Living Well 60+ November – December 2014 | Page 11

NOV/DEC 2014

Write Now – Right Now!
National Novel Writing Month
challenges aspiring writers
by Abby Malik, Staff Writer

This November marks the 15th
anniversary of National Novel
Writing Month (NaNoWriMo).
Since 1999, more than 250
NaNoWriMo novels have gone
on to be published. Last year,
310,000 individuals completed a
novel.
The goal is to begin and complete a 50,000-word novel in 30
days. In addition to online support
groups and tools to help writers
on their month-long journeys, arguably the most important aspects
of NaNoWriMo are the local inperson writing groups and events.
The Lexington-area group, led by
Jessica Bailey, has an active online
and in-person presence.
“If you’ve ever thought about

writing a novel ‘someday,’ this
November would be a great time
to do it,” Bailey said.
The benefits of participating in
the Lexington group are numerous.
“The reason we get together
during the month of November
is to act as a support system for
each other,” Bailey said. “We’ve
all taken on a pretty crazy goal,
which is to write a novel in 30
days. Participants often find that
the motivation and support coming from other people in the same
boat is invaluable.”
Bailey says for a lot of people,
NaNoWriMo is their Mount Everest.
“You wouldn’t climb Everest alone, right? You need some
people who’ve seen the view from

11

the top, who know the shortcuts
and how to pack their equipment,”
Bailey said.
One of the best parts about
NaNoWriMo is the inclusive
nature of its participants, Bailey
says. In the Lexington group, writers include whole families, college
students, professionals, retirees,
high school students and more.
“We have people of all experience levels, all ages, rich and notso-rich and writers of all genres,”
Bailey said. “I urge people to come
to an event. Everyone is welcome,
and everyone finds writing buddies.”
While every writer’s goal is to
“cross the finish line” by penning
50,000 words in 30 days, Bailey
says those who don’t get to 50,000
words have still accomplished
something amazing.
“They’ve decided their ideas
and their words are important.
They’ve set aside time for a
creative pursuit. They’ve made
something that didn’t exist before.
That’s amazing,” Bailey said.
“Every writer is cheered for in
Lexington. That’s the beauty of

this community, and the reason I
come back year after year.”
Some individuals who are
involved in NaNoWriMo use the
month to add 50,000 words to
a project they’ve already begun.
NaNoWriMo calls this being a
“NaNo rebel.”
“In Lexington, we consider any
writing done during November
a win,” Bailey said. “So work on
what makes you happy.”
The Lexington group has many
writing events planned throughout November. The group’s Web
page, which contains a calendar
of events, is available at www.
nanowrimo.org/regions/usakentucky-lexington. While Bailey
encourages writers to come to any
and all scheduled write-ins, she
especially recommends this year’s
events at Morris Book Shop and
West Sixth Brewery.
“These are new events for us, so
it will be an adventure for everyone,” she said.
Another benefit of joining the
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