Regardless of how, the great American novel awaits
Are you a planner or a pantser? When it comes to writing your 50,000-word novel for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), you can be either one. Whether you’re the type to prepare strategically as the month approaches, or the kind of person who jumps in and writes by the seat of their pants, you can succeed. All you need to know is this: just write.
Whether an earth-shattering plot comes from this exercise is up to the author, but the important thing is that the word-count is met. Participants enjoy tools, structure, and a supportive community of fellow “Wrimos.”
What does it take to write a novel in 30 days? Feedback from participants over the years has indicted that there are 3 key indicators of success:
- Planning. On average, those who sign up and gather their thoughts and inspiration prior to Nov. 1 tend to make it to the 50K-word mark by the end of the month.
- Support. Wrimos depend on the support of their community, family, and friends to cheer them on, brainstorm, or commiserate with.
- Inspiration. A great idea can serve as real motivation to write.
Let’s take a little deeper look at that word, “success.” In the NaNoWriMo community, people who complete a 50,000-word novel in 30 days during November are considered winners, regardless of how difficult the reading of such a novel might be. But, some research conducted by the organization revealed an intriguing aspect to the exercise.
NaNoWrimo's mission statement is: “NaNoWriMo believes in the transformational power of creativity. We provide the structure, community, and encouragement to help people find their voices, achieve creative goals, and build new worlds—on and off the page.” Through a series of surveys, they determined that this mission could be fulfilled even if people only wrote 10,000 words. Participants reported feeling inspired, confident, and connected to their community even when they didn’t complete the challenge “successfully.”
So, whether you are a planner or a pantser, you can set a goal to participate in this global writing challenge and reap the benefits at 10,000 or 50,000 words. It’s not too late to start. Sign up or learn more at nanowrimo.org today!
Events, etcetera:
Saturday, Nov. 7 — Friends of the Library book sale, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Sandpoint Library. It’s time to stock up on great reads and cook books with lots of wonderful recipes to enhance your Thanksgiving dinner. Music helps to keep spirits high so we have reduced the price of CDs to four/$1 so you can fill your home with the sounds of music. We now have a large collection of wonderful home schooling materials to help you deal with educating kids kept home in this time of COVID-19. Face masks are required. We look forward to seeing you.
Monday, Nov. 9 — Library board meeting, 5:15 p.m. in the Innovia Foundation Community Room B. Visit the board of trustees page at www.ebonnerlibrary.org under the Get To Know Us tab for the notice and agenda.
Tuesday, Nov. 10 — "Dream Big – Engineering Our World" documentary. A giant-screen film about engineering, takes viewers on a journey of discovery from the world’s tallest building to a bridge higher than the clouds. Along the way, the audiences witness how today’s engineers are shaping the world of tomorrow. This film will be screened online via a private link available on the library’s Events calendar on Nov. 10, 14, 17 and 24. For more information, visit the listing on the Events calendar at ebonnerlibrary.org or contact Kimber Glidden: 208-263-6930, ext. 1211; or kimber@ebonnerlibrary.org.
Wednesday, Nov. 11 — Closed for Veterans Day.
Wednesday, Nov. 11 — Fresh Fiction Video Book Club with Betsy St. Amant; 5 p.m. via Facebook Live at facebook.com/freshfiction. This week, Betsy St. Amant discusses her newest book "The Key to Love", her career, and what she's reading, watching, and listening to with the book club. Visit our event listing on the library’s Facebook page for details.
Saturday, Nov. 14 — Readers & ‘Ritas @Home, 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Virtual author event hosted by Fresh Fiction. Visit the library’s website Events Calendar or our Facebook Events page of details.
StoryWalk — At Dover City Park enjoy “Leaf Man” by Lois Ehlert and at McNearney Park in Ponderay read “The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear” by Don and Audrey Wood. Titles are updated monthly.
Marcy Timblin is in charge of public relations, marketing & community development for the East Bonner County Library District. She can be reached at 208-208- 208-208-263-6930, ext. 1204.
