NaNo

NaNo is here! This is the first time I’ve participated in National Novel Writing Month. I joined my region, added some buddies, thought about what to work on….

Day 1 I sat down at my desk early in the morning, eager to get some words in before going to my mom’s for lunch.

I love when I’m really in a character’s head and s/he says something I hadn’t thought of. Even if that changes the direction of the story.

More difficult than I thought Day 1 would be…I expected it to be a mind dump, where I’d spill all of my thoughts onto the page and get a lot of words right off the bat.

Day 2 Better. I want to write more than the 1,667 needed to meet the 50,000 word count goal and “win,” to stay ahead in case there’s a day I’m so busy I don’t want to write.

Day 3 Like pulling teeth. It took much too long to get the words down, and they were only coming in dribs and drabs. I have other work I need to do.

Day 4 Better flow. I’m happy with some of the scenes I’ve come up with, and am trying not to worry about the execution right now.

I seem to be focusing on plot and the fantasy element. I can add more romance after November, but I think having both at the same time helps me come up with ideas. When you have a multi-subgenre project like this one, it’s hard to know what balance will interest readers more.

In other writing news, I really want to be a hybrid author. For decades I’ve dreamed of getting “the call” from a traditional publisher who loves my work and wants to work with me. To that end, and because a successful author friend thinks my sales numbers thus far might be of interest to an agent, I queried a few with my new series…and already got a request from someone I’d love to have. So, yay to that. But, she’s read other projects over the years and passed, and I’ve heard this can be a tough subgenre, so less yay.

Day 5 Have a lot of other work to do, including an audition and some promo for my self-published books. Wrote a few words this morning. May have to finish word count tonight, which I’d rather not do….

I’m participating in National Novel Writing Month, aka NaNoWriMo, aka NaNo, which starts
November first, for the first time. The goal is to write 50,000 words in a month. Here’s what I’ve done to prepare and what I recommend.

1) Cleared some tasks due in November off my plate, such as a writing column, to free up more time and brain space/energy to write.
2) Limited extraneous activities, while still making room for some social activities. I think some down time helps refill the well and lets the subconscious generate more ideas.
3) Chose the project to work on and did a bit of preparation, such as jotting down thoughts.
However, I’m sorry to say I’m still waffling on this. I wanted to write the second book in my new series. But I keep wondering if I should choose a more popular romance subgenre or another project I’ve been wanting to work on.
4) Plan to write with a friend or go to a few write-ins, where participants gather at a coffee shop or other location to help each other stay on task and feel less isolated.
5) Told family/friends I’m doing this and that it’s important to me. I still have a few more people to tell.
6) Signed up online to keep track of my word count and put it out there publicly that I want to do this. They say goals should be written down and shared…. And there’s a lot of helpful information and encouragement on the NaNo site.
7) Put writing appointments on my calendar, especially mornings because I’m a morning person, so I can reach the 1,667 word count early in the day and even get ahead if I make more time to write later in the day. This approach should help in case I have to miss an entire day or two because of paying commitments.
8) Decided to bring my laptop or use the handy stylus on my phone when I’m on the bus so I can get in more words and time.
9) Joined a Word War, in which groups compete to complete the most words. To some this may add a layer of pressure, but I think it adds motivation. I don’t want to let my group down.
10) Believe I can do it.

Something I learned that surprised me: While there are very successful books written/begun during NaNo, the vast majority of participants and winners (those who complete the 50K in time), never even finish their projects. I mistakenly assumed that most people did NaNo to get a head start on something they wanted to complete and sell, rather than participate (and succeed) several years, but not finish any of the books.

What’s your best NaNo prep tip?

NaNo day by day…or how I’m writing my next book

10 Tips to prepare for NaNo!