Roll call! Who’s doing NaNoWriMo?
“What’s NaNoWriMo?” you ask. Well! Let me tell you all about it. NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. It was started in 1999 by a guy named Chris Baty – which, basically means this celebration of creativity is older than most of you guys. Oh my . . .
If you’re curious about the history of NaNoWriMo, look up Chris Baty’s book, No Plot? No Problem. It’s a fantastic resource with lots of practical writing advice. Definitely recommend. But since we’re short-timing it now, let me just clue you in. NaNoWriMo is all about writing a novel in 30 days.Â
That’s 50k words during the month of November, the length of a very short novel (like To Kill a Mockingbird). If you write every single day for thirty days, that works out to about 1,667 words–definitely doable! So doable in fact that thousands of people sign up to participate in this feat every year. AND YOU CAN TOO!
It’s a totally free endeavor and a great motivator for getting words on the page.
And also, you can cheat. Don’t tell Chris I told you this, but you can absolutely sign up, get involved in the forums, read all the great advice they provide, and then use the month to meet whichever goal you set for yourself.
Chris’s original idea was to draft a brand new novel over the course of 30 days. It’s a noble goal to be sure, but sometimes our writing schedules don’t quite coincide.
For example, I’m already 12k words into my latest story idea and my goal for November will be to add 50k NEW words.
And since we’re about a week away from the kickoff on November 1st, I thought I’d share what I’m doing to get ready for National Novel Writing Month:
Sign Up!
This is the first thing you need to do if you’re planning to participate. Truth? The website can be a little glitchy, but once you’ve signed up, you’ll start getting all sorts of encouraging emails with writing tips from the team there, as well as from famous authors who’ve done the NaNoWriMo thing and gone on to publish novels.
Also, you can search out your writer friends and add them to your Buddy list. If you’d like to add me to your Buddy list, here’s my participant page.
The major benefit to signing up is the community aspect of the whole thing. There are forums and, in some regions, they even host Write Ins where you can meet up with other participants in public libraries or cafes and write together (please get permission from your parents before doing that, yes?).
Prepare, but only a bit
There is a wide spectrum of advice out there on this topic, so take mine for what it’s worth: the advice of a girl who’s won NaNoWriMo a few times and who sabotaged herself a few times as well. There’s no one way to get to the end, okay?
But for me, when I over-prepare I psych myself out and I tend to freeze up when it comes to actually writing. I end up worrying about all those things I was going to include instead of just letting my first thoughts take over. Over-preparing sucks the fun out of it for me. And this thing needs to start out being fun. Because it’s also work.
So, yes, do a little prep work. Give yourself direction and purpose and enough scribbled out ideas to work with, but don’t box yourself into a corner. Leave room for creative whimsy.
Here’s what I’d recommend thinking about before November 1st:
- Whose story are you telling? If you need some thoughts on fleshing out your protagonist, click here.
- What problem must be solved by story’s end? Thoughts on that topic here.
- How will your story start? A few thoughts for you.
- Are there scenes you know you want to write for this story? Make a list.
- Are there settings you want to create and include? Make a list.
- How will your story end? If you don’t know this, that’s perfectly fine. But if you have an inkling, jot it down somewhere. It’s nice to have a shiny goal to write toward, even if you won’t reach it in only 50k words.
- Do you know enough about this story to write a two to three paragraph summary? If you can flesh out an entire synopsis, that’s awesome. But, at the very least, put enough preparation into this project that you can write a short summary. It will get you thinking about story structure and what it will take to get to the end.
Publicly Commit
Maybe this sounds foolish or far too simple or just not necessary, but tell someone you’re going to write a novel in November. Tell several someones. Your immediate family is a very good choice. If you’re going to be shirking all your responsibilities just as the holidays are arriving, you need to loop them in. It’s only fair.
PLUS, it keeps you accountable.
On that subject, you may want to loop another writer pal into this thing with you. Pester the words out of each other, encourage one another when it gets tough, and brainstorm together when you hit a wall. Because, I promise, you will hit a wall. Thirty days is a long time.
Shout out your participation on social media. Give annoying updates. Check in here on Fridays, because I’ll will be updating you all on my progress, and will expect you to do the same. Definitely hit up the Go Teen Writers Community Facebook Group for encouragement and camaraderie. But somehow, someway, make sure people know what you’re doing. That way they’ll ask you about it. That way you’ll have to give an honest answer about whether or not you’ve done what you set out to do.
A quick, honest note: NaNoWriMo is not the end all and be all for writers. It’s not the only way to draft a book, but it is a great tool for getting words on the page, and for being an active part in the writing community. Some years you’ll hit 50k, and some years you’ll simply add a few thousand words to that manuscript you’ve been plugging away at. Either way, it’s definitely a recommended experience and, if you’ll challenge yourself, you just might pocket a few writing tools that will help you down the road.
I am! I’m right in the middle of the final act of a story, so I’m hoping to finish it before Nano and start with a fresh new idea, but if I can’t get it done before then I’ll just use my current WIP as my nano novel.
Good idea! Wishing you all the luck as you prepare.
Unfortunately I already finished my novel and am currently attempting to edit it, but the process is going so painfully slowly that I might just be tempted to abandon it for a month and come back when I’ve actually gotten some creative work done in NaNo. We’ll see.
Whatever you decide, friend, write on!
These are some really great tips. I totally get over planning sucking the fun out of starting a new draft. I experience the same thing. I have to strike a careful balance between over planning and under preparing.
Yes! Agreed! Balance is very important.
Yay! I finally decided that I will be doing NaNo this year (and announced it via social media in case I start having second thoughts), but I’m going to be a rebel this time around and write a novella. 🙂 School has been craaazy so far this year, so I’m hoping that with a smaller goal I’ll have a better chance of success.
Thanks for these tips! Those questions look perfect for balancing planning and “creative whimsy,” which is always one of my problems.
Totally one of my problems too, friend. Wishing you the absolute best as you work on your novella. That’s a fabulous goal to shoot for.
I’m in! Last year was way too crazy for me and my project fizzled out within the first two weeks, but this year I have high hopes. So excited to start!! 🙂
HOPE! It’s the best way to start.
Great prep advice! I’m doing NaNoWriMo as a rebel, since I have editing to do and short stories to write and do NOT have time to start a new novel.
Good job knowing your schedule and the season you’re in! Wishing you all the best as you rebel.
It’s my first year doing NaNo and I’m really excited. I’ll be starting a story I’ve worked on some in the past, but totally revamped with a much better plot line.
Score! Good luck, friend.
I am committed…for the first time ever. I’m scared to death and have a minimal plot. Prayers and support are appreciated, lol!
We’re all here for you! Write on!
This will be my 4th year doing NaNo and I finally roped someone into joining me! I am going to be starting the first draft of my newest project and am currently struggling to find that balance between being over and under prepped. Good luck to everyone participating!
Good job on the recruit!
Doing NaNoWriMo was probably the best writing decision I’ve made yet! I don’t think I would have ever finished a first draft without it lol
I won’t be participating this year, but I will be doing lots of editing and blogging 🙂
That’s a fantastic endorsement of NaNo! Wishing you luck with your own endeavors this year.
This will be my second year- last year I won! This year I am in college, however, so I will have to see. I’m Eldahir there, if anyone wants a buddy.
I applaud you, friend! It’s not easy with a new schedule, but I believe in you!
I’m in! https://nanowrimo.org/participants/jwilliamsonwrites
Yeah you are!
I’m in! I’m writing the prequel to the novel I wrote for Camp NaNoWriMo July 2017. I haven’t been able to prep for it as much as I’ve wanted to, but I’m going for it anyways!
I love it! You go, friend!
I’m in! Last year life got in the way and I never even got through 1 page, but this year I really want to get through it!
Hooray! Wishing you all the luck!
I’m definitely on board for NaNo this year. Instead of doing one big project though, I’m going to be working on three small ones. Am I excited? OH yes. And am I underprepared? More than ever. 🙂
This is going to be a great year. 🙂