I'm Crazy (For NaNoWriMo, That Is)

You read that right. I'm participating in NaNoWriMo this year. Whether or not I make it to 50k depends on a lot of things, like how many energy drinks and tea I can guzzle at one time. Or how much homework I'm willing to not do. Or how much sleep I can sacrifice.

But so far I love it.

There's something about the reckless abandon of jumping in before taking a thorough look at an idea that gets me high. Like a sugar rush. I know that if the analogy pans out, I'm gonna have a wicked crash in the not so far future, but let's just hope for the best, shall we?

Why am I doing NaNoWriMo? A lot of reasons. Writers get to hang out and ban together even more than usual, and the idea of writerly camaraderie just makes me all warm and fuzzy inside. It's like running a marathon with friends, for you sporty people out there.

Oh. Oh. I didn't explain it. Let me explain: NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month, and it's held every November. The goal is to write 50k in 30 days, which is fairly intense, lest you haven't tried it yet (go try it now... you'll understand how hard it is when you start crying in front of your blank microsoft word document).

Why put ourselves through the torture? To work for it. To enjoy it. To be able to say "The End." For the pure love of the thing, in other words.

Why would I specifically put myself through this? Because nothing is panning out. Each new WIP has died a tragic death since Morgantown, and while I have plans of a rewrite looming in the semi-near future, I want to sink my teeth into something different. Something new and juicy and wonderful.

And if I think about any idea too hard, I convince myself not to write it. Hence NaNoWriMo, where thinking more means writing less. Of course this WIP I'm writing now isn't entirely brand new. But I haven't really considered it, which means I haven't really doubted it.

I know, for all you seasoned NaNoWriMo-ers, I must sound like a doe eyed idiot with all this enthusiasm. And I'm sure when day 15 rolls around, I might hate life*. But for now, I'm caught up in this new world with these new characters that sort of feel like old friends.

For now, I can feel the same rush I had with Morgantown, and THAT makes everything worth it. For now, at least.

There's a chance I might fail, as much as I don't want to admit it, but as J.K. Rowling once said, "Failure is something it is impossible to avoid unless you live so cautiously you fail by default."

Helen Keller also said, "Life is either a daring adventure or nothing."

So have at it, fellow writers! Give it a go! See where it takes you! Write boldly where no man has gone before!



If you happen to be doing NaNoWriMo, drop me a line on the website at my profile page, or just stalk it to heckle me if I don't meet my daily word count.

Also, one of my cool twitter friends tweeted this link on NaNoWriMo tips. They're awesome. Check it out, writers!

I'm gone for now, to write or sleep (I'm having trouble deciding which), but I'm sure you'll be hearing from me quite a bit this month.

Listening to: Tegan and Sara
Drinking: The last pumpkin spiced latte of the season


*No, I definitely will. I'm not stupid. I've heard horror stories about NaNoWriMo like the absence of sleep, social life, and food. All for the love of writing, right?