MOUNT VERNON – November is National Novel Writing Month, i.e. “NaNoWriMo,” and the Public Library of Mount Vernon and Knox County has big plans for 2022. 

NaNoWriMo challenges aspiring authors to knuckle down and write 1,883 words each day in November, with an end goal of completing a 50,000-word draft of a novel by month’s end. 

Now in its 23rd year, NaNoWriMo boasts numerous bestsellers and emerging authors who started out with merely a dream and the dedication to write daily. The Library invites local writers to accept the challenge.

Sign-up for NaNoWrio is open now at www.nanowrimo.org. NaNoWriMo also offers a Young Writers Program for aspiring authors under the age of 18: ywp.nanowrimo.org. NaNoWriMo has long been a way for new authors and novices to launch a book-length project, and anyone who signs up for NaNoWriMo is welcome to attend the Library’s #KnoxWrites National Novel Writing Month events. 

There are two NaNoWriMo Kickoff events on Tuesday, Nov. 1. Paragraphs Bookstore hosts the first official #KnoxWrites NaNoWriMo Kickoff from noon-1 p.m. at 229 S. Main St., Mount Vernon. From 5-6 p.m., writers are invited to the Solarium at the Public Library of Mount Vernon and Knox County’s Main Library, 201 N. Mulberry St., Mount Vernon. Writers may stop by either kickoff event to register for NaNoWriMo, meet other writers, and pick up a swag bag to fortify themselves for the month of writing ahead. 

The library will also offer weekly Write On meetings during the month of November. Each meeting, writers will discuss projects, participate in writing prompts, and receive a weekly “perseverance prize.” Meetings are scheduled as follows: 

• Tuesday, Nov. 1, 6:30-7:30 p.m. Public Library of Mount Vernon and Knox County, 201 N. Mulberry St., Mount Vernon.

• Monday, Nov. 7, 4:30-5:30 p.m. Happy Bean, 221 S. Main St., Mount Vernon features special guest James Borders, a poet from Centerburg. Borders will read some poems from his new chapbook, “Resurrecting Onions,” and discuss his journey as a published writer. 

• Wednesday, Nov. 16, 5:30-6:30 p.m. Kenyon College Bookstore, 106 Gaskin Ave., Gambier. 

• Tuesday, Nov. 22, 6-7 p.m., via Zoom. Register at https://bit.ly/3Cj7ZSj.

To mark the end of National Novel Writing Month, the library invites the public to a reading of #KnoxWrites novelists’ new work. The NaNoWriMo closing celebration will be held on Wednesday, Nov. 30, from 6:30-7:30 p.m. at Veterans Hall, Knox Memorial Building, 112 E. High St., Mount Vernon. Writers will share excerpts from work-in-progress, celebrate their successes, and enjoy light refreshments. As with all Library events, these programs are free and open to the public. Reservations are encouraged, but not required. 

For more information about how to participate in the Library’s #KnoxWrites National Novel Writing Month, visit www.knox.net, email knoxwrites1@gmail.com, or call 740-392-2665, Ext. 259.