Ask Yourself Why
August 7th 2010 22:13
What's your motivation for participating in NaNoWriMo? May look like a bit of an inane question, but there's actually a good reason for asking it. Giving yourself an honest answer is the best way to avoid disappointment.
Be honest: Is the answer a finished book in 30 days? Sorry, that's not going to happen. You'll have a first draft come December, but your book is going to be far from finished. Don't go into competition thinking that 30 days it's all it takes. To hold a finished book in your hands, you'll need to edit the first draft (there's another competition for that called NaNoEdMo which takes place in March). If a publishable manuscript is what you want, be aware that there's more work waiting for you after you wrote the first draft.
If your answer runs along the lines of "finally write that story I've always wanted to write", you're chances of enjoying your first NaNoWriMo are good. Even if you don't finish as a winner, you may well write more than ever before. That's a pretty good feeling.
Fun? You want to take on lots of dares and write for the sheer thrill of it. Excellent reasons. Some people look down on this attitude towards writing. Just ignore them. It's nowhere in the rule that you have to take writing and NaNo too seriously. Many people like to have a writing blast once a year, and there's nothing wrong with that.
Be honest: Is the answer a finished book in 30 days? Sorry, that's not going to happen. You'll have a first draft come December, but your book is going to be far from finished. Don't go into competition thinking that 30 days it's all it takes. To hold a finished book in your hands, you'll need to edit the first draft (there's another competition for that called NaNoEdMo which takes place in March). If a publishable manuscript is what you want, be aware that there's more work waiting for you after you wrote the first draft.
If your answer runs along the lines of "finally write that story I've always wanted to write", you're chances of enjoying your first NaNoWriMo are good. Even if you don't finish as a winner, you may well write more than ever before. That's a pretty good feeling.
Fun? You want to take on lots of dares and write for the sheer thrill of it. Excellent reasons. Some people look down on this attitude towards writing. Just ignore them. It's nowhere in the rule that you have to take writing and NaNo too seriously. Many people like to have a writing blast once a year, and there's nothing wrong with that.
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