Ahh, NaNoWriMo is in the air! November 1st brings one of my favorite times of year–the month where hundreds of thousands of crazy writers try to write 50,000 words in a month.

I’ve been NaNoing since 2006 and my first NaNoNovel was TAKE THE REINS–the book that started the Canterwood series!

Here’s what I’ve learned about NaNo:

FACT: You will consume more caffeine than you ever have.

FALSE: Your book won’t be worth editing because you wrote it in a month.

FACT: You’ve got to write FAST. This forces you to turn off your inner editor. Buh-bye little editorial voice!

FALSE: On December 1st, your book will be perfect! Time to query agents or submit it to your editor if you have one already.

FACT: There are many NaNo critics. That’s fine. To each his own. But I love NaNo!

FALSE: You’ve got to wait for the “perfect” time to do NaNo. This year’s just too busy.

FACT: There will never be a perfect time to write a book. Life happens. Let it while you write a book!

FALSE: You need to invest in fancy software.

FACT: Use MS Word or whatever program came with your computer.

FALSE: You’re too old. Or too young.

FACT: No one’s too old or too young to write a novel.

I wish you ALL the best of luck this November. Get out there and rack up those words! I’ll be NaNoing for the first couple of weeks of the month, but then I have to switch to editing for my POPULAR deadline.

Check out lots of tips on NaNo’s Website that will offer much more help/advice.

Special shout out to the man who made it all possible, Chris Baty.

Go NaNoers!