A novel approach

National Novel-Writing Month has been under way since Nov. 1. The idea is to get people to write a novel, minimum length 50,000 words, in one month. Since the nonprofit project was founded in Oakland, Calif., in 1999, 145,161 writers have participated, and a few -- apparently very few -- have seen their work published. Last year, 59,000 people participated, and the organization expects 75,000 participants this month.

The idea seems to be to encourage people who always wanted to write just to jump in and see what they can do in 30 days. There's no fee. The only prize is an "official winner" certificate. Last year, $14,000 was used to help build children's libraries in Cambodia and Laos, raised with sales of such stuff as mugs and t-shirts, project director Chris Baty's wonderfully titled book, "No Plot? No Problem!", as well as donations. Half of all income to the project this year will again be put toward kids' libraries, this time in Vietnam.

The website says, "Make no mistake: You will be writing a lot of crap. And that's a good thing. By forcing yourself to write so intensely, you are giving yourself permission to make mistakes. To forgo the endless tweaking and editing and just create." Hmm. I suppose it's a good thing if you have unreasonable standards for a first draft, and your objective is just to get something, anything, written and to put it before readers.

On the other hand, I've always wanted to sing the part of Rodolfo in La Boheme. But I don't think I'll participate in National Opera-Singing Month. Except in the shower.