Join the St. Louis Writers Guild from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday, November 5, for a free in-person workshop, “Gateway to NaNoWriMo” at The Lodge Des Peres, 1050 Des Peres Rd., St. Louis, MO, 63131.

“National Novel Writing Month began in 1999 as a daunting but straightforward challenge: to write 50,000 words of a novel in thirty days. Now, each year on November 1, people around the world begin to write, determined to end the month with 50,000 words of a brand-new novel. NaNoWriMo programs support writing fluency and education. The website hosts more than a million writers, serving as a social network for authors. Hosted authors drafted novels like Water for Elephants, WOOL, and Fangirl during NaNoWriMo. Its teaching tool and curriculum is taught in 5,920 classrooms. NaNoWriMo’s programs run year-round.” Join current SLWG meeting” button at the top of the St. Louis Writers Guild’s Events page (https://www.stlwritersguild.org/events).

Our panel will discuss the practical ins-and-outs of a focused writing marathon like NaNoWriMo, such as the dangers and pitfalls as well as the sense of accomplishment that comes from completing such a project. Bring your questions and own experiences for discussion. Following the panel, we will break up into small groups for Genre Talk, a chance to discuss your work-in-progress or brainstorm with colleagues. Look for your genre’s table signage: “Romance,” “Mystery/Thriller,” “Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror,” “Creative Nonfiction/Memoir/Journalism,” and “Children/Middle Grade/Young Adult.” Or feel free to tablehop!