National Novel Writing Month (frequently shortened to NaNoWriMo) happens every November. Are you going to write a novel this year? According to NaNoWriMo.org, "Writing a novel alone can be difficult, even for seasoned writers. NaNoWriMo helps you track your progress, set milestones, connect with other writers in a vast community, and participate in events that are designed to make sure you finish your novel." This nonprofit organization is dedicated to "providing tools, structure, community, and encouragement to help people find their voices, achieve creative goals, and build new worlds." National Novel Writing Month was started in 1999, and NaNoWriMo became an official nonprofit organization in 2006. In that time, people from around the world have used NaNoWriMo to finish over 300,000 novels!
So, if you're interested in joining the NaNoWriMo challenge this year, both that organization and your friendly BiblioTech Public Library have tools and resources to help you. Check out NaNo Prep now, so you can get prepared and start off with a bang on November 1. There is also a pretty neat collection of NaNoWriMo Pep Talks to help motivate you. These short essays from successful authors like Erin Morganstern (check out her books The Night Circus and The Starless Sea on cloudLibrary right now) and Anne Lamott (author of many books you can also check out on cloudLibrary) can help you get ready for an amazing, productive month.
Here at BiblioTech, you can find some amazing writing resources on our Writer's Corner page. Tools for writing include:
- Pressbooks, which you can use to create, edit, format and generate print-ready and eBook formats for your book.
- This tool allows you to easily create a table of contents and a cover for your book, as well. It's pretty fantastic.
- Indie Author Project, which allows you to share your book with our library patrons, and, if selected, library patrons across the state of Texas.
- You can read books that have been selected for the statewide project here.
- Many award-winning literary magazines on RBdigital.
- Courses from Lynda.com, including:
- Write a Bestselling Novel in 15 Steps
- The Foundations of Fiction
- As well as classes on graphic novels and much more
- Even more courses from Universal Class:
- From a Creative Writing Workshop to Historical Fiction Writing and even, How to Write for Children, these classes, taught by experts who give you personalized feedback, can help you write your best novel this year.
Of course, we also have some amazing books you can check out on writing. On cloudLibrary, check out Write Right! by Jan Venolia or On Writing by Stephen King. Looking for more of a step-by-step guide? Check out How to Write a Novel by Nathan Bransford.
On our Hoopla app, you can find How to Write Everything by David Quantick, which is billed as "the ultimate writer's handbook." We also have lots of other books on writing, including Fast Fiction by Denise Jaden, which is especially useful during NaNoWriMo, since it details how to write a book in 30 days.
If you end up particpating in NaNoWriMo, we would love to cheer you on! Let us know on on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
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