As September comes to a close, it’s time for me to say goodbye to one of my five blogs. As of this week, Write Nonfiction in NOVEMBER! ceases to exist as the final stages of its integration into this blog, Write Nonfiction NOW!, takes place. I other words, two blogs merge to become one.
That does not mean the Write Nonfiction in November (WNFIN) challenge, also know as National Nonfiction Writing Month (NaNonFiWriMo) won’t happen! It will! (And I hope you’ll take part.)
It also doesn’t mean this blog will change. Let me explain.
The History
I began Write Nonfiction in NOVEMBER!, the blog and challenge,in October 2007, a year after I participated in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) with no thought to what I would do with the blog after the actual challenge, which involved starting a nonfiction project that month and finishing it 30 days later. I just knew with a blog I could promote the challenge and provide a great educational experience for those taking the challenge. That blog featured 30 days of expert guest posts during November.
The first year of Write Nonfiction in NOVEMBER!, I produced a huge brain dump of everything I knew about nonfiction—27 posts worth. The next year I enlisted the help of expert guest bloggers. They provided 27 posts and I wrote just three, but I wrote an introduction to every single post, and I’ve continued to do this every year (although last year I shortened my contribution.) I have offered a month of posts on nonfiction writing, publishing and promotion during the challenge every year since.
After a year or two, the blog was criticized as being “dead.” The problem lay in the fact that except for November, the blog sat dormant, although it continued to get a fair amount of traffic even though I rarely added new content.
In 2009, I decided to create a new blog, Write Nonfiction NOW!, as a “sister blog” for Write Nonfiction in NOVEMBER!; it was supposed to keep the other site alive and challenge nonfiction writers to continue writing nonfiction the other 11 months (not just in November). During the challenge itself, Write Nonfiction NOW! ran a snippet of each post and linked readers to Write Nonfiction in NOVEMBER! to read the rest.
This year, the Write Nonfiction in NOVEMBER! blog had activity during the majority of the year via a “training program” of writing prompts to help writers prepare for the November month-long challenge. This program was created by Amanda Socci as another way to keep the blog “alive” and generate interest for the challenge. One of the prompts from the “I Know I Can” WNFIN” program appeared on Write Nonfiction NOW! each Friday.
The Problem
Yet, in general, the two blogs functioned independently. This proved an inherent problem. I had to run two blogs when all I needed was one. Many readers of Write Nonfiction NOW! also did not know about the WNFIN/NaNonFiWriMo.
How was the problem created? I initially had an idea and created a blog—Write Nonfiction in NOVEMBER!—to make it a reality. When that idea needed something additional to make it work more effectively (to keep it alive), I created another blog rather than simply expanding on the blog I already had. So, to solve the problem of two blogs trying to do the work of one, I now have combined them into one. That’s the solution.
I should have done this at the beginning, but…better late than never. Sometimes our creative minds are not so logical.
What This Means to You
You will now find all the great content from both Write Nonfiction NOW! and Write Nonfiction in NOVEMBER!—including the 30 days of WNFIN/NaNonFiWriMo posts dating back to 2007—on this site. That is a huge resource of material. Simply search in the archives under “November” for any year and you will find 30 great, expert posts on writing, publishing and promoting nonfiction. Search on any topic in the categories or in the search engine on the blog, and you have a higher likelihood of finding the information you desire–and not just provided by me but possibly from an expert on that particular subject.
The yearly Write Nonfiction in November (WNFIN) challenge, and all the NaNonFiWriMo events and announcements will now take place on this site. Additionally, a forum will be put into place, making it much easier to “sign in,” report on progress, ask questions, and converse with other participants on topics raised by guest bloggers or by participants. (This will happen later this week. Watch for information on how to participate in the challenge. In the meantime, you can join the official WNFIN Facebook page.)
For those of you who subscribe to this blog, it means you will continue to get the same great blog posts written by me, including the excerpts from my forthcoming book, The Author Training Manual (Writer’s Digest Books, Feb. 2014), which I have been blogging here. Plus, you will get one month of Amanda’s writing prompts as we finish up her program. So you don’t get two posts a day, I am going to alter my writing schedule during October. That means you will get posts from me on Tuesday and Thursday. You will get Amanda’s posts on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Today, you will get a post from both of us. 🙂
Then, in November, you will get 30 days of phenomenal guest blog posts during Write Nonfiction in November (WNFIN/NaNonFiWriMo). You would have gotten these anyway, but instead of having to click a link to read the rest of the post (and being taken to another blog), you will get the whole post right here! And you can sign in right here to take the challenge as well—and participate in a forum, too.
After November, we will go back to “normal.” I’ll actually provide just two posts per week, Monday and Wednesday. And then I’m going to have a big announcement about that new forum—a new opportunity that involves Fridays. So keep your eyes open…
Photo courtesy of Tang90246 | Dreamstime.com
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