What is NaNoWriMo, you ask?
National Novel Writing Month, otherwise known as November.
I participated in NaNoWriMo in 2009 and ended up with more than 50,000 words of Gray Zone (my young adult novel about cyberbullying), 23,000 of which I had to cut. It seems that in my desperation to reach 50,000 words I sometimes wrote gibberish. Lots and lots of gibberish.
Still, it gave me a good start. I was further along in writing than I would have been if I had not participated in NaNoWriMo. It made me sit down, night after night, and do the one thing that is absolutely necessary to create a novel–write.
So cutting 23,000 words was a small price to pay for a 27,000 word beginning of a novel in a mere 30 days. 23,000 words–just a little light pruning. Not too awfully painful.
Besides, the novel grew back healthy and full of life, so the pruning was a success.
I think November is going to be a very good month! Yes indeed.