Final Project

View NaNoWriMo in a larger map

[Minor notes: Somehow the west coast ended up beating out the east. There are actually two markers in south-most California, only noticeable by zooming in.]

NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) began as something a group of friends decided to do in 1999 – binge novel writing during one month. Hey, no one ever said writers were sane! It had since evolved, growing much faster than the creators had expected (courtesy of blogging). As time went on participants would receive pep talk emails during the month from known writers – Neil Gaiman, as an example. These would be some of my favorite things, listening to how authors that I knew and loved went on about their writing process and giving encouragement. I'm saddened that this year I didn't pay attention to these emails, though I am inclined to go back through my NaNoMail on the website and read them anyway.

Generally the only reward for “winning” at the end of the month is the satisfaction that you did this. You made it! You survived! You can go back to having a normal life, a normal sleep schedule, reconnect with your friends – because hey, pat yourself on the back, you were amazing! It's about the accomplishment that you wrote 50,000 words in one month. Achievement Unlocked.

There is, however, some new bonuses that I only just realized while I was searching around the website in my sleep-deprived state. To be an official winner, you have to verify your word count on the NaNo website. From there, sponsors have allowed you to indulge on two very nice offers. The first – which makes me really wish I had put in more effort towards my word count – allows you to get five free copies of your novel in paperback form from CreateSpace, a company of Amazon. The second offer is 50% off Scrivener, a program that allows you to work on your manuscript and organize your notes (similar to Microsoft OneNote) all in the same program, side by side.

Congratulations to all participants who made the climb. One year, I hope that I will make that goal! Now, return to your lives, sit back, and enjoy the haul of editing.

[On a semi-separate note, this project helped me reconnect with writers who have graduated from the school, ones that I wish I had gotten to know better while I had classes with them, but I had fallen off the face of the Earth.]