NanoWriMo

Don't forget that today is the first day of National Novel Writing Month. My writing buddy is my pal Rich Hailey. We are both committed to pounding out 50,000 words of fiction by the end of the month.

Here is the first letter of encouragement from the guy who started the whole thing:

Dear Writer,

What were you thinking?

I mean, really. With your busy schedule; with everything else you're
supposed to be doing in November, you're going to write a novel too?

Are you crazy?

We here at NaNoWriMo think you might be. Which is why we're so proud to
have you as part of the team this year.

Because you know what? No one in their right mind has ever accomplished
anything truly great. It's a delicious sort of insanity to reprioritize
your to-do list and move this freaky, creative adventure of novel-writing
to the very top.

Well, near the top, anyway.

Showering is important too.

As is napping.

The bathing and sleeping, we'll keep. But as for all the chores and favors
and selfless acts of kindness you've spent your life bestowing upon the
people around you...Well, in November, you're off duty.

Seriously.

Let the dog walk itself. Empower your kids to drive themselves to school.
Nothing instills character in a child like operating a piece of heavy
machinery. Cooking? Bah. A host of local fast food chefs stand ready and
waiting with a wondrous array of largely edible delights.

Pizza is brain food, after all. And you have more important things to do
than cook. You're going to be busy building universes and forging lives.
In November, we spare no moments for drudgery, devoting our limited hours
instead to frantic typing, long, bookish walks, and soulful glances out
the window (which serve as restful interludes between prose creation and
much-needed practice for our future book-jacket photo shoots).

Yes, November is our chance to play. To goof around in our imaginations.
To fall asleep fulfilled and wake up a'buzz with revelations about
backstories and front-stories and the electric, book-changing knowledge of
what our Peruvian double agent has been hiding inside that taxidermized
muskrat all this time.

In four weeks, this state of manic creative bliss will be over. And we can
go back to doing dishes and wearing clean clothes and talking in complete
sentences to our loved ones.

For now, though, our books beckon, and our tales demand an author.

Let's go give it to 'em.

Best of luck to everyone on the first week of writing. We'll meet again in
seven days, when we gather together on the mighty precipice of Week Two.

Off to dream a few beautiful stuffed muskrat dreams,

Chris
NaNoWriMo