Writing is often thought of as a solitary past time, and to some extent, this is true. We all sit down and put words on a page alone, and other people are at best a distraction while we’re attempting to string together a sentence. But many writers, myself included, could not get by without the support of a community. This is no more obvious than during the month of November.

November is the month known as National Novel Writing Month, or affectionately, NaNoWriMo. Each year writers endeavor to write something in thirty days, from fifty words to fifty thousand or more. And while the writing itself is the focus of the event, it also creates one of the biggest and most enthusiastic communities of writers on the whole web.

I get an enormous amount of help from my various writing communities and friends. Everything from encouragement to friendly challenges, suggestions to critiques, research tips to marketing advice. And it is so lovely to talk to other people about the joy and insanity that is writing, people other than the voices in my head (or as they are usually called, characters). I think I would still be writing without my community, because I can’t stop, but I would certainly not be finishing stories let alone publishing them without help.

To the people who support me on the NaNo forums, on HTTS Boot Camp, on Critique Circle and Mythic Scribes, and all my other friends, thank you.