by Kayla, student life editor
Have you ever read a really good book and then had a sudden dream to write your own novel? Most kids have, and thanks to a program called NaNoWriMo, kids of all ages set goals of writing during the month of November.
NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. November is the national month for writing, so NaNoWriMo gives kids all over the world a creative outlet to simply write, write, write!
NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. November is the national month for writing, so NaNoWriMo gives kids all over the world a creative outlet to simply write, write, write!
Before November, the participants decided what their novel would be about, created their plot, developed characters and set their word count goal, which could be anywhere from one hundred words to fifty-thousand words.
October was pre-planning and not part of the actual writing, so it was “illegal” to write during October, according to the NaNoWriMo rules. But once November came, we got started!
NaNoWriMo has two official programs—one for adults (ages thirteen and up) and the Young Writers Program, which is for kids under thirteen and their mentors.
Mr. Esquivel was the mentor at our school, and we had 14 kids in the program this year, three of whom were from other schools.
NaNoWriMo officially started on November 1, at 12:00 a.m. and officially ended at 11:59 p.m. on November 30. Any writing before or after these times was not permitted.
To help kids over the anxiety and readiness the official website had ongoing forums and links where kids could write summaries of their stories or get other kids’ opinions on their ideas.
Once the writing started, there were also links on the site where kids could record their stories, give excerpts and get their word count.
There were also prizes at the end of the month for anyone who made their goal and a participation badge for those who didn’t win.
Kids enjoyed being able to let their creative side out, and some used this chance with flying colors. And to help us along, Mr. Esquivel had writing buddies—Sven the mountain goat, Thumbelina the snake, Oksana the Puff Ball and Thor the bookworm. They seemed to encourage CeVMS kids to write.
“My story is about a sentient asteroid who explores the universe with his best friend, Archie, the astro amoeba,” said Josh (8).
Steven (8) said, “My novel is a fictional book about the back story of a video-game character named Firzen, from LittleFighter2.”
Most kids, given the opportunity, can come up with very original ideas for stories. Start looking at the bookshelves more closely, because sometime in the near future, you might see a book up there with your BFF’s name on it!
1 comments:
Love the way you write and also the photography is fabulous! I plan to reread your book over spring break and will make some suggestions if you want me to.
What most authors do is follow a template. Once they are published, the publishing houses want to make sure the future books sell. So, they want the writer to write the SAME technique/plot formation so the book WILL sell.
I'll look to see if I can find a standard you are using for descriptions and dialog.
Mrs. Dowd
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