I *think* I might participate in NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month.

For the uninitiated, NaNo-ers spend the month of November writing an original novel. You “win” by writing at least 50,000 words by November 30th, which averages out to be less than 2,000 words a day — totally doable. I’ve gone back and forth about participating, but I figure, what’s the worst that can happen? Even if I don’t win, at least I’ll end up with some new words. And if I do win, I’ve got a pretty sizable chunk of a crappy first draft to complete and revise and polish into something not so crappy. Why not, right?

So, I’ve been reading up on NaNo, and I’ve found some pretty fantastic tips about how to “win” without losing your mind. I thought I might share them here because even if you’re not NaNo-ing, there’s still plenty of quality information on writing in general in the links below.

Happy perusing!

Nine Reasons to Consider Joining the NaNo Silliness  – Anne R. Allen

Tips for NaNo First-Timers – YA Yeah Yeah

Getting Ready for NaNoWriMo – Storyist

NaNoWriMo Tips from Veterans – FictionWriting.About.com

The Carpool Lane: Inspiration for NaNoWriMo – YA Highway

How to get Quantity *and* Quality Out of NaNo – Taryn Albright

25 Things You Should Know About NaNoWriMo – Terrible Minds

**ETA: My official NaNo name is katyupperman. You should totally add me as a writing buddy!

Tell me: Have you even participated in National Novel Writing Month? Will you this year? Do you have any tips to share with me, the newbie? 😉