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Hi Wrimos,

The issue with the forums has been resolved. Hooray! Thanks to Dan and Heather for their fast, efficient handiwork.

And there is more good news: I have already heard from two Wrimos who made it to the semifinals of the ABNA! If you made it to the next round too, email me!

Or, if you just have a great tale of triumph relating to NaNoWriMo, send it on in.

Nothing makes me happier in the off-season than hearing from you!

Going to check my inbox,
Lindsey

Hello Wrimos!

Many of you may have noticed that the NaNo forums are not updating. We're aware of the issue, and appreciate your patience as we work on the fix.

In other news, I have learned that there were even more ABNA quarterfinalists! The following NaNo-novelists also made it through:

stereotomy
mamavalerius
timeturner

Congratulations!

Off to wrestle a forums robot,
Lindsey

Hi Wrimos!

I am popping in from Frenzy Land to say 'hi' and share some good tidings.

We have heard from three Wrimos who made it to the quarterfinals of the Amazon Breakthrough Novelists Award contest. Three! Check out the Q&A on the homepage to learn more about their exciting journeys to the top.

We have also received our first 'yes' RSVP from a pep talker for NaNo 2009! She's been high on the list of popular votes for 2008 and 2009, and she wrote in this week to say she would contribute her encouragement and advice to you this very November! That is all I can say for now. The excitement and secrecy is positively agonizing.

Don't forget to suggest your favorite contemporary author for consideration!

Off to concoct a script plot that will equal (or best!) my NaNo-novel,

Lindsey

Hello Wrimos!

I hope you're having a banner off-season. While you're relaxing, think about the following:

• Who wants to relax anyway? Write a script in a month! Script Frenzy is right around the corner. The site has launched, and we're waiting for you to sign up!
• As you are sitting down to do your taxes, are you wishing you had more deductible donations? We can help! Come on over to the Donation Station and start collecting those tax deductions for 2010!
• When November does finally roll around, whose pep do you want to read? We're seeking published authors who will contribute their encouragement to your noveling journey. Drop by the Blog and add your two cents.

Hoping for Michael Chabon,
Lindsey

Hi Wrimos!

Rumor has it that there are quite a few Adobe employees among us. Would the Adobe employees please stand up?

Great!

Hello.

Of you fabulous and lucky people, does anyone have a copy of the Creative Suite for Windows lying around? And if so, would you be so kind as to donate it to your favorite nonprofit's Young Writers Program? We have some workbooks in need of the Dreamweaver treatment.

Drop us an email and let us know if you have some good news for us.

Here's hoping,
Lindsey

Chris is in the Big Apple this week at the Tools of Change Publishing Conference; when he returns, he's sure to have plenty to say about cabs, Twitter, and the superiority of NYC pizzerias to our Bay Area counterparts. I just hope he remembers to bring me a Statue of Liberty bobble head.

Good luck to all of you who submitted a manuscript to the Amazon Breakthrough Novelist Award contest! Please write in and let us know how it turns out. I have the highest hopes for a Wrimo win!

Fingers crossed,
Lindsey

ps: Edutopia published an awesome article about the YWP in its February 2009 issue—they even did a How To on getting kids to write a book! Great stuff.

Does anyone have an extra novel lying around? Any chance you've already polished your 2008 NaNo effort?

Great!

From now until February 8, you can submit your novel for the 2009 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award. Learn more about the ABNA here and enter the contest!

The panel has such outstanding talents as Sue Monk Kidd and Sue Grafton (who wrote an awesome pep talk for NaNoWriMo 2007!).

Wouldn't it be great to keep it all in the family? A NaNo pep talker bestowing the award to a NaNo-novelist...

Going to continue my day dream,

Lindsey
NaNoWriMo

Have some extra time this spring? Want to throw yourself into another rewarding and brain-busting challenge? Script Frenzy is recruiting Municipal Liaisons to support and encourage the ambitious scribes that are pounding out 100-page scripts this April. Sign up and get ready for the most fun you’ve ever had during tax season.

In other news, the T-shirt sale was a smash hit! We have sold out of nearly everything except for the youth sizes of the YWP tee. If you have a book-loving toddler, niece, or nephew, check it out! The sale ends Monday, February 2.

12,073 of you have filled out the all-participant survey. Hot cakes! Thank you so much for your input. If you haven’t already, take a look and share your two cents. We really appreciate your feedback!

We’ll see you over at the Frenzy!

Lindsey

Hey there! If you wrote with us in November and have about ten minutes to spare, would you mind taking our NaNoWriMo 2008 participant survey? Pretty please? We'd love to have your thoughts on what you liked this year and what needs improvement.

Go to the survey!

Thank you! Also, to help celebrate National Oatmeal Month we're having a $10 t-shirt sale in the store! Every shirt except for this year's Winner shirt/sticker combo is just $10 until February 2.

Yay oatmeal!

Chris

Happy 2009, everyone! Tavia, Lindsey, Sam, Bradford and I have happily returned from our various corners of the holiday world. Over the break, I started making digital note cards for my most monstrous to-do list item: A battle-to-the-death with my 2006 NaNoWriMo novel. I've been working on it for two years. I'm going to try and have it fully revised and ready to show to my fellow humans by the end of May.

I think it's going to be a good year.

We're still doing a ton of NaNoWriMo wrap-up, including working on a survey for all participants that will hopefully go out next week. We've also been working hard on getting Script Frenzy ready for its third year. Lights! Camera! Almost action!

Having just written 2009 on my first check and feeling a little strange about it,

Chris

ps: Right before we left for vacation, we learned that the Young Writers Program received a grant from the venerable San Francisco Foundation. Thank you, SFF!