This will be the second time only that I’ve done NaNo – last year was my first year and I completed it successfully, barely. Between that and dating a writer, I jumped into a world of writing that has proven to be highly entertaining, full of fascinating people, and a learning experience I will not soon forget.
Since NaNo last year I have published a non-fiction book through WordFire Press, two short stories in anthologies, one in an ezine, self-published one novella, written another non-fiction book (waiting on the editor now), and written several more short stories that are awaiting responses. It’s been a busy year.
I’ve been told a number of times that professional authors frequently participate in NaNo, not because they need the word count, but because they want to support other writers. This seems great, and I like the idea – but for myself, I participate in NaNo because I need to sit and write, and doing it all in once chunk, with a difficult deadline, means I’m likely to actually get my project done, or at least to a stage where it might actually get done in the foreseeable future.
I’ve got one fully formed idea for NaNo, and one very vague idea – and I likely won’t know until Nov. 1st which one I will actually go with. The vague idea would probably be more fun, but as it’s a vague idea, might not turn out very well due to lack of planning. The fully formed idea has considerably more drama, but may not keep my interest long enough to write it, as it’s mostly planned out already.
What’s your take on NaNo?