National Novel Writing Month...a.k.a NaNoWriMo

November's not just the month of yellow leaves and huge turkey dinners. Between November 1 and 30 annually, NaNoWriMo creates an opportunity for writers to sit down and crank out a novel from scratch (50,000 words being the goal).

Anne Lamott said, "For me and most of the other writers I know, writing is not rapturous. In fact, the only way I can get anything written at all is to write really, really shitty first drafts." And that's the philosophy behind NaNoWriMo: turn off your self-editor, don't worry about anything except quantity, and plunge forward into all the griminess of a first draft.

From their website, here's how NaNoWriMo works:

1) Sign up for the event by clicking the "Sign Up Now" link at the top of the site.

2) Check your email and read the ginormous email our noveling robots send you. It will have "Love" in the subject line, and may be hiding in your Junk folder.

3) Log into your account and use the links on the My NaNoWriMo page to set your timezone, affiliate with a region, and tell us a little bit about yourself.

4) Begin procrastinating by reading through all the great advice and funny stories in the forums. Post some stories and questions of your own. Get excited. Get nervous. Try to rope someone else into doing this with you. Eat lots of chocolate and stockpile noveling rewards.

5) On November 1, begin writing your novel. Your goal is to write a 50,000-word novel by midnight, local time, on November 30th. You write on your own computer, using whatever software you prefer.

6) This is not as scary as it sounds.

7) Starting November 1, you can update your word count in that box at the top of the site, and post excerpts of your work for others to read. Watch your word-count accumulate and story take shape. Feel a little giddy.

8) Write with other NaNoWriMo participants in your area. Write by yourself. Write. Write. Write.

9) If you write 50,000 words of fiction by midnight, local time, November 30th, you can upload your novel for official verification, and be added to our hallowed Winner’s Page and receive a handsome winner’s certificate and web badge. We'll post step-by-step instructions on how to scramble and upload your novel starting in mid-November.

10) Win or lose, you rock for even trying.

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So do some finger stretches and get ready to write on November first! We'll see you again when you stumble back into daylight with triumphant shouts. Learn more and sign up at http://www.nanowrimo.org/.