While writing with a hundred thousand other writes this coming November sounds like a lot of fun, it's even more fun if a bunch of those writers are in your very own neighborhood, speak your own language (literally and figuratively), and can meet up for kick-off parties, write-ins, and Thank Goodness It's Over! parties. So how do you generate more interest?
1. Post in the regional lounge. Pretty much everyone is shy, and no one wants to start a thread or put themselves out there. But someone's gotta start, so it might as well be you. Start a thread for your region if there isn't one already (ie, "Hong Kong - who's here?" or "Bangladesh - anyone? anyone?", and chances are that pretty soon, others from your area will start posting, too. Start threads about other items of interest to you if they aren't already started. Chances are, someone else is also interested in it. An active forum will draw more people out of the woodwork.
2. Volunteer to be an ML for your area if you've done NaNoWriMo at least once before and are at least 18 years of age. When you're an ML, you get your own regional lounge, you get to order official swag from headquarters, and you get to herd the cats, er, writers. It's a whole lot of fun! Plus you get access to the private forums (and access to a whole lot of other MLs who've got great advice to share), the ML area (with printable posters, press releases, and other fun and useful stuff), and you get the keys to the executive washroom. If you have questions, please either email me directly or post them to the Municipal Liaison thread.
3. Organize events in your area. An ML is not required to organize and hold the events. Theoretically, I'll soon be getting access to the regional calendar, and when I do, I can post events for your area on it. Consider a kick-off party, write-ins, and a Thank Goodness It's Over! party.
4. Send press releases to the local newspapers to draw interest. If you follow the About, then Media link, there should be a sample press release there. In the ML area – which, of course, only MLs have access to – there are other handy signs that can be printed and posted around town to generate more interest as well, and there's also an ML-oriented press release with a place to put ML-contact info.
5. Enlist the help of active and well-read bloggers in your area. See if they'll either write about NaNoWriMo (even if it's brief) on their blog, or offer to write something up for them to post to their blog. If someone blogs, they're already a writer, so half the battle may already be won...
Do you have ideas on how to generate more interest in your area? Post them here!
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Laurie, ML for Sri Lanka, Asia: Elsewhere
Why, yes, I am crazy. Why do you ask?
