Why NaNoWriMo?

Why should you participate in National Novel Writing Month this November?

Well, do you want to be a writer? If the answer is yes, then NaNoWriMo is definitely for you.

The way I see it, if you want to be a writer, you have to write daily. Since, NaNoWriMo requires you to write at 50,000 words in 30 days, you will have to write every day, and while 50,000 words in 30 days sounds like a lot, it is only 1,667 words a day.

Also, since you only have 30 days to write those 50,000 words, you have no time to edit. I know, that sounds crazy right? But honestly, it is actually the best thing about National Novel Writing Month. It forces me to stop self-editing as I go and to write all of my thoughts down with reckless abandon. Normally, I write a paragraph and edit it a million times before I move on. Not only is that counter productive, it is actually crazy. Writing without editing allows me to get my story down on paper completely without forgetting things because I was too busy fixing spelling and punctuation. 

The number one reason for participating in NaNoWriMo is that at the end of November you have your first rough draft of your story. Yes, it will be extremely rough and definitely not ready to send off to publishers, but you will have a good start to what could be a great novel. When November is over, take a break and enjoy your achievement. When you're ready you  can finish the story if 50,000 words wasn't enough and you can start editing it. 

Bonus Reason: If you reach the 50,000 word goal you reason some awesome prizes, and one is typically some form a free self-publishing so you can have a copy of your novel (beware, if you want the novel published later by an actual publisher this could make an agent/publisher decline to make an offer on your story, but some companies do purchase books the were originally self-published.) For more information about the prizes please visit: The Winner's Goodies Page.

Tomorrow I will be discussing what you can and can't write during National Novel Writing Month.