We’re entering the final few days of this year’s NaNoWriMo Main Event. Already, as of 3:30p on Sunday, we have 30 winners, and a grand total of 6.4 million words logged by 280 active participants this season, with 40-50 looking like they may cross the finish line yet.
For comparison, in 2022 we had 245 homed participants, of whom 68 won. And in 2021, we had 257 homed.
This year has “felt different” — new people, new energy, more engagement. And that’s great! Now we’re into the wearying, final moments of the month. You know, the Sam-and-Frodo-approach-Mount-Doom part of the adventure. It’s a tough slog, with a few days left to go, but you can do it! We believe in you. All of us, your whole regional community. So shake off your turkey-induced slumber, limber thy fingers, and go! go! go! all the way to victory!
End of Season Wrap
This year, Nov. 30 occurs on a Thursday. Our normal programming for this month will still happen, but on Thursday, a few extra things are on the docket. For starters, we have two regularly scheduled write-ins, one on Discord and the other in Grand Haven. Then we have our official The End Is Nigh regional wrap-up and final word sprint on Discord that evening. Plus, the lovely team at The Bluestocking Bookshop is hosting an in-person wrap party from their bookstore in Holland.
You’re welcome to attend whatever strikes your fancy, but please check the Events page on Thursday afternoon to verify whether some events may be canceled given the embarrassment of riches we’re enjoying this year.
While you’re at it, we ask that you complete the anonymous end-of-season survey for the region. This survey will officially open on Monday, just after midnight, and close just before midnight next Sunday (Dec. 3). We ask roughly two dozen questions that are intended to help us better understand your engagement with regional activities and the kinds of things that would help you in the future. This survey does not ask any identifiable information. As with the other questionnaires we’ve administered, it uses the LimeSurvey CE platform, which is a well-respected, open-source, self-hosted survey tool.
The Week Ahead
Here’s what’s on the docket for our upcoming week.
MONDAY: The O.G. Tribe Write In, 6p to 9p (Wyoming)
TUESDAY: Muskegon Write-In, 5:30p to 6:30p (Muskegon); Holland Writers’ Group, 5:30 to 7:30 (Holland); Come Write In, Jason’s Books & Coffee, 8a to 2p
WEDNESDAY: Wednesday Weirdos Write-In, 7p to 9p (Discord); Come Write In, Bettie’s Pages, 11a to 7p
THURSDAY: M(e)L at the Lakeshore Write-In, 6p to 8p (Grand Haven); NaNo Wrap Party, 6p to 8p (Holland); Thursday Night Lights Write-In, 8p to 10p (Discord); The End is Nigh Party, 9p to midnight (Discord)
FRIDAY: —
SATURDAY: Thank Goodness It’s Over — Now What?, 2p to 3p (Wyoming)
SUNDAY: —
Various & Sundry
- There’s still time to log your points for Fantasy Quest. You can backlog points all you want. We will publish the next leaderboard on Tuesday, then the final leaderboard on Friday. Also on Friday, we will announce winners and whatnot. Stay tuned to this blog for all the exciting details!
- On Saturday, we’ll have an hour-long in-person debrief at Jason’s Books & Coffee to discuss the “now what” part of your NaNo novel. This free event is basically an open-forum Q&A to talk about editing, peer critique, publishing, and staying connected in the off season.
Now, remember — you still have time to WRITE ALL THE WORDS!