I started writing my present book one year for NaNoWriMo. I owe a great deal to NaNoWriMo and to my friend John who push me to try it that first writing challenge.

Now, for those of you who’ve never heard of NaNoWriMo, let me give you a quick introduction. NaNoWriMo is short for National Novel Writing Month.   The project started in July 1999 with 21 participants and last year reported having over  431,500 participants. The idea is to challenges participants to write 50,000 words; essentially, to write a novel.

One of the first thing that was ask of those who take part in NaNoWriMo was to fill out your profile. Now this is quite normal when joining to a new website, but here, they wanted to know more about the book you are planning on writing, than about the writer. The key word here is “planning” as you can’t start writing your novel until the second hand sneaks past Oct.31st and November enters the room. Now, I don’t know about you, but I have a hard time picking a title for a book that isn’t written yet. The working title for my book has changed three of four times over the course of the last few years. It even change a few times that first week.

For me, the working title means nothing more than a way to pull up the right document. When the book is done or work completed, that is when I seriously consider what I want to title my piece.  At that time, I take a deeper look at what the main theme of my book is and what obstetrical all the different characters are facing. Then I normally, I pick a few that I like and get feedback from others. I chose a  title that catches the most interest and reflect the struggles in the story. This becomes the my true working title. But until the day the book comes out in print, I will always consider it a working title.

NaNoWriMo is underway once again and I have, once again, joined thousands of other eager participants and thrown my hat into the ring. I’m using it to jump start the sequel to my first novel. It’s a great way to brainstorm and create a first draft.

If you’re interested, it’s not too late. Join me and see what magic we can make.

Sign up at:

NaNoWriMo.com

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