NaNoWriMo was originally founded in 1999 by Chris Baty along with a group of 20 friends in San Francisco, California, but is now run by The Office of Letters and Light non-profit organization. The program was created for anyone and everyone who has ever wanted to write a novel but hasn't known where to start. NaNoWriMo is a great website that can help you through a daily commitment to writing all through the month of November, and maybe even help you achieve that dream of writing a novel. Publishing opportunities are everywhere as we see here with published NaNoWriMo novelists.
How It Works:
- Create an account (it's free!)
- Just start writing on your computer every day (12AM, November 1 - 11:59PM, November 30)
- Update your word count each day and post an excerpt of that day's work
- Join group forums if you ever need help or advice on something your writing
- On November 30, if your work is over 50,000 words and complete you may officially submit it to the website and have a shot at getting that story picked up by a publishing company!
In 2011 there were 256,618 participants; 36,843 reached the 50K word count. NaNoWriMo aims for higher numbers this year, so writers get to it even if it is the middle of the month; if you don't hit the deadline requirement the experience is still great practice.
Works Referenced:
- The Office of Letters and Light. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/about
This sounds like fun, do you write a short story everyday or just add-on to a bigger story that you'll submit?
ReplyDeleteI bet you could do either one. Writing is an artistic medium after all. I think it would be fun to write a story made of a collection of several smaller stories. Diaries and Journals are collections of smaller stories that follow a larger plot (your life) and memoirs are essentially really big diaries.
DeleteAfter checking the website, I could see how simple it is to start writing. It seems to be a simpler way of getting published. Better than the usual method of spending years writing by yourself hoping it's good.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a great way for people to get out of their shell and into a writing habit (something I'd love to have). I don't really have any intention to be published, but I'd love to write a novel myself. I'm writing a game right now, and I want it to be story-driven, so this is one of those skills I'll need if I'm going to make a strong, well rounded game.
ReplyDelete