On Halloween many students will drink long past midnight, but others will put pen to paper at the strike of midnight.

Nov. 1 kicks off National Novel Writing Month, NaNoWriMo, 30 days of trials and tribulations for fiction writers across the country. The goal is to write a 50,000-word novel in 30 days, which averages about 1,667 words a day.

NaNoWriMo was started by a group of writer friends in 1999 but expanded nationwide in an effort to encourage people to write the novel they’ve always wanted to write.

Lexington is home to active writing groups that host write-ins (think lock-ins for people with laptops) and meet-ups in coffee shops and bookstores all over the city.

November is a great time to hunker down and write your novel, whether it be fiction, non-fiction, a mystery or a romance. Curling up with a latte or hot chocolate, your laptop and a comfy sweater will give you something to do as the weather cools down.

The first drafts of popular books like Sara Gruen’s “Water for Elephants,” and Erin Morgenstern’s “The Night Circus,” were written over the course of 30 days.

Sometimes NaNoWriMo feels like “30 Days of Night” when writing, but diving into a story and developing characters is rewarding even if one doesn’t hit 50,000 words. It gives people a chance to write down their thoughts, feelings and lets daydreaming and creativity run wild across the page.

Ever wanted to write a story? This is your chance. Finding people to hold you accountable is easy if you get involved in the Lexington NaNoWriMo community.

If you do participate, make things easier on yourself by getting rid of contractions and describe at length every single detail.

Regardless of your major, attempting the epic journey of writing a novel is worth the added stress on top of classes. Happy Noveling!

Sarah Brookbank is the features editor of the Kentucky Kernel.

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