When I first entered the writing world, I had no idea what
all the talk about NaNo was, but it was pretty clear that it was a love it or
hate it kind of thing.
Folks who love it feel that it helps them kick-start their
novels, provides an opportunity to connect with other writers (via forums),
gives a little push to any who have competitive streaks, helps develop a daily
writing habit, and forces you to turn off the inner editor.
Those who hate it cite that it takes longer than one month
to really develop a solid writing habit, that the intense pace cannot be
sustained long-term if you have any kind of real life, or that it focuses on
word count only. I’ve also read that “serious authors” should have nothing to
do with it because of the dusty gem/painted turd phenomenon. Basically, they’re
pointing to the fact that some people will start their novel but never finish
once they get to that magic NaNo 50K (the dusty gem), while others believe that
the words they produce during November are perfect and too many unedited
stories (painted turds) get self-published in December. (Some people call them “polished
turds”, but let’s be honest, someone who thinks the first draft is perfect isn’t
even polishing their work.)
It is demanding to finish. You have to average 1,666 words a
day to make the 50K mark. There are no prizes, other than a certificate, for
winning NaNo (aka reaching the word count goal). But there are sponsors that
offer special deals to participants and winners. For example, Createspace will
print 2 free paperback copies of the finished book and Scrivener offers a 20% discount
to participants and a 50% discount to winners. (See the NaNo sponsor page for all this year’s
offers.)
So is it worth it?
For me, I think it comes down to a question of whether the
challenge will inspire me or whether the pressure will drive me nuts. Since the
biggest thing that slows me down is my inner editor/critic, and this forces me
to turn that off, I think it might be worth it. Besides, if I don’t try, I
won’t know how well I can do.
What are your thoughts about NaNo? Are you participating
this year? Why or why not?
