Not at all. It's just the base line. Nothing happens if you miss it. A lot of people aim higher though... Some guy in Germany wrote 170k last year. *Mutters* Showoff
Cheers, i might give this a go, it will be a good kick up the behind for me to get back into a writing frame of mind Username on site: Zakira Salem (yes, im actually writing under another name)
I did NaNo last year, and what came out was a piece of shat. I had the idea, I had the beginning, and I had the end. But then... my middle disappeared. I didn't really plan well enough, and the story is still left untouched. I've been contemplating doing it, but I'm not really sure if it was actually helpful to me or not.
planning already, got something i started, sitting on my Zaki Salem key looking pretty... theres something in this, i can feel it...
I'm doing it, but I'm not signing up to the website for personal reasons. Is it OK if I say I'm doing NaNo, even though I'm not signed up?
Since NaNoWriMo is about the spirit of finishing a novel instead of putting it off or doubting yourself, I think if you do it in spirit and within the month confine, it's all good
50,000 words would be impossible for me to write in 31 days, impossible...but sure i'll give it a twirl why not?
It's NOT OK!!!! The terrifying, dreaded NaNoWriMo Police will descend upon you! You will be sentenced to, uh, nothing at all, apparently ... Just kidding. Go ahead, say you're doing it, and don't bother signing up. Nobody's going to know anyway ...
Of course you can write 50,000 words in 30 days. The only question is whether or not they will be intelligible. It turns out that intelligibility isn't among the requirements. Your story doesn't have to make sense and it's okay if your prose is abominable.
Using the site is fun though, you get to see how people in your area are doing, how many people are writing around the world, and day by day watch the aggregate word count rise up into the hundreds of millions. Also it shows you how you are doing, like how many words per day you must write to finish on time, etc. It's a lot of fun imho. But you can use the site or not, and you can wait to add your word count at the end if you want. Really it is an exercise in loosening yourself up to write a lot. What can be intimidating though is when you are on day 25 or so and need to do 3-4000 words per day to make it. You need to use adrenaline at that point.
I didnt know there was an actual dedicated site for it...i've heard of nano alright but I just thought ppl did it on their own...awesome idea!
I'm doing it for the first time. Is anyone else going to do it with a novel that's already been started? I plan to complete an abandoned project. I'm not sure how I going to work out the word count, though. If anyone wants to buddy me my name is Michelle Taylor.
Technically the idea is to start something new. Or at least word one of the novel should be on Nov. 1st. You could use the stuff you already wrote as a rough draft, or start a new document for the continuation so the word count for November is true.... Preparations before November like outlines, character sketches, story arcs, etc. are allowed by the "rules". The challenge is to write on the fly, so to speak....
I was thinking of printing out what I have, keeping that on hand but physically starting from scratch. I'm not going to start a new project because I have so many that need finishing.
I'll be there again. I wrote the first half of 'Horror Movie' about three years ago on a business trip, but never finished it, and now I'm going to write a new version from scratch. The handy part for the last couple of years is that they've been giving away a free Createspace coupon to 'winners', so that's a strong incentive to get the book finished before the summer (when the coupon expires).
@minstrel: You are, by far, one of the greatest squirrels I've ever known. Like, top five greatest. @A.M.P.: Thank you for reassuring me! Love the monkey, btw. : D
I'm going to give it another shot this year. I'm a terribly slow writer, which is probably why NaNoWriMo is good for me. School will probably prevent me from finishing, but it'll be better than not trying at all.
I signed up. Have never done it before and will probably want to punch myself in the face by the time I'm done since I have 3 WIP's that I work on daily as well, lol. But hey, what's life without challenges? Maybe it'll get rid of some of the extra story- lines floating in my head and distracting me.....
I signed up as Peachalulu - not quite sure what I'm doing and how everything works but I thought I'd give it a whirl.
Sounds like tons of fun, to be honest. Plenty of community spirit to take us into 2014. Nanowrimo, thanksgiving, Christmas, then New Years. Lots and lots of distractions for those of us with a clear writing agenda ~_~