NaNoWriMo Plans

The leaves are starting to turn, people are talking pumpkin spice, and there is tiny candy in the stores. That can only mean one thing...it's almost NaNo season. For those newer to the blog, NaNo is a shortening of the already shortened title NaNoWriMo, a crazy writing challenge I've been participating in since 2007. The full name is National Novel Writing Month. The website explains that this non-contest is:

"....a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to creative writing.  On November 1, participants begin working towards the goal of writing a 50,000-word novel by 11:59 PM on November 30. Valuing enthusiasm, determination, and a deadline, NaNoWriMo is for anyone who has ever thought about writing a novel."
I call it a non-contest because anyone who finishes the 50k word goal in the 30 days wins. At the end of it you have the start of a first draft (in my case more of a pre-rough draft). The rules are* 1) new piece of fiction, 2) no writing before November 1st, and 3) 50,000 words minimum.  There is sound reasoning behind each of the rules. Accepting the logic (and because I was a local organizer) I followed the rules. But not this year.

This year I am breaking the rules.

I don't need to prove to myself that I can write 50,000 is 30 days. I've done that -Ten Times. I also don't need another pre-rough draft that I can't bring myself to read, let alone revise. My goal is to write consistently in the hopes of creating a habit without burning myself out. I want to still enjoy writing December 1st. In order for me to achieve my writing goals I need to change up the challenge.

I'm going to be a NaNo Rebel.

My rebelling might be beyond the scope of acceptable rebelling (there have been many articles written about what constitutes acceptable rebelling). I don't care. This isn't for them. I was considering not participating at all this year. I can not pour all my energy, focus, and creativity into a project that I never look at again. I need to try something different.

The word goal is still 50,000. I'm also adding a Once Upon A Time card game challenge, which I might explain in another post.The major change is the length, 77 days. That makes the daily word goal only 649 words. I think that will be more sustainable. And so...

The writing starts now.


Well, actually, it has taken me longer to write this post, so.....the writing is going to start in the morning (look at me procrastinating already). The site has editable goal trackers. The intended purpose is to help track revision and editing plans after NaNo 2016. I think it will be perfect for my rebelling.

Only thing I'm sad about with this plan is I'm missing out on celebrating NaNo Eve on October 31st. NaNo Eve was my second favourite event after the Annual Write-All-Night. The anticipation of waiting for midnight to feverishly was fun. However, even without the rebelling I didn't wait up last year. It is not the same without the other Valley Wrimos or the stress of being the ML

*I say the rules "are" because that has been the rules in part years and I believe still the challenges guidelines. My hesitation was only I could find little about how NaNoWriMo works beyond the quote about and the FAQ. It the past there was something more that would explain the why behind these arbitrary goals.

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