By Nancy Kay Clark,
CommuterLit editor & publisher
NOVEMBER IS National Novel Writing Month, which started in the U.S., but has since spread across borders. The idea is to kickstart a writing project by writing daily, so that at the end of November you have a 50,000-word manuscript. That means you are writing over 1,000 words a day for the entire month. If you succeed, you end up with a pretty basic first draft, which will certainly need lots of rewriting.
If you are writer, like many of us, who find it hard to start or to keep writing, this might be a worthwhile exercise to attempt. The original organizers have folded. However, there are a number of alternative initiatives that have taken up the concept. These provide an online support community and some structure to keep participants on track. But, of course, you and your best writing buddies can take up the challenge yourselves. Some accountability is helpful.
The key to success here is to not worry too much about what you’re writing and if it makes sense or if it’s any good (those critical thoughts are for the rewrites). The November challenge is all about getting something down on paper (or screen).
Good luck, and be kind to yourself if you don’t quite reach the 50,000-word goal. Progress is progress.
Thank you to all who entered our Halloween Week 2025 contest
The top five stories will be announced Monday, Oct. 27 and will be posted on CommuterLit that week.
Changing Newsletter Platform
Over the course of October will be transitioning away from Mail Chimp as our newsletter carrier/platform to Substack. If you are a subscriber to our newsletter, don’t worry, you’ll still be a subscriber when we make the transition. You don’t have to do anything.