Forum: Author Hangout

Anyone know how Nanowrimo works?

Probably not the wisest thing to start halfway through the month, but if I push myself, I can finish in time and I have a story idea I like for it. Only problem is I have no idea how Nano works.

I signed up and provided the initial info for the novel I want to write for it, but I am unclear on how to update as I go along. Do I paste the story into the spot where it says excerpt as I go, or just update the word count until I finish?

Any info would be appreciated.

To get the most out of it you should also participate in the forum for your area. The concept is to push yourself to write and to encourage each other via the forums. I participated in NaNoWriMo for a few years, but quit when they changed the system for checking the word count and it wouldn't work on my Linux system. When they refused to fix it for the next year I stopped participating. One year I wrote two stories during NaNoWriMo, and in another I started late and finished early because it just flowed off my fingers. One year I got 65,000 words done during NaNoWriMo and then fini9shed it at over 100,000 words during December.

You don't have to have a novel publication ready, just 50,000 plus words written by the end of the month. I know some participants who spend the first week or so planning and roughing out the story then start to write it.

there used to be a link on the main page that went to a program that did that for you, it was the problem with using that behind me dropping out of it.

edit to add: read this

http://nanowrimo.org/how-it-works

I believe access to the word counter is only to those who register.

I went back into my account and I now see that I have a dashboard. There is a button for updating word count, so when I finish writing tomorrow, I will hit that. Hopefully the directions will be clear. If not, I will go to the forum in Nanowrimo and ask someone there.

It's just a mental trick to encourage motivation to write through competition and/or common plight with fellow writers. If you really want to write a novel in a month, and have the free time to do so, it doesn't have to be November.