The official blog of Michelle Tuckett, word ninja.

Today is the first day of NaNoWriMo.

Are you ready? Are you writing? Do you have an outline, an idea, a plan of any kind?

No matter what you answer, mine is: Good. You’re already ready to start.

I want to reassure you here and now that you have a story in you, you have a voice in you, and you have everything it takes to write 50,000 (really terrible) words in a month, even if you think it might kill you a few million times between today and typing “The End”.

It doesn’t matter, though. Because you can rock this.

I haven’t had much to say in way of NaNoWriMo prep this year—partly because it has all been said before on this blog and in many other useful places, and partly because there is a much more interesting discussion to be had about the ways and hows of writing a novel really fast, not giving a damn what comes to mind as long as story and words happen.*

This year, I want to have a different conversation about writing, particularly when it comes to writing a novel in a month. By now, I definitely know what I’m talking about.

But first, before reality sets in that we are really doing this thing—this writing a first, or maybe yet another, novel and all in the span of November, I want to give you this invitation:

Write as your most punk rock self.

Write like you don’t give a flying fuck what anyone else thinks.

Write like you are on fire and these are you dying words.

Write like diving into a mosh pit made of ideas and knowing they will catch you and carry you across their waves.

Write just for you—for your deepest, punkest, most badass you.

There is nothing to be afraid of. For now, for this November, you are the weirdo, the loner, the rebel, Dottie.

Today is the first day of NaNoWriMo.

And you are as ready as you will ever be.

* (Also, I’ve been busy with this outlining app, but we’ll talk about that later.)