I’m grounded. Going back to school full time (in addition to my full time career) has left me with little in the way of travel resources. I’ll be sticking exclusively with armchair adventures until I finish my second degree. Not that I mind that much. I have a boundless imagination and easily get swept up in my books. But one of the greatest literary adventures is just around the corner. NaNoWriMo!
It’s only a few days until NaNo-eve! (Some call it “Halloween”) The night when WriMos from all over the world will stay up until midnight, put everything else on hold, and begin to write 50,000 words in only 30 bleak, November days. It’s a literary adventure unlike any other.
For those of you new to this kind of literary abandon, allow me to elucidate: NaNoWriMo was established on the principle that you (yes, YOU) have a novel inside you. But your story can’t find it’s way out because you are so busy with work, school, family, The Walking Dead, and, you know, life. So you make a change. Not a forever-and-always kind of change, just a for-the-next-thirty-days change. You give your story 30 days of prioritized, undivided attention. The goal is to write at least 50,000 words (the bare minimum to be considered a novel length manuscript) and see what your story can do on the page.
You aren’t allowed to erase words or edit until December. Just let it all pour out in a catharsis of prose. By the end of the month, you will have written a great 50,000 word mess. But it’s all yours. You will have some bad writing to edit but that’s still way better than a great story locked away in your head. You will have developed a writing habit. You will have learned to set writing goals and make writing a priority. And if you are very lucky, you’ll have the first draft of something special and embark on a revision.
Since I will not be taking a trip this November (as is my usual custom). I am more dependent than ever on writing to take me away. I’m going to let my NaNoWriMo project take me back to Cambodia. For those who want to follow my journey or to add your own project to the manifest, you can check it out HERE. You can also keep track of my progress on the widget in the upper left corner of the blog.
It’s an amazing journey into your own subconscious. It’s an intellectual marathon. It’s an excuse to swill coffee and eat chocolate! The possibilities are boundless. Come join us.
Bon Voyage!
Read ~ Write ~ Wander
~Angie