National Novel Writing Month: Start a New Family Tradition

Are you dreading the dark, cold days of winter that lie ahead? Are you looking for a fun and challenging project for your family that will make the Big Dark (at least part of it) fly by? Never fear, National Novel Writing Month is (almost) here! 

November is National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo. Each year, nearly half a million people around the world take on the challenge: write a 50,000-word novel in 30 days.

That sounds like a lot, I know. But taken one day at a time, it’s totally doable and breaks down to about 1,667 words per day. And the NaNoWriMo website offers all kinds of tools and inspiration to help you reach your goal. There is something very satisfying about watching the little word count graph on my NaNoWriMo page climb up and up each day. For additional motivation, I buy myself and my son one item from the NaNoWriMo store as a reward for meeting our goal and we wait until Nov. 30 to open the package. It’s a great motivator and fun to have a small reward for our month of hard work (and the purchase supports NaNoWriMo, win-win). 

There is also a Young Writers’ Program, which rallies kids to participate and create their first masterpiece. They can select their own goal for the month — 100 words, 1,000 words, 20,000 words — there is no wrong answer! Kids get their very own interactive website that tracks their progress and offers support along the way.

My son and I have been participating in NaNoWriMo together for the past several years. We don’t usually sit down and write together (though we have), but we do check in with each other every day about our progress. It’s been really special to participate in this creative project together each year. And our connection around NaNoWriMo goes beyond just one month; we start chatting about it and running ideas past each other starting in late summer.

If you and your family want to give NaNoWriMo a try this year, just go for it! Here are a few of my takeaways from the experience:

• There is absolutely no pressure. Will anyone know if I don’t make my goal? Nope! This project is free, self-guided and totally your own thing. If life gets too busy and you stop mid-month, you can always try again next year. Want to write a mystery? Science fiction? A romance? It’s totally up to you.
• The goal is quantity, not quality. There is a lot of talk about silencing your “inner editor” during NaNoWriMo. You know it, that voice in your head that says, that dialogue is pretty bad or this scene is ridiculous. Better delete everything and start again.” During NaNoWriMo, that voice must be silenced to make the 50,000-word goal. You can edit in December, but remember, you can’t edit a blank page. So write that bad dialogue and ridiculous scene with gusto! 
• It’s fun to be a part of a worldwide creative project. I love thinking about people all over the world sitting down to write during the month of November. It helps me feel less alone in this fairly solitary project, especially during the middle of the month when the excitement of starting the project has faded, and the end of the month seems miles away. 

• It helps to have a plan. While this is a low-stakes, personal project, it’s no small task. Before November, think through the logistics a bit. Will you write in the morning? Late at night? Do you want to sit down and write 1,650 words all at once? Will it work better to try and write 500 words or so in multiple sitting throughout the day? If your kids are participating, help them think this through, too. And don’t forget to plan your celebration at the end of the month when you reach your goal!  
• There is no pressure to share your work. My son is wonderfully creative but very private about his work. If he had to upload his writing or share it with strangers, I’m not sure he would participate (and honestly, I feel the same way). This month, this project, is just for you. Many novels that started as NaNoWriMo projects have been published, but even if you never look at your book again, you can still check “write a novel” off your bucket list.

So, get those creative juices flowing and chat with your family about participating in NaNoWriMo. You might be surprised who has a story idea ready to go!

Editor’s note: This article was first published a few years ago and was most recently update for your NaNoWriMo adventure in August 2024 by ParentMap’s associate editor (and five-time NaNoWriMo winner), Kari Hanson.