It's been a while since I've visited the topic of writers and their quirks. Today, I'm here to talk about a writer's need for a challenge. Challenges are what help a writer to grow, to learn more about writing, and become a better writer in general.
Such challenges as NaNoWriMo (www.nanowrimo.org) and Screnzy (www.scriptfrenzy.org) are wonderful examples. People all over the world flock to both month-long events to take on a crazy and seemingly impossible task.
For NaNoWriMo, more properly known as National Novel Writing Month, participants are challenged to write a novel of at least 50,000 words...in only thirty days. Try jumping into that with no forethough, no planning, just a handful of incomplete characters and a vague idea for a situation. Forcing yourself to leave perfectionism behind, you learn how to battle writer's block, pacify the inner editor, make your characters more real, your plots more engaging and intense. If you're lucky, the novel starts writing itself, with the characters refusing to coperate. That's your subconscious telling you that a greater story lies in a different direction.
And Script Frenzy poses a similar challenge. Write a script, of any kind, of 100 pages...in thirty days. For those who want to be scriptwriters, this is the perfect way to get some practice.
There are many other crazy challenges out there, and each one helps a writer improve and develop his or her own style. Whether they'll admit it or not, writers need challenges.
But is it just writers? What about the rest of the world? People face crazy challenges every day of their own free will. Photographers lears to use their other senses in getting the perfect picture through blind photography. Mathematicians tackle seemingly unsolvable problems with the same amount of enthusiasm. Heck, people climb mountains just to prove to themselves that they can, and come away with a deeper understanding of themselves.
Challenges are what help us to improve ourselves. They help us identify our own flaws and help us perfect skills. We take something from each and every challenge we face, whether it be physical, mental, or spiritual.
As a whole, humanity has an underlying and subconscious need to be challenged.
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
