Apps for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)

The beginning of November marks the start of NaNoWriMo, also known as National Novel Writing Month, an interesting exercise in the human ability to create, where you’re asked to write a 50,000 word novel in the space of November for fun on top of everything else you normally do.

We did it last year, and it’s great fun, proving to yourself that yes, you can write a book, even if you may not necessarily be able to get it published.

Participating in National Novel Writing Month won’t really get you any monetary rewards, as it’s more about your abilities, and challenging yourself to do what thousands of others can do: write for fun.

Writing has proven itself to be an excellent way to get out emotions, to throw out passion and fear and annoyance and a whole bunch of other emotions, all while conjuring up the brain and letting your imagination literally (and essentially literary) wild.

What’s more, after doing it – and completing it – last year, I can tell you that it’s not about having a novel edited and technically ready for print by the end of the month, but rather about turning that big old machine at the top of your head into a writing factory, churning out words and sentences and paragraphs into a long semi-readable block that proves you have a story in you.

Anyone can do it, and with all the computers we have in our lives – phones, tablets, laptops, desktops – here are some apps that can help you throughout the month on whatever platform you own, as well as some tips that we found along the way.