I just earned my 5000-word badge! Wahoo! I'm still behind on my word count for National Novel Writing Month, but I'm thrilled to be participating!  Today I had a wonderful time writing with eleven other NaNo participants at a Southern California Write-In. It's lots of fun writing with others, but I was especially pleased when my daughter, Nikki, showed up to work on her novel.  The goal of NaNoWriMo is to write a 50,000-word novel in 30 days.  Last year I wrote my first book because of my participation!  I was thrilled!  I was also pleased to participate with my 8th-grade students from Thomas. A. Edison Middle School.  They all wrote between 10,000 and 50,000 words! It was a fabulous experience for us all. I encourage everyone who loves to write to engage in NaNO and all English teachers to inspire their students to join them! It's an incredible writing experience.