“Fangirl” by Rainbow Rowell. “The Night Circus” by Erin Morgenstern. Marissa Meyer’s “Cinder”. Each of these novels share one common aspect: they were written in the span of 30 days, the full month of November.
National Novel Writing Month, abbreviated as NaNoWriMo, is a popular program for professional writers to challenge. For the first time, the school is hosting their own variant for all writers in the school.
“I attended a session on how to run the program for youths, and I thought I would try it,” Lisa Marcum, media specialist, said. “I know we have a lot of budding writers here, and this may give them an opportunity or motivation to get started.”
According to About | NaNoWriMo, the challenge was proposed in 1999 and tasked aspiring or preexisting novelists to write a 50,000 word novel in the span of 30 days. Since its founding, NaNoWriMo has expanded its horizons and introduced its Young Writers Program.
“Students have so much on their plates that their creative writing gets pushed to the side,” Julie Banholzer, counselor, said. “(NaNoWriMo) is a great opportunity to set goals for yourself.”
The lofty goal for 50,000 words may appear threatening to students, so Marcum proposed a more feasible 10,000 word goal instead. Students may also set higher word counts or are able to stick to Marcum’s proposed limit and pace themselves.
“I am planning to participate in NaNoWriMo so I can work on my writing techniques and grow as a writer,” Emily Pedziwater, sophomore, said.
“I’m participating in NaNoWriMo because I’ve wanted to write for as long as I can remember and thought it’d be a good way to get myself into the habit,” Hannah Strange, junior, said.
In addition to encouraging students to set and pursue writing goals, participating in NaNoWriMo provides students an opportunity to share and even publish their writing.
“Anyone who completes their work within the month will get their work published in some way. They will receive a physical copy of their book,” Marcum said. “We will then be promoting the finished works throughout the building.”
To further ensure that participants are motivated to write, the media center is hosting a write-in on Nov. 14; Marcum plans to provide further details through emailing all students, and will also host a pizza party after the month to congratulate all participants for their work.
Marcum has also expressed a desire to host another round in the spring.
“Joining would give (students) a great opportunity to provide feedback to make the program bigger and better,” Marcum said.
