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This year, I participated in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) for the first time. With all the prep-work that loomed ahead of me in the time preceding November’s kick-off, I wondered more than once ‘is NaNoWriMo worth it’? I definitely think it is.
With NaNoWriMo officially over, let’s go over what I found to be the best and worst parts of the experience.
What is NaNoWriMo?
Every November, writers around the world participate in a challenge to write 50,000 words in 30 days. This has been a tradition since 1999, but somehow I hadn’t heard of it until this year. Now that I’ve hopped on the wagon, I don’t think I’ll be getting off of it for years to come.
What are the downsides to NaNoWriMo?
There are a few things you should definitely be aware of before committing to this challenge. Depending on your preferred writing style or rituals, you should keep the following downsides in mind:
- If you’re a plotter, plotting during “Preptober” is a must.
- You’ll need to keep to a rigid schedule.
- Social commitments will be pushed to the back burner.
- Getting frustrated and/or stuck is inevitable.
- You’ll be tempted to re-read and/or edit your work as you go— don’t do it!
- 50,000 is a lot of frigging words.
However, I am here to tell you that the positives far outweigh the negatives.
What are the benefits of NaNoWriMo/Is NaNoWriMo worth it?
- The community! Whether it’s on the official NaNoWriMo site, or your local community has a group of writers who participate together, this inherently ‘solo’ activity can be done with company (even virtually)!
- The short timeframe is a great source of motivation to finally write the novel you’ve been talking about for years.
- Keeping to your minimum word count will build up a daily writing habit.
- If you stay on track, you’ll have the first draft of a novel written by the end!
How can I stay on track with life happening at the same time?
My recent article about how I won NaNoWriMo goes into this in more detail, but my top recommendations are:
- Write in sprints, if that works for you.
- Be ambitious with your goals (you might surprise yourself).
- Tell your friends/family what you’re doing; if they’re not total jerks, they’ll understand why you’re not super talkative or game to hang out every other evening.
- Set some rewards for yourself to keep motivated.
What happens if I don’t hit the 50,000 word goal?
Nothing happens, really. You haven’t ‘failed’ or ‘lost’. Chances are, however many words you did get written are still far more than you would’ve written otherwise, and that’s a huge win in and of itself.
I’ll admit I was crazy nervous about this same thing. That’s what drove me to be extra ambitious with my word count goals for each day— but I’m also blessed with a decently high words per minute. If you’re a slower typer, don’t let not hitting that target get you down by any means. You’re still a rockstar.
Final Thoughts
If you’ve been wondering ‘is NaNoWriMo worth it’ then suffice to say the answer is a pretty individual one. For me, it definitely was worth it, and I’m excited to do it again next year.
Getting the first one out of the way has only made me more excited for challenges to come, and the organization and its community are so inspiring and wonderful!
Hopefully you’ll join me there next year. <3