November is National Novel Writing Month. The challenge: to write 50,000 words in one month. It’s grueling and exhilarating at the same time. I “won” NaNoWriMo back in 2009, which means I was successful in squeezing out the 50,000-word minimum. And, oh, was it painful at times!

I learned a lot about writing. I learned that the middle really is messy. I learned that an outline can only get you so far. I chased rabbit trails on a regular basis, and, most importantly, I learned to never, ever delete scenes. After repeated fisticuffs with my internal editor, I learned how to get in “the zone” and let the words flow. I learned not to keep my pinkie finger on the shift key while paused deep in thought – and I learned how to unlock my keyboard when that happened. More than once.

Of course, you don't have to write a novel, even though it's called National Novel Writing Month. The challenge is to write 50,000 words in any genre. You could write a screenplay, several short stories or essays, even a collection of poetry, though that would be an especially difficult challenge, I think.

And if you are a youth, check it out! You can tailor the challenge to your own goals. A twelve year old might set a goal of 20,000 words while a six year old hopes to write 1,000. There isn't really a prize, but the feeling of accomplishment is enormous.

Give it a try and let me know how you do!