Junior embarks on NaNoWriMo novella goal

November is National Novel Writing Month in which many writers participate in a challenge with the goal of writing a novel. The specific goal is to “write a 50,000 word novel in one month, so that’s about 1,600 words per day,” junior Natalie Thomas said. She “decided instead to work on writing a short novela, a detective novela, which is going to probably be more around 20,000 words, and so that’s more like 600 words per day.” 

This goal is more achievable for Thomas when balancing school, work and hobbies. “If I had a regular job and I didn’t have to deal with homework on top of school stuff, then it would probably be easier to find time.” 

She knew about the program for a while but decided to participate for the first time this year. “I’ve known about NaNoWriMo for a long time because there have been programs at the library, but I’ve never done it.” 

“The website and the program is not just for November. The point of the website is to set a word goal and to help writers have motivation to meet their goals. There are all kinds of webinars and pep talks.” 

The website works outside of November as a touchpoint for writers to find motivation and accountability, Thomas said. “I took it as an opportunity to try and force myself to write everyday because I haven’t written a lot for a while.”