Well, we've come to the end of another NeNoWriMo, and I must say...thank God. It shouldn't be a secret that I detest this artificial creation of writing desire. I think that if you need a special month someone else designates to write, then you don't really have the motivation to be a successful writer.
To start with, writers write. It's what we do. It should be all year, not just the 11th month of the calendar because it's suddenly a fashion trend. If you can only find the motivation to write in November, how do you think you'll sustain that the rest of the year? Yes, I know that some people say that NaNoWriMo inspired them to really get into it, but I view this as the exception rather than the rule. It's like all those who make a New Year's resolution to go to the gym - they go the first three weeks, and then they abandon the project since they were artificially inspired(meaning the rest of us who actually go to the gym regularly can get back to our workouts in peace). Motivation has to come from within or it'll fade.
Then there's the lack of quality in NaNoWriMo inspired work. Yes, I think a person can write 50,000 words in a month(I've done this ac couple of times myself), but most work produced so quickly is more of a vomit of vague generalities rather than a serious production of work. Maybe that 50,000 words is meant to be a first draft, and God I hope so, because most of that produced so quickly isn't likely to be very good. I can write 2,000 words a day when I'm doing a new book, but it's not a stream of thought - I consciously prepare for what I'm going to write so it has sufficient depth and isn't just a jumble.
And although technically 50,000 words is a novel, I think it's little more than a shallow one. Most novels, in my opinion, need to be at least 80,000 words to give sufficient depth to the story. Perhaps folks use NaNoWriMo to get started, but I've found that most either think NaNoWriMo is for a complete novel, or they abandon their project once December 1st rolls around. Like I said - lack of year round motivation will not produce success.
Now maybe this will all piss you off. "How dare he!" you'll exclaim. "I love NaNoWriMo, and he shouldn't disparage it!" If you like NaNoWriMo, then why should the rantings of an unpublished author matter to you? I find it shallow, but so what? If my disparaging of the month is enough to discourage you, then you were never going to make it anyway(see above for motivation). Either you're inspired to write or you aren't. If I'm sufficient enough to piss you off about your favorite month as an arteest, then imagine what flipping the calendar to December would do.
To start with, writers write. It's what we do. It should be all year, not just the 11th month of the calendar because it's suddenly a fashion trend. If you can only find the motivation to write in November, how do you think you'll sustain that the rest of the year? Yes, I know that some people say that NaNoWriMo inspired them to really get into it, but I view this as the exception rather than the rule. It's like all those who make a New Year's resolution to go to the gym - they go the first three weeks, and then they abandon the project since they were artificially inspired(meaning the rest of us who actually go to the gym regularly can get back to our workouts in peace). Motivation has to come from within or it'll fade.
Then there's the lack of quality in NaNoWriMo inspired work. Yes, I think a person can write 50,000 words in a month(I've done this ac couple of times myself), but most work produced so quickly is more of a vomit of vague generalities rather than a serious production of work. Maybe that 50,000 words is meant to be a first draft, and God I hope so, because most of that produced so quickly isn't likely to be very good. I can write 2,000 words a day when I'm doing a new book, but it's not a stream of thought - I consciously prepare for what I'm going to write so it has sufficient depth and isn't just a jumble.
And although technically 50,000 words is a novel, I think it's little more than a shallow one. Most novels, in my opinion, need to be at least 80,000 words to give sufficient depth to the story. Perhaps folks use NaNoWriMo to get started, but I've found that most either think NaNoWriMo is for a complete novel, or they abandon their project once December 1st rolls around. Like I said - lack of year round motivation will not produce success.
Now maybe this will all piss you off. "How dare he!" you'll exclaim. "I love NaNoWriMo, and he shouldn't disparage it!" If you like NaNoWriMo, then why should the rantings of an unpublished author matter to you? I find it shallow, but so what? If my disparaging of the month is enough to discourage you, then you were never going to make it anyway(see above for motivation). Either you're inspired to write or you aren't. If I'm sufficient enough to piss you off about your favorite month as an arteest, then imagine what flipping the calendar to December would do.
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