Do you NaNo?

Fellow writers, it’s that time of year again. Time to commit to be committed and sign up for NaNoWriMo 2007. for those who don’t know what I’m talking about. November is National novel Writing Month, or NanNoWriMo. a wildly popular yearly event that urges writers to attempt the incredible, writing 50,000 words in 30 days.

The theory behind NaNo is simple… Just write it. don’t stop, analyze, or worry where the story takes you. Just dive in and crank out 1,667 words per day for 30 days. The goal is to increase the speed at which you write, and perhaps to spawn one or more story ideas along the way.

Sound impossible? It did to me, too. Last year I entered and only made about 12,000 before life, the universe and everything else got in the way. By the time the month was over I would have sworn it was a completely impossible task.

I’ve since found facts that prove it isn’t.

You see, as the owner of 5 different blogs, I write every day on one or another, if not all of them. My posts average about 550 words per blog per day, which totals to something like 2,750 words per day. There are days when these numbers are considerably less, of course, but then there are days where they are considerably higher than 500 words. (The cooking blog averages about 1,000 per post, since recipes tend to require a few more words to get things right.) So it seems that it is in fact quite possible to write 50,000 words in one month. I’ve been doing it myself since January 2007, and I see no reason to stop now.

Will I be a part of NaNo this year? Unfortunately, no. This year I’m participating in NaBloPoMo, a 30 day event aimed at blogging once a day, every day for one month. (You may find me and friend me here, if you’d like!) That to me would be quite an accomplishment, especially for a cooking blog, which is the blog I’m participating with.

What’s the challenge there? you say? Let me tell you. While it’s true that everyone has to eat every day, it’s also true that humans are creatures of habit, and we tend to eat what we like, which means there’s nothing new to blog about if I’ve made another batch of tomato basil soup. It’s still gonna be the same soup, unless I get in and get creative, and let me tell ya, sometimes I just want the same thing I had last week, with no changes!

So, if you’re a glutton for punishment and you think you can tell your story from start to finish in 30 days, hop on over to NaNoWriMo.org, sign up, and crank out that great American Novel you’ve had simmering on the back burner of your mind for the past few years. Who knows, you may just surprise yourself, get the story written and become the talk of your family, friends and the New York Times best seller’s list!

What!?! It could happen! I have complete faith in you!

Oh, and for those of you who think I’ve been blowing smoke up certain orifices that you most likely possess, the final word count for this post, including this line, is 576 words.

If I can do it, so can you! Go on.! Join in the madness. If it doesn’t kill you, it only makes you stronger!

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