For those of you who don’t know, NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. This is an event held every November in which people all over the world attempt to write 50 thousand words in the span of 30 days. The idea is that it gets you write your first draft, without letting your inner editor get in the way. You can edit and revise later, after all.
Because NaNoWriMo was so popular, the creators started the Camp version, which is more relaxed and held in the spring and summer months (for those who live in the northern hemisphere at least). If I remember correctly, there’s one in April, June, and August. For this, you can set your own word count goal (be it 10 thousand or 150 thousand) and try to reach it at your own pace, while chatting with other users in your virtual cabin.
Today is April first, and this is not a joke.
I’ve been contemplating whether to do Camp NaNo for about three months now. I know I want to do the June one, because I’ll actually have decent chances, but can I pull it off in April? Can I swerve between essays and preparation for finals to complete a novel of some sort?
My current answer: no.
Not realistically, anyway. Even if I decrease my word count to 30k, I probably won’t be able to write even half that much. I get home too late in the evening, have too much homework (too much of which is research-related), and I’m trying to read–so I don’t really have the time or energy to do a big creative project.
I have, however, been worldbuilding, which I’m really enjoying. I’m thinking I might try to settle on a plot and prepare that for June’s session.
Are your participating in Camp NaNoWriMo? Why or why not?
The Book Boulevard 
I’m in the same boat as you! School has currently got me bogged down, so I have to wait until June to participate.
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I’m doing a creative assignment for one of my finals, but it’s not really worthy of Camp NaNo because of its length.
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I’m participating this time around. I succeeded once and I’ve failed the last couple of times. For me its just a great excuse to really push myself into writing more.
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That’s why I really enjoy it, too–I can tell my mom I have a good reason to stay home and not go out into the blistering summer sun (I live in a desert where summer averages no clouds and just over 100 degrees Fahrenheit).
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I can’t imagine that kind of heat! I’m a winter gal myself.
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I prefer winter by so much–the cool weather, the snow, the spirit of the season (which can be nice even if you don’t celebrate the related holidays)… it’s so much nicer than the dredging heat of summer xD
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I am doing camp for the second time! I love doing NaNos because it really forces me to just get the draft finished.
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Without a draft, there is nothing to edit/revise/improve, after all~ Good luck!
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I’m a writer but I no longer participate in anything NaNo-related, mostly due to the fact that I have some projects to finish at my own pace. I don’t want to trade quality for quantity these days, but I used to love NaNo dearly. It helped me write the first draft of my main novel – crappy as all hells but at least I have a basis now!
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That first draft can really be the important one. I agree that NaNo doesn’t always quality make, but I do feel that just getting it down on paper so you have something substantial to work with is a huge step. Everybody has his or her or xir own pace though, and that tends to work best, as you’ve alluded to. Good luck with your writing!
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Awesome post! I literally laughed out loud when I got to the bit about you not even participating this month. I love how you saved that little piece of information for near the end of the post. 😀
I got the writing bug mid-March, but it’s gone away. Quite fortunately too, as I am too busy this month with school as well. (Last semester of my undergraduate degree.) I think I’ll participate in July (I think it’s July) most likely, unless I get a job where I’m crazy busy.
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I just recently saw that it is July indeed, and I wish you luck. I hope the writing bug comes back–even if it doesnt, sometimes discipline is a good way to make it come back. Just sitting down and writing (even when you don’t feel like it) can put you back in the mood to do so.
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I definitely lack discipline! I only write for fun when I’m in the mood (usually just conveniently around late October). If I ever finished a book fit for publication, I’d probably just be a one-hit wonder. IF the book became hit ^_^
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One-hit wonders are wonders nonetheless~ As long as you’re having fun, though. After all, it’s better “to write for the self and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self.”
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Argh I want to get focused on my writing so badly, but work and other commitments, as well as my own lack of focuses are making for great excuses. I didn’t realize Camp NaNo took place in the spring as well. I’m hoping to get myself in gear for November for sure, but I have been eyeing the Camp in hopes that might help motivate me.
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There’s another Camp coming in July, as another user corrected me, so you can always do it then in case you don’t have some of those other commitments.
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[…] if that means anything special for you, but for me that means Camp NaNoWriMo is starting. I did a post on this a while back, just before the April edition. Doing NaNoWriMo during school is usually unnecessarily […]
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