NaNoWriMo 2023: Should You Participate?

First!

Please answer my questions of the video you uploaded ten days ago

Thanks❤

I'll be competing for the third time. I won the first two by pantsing it the whole way. This time I'm going to try to plan and outline as much as possible just to see what the whole process will be like and if it will make a significant difference or not. I love to get into "word flow" but I need to see if I can be a better writer by doing it differently. Thanks for the video and all the free content.

Hey Alyssa, can I ask personal question? Do you have Austro Hungarian, Yugoslavian or Croatian/Serbian/Bosnian ancestry?

I think I'll participate! By then I should be ready to draft the 3rd book in my series 🫶🏻

I'm grappling with whether I should do Nanowrimo this year. I've participated in the past (mostly for editing and revising the 1st book in a series I've been working on) to help motivate me, but that didn't work out. I was NOT motivated! Lol. This year I'm thinking about it, since I'm shifting the 2nd book in the series to book 3 and writing a new book 2. I really want to get that knocked out so I can continue editing and revising the other 6 books in my series that I've completed. I hope that by just posting this comment it will hold me accountable to following through. 😅

I've kind of done it before on my own, not really engaging with the community of it, but I found it very anxiety inducing. I actually ended up deleting most of what I wrote in that time from my final draft

I've written thirteen novels, and honestly, I'm still confused about this. Who started this and why? Who does it benefit? Even if people do write something in under a month (unlikely), what do they do with it? Basically, I'm asking, what's the point? Most things like this benefit someone financially. I just can't figure out who it is so far. The only group I can see so far that would benefit would be content creators. If anyone knows more about this, let me know.

So, is this USA only or international?

I was just thinking about this! Last year, I participated by using the challenge to get 50K into the draft of a story I'm working on. While I did manage to get the 50K (story was already started and still not finished lol), I barely managed to get other things done and I ended up being burned out. Before NaNo, I used to consistently write 1k every day and after that... Let's just say that I haven't been able to fully recover. If I do participate this year, I'd probably keep working on this project, but I'm not sure it's worth it.

I have about 12K words on my WIP and plan on using Nano to finish the first draft (it's outlined/plotted). I hope that's an acceptable/good way to use Nanowrimo because I had to "warm up" over a few months of writing to get to where I think I can write almost 1700 words every single day for a month.

I just wrote 72,000 words in September on one part of a ten part novel. Now shelving it because as a first timer it will never get published. Now outlining new one, maybe next November.

With your first point, I just want to point out that NaNo has had an option (for a couple years now) for writers to mark whether or not they're working on a new story or if they're working on an existing one. They also acknowledge those who use NaNo for editing / whatever. So you DO NOT have to do a new story to participate.

Also for the plotters who like to have something to go off of when they write: a lot of people use October, or "Preptober", to plan for their NaNo projects!

I am going to be using it to work on a new project while my current WIP cools from the last round of editing. I have had this current idea for about three months and is really a break from what I have worked on before. Plus if I write fewer than 1000 words a day, the moon will explode. So it's community service really.

This is the first I've heard of it. I'll have to get more info before I make a decision.

Seeking y'all's advice on this because this video only made me more conflicted. I have two options for how to use NaNo this year, and I'm stuck between the two. Which should I go with?

The first idea is this: I've been cracking down on my Draft 2 of my long-decided debut YA manuscript for the past couple months, and with the expected word count by November, I could use NaNo to finish the last 40-50k words of my first full draft of this novel, and I'll have a finished work to start editing!

The second is this: It just so happens that I have kind of struck gold on a new idea that is really exciting, marketable, and more creative than my other one that would make for a better debut, just in time for NaNoWriMo this year. I could throw myself into this idea that I otherwise would've sadly shoved into the back-burner to not look at again for a long time, but if I do, I'll be tossing the momentum I've finally found with idea #1.

What do I do y'all?

"Intense deadlines," she says. I laugh.

And laugh.

and hide the manuscript of 50k I wrote in three days

It's been 17 years since I first participated in NaNoWriMo as a teenager. I only participated 7 of those years (3 wins, 4 losses), but I can tell you two things:

1) it created some bad writing habits that I now believe held back my writing in tangible ways that I'm only just now recognizing and overcoming.
2) it filled me with a level of enthusiasm and camaraderie that is absolutely unmatched and has carried me through 17 years of writing ups and downs - even the downs it created 😅

All in all, I wouldn't replace NaNoWriMo for anything - just know to handle with care lol!

I've done Nanowrimo twice, and twice I've looked at the writing afterward and been disappointed. I expect drafts to require lots of work, but I think focusing on the word count dropped it down another level. I might do it again once I've retired from my day job, but for now, I'm passing on it. That said, I think it was a valuable exercise at the time. It helped me to see that I was capable of that type of production. And it did get me down the road with the projects I was working on at the time.

I’m terrible at deadlines, but I consistently spend an hour or more a day writing. I wrote my 55k novel in 3 weeks, but as a pantser it means that there were major revisions that needed to happen afterwards. Nanowrimo is something that I’ve never done, but sounds fun!

I started writing my first novel during NaNoWriMo. Similar to what Alyssa said, it's a great way to motivate yourself to get started on something you've wanted to start working on forever. It's also a great motivator to finishing your work if you're about half way through a novel and need the motivation to push through to the end (also me!).

While I’ve never done it, NanoWrimo is a fun concept.

I have always wished this took place during January or February or any month but November! November is such a horrible time, from holiday rush, working overtime for holiday funds, Thanksgiving dinner, traveling, etc. lol, I think November is the worse month ever to have this take place. Jan or Feb would be so much better. I know for me, I always feel like new year, new goals, etc! I already have that underlying drive just by the new year alone, and this would only complement it. But I also realize not everyone has a busy November.

I was thinking about signing up, so have been working on finishing my 3000 word outline in Preptober. I'm almost done now so it was worth it.

I might keep beefing the outline up over the next few weeks and decide on participating at the very last minute I think. Even if I don't formally take part, I'm determined to make use of the buzz around the event this year.

NaNoWriMo is a hoot. I'm 7 for 12. It's a worthwhile kick in the pants. You're forced to produce, and this means abandoning some of your normal writing habits. No fact-checking, no stopping to spell correct, just pinning your ears back to crank out your story. My fastest to 50,000 words was 17 days. The most I wrote in a single day was 15,000 words (I don't recommend this) . NaNoWriMo forces you to budget writing time. I write 1,500+ words in the morning, and another 1,500+ before bed. This gets me to 50,000 without killing myself, but that's just me. NaNoWriMo cleans out the cobwebs of your writing brain. Always a worthwhile effort, even if your project tanks.

Did it for 6 years and got it each time. Not sure if I will do it this year. It was originally done just to see if I could do it

I'm a plotter but I still do Nanowrimo- I just rarely finish the entire challenge lol- it's still super encouraging and fun though. I look forward to it every year.

I learn of NaNoWriMo since last year and I found your channel. I have tried NaNo April & July this year. NaNo Nov last year is a failure because I went in with zero prep and pick the wrong story to write. The good part about NaNo is to give it a try and see what we can learn from it - time, energy, mind set, writing abilities, priorities, choices, strength and weakness, how we manage and value, those are valuable experience in self understanding and improvement compare to merely just win or fail the challenge.

DO NOT let NaNo dictate your life, it is not supposed to be a cage to imprison you. If it doesn't work for you, you should do self assessment about it.

I likely will participate this year, try to 2nd draft my very first novel, 1st drafted into a dead end back in 2009, it's been 14 years... may be 3rd draft next year if screw up again.

I've done NaNoWriMo every year for the last 4 years and it's genuinely a great form of practice for me. I have so many drafts of projects that never really worked as either a short story or an 80K word plus novel, but fit nicely in the 50K word parameter for NaNoWriMo. It also forces me to sit down a few weeks before and outline all my chapters so I can just plug my way through writing throughout November without having worry about structure or plot.
It's really rewarding and has definitely helped me refine my process!

**To clarify, I've only ever done this as a challenge to myself, as it was just something I heard other writers talk about over the years. I've never actually signed up through the website or shared my work outside of my Substack. Definitely something I'd like to look into this year!

I'll be participating for my very first time ever this year. Working on my first and what wil hopefully be my debut novel. I'm outline now, using the 7-point story structure and the snowflake method. I really like the snowflake because it's helping come up with more I didn't even think about. I can't say I love it yet, but I do love the 7-point. I feel like the snowflake is helping me flesh out my 7 point.

Help!! Could someone suggest a good story competition for me to enter??? I have a playlist on a channel called "the horror story corner" yours stephen sinclair.

Hi Alyssa! I just want to say I love your videos. Could you please give me advice? I'm thirteen and I just finished writing my first draft of my novel. I'm finding that one of the main characters are over-shined by the other. My beta readers already don't quite like her. Any advice on how I could fix this? Along with the concern of if I should publish my novel when I am finished. I don't know if I should because I want to publish it in America or England, for a chance to be more successful. So should I wait or just try when I'm done? Thank you so much for your videos! They are so helpful. <3

Nice video. I might do a modified NaNoWriMo as a rewrite of some work in progress, a NaNoReWriMo, if you will. :)

This is my first time not only writing, but also trying this. I do have a tendency to work well with deadlines or under pressure ... I spent 25 years as a photographer, mostly weddings, where when I say there is pressure I'm not kidding. So this is actually not really something that I'm worried about. I'm more worried about what I'm writing, which is a first for me. Having said that, because I'm a planner I pretty much have my entire outline completed and ready to go, so I'm very excited to get started :)

Hi Everybody. I never write, but my wife does. She particiaptes in Nanowrimo every year. Do you have any writting related suggestions what could I do to support her. Really any suggestions are welcome, what are the biggest strugles durring nanowrimo? What is that you wish you had to make your life easier?

Thanks so much, this was really helpful! Ive been hearing about NaNoWriMo for years, this year I’m going to participate for the first time!

I am 15 years old and I have written 2 books in a series so far. I started writing last year in December so this is the first NaNoWriMo I get to participate in. I am genuinely super excited. Good luck to all the writers participating! :D

I will be signing up for this year! I have been using prep-tober to it's full advantage and I'm excited to be working on a new project while my current project is with an editor! I'm hoping to keep accountability through social media thanks for this video!

This November will be my 18th straight year participating in NaNoWriMo... with my current record being 17-1. I think it's a great exercise and the social aspect of it actually makes reaching your goal a lot easier. I think it's a lot of fun, which is why I do it every year. I highly recommend it!

This is fair and thoughtful insight. I actually was thinking of covering something like this in my blog. One thing I hope to clarify is NaNoWriMo has always intended to be friendly for both planners and pansters. My current project has been in the outline process for almost four months now and my previous projects were outlined at least a little bit. I think what matters most is joining for the right reason. I personally believe NaNoWriMo is perfect if you need support to fulfill your writing dreams. Some people work best with that adrenaline rush. I also personally believe it's not a good idea to write only for writing sake. If you don’t have an idea you are passionate about, NaNoWriMo might not be for you.

Our local ML started online weekly Zooms during NaNo 2021, and we've been meeting weekly ever since! It's been a game changer for many of us.

I agree with pretty much everything you've said in this video. I'd only add that, sometimes it doesn't always feel like pressure. The NaNoWriMo month can be like a reset button or New Year's refresh. It can be the month when you write 50K on the side project, so it leaves you alone. Or 50K from the POV of another character, in a book you're stuck on. It can be a month to recharge, or refuel. If you go in not caring if you win or 'lose' it can also be a time to meet new writers, or old friends. You can tell people around you that you're doing NaNo, so you can experience an at home self-imposed solo writing retreat with an online community.

My first NaNo was in 2011 and since then I've consistent started projects, but the output was inconsistent. Anything from 0 to 52K, but mostly less than 15K. Life gets in the way, and that's ok.
Being with so many others who don't win at all or not for years, or only randomly, it was humbling to see that where there's passion there's also a lot of pain. Shared pain lowers the shame, and when shame is reduced, it's suddenly ok to make mistakes. It's helped me to learn if I really want to write as a career or not.

Also, all words count! Any progress is progress. Even if you write a bunch of half finished projects, because that can be a way to find your voice.

I've worked on a NaNo book I started in 2011 for several years. It had an unrealistic plot, so I abandoned it around the 40K mark. That unrealistic plot became a reality during 2020 for millions of parents. I'm not finished, but it's technically at draft 4 stage, and it's definitely better for the waiting. My writing is stronger, and now there's a market that can relate to it.

Thank you - so helpful!

I didn't even remember the NaNoWriMo until I somehow thought of it yesterday (1st of Nov). I wasn't even sure what it was but I googled it and ended up joining. I have been trying to write my story for 7 years now so I decided that a little extra motivation wouldn't be too bad. I have already noticed it helping me since having to write so much in such a short time I don't have time to stop and rewrite every sentence like I usually do. Now I just want to write it to the end no matter how bad it is. I can always edit it after. So not a bad decision. Though, I am pretty sure I won't make since I work full time and live alone so I have to do all house chores but I'll try my best.

Everyone interested in Nano should do it. Let them figure out the pros and cons themselves. Dang.

I think the 50K target for NaNo is flexable. You don't have to make 1666 your daily goal for November. 50K doesn't really fit with a completed draft for many novels, so make your NaNo target your own. If that's 1K per day, or 3K per day. set a realistic goal and go for it. Don't stress ofer the 50K that's batted around.

I'm doing it

Sooooo coool😀👍🖖 ..thanks for this info...merry Christmas...you too kuku