National Novel Writing Month – You’ve Begun! How Do You Keep Going?
Fourteen-time NaNoWriMo winner Nita Sweeney presents motivation in your National Novel Writing Month journey.
Congratulations! You’ve taken the large step of signing up for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) and also you’re within the throes of writing your novel. But what occurs if (when?) the exuberant exhilaration wears off? How do you retain going?
Don’t panic! Whether it’s your first Nano or your fifteenth, time-examined strategies will enable you to hold going as soon as that preliminary pleasure wanes.
For the uninitiated, National Novel Writing Month is an annual problem wherein writers everywhere in the world try to write down 50,000 phrases of fiction (1,667 phrases a day) through the 30 days of November. Other writers (like me) aka “rebels,” write in different genres, revise, or add to current works.
Regardless of which problem you have got chosen, the next ideas will help you retain up your momentum and cross that end line sturdy.
Candy Bar Scenes
Coined by writer and writing trainer Holly Lisle, the time period “candy bar scene” refers to any scene you might be keen to write down. Writing such a scene is a reward. You get phrases down and also you take pleasure in it.
If you’re feeling caught, take a couple of minutes to make an inventory of scenes you already know should occur within the story. Bonus factors if these scenes excite you and make you keen to write down, i.e. sweet bar scenes. Don’t fear if any of those scenes happen late within the e-book and even at what you imagine to be the tip of the story. Don’t fear about writing out of order. Especially should you use writing software program like Scrivener or yWriter, however even with phrase, you’ll be able to lower and paste or drag and drop scenes into the proper order later. Organization is what December is for!
Make the record. Then, everytime you really feel blocked, seize a kind of scenes and dive in. Often we’re solely combating inertia. Use one in every of these “delicious” scenes to entice you again into the work.
Community for NaNoWriMo Motivation
I’m scripting this through the pandemic. For issues of safety, NaNoWriMo can’t enable in-particular person occasions this 12 months. In the earlier than occasions (and hopefully within the very quickly after occasions), write-ins allowed wrimos (folks taking part in NaNoWriMo) to collect and write aspect-by-aspect in small teams. The pandemic prevents that enjoyable, however it will probably’t hold us from gathering on-line!
Be positive to affix your native area. Municipal Liaisons (regional leaders) and different wrimos host actions on Discord and Zoom or different chat rooms and video conferencing platforms. Word wars and phrase sprints or simply camaraderie to write down collectively will enable you to meet your day by day objective.
The NaNoWriMo boards can also enable you to get the work carried out. Stumped together with your plot? Go to the borrow a plot thread. Trouble naming your character? Let another person identify her for you. Don’t know what the identify of that thingie your villian makes use of to kill folks? Head to the specialists discussion board. Someone there absolutely is aware of.
A phrase of warning, nevertheless. Time you spend in any of those communities takes away from the time it’s a must to write. Beware of time sucks and rabbit holes. Perhaps set a timer to restrict how lengthy you spend scrolling by the fascinating discussion board threads. You have phrases to write down!
Writing Fuel
I hope you’re already effectively stocked with writing “fuel” (books and snacks). Chocolate and meditation books are my favorites proper now and I additionally want espresso and tea. But we additionally have to eat wholesome meals. Remember to eat a vegetable as soon as in awhile and a few protein too.
Friends and household will help right here. If they need to assist your efforts, invite them to carry you snacks! Promise them you’ll assist with the dishes . . . in December. Boundaries are your mates in November (and all the time).
Maintaining Your Writing “Machine”
In addition to consuming a couple of vitamin-wealthy meals (or taking some vitamin tablets) throughout November, don’t miss out on different methods of preserving your writing “machine” in high form. By “machine” I imply your physique.
If you train usually, do your finest to maintain that up. Exercise advantages temper and thoughts well being and nice character arc concepts would possibly pop into your head while you’re out jogging with the pupperina.
If you don’t have a health routine, add a stroll across the block or a stretching session between writing bursts. Who is aware of! The behavior would possibly stick past November.
Your feelings can use a power session too. Five minutes of meditation or a ten-minute writing apply session can refresh you through the month. No have to complicate it. The easiest factor can have an ideal profit.
Structure is Your Friend
Those write-ins I discussed? That’s a construction. A ten-minute timer, one other construction. Word sprints and phrase wars, one more option to construction your time and get the phrases down.
Make It Your Own
Some folks write finest very first thing within the morning. Others are night time owls. Another group likes to sneak in a writing session on a lunch break. And you’ll discover nonetheless one other bunch writing of their vehicles within the parking zone whereas ready for his or her children to get out of college.
Find the time and the place and the mode that works finest for you. Make no apologies. Part of the lure of NaNoWriMo is experimentation. It’s a secure area to determine your finest writing practices. Lean into these, and don’t let anybody dissuade you.
Share Your Tips
I’ve supplied a few of my finest motivation ideas. I’d love to listen to yours. Comment right here or buddy me on the web site. I’m willwrite4chocolate. And try my different NaNoWriMo weblog posts. I’ll see you across the boards!
