast
- Discovering the joy of creating when you’re so focused (or brain-fried) that your inner editor is quiet for a change
- New ways to write: maybe jumping around when scenes aren’t flowing or writing from the end
- Meeting a community of like-minded people to talk writing with
- Discovering new software and services to help you write better
What are some other things you’ve learned from participating in NaNoWriMo?
Just for fun, here are my stats from the three National Novel Writing Months I competed in:
2013
This was my first year in the competition. I was writing the third novel in a young adult fantasy series, Gates of Astrya: Daughter of Destiny.
I wrote 66,616 words in 23 days, a resounding win for my first year.
Although this novel hasn’t seen the light of day since I wrote it, I was a big winner that year. Writing at this incredible pace taught me that I could keep up with professional writers.
I began calling myself a professional writer after this. Talk about a WIN!
2014
I was a Rebel this year. I wrote a collection of four short stories called Real Life with a Twist of Lime.
That netted me 50,816 words in 21 days.
What about those stories? One of them has been recently expanded into a novel. Once I survive this year’s National Crazy Writing Month, I will begin revisions on the manuscript, as suggested by the four beta readers who are previewing it for me.
2015
Last year I wrote the young adult novel on speculation for a publisher. Read more about that here and here.
In 20 days I wrote 67,640 words, making it my quickest win to date. I wrote 3,382 words per day (although I probably wrote more since I didn’t write on weekends).
Although this novel was rejected by the publisher who requested it, I may still resurrect it either for independent publishing or to shop to other agents and publishers. It’s a unique story.
If this post appealed to you, you might like Hero Delivery. It’s a bulletin with deals and specials from Sharon Hughson. It can be on the way to your inbox in a few clicks.
Check out Finding Focus and my other books. You’re sure to find something worth reading.
Already read one of more? Please leave an honest review on your favorite site. That’s like the author discovering a gold nugget in the bottom of her washing machine.
I’m enjoying getting an overall feel for the story, instead of being stuck in one part of it for ages and ages!