National Novel Writing Month

National Novel Writing Month for 2011 has begun. It's an event where the goal is to write 50,000 words in the thirty days of November. At the end, you can earn a cute little certificate from The Office of Letters and Light, the organization that started this whole event in 1999, and you get the satisfaction of knowing you can crank out 50,000 words in a month. You also may have a first draft for a novel, which you can then edit and perfect and hopefully publish, but there isn't any particular requirements other than getting 50,000 words down on paper or computer.

I have attempted this great feat six times now, but I have only managed to 'win' twice. I have done a lot of writing on those years I didn't win, and most of those novels were continued and even finished long after November was past, so it served the purpose of getting a story started.

I've made new friends through NaNoWriMo, the common abbreviation for the event, as well. And I've learned of resources for writer's that would otherwise been very difficult to locate. There are numerous forums and advice for writers all easily accessed through the NaNoWriMo website.

I highly recommend this event to others, whether you have a goal of being published or not. It's a fun and challenging event and can really stretch your imagination in new and wonderful ways.

As November began yesterday, I had no idea what I was going to write. I had no plot, no characters, no idea whatsoever, but I joined another writer and opened a page on my computer and envisioned a scene and began to type. Three hours later I had over 4000 words. A stellar beginning and an engaging story that I'm anxious to continue.