Souhegan students reflect – 50,000 words later

A few Souhegan High School students spent November participating in National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo. Now, in January, the students reflect on the experience. To participate in NaNoWriMo, a person signs a pledge to attempt to write 50,000 words in the month. Juniors Gwen Jalbert-Landeck and Patience Roby are two of the Souhegan students, along with junior Olivia Edvalson, who participated. “It’s really hard,” Jalbert-Landeck and Roby said jointly, “and it takes up a lot of time. But if you do the full adult version, it feels like you’ve actually accomplished something.” The young adult version requires a pledge of 30,000 words, but Jalbert-Landeck and Roby said they felt that the support offered for the adult version was better. They “used the inspirational quotes that they posed online – ‘On Thanksgiving, hide in your bathroom with your laptop!’ ” they said. Other writers also offered support. “You got emails from other participants reinforcing you and telling you to keep going,” the girls said. Some writers will whine online; for example, someone will post, “My characters aren’t cooperating with me.” It can be funny, and they’ll also get ideas from other people. “People often ask for help developing details: ‘What happens if you get stabbed in the kidney?’ Participants will ask each other for ideas and help with developing ideas,” Jalbert-Landeck said. The sense of community is one of the most important parts of the NaNoWriMo writing process. “Deadlines really helped me stay on track,” Jalbert-Landeck said. Roby said she wrote on her calendar what her word count should be by a specific date.