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Things We Saw Today: If Your Writer Friend Isn’t Social Right Now, It’s Just NaNoWriMo Time

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It’s November and so aspiring writers everywhere are going to spend the rest of this month doing what all writers love to do: furiously try and make deadlines, while hating everything they write.

NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) is an annual writing challenge to write a 50,000-word first draft during the month of November. The non-profit organization is celebrating its 20th year and expects more than 400,000 people to start their novel this month. It is a great way to finally just get your brainchild into the world if you want that level of commitment to deadlines..

Seriously, one of the things every writer’s guide tells you to do is just suck it up, put pen to paper or fingers to key and just make the story come to life. Don’t worry about it being perfect: just write.

It sounds simple and once upon a time, it was my least favorite piece of writing advice. It isn’t easy to just turn off that extra part of your brain and “just write,” especially when you have carried a story in your mind and in your heart for years. When you see scenes and sequences so clearly, but while typing it out it feels like instead of creating magic, you are just making a mess. I get it.

Yet, as I look at all the great work being put out, I realize that if you never try, you’ll never know. What is the point of having all these ideas if you never share them? How will you know you really suck if a Twitter thread or Tumblr blog hasn’t been made about you?

So I’m going to be throwing my hat in the ring with all the other NaNoWriMo people out there. All the writers reading this? This is our time. Write your novel.

  • The Portalist has put together a list of 11 feminist science-fiction and fantasy titles throughout the ages, including some of my favorites like Brightness Falls from the Air and Parable of the Sower. (via The Portalist)
  • Thanks to the efforts of American Indian activists in North Dakota, thousands of voters of American Indian descent of the state will be getting free I.D.s, which will make a huge difference in the upcoming election and just a win for Democracy in general. (via Star Tribune)
  • Louis C.K.’s comeback was always going to be easy and feminists knew it. (via Vulture)
  • The PlayStation Classic, the Christmas gift I want the most, will be shipping on December 3rd will ship with 20 pre-loaded games that are perfectly curated for your nostalgia. (via Den of Geek)
  • Gal Gadot fills her timeline with all these pictures of women and girls dressed up at Wonder Woman on Twitter. Hera my heart is so full.

OMG it’s Thursday!

(The CW)

(image: Pexels)

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Princess Weekes
Princess (she/her-bisexual) is a Brooklyn born Megan Fox truther, who loves Sailor Moon, mythology, and diversity within sci-fi/fantasy. Still lives in Brooklyn with her over 500 Pokémon that she has Eevee trained into a mighty army. Team Zutara forever.