If you haven’t heard, November is also the time when NaNoWriMo happens. Here’s a definition for those not in the know:

NaNoWriMo: National Novel Writing Month, where authors attempt to write 50,000 words of a brand new novel during the month of November.

Yes, it’s just as crazy as it sounds. NaNo involves writing a minimum average of 1,667 words a day, which, on first glance doesn’t appear that bad, but try doing it for thirty days straight. Factor in school, work, and any emergencies that might come up, and suddenly it’s a lot harder.

But let’s be real, I’m not doing a very good job of making NaNoWriMo sound very appealing. NaNo is a lot more than just stressfully clacking away at your computer, coffee in hand— it’s challenging yourself to create an entire new world, with thousands of other people doing the same thing along with you. The camaraderie that comes with NaNo can bring you friends that will stick with you throughout the entire month of November, and even further, as you edit your brand new novel.

NaNoWriMo is a fun challenge to try with your friends, even if you’re not super into writing. But NaNo can also be a great challenge for experienced writers, or even people just beginning to venture into authorship. It gets you past that horrifying “blinking cursor on the blank page” state of being, and into writing an entire novel— great motivation if you’ve found it hard to just start writing already. It pushes quantity instead of quality: the first draft is going to be terrible anyway, so why not bang it out all at once? You can edit later. And besides: the important part of it is just writing.

As much fun as it is, though, I’ll be honest with you: NaNoWriMo is stressful. Right now, I’m definitely freaking out a little bit about NaNo. I haven’t done that much outlining for it, and it’s in four days. I’m a little terrified, especially with all of my classes, with work, and with everything else that I’m trying to hold together. But at the end of the day, I know that I’m going to have a good time with it. Regardless of what happens at the end of the month, whether I hit that 50,000 word goal or not, I know that I’ll have sat down and written something, and that’s what matters.