Today is the very last day of NaNoWriMo 2014, and I'm very pleased to say that I finished my 50,000 words.
If you haven't yet finished, please know that if you're within about 10,000 words, I personally know that it's completely do-able as long as you can carve out several hours of focused writing time today. Take 10 minutes to write a quick list of scenes you want to run through, and then start to write. Write in sprints or in longer sessions depending on what works for you. Put some inspiring music on. Force yourself to describe as much as possible using as many of the senses as possible.
Give yourself permission to suck extra hard today. Stop using contractions, refer to characters by their full names, get very lyrical, explore tangents of inner dialogue that lead nowhere (but really, might spark something genius for your next draft).
Most importantly, keep writing. Do not stop, even if you think what you're writing is ridiculous. Keep going today until you hit that magic, magic number.
And once you get there.....
CONGRATULATIONS!
You've written a story! A long-ish story! I hope that you're incredibly proud of that achievement. I hope you ride high on the adrenaline of it for at least a full hour, and that once that initial high has worn off, you get a little jolt of it again every time you think of your NaNoWriMo success over the next several weeks.
You have written a story, and that is no small feat. So many people say that they want to write, that they have this great idea for the Great (Insert Nationality Here) Novel, but so few actually sit down to write.
You've not only written, but you've written a lot.
Make sure that you validate on the NaNoWriMo website so that you can collect your winner goodies (web banners and badges, and some special sponsor offers starting in December). Make sure you tell everyone who knows you were Nano-ing this year that you were successful! Toot your horn! Celebrate!
If this was just a whim, a fun thing to challenge yourself with in November, then I salute you. Well done! I hope you'll come back next year to write again!
If this was a sign that you'd like to write more often, stick with me. Because I bet you're thinking - what next? I'm going to be editing my NaNoWriMo story over the next few months, and I'll post about doing that here. I'm also going to be outlining my next project - which I believe will be a kind of snarky/sassy New Adult Fantasy story that's been percolating for a while.
Come back each week for tips and tricks, strategies and commiseration! And please, if there's anything you'd like me to post about in particular, post a comment about it!
Sunday, November 30, 2014
Monday, November 24, 2014
Nano: Stay the Course
We're coming up on the final week of Nanowrimo. Today's word count average is 40008 words. Traditionally, the last 10K are considered a downward slide to your win, so if you're on track, the next week should be glorious!
How do you stay motivated, especially if you're behind?
You remember you want to keep writing because you are committed.
You want to keep writing because you want to finish.
You are going to keep writing because everyone you told about Nanowrimo expects you to finish!
For me, it's knowing that I've already come this far. There's no way, after putting in all the effort I have already put in this month that I'm *not* finishing.
So stay the course. Stick with it. Fit in those extra writing sessions if you need them to catch up. Add in a crazy twist in those last 5K if you need something to give you a few extra thousand words.
We're nearly there, folks, nearly time to celebrate our first drafts!
How do you stay motivated, especially if you're behind?
You remember you want to keep writing because you are committed.
You want to keep writing because you want to finish.
You are going to keep writing because everyone you told about Nanowrimo expects you to finish!
For me, it's knowing that I've already come this far. There's no way, after putting in all the effort I have already put in this month that I'm *not* finishing.
So stay the course. Stick with it. Fit in those extra writing sessions if you need them to catch up. Add in a crazy twist in those last 5K if you need something to give you a few extra thousand words.
We're nearly there, folks, nearly time to celebrate our first drafts!
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Nano 2014: Status Update
It has been a heck of a ride for me so far!
I planned on being very active in my local Nano community - getting out to events, writing like the wind, generally having a fantastic, social month!
Instead?
My house became the PLAGUE HOUSE!
Between pinkeye and the flu, I've missed out on every event since the Kick-Off. My writing is still on par - I'm sitting at 33,383 words at the writing of this blog post. I'm not in love with my story anymore, but I can see some potential in the bits and pieces. The romance is not really happening at all. It's becoming apparent that as much I like to read it, I may not be so hot at writing it.
I've also rediscovered my love of editing, not because I've been editing my own stuff but because I've had an opportunity to read another Nano writer's work. Now I'm thinking quite seriously about selling my editorial services in the new year (or at least trying to).
The Nano novel!
I think I have enough 'business' to keep it chugging through to 50K. I'm resisting pulling out my urban fantasy twist because that material is completely not use-able in drafts moving past this one. But in a pinch... it's there to help with word count!
How is your Nanowrimo journey going so far? Are you having a lot of success? Finding something harder than you expected? Learning anything new? Post to the comments to share!
I planned on being very active in my local Nano community - getting out to events, writing like the wind, generally having a fantastic, social month!
Instead?
My house became the PLAGUE HOUSE!
Between pinkeye and the flu, I've missed out on every event since the Kick-Off. My writing is still on par - I'm sitting at 33,383 words at the writing of this blog post. I'm not in love with my story anymore, but I can see some potential in the bits and pieces. The romance is not really happening at all. It's becoming apparent that as much I like to read it, I may not be so hot at writing it.
I've also rediscovered my love of editing, not because I've been editing my own stuff but because I've had an opportunity to read another Nano writer's work. Now I'm thinking quite seriously about selling my editorial services in the new year (or at least trying to).
The Nano novel!
I think I have enough 'business' to keep it chugging through to 50K. I'm resisting pulling out my urban fantasy twist because that material is completely not use-able in drafts moving past this one. But in a pinch... it's there to help with word count!
How is your Nanowrimo journey going so far? Are you having a lot of success? Finding something harder than you expected? Learning anything new? Post to the comments to share!
Monday, November 17, 2014
Nano: Roadblocks
The hardest slog in Nanowrimo, for me, is the 25K to 30K point. When I've reached halfway, I chronically have a day or two where I cannot write, and I'm thrown entirely off.
Also at this point, the story that I've come up with is starting to feel stale. I'm not sure where to go next.
Now is the time to pull out some tools for dealing with roadblocks. There are three types of tools, in my book. There's tools that help you avoid roadblocks entirely, and there are those that let you bust through them when you come up against them, and then there's more general strategies for shaking things up and keeping those words flowing.
Type 1:
CONFLICT: Conflict is your friend. Every time your main characters (MCs) are at odds with other characters, with each other, with the environment and so on, there is something for you to write about. It so much easier to write when you are writing an active section than a passive, reflective one. Plus, it's more interesting to read as well. Now is a time to think about what you want your MC to be striving for, what can OPPOSE success, and then write that. Go write it. Right now. And use that as your scene goal as well - what does my MC want to achieve now? What opposes that?
CHEAT SHEET: Remember that cheat sheet I had you make before the month started? If you use it as a general guide for the flow of your novel - grabbing ideas off of it when you realize you're coming up on a slow spot in your draft - then you might be able to avoid roadblocks completely
MOTIVATION: Remember why you're writing - you want all the glory of finishing that 50K draft before the end of the month. You want to feel that sense of accomplishment. You want to get that first draft finished this month so you have something to edit in December. You want a handy excuse avoid doing chores. Whatever the case, remind yourself often of why you're doing Nano, and motivate yourself to keep going!
Type 2:
Also at this point, the story that I've come up with is starting to feel stale. I'm not sure where to go next.
Now is the time to pull out some tools for dealing with roadblocks. There are three types of tools, in my book. There's tools that help you avoid roadblocks entirely, and there are those that let you bust through them when you come up against them, and then there's more general strategies for shaking things up and keeping those words flowing.
Type 1:
CONFLICT: Conflict is your friend. Every time your main characters (MCs) are at odds with other characters, with each other, with the environment and so on, there is something for you to write about. It so much easier to write when you are writing an active section than a passive, reflective one. Plus, it's more interesting to read as well. Now is a time to think about what you want your MC to be striving for, what can OPPOSE success, and then write that. Go write it. Right now. And use that as your scene goal as well - what does my MC want to achieve now? What opposes that?
CHEAT SHEET: Remember that cheat sheet I had you make before the month started? If you use it as a general guide for the flow of your novel - grabbing ideas off of it when you realize you're coming up on a slow spot in your draft - then you might be able to avoid roadblocks completely
MOTIVATION: Remember why you're writing - you want all the glory of finishing that 50K draft before the end of the month. You want to feel that sense of accomplishment. You want to get that first draft finished this month so you have something to edit in December. You want a handy excuse avoid doing chores. Whatever the case, remind yourself often of why you're doing Nano, and motivate yourself to keep going!
Type 2:
CHEAT SHEET: That cheat sheet that can help steer you around roadblocks can also help you crush them. When you write yourself into a corner and aren't sure how to get out of it, refer to your cheat sheet for a brilliant idea. Figure out how to write from where you are to the next scene on your sheet that you're eager to include. Use some of those words or sentences that inspired you before the month started to solve what seem like unsolvable problems.
TIME TRAVEL: Sometimes when you've written yourself into a corner, you get fixated on not knowing how on earth your MCs can possibly get themselves out of the dungeon of doom. You know what? Don't sweat it. Leave the scene open, skip ahead to the next scene that you're sure of - maybe your MCs have to visit the hospital, or go for a picnic or fight their way up from the dungeon to the evil emperor's throne room. Don't sweat the details of how they free themselves, and instead skip ahead to writing what happens once they are free.
PERSPECTIVE SHIFT: Find yourself not sure what happens next to Mary Jane? Is she boring you and now you don't really want to write? Or worse, you've written her into an impossible situation and you don't know what she should decide next? No problem! Skip to Peter's perspective and worry about what's happening with him. By the time you come back to Mary Sue - you can decide whether to pick up where you left off, or time jump forward with her dealing with the repercussions of that moment you couldn't figure out how to write earlier!
Type 3:
CHANGE HOW YOU WRITE: If you've been exclusively using a computer, try to write your next scene with pen and paper. If you always write at night, try to sneak in ten minutes in the morning. Always have music blasting? Turn it off and go silent.
NEW ENVIRONMENT: Go mobile. Write on a bus, at a coffee shop, in the mall's food court, at a library, a restaurant, in a park, in the back of your car, in your bedroom, at the kitchen table. Change your environment and see if that shakes a few words loose.
MUSIC: Lots of authors swear by music to set the mood, so take ten minutes and put together a quick playlist. I favour music that's upbeat and gets my blood pumping (so grabbing a recommended playlist for exercise works well for me). Some people prefer classical music or something without lyrics to distract them. Try it out, see if you can get inspired this way too!
How do you like to bust through roadblocks? Drop your suggestions in the comments!
TIME TRAVEL: Sometimes when you've written yourself into a corner, you get fixated on not knowing how on earth your MCs can possibly get themselves out of the dungeon of doom. You know what? Don't sweat it. Leave the scene open, skip ahead to the next scene that you're sure of - maybe your MCs have to visit the hospital, or go for a picnic or fight their way up from the dungeon to the evil emperor's throne room. Don't sweat the details of how they free themselves, and instead skip ahead to writing what happens once they are free.
PERSPECTIVE SHIFT: Find yourself not sure what happens next to Mary Jane? Is she boring you and now you don't really want to write? Or worse, you've written her into an impossible situation and you don't know what she should decide next? No problem! Skip to Peter's perspective and worry about what's happening with him. By the time you come back to Mary Sue - you can decide whether to pick up where you left off, or time jump forward with her dealing with the repercussions of that moment you couldn't figure out how to write earlier!
Type 3:
CHANGE HOW YOU WRITE: If you've been exclusively using a computer, try to write your next scene with pen and paper. If you always write at night, try to sneak in ten minutes in the morning. Always have music blasting? Turn it off and go silent.
NEW ENVIRONMENT: Go mobile. Write on a bus, at a coffee shop, in the mall's food court, at a library, a restaurant, in a park, in the back of your car, in your bedroom, at the kitchen table. Change your environment and see if that shakes a few words loose.
MUSIC: Lots of authors swear by music to set the mood, so take ten minutes and put together a quick playlist. I favour music that's upbeat and gets my blood pumping (so grabbing a recommended playlist for exercise works well for me). Some people prefer classical music or something without lyrics to distract them. Try it out, see if you can get inspired this way too!
How do you like to bust through roadblocks? Drop your suggestions in the comments!
Saturday, November 8, 2014
Nano: Weekends
We're all up in weekend number two of Nanowrimo 2014 and it's time to talk about what weekends are good for: catching up and getting ahead!
Most* people work weekdays and have weekends off, which means more free time. Free time to dedicate to writing, of course!
Try to get in twice as many words as you normally plan to. If you can, sit down for a big chunk of time and write as much as you can then. Find fifteen minutes here and there through out the day to throw down some words. Experiment with different strategies to get your butt parked in a chair writing until you find the one that works best for you.
Also use your weekend to prepare for the week ahead:
Your mission this weekend is to get in as many words as you can. Don't burn yourself out - don't force yourself to sit and write 10K days unless you enjoy that sort of thing. But don't let yourself off easy either. Get your 1667 done and then stretch yourself to hit 2K. If you're behind by a few thousand words, commit to catching up this weekend. Or if you can't do that much extra writing now - figure out when you can do it. Maybe you need to sneak in two or three extra writing sessions in the next week. Maybe you need to up your daily minimum word count (don't increase it too much because that will make writing extra daunting. I really recommend planning to do an extra writing sessions or two or three or however many it takes because you'll feel a sense of accomplishment about knocking those off rather than having to slog through more words as part of your normal writing schedule.)
* I realize that there's many people who work weekends - particularly in retail, obviously, and in service industries, as well as anyone who has a home business, and parents are still responsible for children and so on.
Most* people work weekdays and have weekends off, which means more free time. Free time to dedicate to writing, of course!
Try to get in twice as many words as you normally plan to. If you can, sit down for a big chunk of time and write as much as you can then. Find fifteen minutes here and there through out the day to throw down some words. Experiment with different strategies to get your butt parked in a chair writing until you find the one that works best for you.
Also use your weekend to prepare for the week ahead:
- If you haven't already, sketch out a quick list of scenes you might like to write this week.
- Set a word goal to hit by the end of the week.
- Figure out meals and such for the week ahead - cutting down on prep time, even if it's just figuring out what you're going to eat - will give you more time to write!
- Set a timer for twenty minutes and do as many of your weekly chores as possible. Rinse and repeat until you've burned through them and can reward yourself with a writing session.
- Look at the past week and figure out what days were the hardest for you to write during, and what you can do to avoid those blocks in the week ahead.
- Pat yourself on the back for making it through your first week and revel in your commitment to *keep going*
Your mission this weekend is to get in as many words as you can. Don't burn yourself out - don't force yourself to sit and write 10K days unless you enjoy that sort of thing. But don't let yourself off easy either. Get your 1667 done and then stretch yourself to hit 2K. If you're behind by a few thousand words, commit to catching up this weekend. Or if you can't do that much extra writing now - figure out when you can do it. Maybe you need to sneak in two or three extra writing sessions in the next week. Maybe you need to up your daily minimum word count (don't increase it too much because that will make writing extra daunting. I really recommend planning to do an extra writing sessions or two or three or however many it takes because you'll feel a sense of accomplishment about knocking those off rather than having to slog through more words as part of your normal writing schedule.)
* I realize that there's many people who work weekends - particularly in retail, obviously, and in service industries, as well as anyone who has a home business, and parents are still responsible for children and so on.
Tuesday, November 4, 2014
Nano: Tips and Tricks: Word Count
I have few favourite games to play with word count to keep me pounding the keys when I would otherwise give up.
First, try a word war alone or with a friend (or with strangers, there's word war threads in the Nanowrimo forums!)
Set a timer for 5, 10, 15 minutes and then go go go. Do not stop writing for that entire period of time, no matter how much you want to, or how ridiculous your story is getting. Keep going.
Then, do it again, and try to beat your first total!
Other than word wars, there are few tricks I play on myself to get my word count up there.
I try to set a goal for the day - usually 1667, but trying whenever possible to stretch past that to an even number - so instead of 8335 on day five, I might aim for 8500. More words is always better!
In addition, when I sit down to write, I'll start with a length of time - something short, because I can write in sprints, but if I tell myself to write for an hour, my attention wanders. So, let's say... I'll write for 7 minutes. And then I look at my word count and I decide to write until I round up to the nearest 50 or 100 words. And then I'll look at my total words written for the day, and try to round that up to the nearest 50 or 100.
And then I'll do another 7 minutes of writing, or I'll play back and forth at stretching to my next round number for total words written or total for the day, until I'm satisfied with my word count and can set Nano down for the day!
Another popular word count booster is to find someone in your region, on your buddy list or in the forums in general who has a slightly higher word count than you, and race to beat that word count. This works best if they're also writing when you are (so with a friend, or someone posting actively in, e.g., the word war forum) as their word count will keep increasing and you'll 'have' to write to keep up.
Word Wars
First, try a word war alone or with a friend (or with strangers, there's word war threads in the Nanowrimo forums!)
Set a timer for 5, 10, 15 minutes and then go go go. Do not stop writing for that entire period of time, no matter how much you want to, or how ridiculous your story is getting. Keep going.
Then, do it again, and try to beat your first total!
Other than word wars, there are few tricks I play on myself to get my word count up there.
Word Count Games
I try to set a goal for the day - usually 1667, but trying whenever possible to stretch past that to an even number - so instead of 8335 on day five, I might aim for 8500. More words is always better!
In addition, when I sit down to write, I'll start with a length of time - something short, because I can write in sprints, but if I tell myself to write for an hour, my attention wanders. So, let's say... I'll write for 7 minutes. And then I look at my word count and I decide to write until I round up to the nearest 50 or 100 words. And then I'll look at my total words written for the day, and try to round that up to the nearest 50 or 100.
And then I'll do another 7 minutes of writing, or I'll play back and forth at stretching to my next round number for total words written or total for the day, until I'm satisfied with my word count and can set Nano down for the day!
Beat a Buddy (in Word Count, This is Not Whack-a-Mole!)
Another popular word count booster is to find someone in your region, on your buddy list or in the forums in general who has a slightly higher word count than you, and race to beat that word count. This works best if they're also writing when you are (so with a friend, or someone posting actively in, e.g., the word war forum) as their word count will keep increasing and you'll 'have' to write to keep up.
Sunday, November 2, 2014
Nano 2014: And so we write...
This being the first weekend of Nanowrimo, it's probably going to be the easiest. Unless you've got lots of plans and no time to write, this weekend you should be filled with the joy of Nanowrimo. Your story idea is fresh and exciting, you're filled with wonder at knowing you're sitting down to write when so many other novelists are sitting down to write, and you've got nothing but wide open possibilities ahead of you.
Now, you may be the sort to be intimidated by that blank page.
Here's my first tip for you:
1. Do not be intimidated.
Ha, you say. If it were that simple, I wouldn't be struggling to start in the first place!
Okay, you're not wrong, of course. The blank page can be scary. Figuring out what your first words should be just might be your first big challenge of the month. Here's the thing: even though the first sentence or page of a published novel might make or break that novel - it will NOT make or break your Nanowrimo novel. And here is why: This draft is for you. 100% from start to finish all about you taking your idea and your characters and your setting out for a spin and seeing what comes of it.
REVEL IN YOUR OWN IMAGINATION!
Let yourself run wild. Put down anything. Start with "Hello!" Start with something utterly mundane. Borrow from a famous book - maybe your story *does* start with a dark and stormy night. Run with it. I promise that after November ends, you can come back and change those words. You may find your entire first thousand words are unnecessary and that the story really starts much later. Or heck, maybe it starts much earlier! But for now, let it start *somewhere.*
Tip two:
2. Capitalize on your enthusiasm.
Some people worry about burn out - they don't want to write too much for fear that they'll tap themselves out too early on. Many people point out that Nanowrimo is a marathon and not a sprint - and I absolutely agree with that sentiment. However! If you sit down to write and you are filled with the spirit of the thing - do not force yourself to stop writing at 1667 words (the daily word count if you spread the task evenly across all 30 days of the month). Write until you feel like stopping. Write until you're satisfied, until you're no longer feeling driven to keep going. Get those extra words in now, while they are easy and you feel good about them.
For many people, there is going to be a time this month when you no longer love your Nanowrimo novel. When the words start to dry up, you don't know what happens next, and worse, you no longer care what happens next. The only thing that will keep you going then is sheer determination to finish. Having the extra words then will put that little bit closer. It will buy you a few days of messing about with zero words written or with only a hundred or two words written, until you make it through your funk.
Finish day two of Nano today having written with great abandon. Now that all the people and places and plots that you've been preparing are materializing on the page, give yourself permission to play with them, to let them explore, to let them get themselves in and out of trouble - planned or not.
Enjoy this weekend, and write!
Now, you may be the sort to be intimidated by that blank page.
Here's my first tip for you:
1. Do not be intimidated.
Ha, you say. If it were that simple, I wouldn't be struggling to start in the first place!
Okay, you're not wrong, of course. The blank page can be scary. Figuring out what your first words should be just might be your first big challenge of the month. Here's the thing: even though the first sentence or page of a published novel might make or break that novel - it will NOT make or break your Nanowrimo novel. And here is why: This draft is for you. 100% from start to finish all about you taking your idea and your characters and your setting out for a spin and seeing what comes of it.
REVEL IN YOUR OWN IMAGINATION!
Let yourself run wild. Put down anything. Start with "Hello!" Start with something utterly mundane. Borrow from a famous book - maybe your story *does* start with a dark and stormy night. Run with it. I promise that after November ends, you can come back and change those words. You may find your entire first thousand words are unnecessary and that the story really starts much later. Or heck, maybe it starts much earlier! But for now, let it start *somewhere.*
Tip two:
2. Capitalize on your enthusiasm.
Some people worry about burn out - they don't want to write too much for fear that they'll tap themselves out too early on. Many people point out that Nanowrimo is a marathon and not a sprint - and I absolutely agree with that sentiment. However! If you sit down to write and you are filled with the spirit of the thing - do not force yourself to stop writing at 1667 words (the daily word count if you spread the task evenly across all 30 days of the month). Write until you feel like stopping. Write until you're satisfied, until you're no longer feeling driven to keep going. Get those extra words in now, while they are easy and you feel good about them.
For many people, there is going to be a time this month when you no longer love your Nanowrimo novel. When the words start to dry up, you don't know what happens next, and worse, you no longer care what happens next. The only thing that will keep you going then is sheer determination to finish. Having the extra words then will put that little bit closer. It will buy you a few days of messing about with zero words written or with only a hundred or two words written, until you make it through your funk.
Finish day two of Nano today having written with great abandon. Now that all the people and places and plots that you've been preparing are materializing on the page, give yourself permission to play with them, to let them explore, to let them get themselves in and out of trouble - planned or not.
Enjoy this weekend, and write!
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