My Second Year and It's Time to Rebel

Funny, when I was in my rebellious youth, I was never a rebel.  In the rebellious 1960's, I didn't join a student group against the Vietnam War.  Yes, I demonstrated, a couple of times for other causes.  Yes, I was a pain to my teachers at times (one compared me to Dorothy Parker and I'm thinking maybe he wasn't praising me).  Maybe one day I'll even blog about the day I went to our state capital with other high school demonstrators and the true education I got that day.

Instead, I wait until I am 60 to decide to be a rebel. 

Today is the first day of the Ultimate Blog Challenge, a 31 posts in 31 day challenge I've taken (and completed) several times.  In fact, I've been blogging daily (with a lot of effort and more than a little luck) every day since late April of 2011.  So I can (cross fingers) promise you a daily post, with theme days on Wednesday (fall), Saturday (sustainable living), Sunday (the Civil War). On other days, you get what you get.  Like today.

In a month, it's time for another challenge, and I've been thinking hard about it.

There is a yearly writing competition called NaNoWriMo.  The purpose of the 30 day November madness of NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) is to challenge yourself to write 50,000. words in 30 days.  It is so difficult. I completed the challenge last year for the first time (writing a fictional memoir) and I sweated an ocean of liquid.  But the pep talks in NaNoWriMo?  The forums?  The virtual companionship? Priceless!  They made it all worthwhile.  And I'm thinking of joining the madness again.

The one rule in NaNoWriMo is that it has to be totally original (no pre writing prior to the November 1 start or editing already written manuscripts, although outlines for a brand new fiction work are fine), and it has to be fiction.  Other than that, you write 50,000 words.  You don't have to edit, although you can.  You just write and write and write and....well, you get the idea.  You drink tons of coffee.  You bite your nails.  You submit your manuscript to an automated system for official word count.  It's all on the honor system.  No one verifies you've obeyed the rules.

The fiction part is my problem.  I am not a fiction writer.  I like true stories.  I like history.  I like to write about what I know. Or, I write when I learn or experience something new.  And the only way I can write what I like to write is to be a "rebel".

NaNoWriMo does allow rebels.  If you write a movie script for NaNoWriMo, you're a rebel. If you write unrelated short stores, you're a rebel. Manga? Rebel.  How-to guide? Rebel. Writing via a blog? Rebel.  And nonfiction?

Rebel.

But the news isn't all bad.  You can rebel, and still participate. (There is cheating, but true rebelling is not cheating.  NaNoWriMo says so!  That's what I think, anyway, after a lot of research last night.  You can even declare your rebellion on the website.

So why shouldn't I slip out of the goody-goody role I've played all my life and rebel?

My second year and I'm already a rebel.  Breaking out of the mold. 

Are you ready to join me at NaNoWriMo?