Write a Novel this November

With the support of online community, caffeine and stickers, aspiring fiction writers will each write 50,000 words in November. Since 2004, the library has supported local writing events around National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). This year our support will be through virtual events. We offer online workshops and virtual write-ins for what is generally considered a solitary pursuit: fiction writing. Writers may also individually use the public computers, public Wi-Fi, or quiet study tables for a writing location.

The Topeka Wrimos are an active and encouraging group. Many experienced writers are willing to share tips and tricks for reaching the 50,000 word goal during November. Online forums support writers connecting around town or around the globe. Sign up at nanowrimo.org and join the Topeka region.

Visualize success by downloading this 50,000 words in 30 days handout for November 2020 fiction writers.

 October and November 2020 Virtual Events

• NaNoWriMo: Fiction Writing Techniques - Mon, Octo 12 | 6:30-8:30pm
• NaNoWriMo KickOff Event - How to Write a Novel in 30 Days - Mon, Oct 26 | 6:30-8:30pm
• Come Write In: Virtual Write In - NaNoWriMo - Sun, Nov 8 | 1-2pm
• NaNoWriMo Caffeinate & Chat - Virtual Fiction Writers' Group - Tue, Nov 10 | 6-7pm
• Come Write In: Virtual Write In - NaNoWriMo - Sun, Nov 15 | 1-2pm
• Come Write In: Virtual Write In - NaNoWriMo - Sun, Nov 22 | 1-2pm
• NaNoWriMo Caffeinate & Chat - Virtual Fiction Writers' Group - Tue, Nov 24 | 6-7pm

“NaNoWriMo helps writers overcome creative obstacles, dive into their imaginations, and finally start writing the novel of their dreams,” said Executive Director of NaNoWriMo Grant Faulkner. "With the goal of making your creativity a priority for a month, NaNoWriMo teaches valuable approaches to the creative process and critical habits to becoming a successful writer. Being a novelist is a matter of keeping at it, putting one word after the other day after day. You can’t wait for the muse to come to you—you have to create your own muse. We want everyone to be able to tell their story, to trust in the beauty of their muse.”

NaNoWriMo Background

NaNoWriMo started in 1999, when founder Chris Baty invited 20 friends to join him on a bold creative venture: to write 50,000 words of a novel in one month. Since then, those 20 friends have grown into a global community of writers who write together in various ways. Check out these NaNoWriMo facts::

More than 3 million writers have come from more than 200 countries and written on all seven continents (yes, including Antarctica).

24,806,635,218 words have been recorded on the NaNoWriMo website (a truly incredible number that doesn’t include the many novels that go unrecorded).

Thousands of novels have been published, both traditionally and self-published. Those novels include many bestselling works, such as:

• Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
• The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
• Wool by Hugh Howey
• Cinder by Marissa Meyer
• Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
• With The Fire On High by National Book Award-winner Elizabeth Acevedo
• The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal, which won recent Nebula and Hugo awards.

NaNoWriMo has always been about the magic of creative empowerment. After the first NaNoWriMo in 1999 Chris Baty said, “My sense of what was possible for myself, and those around me, was forever changed. If my friends and I could write passable novels in a month, I knew anyone could do it.”

For more information, contact Lissa at estaley@tscpl.org.