‘Everyone has a book in them, but in most cases that’s where it should stay.’ Or, as some sources have it, ‘Everyone has a novel in them.’ Most of us have heard the line, or some variation on it, and understand what it’s saying: it’s challenging the age-old belief that everyone has a story to tell, by suggesting that a) not all stories are actually worth telling, and b) not everyone can tell their story very well. Now, The Choose Your Own Adventure Books were a staple of my childhood. The rules of Choose Your Own Adventure were pretty straightforward: You, as the second-person protagonist of the story, made choices to guide the plot. Making the right choices led you to the best ending, while making the wrong ones led you to one of myriad horrible and agonizing deaths.
So what will mine be about? I’m thinking an obscure Hip Hop group, an iconic English pop rock band and the end of the world as we know it.
And so we begin another National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo to those in the know. It’s a month-long marathon session; the goal is to hit 50,000 words by 11:59 p.m. on Nov. 30. The idea is a race to fill the word-count will help the writer from over-thinking that blank page. Those 50,000 words don’t have to be pretty, since that’s what revision is for (December?!?)
NaNo’s goal is 1,667 words a day. I have tried three times before and failed. Hence, this year I will set mine to an even 2,000. This way, I’m always ahead, even on days when the words aren’t coming. And on days when I have a lot more time to write, I will strive to double that amount—because, let’s face it, life happens, and there might be some days when writing isn’t so easy.
Here are some numbers/stats for you: - The first official year of NaNoWriMo was in 2000, when the event had an actual website. - By 2001, 5000 people signed up. - In 2014, 175,002 people signed up, and 40,325 crossed the finish line with 50K.
So why was 50,000 words the magic number? This seemed like a difficult, yet not impossible amount of words, and the length makes it a short novel, about 175 pages.
Other novels that are 50K: “The Great Gatsby,” by F. Scott Fitzgerald, “Of Mice and Men,” by John Steinbeck , “Fahrenheit 451,” by Ray Bradbury and well, almost ‘Fight Club’ by Chuck Palahniuk (49,962 words).
Several bestselling novels that were first written during NaNoWriMo: “Water for Elephants,” by Sara Gruen , “The Night Circus,” by Erin Morgenstern , “Wool,” by Hugh Howey and “Cinder,” by Marissa Meyer.
The first week of writing is always the best. You’re going, you love the story. Things just keep happening. Then the second week comes, and the story you’re writing just sucks. Nothing’s going right. You hate your characters. You’re pretty sure they hate you. Don’t give up. You’re going to have slushy days, when the words are just not coming easily. Do whatever it takes to get you through your daily word count to ensure you don’t fall behind Don’t look back. EVER. Once you’ve written something, leave it. Don’t re-read it. Don’t edit. Just let it be. If you think of something you want to change, make a note so you won’t forget when you edit later on, keep moving forward.
What you’re writing could be totally awesome. It can also be total crap. Who cares? You’re developing your writing muscle. Don’t worry about the quality of your writing until you get to the editing stage. For now, just have fun with it, and know that in 30 days, you’ll be able to say you’ve written a novel. If you go to page 175, you instantly win at life.
-Dagobot
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