National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) basics: National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) was begun in Oakland, CA, in 1999, with the idea of getting writers to tackle a big project and of raising money for children's libraries in Southeast Asia. Over the years, it's grown from 21 participants and six winners to 59,000 participants and 9769 winners. To win, writers must write an entire novel from scratch (50,000 words) in one month.
How to participate: Sign up online starting October 1 or each year. Start writing November 1, and "write like crazy for thirty days." If you succeed in writing 50,000 words by midnight November 30, you may send your novel to them to have the words counted, and your name will be added to their list of winners.
Find a chapter in your area: One of the great things about NaNoWriMo is that it provides writers with instant community and support ("Win or lose, you rock for even trying"). After all, it's kind insane to try to write a novel in a month. NaNoWriMo ensures that you don't go it alone. To find a chapter near you, simply go to their website and find your local chapter. To get a sense of a typical NaNoWriMo experience, check out scenes from one National Novel Writing Month event. And for a completely different sort of NaNoWriMo write-in, go to photos and commentary from an Austin nature write-in.
NaNoWriMo novels that have been published: Many NaNoWriMo books have gone on to be published by presses such as Warner Books, Ballantine, and Berkley Books. One novel, Sarah Gruen's "Flying Changes" was even a New York Times-bestseller. Other books include Rebecca Agiewich's "Breakup Babe," Dave Wilson's "The Mote in Andrea's Eye," and Gayle Brandeis's "Self Storage."
Number of libraries built by NaNoWriMo money: Fifty percent of all proceeds generated by NaNoWriMo go to children's libraries in Southeast Asia. Ten have been created as of 2005 (three in Cambodia, seven in Laos). Proceeds from 2006 will go to build libraries in Vietnam.
