NaNoWriMo – The Pitfalls and How to Deftly Avoid Them
By Lisa Cron | October 11, 2012 |
photo courtesy Flickr’s JenWaller
I remember years ago there was a flyer that seemed to be stapled to every telephone pole. It read: Lose 30 Pounds in 30 Days, and there was a phone number to call for info. It always made me think two things:
- A chainsaw must be involved.
- But geez, what if it really does work?
Now, logically I knew that without a chainsaw, there was no way anyone could lose 30 pounds in 30 days. But my gut (which, let’s face it, could have shed a few of those 30 pounds) was intrigued. What if it really was that easy? It was a seductive thought, and if I hadn’t been too lazy, I would have called that number. You know, just to see.
Which brings us to NaNoWriMo, a.k.a. National Novel Writing Month, that month being November, which has 30 days. We all know the tagline: “Write a novel in a month.”
If you’ve looked at anything related to NaNoWriMo, you know that the whole enterprise is so cheerful, upbeat, and full of positive encouragement that it seems like only a fool would pass up the opportunity to be a part of it. Perhaps that’s why this year 200,000 people are expected to attempt NaNoWriMo – a record high. And who could blame them, given that much of the writing community is jumping on the NaNoWriMo bandwagon in support. GalleyCat, one of the biggest blogs in the business, will be tweeting a tip a day for the month of November. Smashwords, the popular e-book company, will be producing a catalog of self-published NaNoWriMo books. It’s heralded as a celebration of the creative spirit, a powerhouse community of writers coming together to do what they love, a global festival of the written word.
After all, who wouldn’t want to believe that all it takes is the gumption to sit down and write 1,667 words a day for a month, and Voila, you’re a novelist? And that all the stuff we’ve heard about how hard, time-consuming and painful it can be to write a novel turns out to be untrue. Sign me up.
Somewhere deep down inside, though, most of us know the score. I mean, if all we had to do was unleash all our pent-up creativity and write 50,000 words, wouldn’t we all be successful novelists by now? The trouble is that when a seduction is in full swing, that little warning voice in our head never carries much weight. And, if past blog posts around the web are any indication, we vilify anyone who says anything negative about NaNoWriMo. Which is why writing this post is very scary. But if you can’t point out where the pitfalls of NaNoWriMo might lie, how can you find a way around them? Here are the top three:
1. Be Aware of the Danger of Writing 50,000 Unplanned Words. Unless you have an uncanny sense of story to begin with, your novel won’t build, and will most likely be a collection of haphazard events that don’t add up to anything. Which means that when you begin revising, you’ll need to make sure something seminal happens on, say, page two. And once it does, all the words that follow become largely irrelevant — which basically translates to a page one rewrite. Think of it as pretty much starting from scratch, pre-NaNoWriMo, except this time you won’t have the cheerleaders.
The fact that all first drafts tend to suck is not a license for unbridled self-expression, or for winging it from word one because this draft doesn’t really “count.” It does count, big time. Because from here on out, it’s the raw material you’ll be working with, straying from, reshaping, paring, parsing, and then lovingly polishing.
What you can do about it now: Start thinking about your story immediately. Don’t go into the good fight unprepared. Take some time and figure out what your protagonist’s driving desire is. What’s holding her back? What will she have to learn in order to solve the single, overarching story question you’ll pose? Remember: one question, one quest. Another thing that will help tremendously is having a sense of what your story will be about on a thematic level. What are you trying to say about human nature? What do you want people to walk away thinking about? In other words: what point will your story make?
2. Don’t Let Yourself Fall in Love with Your Words. When you put your heart and soul into pounding out 50,000 words, they can easily become your darlings, and darlings are insanely hard to uproot, especially when you’re staring into a field of them. To make it even trickier, when rewriting, our unconscious allegiance tends to be to what we’ve already written, rather than to the story itself. Thus new material is crafted first and foremost with an eye toward how it will fit into what’s already there. This only prolongs the heartbreak, and soon that little voice you’ve been suppressing since November 1st turns up the volume and tells you that you have no talent, and you might as well give up writing altogether. But here’s the thing: that voice is most likely wrong. It’s just that you never gave yourself a real chance.
What you can do about it now: Vow to withhold your love. Crank out your 50,000 words, revel in the habit of writing every day, have fun with the NaNoWriMo community, but don’t hold on tight to your words. Be ready to be ruthless once it’s time to begin revising. Be prepared to jettison the words that don’t work – even if you only end up keeping a handful of them.
3. Notice the eerie lack of support for the hard work of rewriting. I spent over 45 minutes on the NaNoWriMo site hunting for any advice about revising, rewriting, or even what the next steps might be on December 1st, but I found none. Zip, zilch, nada. There are no T-shirts you can buy on the NaNoWriMo website to celebrate revisions, no bumper stickers or mugs for writing a second or third or twenty-first draft, yet revision is precisely where 50,000 words becomes a real story.
What you can do about it now: Know in advance that while getting to 50,000 makes you a winner in NaNoWriMo’s universe, it’s only the start of the journey. Come up with a plan for how to proceed once you’ve typed your 50,000th word — keep the momentum going, and don’t stop. The writers who make it are those who embrace the rewriting process with zeal, no matter how long it takes. If your goal isn’t just to write 50,000 words, but to be published – that’s how you win for real.
That’s the prize I’m rooting for you to take home. And if you feel that my caveats about NaNoWriMo are hundred percent wrong – no worries. You might be absolutely right. Heck, sometimes I wish I’d called that number tacked to the telephone pole. Maybe there really is a way to lose 30 pounds in 30 days. I’d love to be wrong about that one, too!
Lisa Cron is the author of Wired for Story: The Writer’s Guide to Using Brain Science to Hook Readers From the Very First Sentence and Story Genius: How To Use Brain Science to Go Beyond Outlining and Write a Riveting Novel (Before You Waste 3 Years Writing 327 Pages That Go Nowhere). Her video tutorial, Writing Fundamentals: The Craft of Story, can be found at Lynda.com. Her TEDx talk, Wired for Story, opened Furman University’s 2014 TEDx conference, Stories: The Common Thread of Our Humanity. A frequent speaker at writers conferences, schools and universities, Lisa’s passion has always been story. She currently works as a story coach helping writers, nonprofits, educators and journalists wrangle the story they’re telling onto the page; contact her here.
Lisa,
Thanks for these tips. You are right on target. I did NaNo last year for the first time and managed to crank out a 53,000-word first draft, but that is what it was–a first draft. My biggest piece of advice for first-timers is to go into it with a well-developed story and fully formed characters., as your post suggests. Even with that in mind, writing 50,000 words in 30 days is hard. Thank you for sharing your insights and, by the way, my 2011 NaNo novel is my current WIP.
So what happened to last year’s first draft? I hope it turned out well.
Perfect advice, I couldn’t agree more!
There’s plenty of support out there if you stay involved. My local chapter of Wrimo’s talk out novel problems (first draft and otherwise) all year long. We plan out meet ups at local coffee shops to fellowship, write, and help each other out. It’s awesome.
Also, Nano is more for the act of steadily writing. There are no promises of a publishable novel. I’ve come out of it a few times with drek, but it was still fun and forced me to get off my butt and stick to routine.
Last note: There’s impromptu Nano editing months all year, most happening in January.
Sounds fabulous, Sarah, there’s nothing like a supportive group of writers to keep motivation high.
Thanks for writing the article Lisa,
Your points are dead on. I know some people in town that never plan or outline their work, fall in love with a major flaw, and then force themselves to go through with it even though they don’t have the heart.
I drew ire last year when I cranked out 25k words in a day and finished it within three. They didn’t like that. However, I had a plan and some major plot points written out.
Sometimes being prepared is far easier than winging it, especially in a situation like this.
My pleasure, Lief. And I totally agree — I think that going in with some planning is always better than winging it. I say this based on the thousands of manuscripts I’ve read that began, and often ended, with winging it. It feels good to do, I know, but it tends to lead to unusable pages, which is such a heartbreaker. Having seen so many writers with broken hearts breaks mine. I know it’s controversial to say, but honestly, the more you have an idea where you’re going, the more chance you have of getting there. I’m just saying . . .
Well, there’s a lot of acknowledgment during the process that most of what you’re going to be writing will be garbage, and that revision is necessary if you eventually want a finished, polished product. And in March of every year, there’s an unofficial NaNoEdMo(dot net) to help you with the next step.
I think they purposely avoid talking about the hard work part because it’s really, like you said, a celebration of the creative spirit, not a hardcore intensive boot camp for professionals.
If you’re taking it super seriously, you might be missing out on some of the crazy joy and mayhem that comes with throwing caution to the wind for a month and just letting the words flow.
That’s an absolutely invaluable skill to have whether you write for fun or profit: learning to lock up that inner editor for a while is the best thing that’s come out of my five NaNo attempts (aside from my first published novel, of course).
I hear you, Jen. I just want to be the voice out there that says beware — because I KNOW how great it feels to through caution to the wind, but love is seductive. And falling in love with those words can often make that editor’s voice even more demanding, loud and berating later on. That’s why going in with some idea of what you’re writing first can REALLY be liberating — it’s the best of both worlds!
I’ve done NaNo every year for many years and I’ve also done Camp NaNo, too, but this year I’m taking a break and focusing on rewriting and revising the ms I took to the Breakout Conference in September. (Funny, this ms started life as a NaNo novel from awhile back!)
I think it depends on where you are in your career and in your life if NaNo is going to work for you or not. I did enjoy the discipline and the sense of community NaNo provides, plus all the rough drafts of story ideas that might not have seen the light of day otherwise. I’m going to miss it this year.
That sounds fabulous, Madeline! I’m in awe of your determination, and dedication to rewriting. In my experience, that’s the difference between writers who are successful, and those who don’t quite get there. Good luck with the revision!
I found this very helpful! Especially as I’ve looked on NaNo as a horribly daunting feat that no sane writer should ever attempt. But… I’ve been warming lately to the idea that it is an excellent way to churn out that first draft. I am tempted to try it this year, even as I just finished a novel and am a little indecisive about What Comes Next. This might be the way to find out. Thanks for such great advice!
It sounds like you’re on the exact right track, Jillian! Good luck — I sure know what you mean about wondering What Comes Next (sometimes I think that’s my home address ;-). My guess is that you have several ideas churning, and diving in head first very well might be the perfect way to find out which one it’ll be. It’s also a way of finding out which ones it won’t be — so it’s a win/win.
Brilliant, Lisa. I am forcing myself to write the crappy first draft of book #2 not in a month, but in a year . . . that will be seven years less than it took me to write book #1.
Your suggestions, however, are still applicable. Get the ideas down in draft #1, then revise our pants off (or in Yuvi Zalkow’s case, until our pants are back on) until the first draft no longer looks, smells or feels like a first draft.
I am so grateful for your presence on WU!
Thanks, Sarah, you made my day and then some!
Great tips for making the most of NaNo, Lisa!
When I participated in the past I’d gone into NaNo without a plan. NaNo gave me lots of great partial stories, but it took me years to go back and finish, revise, and polish them.
Still, I’m glad I participated in NaNo. It revived my writing aspirations and made me realize that writing fiction is what I want to do for a living.
This year my NaNo story is already planned out. I know the characters well. I’ve mapped out several scenes and will even have a synopsis of the story written before I begin.
I’ve been a NaNo participant since 2004, and have “won” every year. I used to challenge myself to beat my previous year’s word count, preferably by 1,000 words, but haven’t done that since 2009, I think, when I peaked at about 78k.
Because, yes, much of what I was winding up with was garbage, and I became too overwhelmed to revise. I love NaNo for all the reasons listed above, both in the post and in the comments–the community is like nothing else. It can be freeing to truly lock up the Inner Editor and Inner Critic and just write. For several years, NaNo would reinspire me to get back into writing and keep writing past November.
This year, I will probably participate, but truthfully I’m not sure I’ll shoot for even the 50k. I’m at 99,000 words on a (decent) first draft–the idea for which actually does have its origins in my 2010 NaNo, but yes, which did need massive reworking–and should finish that up in the next week. I hope.
From there, I’d want to let it sit a bit before revising anyway, and I have an idea I could get started on for NaNo. But I like producing a draft that doesn’t leave me clueless on where to go for revisions. I may not be a writer who can produce a usable 50k in a month–at least not when I have a day job and other obligations. But I’m all right with that. For me, it’s finding the balance between the madcap pace and camaraderie and all the benefits of NaNo while still making sure my Inner Writer who dreams of doing this for a living stays undeterred in the long run, not just November.
I started the outlining process October 1. Now I am playing around with characters, research, etc. I hope to have the novel fully outlined and ready to go by October 31. There is a lot you can do ahead of time without actually writing your novel, and all of that is “legal” according to NaNoWriMo rules–you just can’t start actually writing the novel until Nov. 1.
If you go to the young writer’s area of nanowrimo, they have some awesome writer’s workbooks. I’ve been using the high school one. It really helps you with all the prewriting!
All good advice, Lisa.
I did NaNo a few times. I never have a problem cranking out enough words, but I felt that the focus was too much on the words and keeping track of them and not enough on the story.
I get the purpose…to write so fast that your creativity flows without the inner critic. I think preplanning and outlining goes against the heart of the exercise.
But without some planning and focus, my creativity tends to flow into thousands of words that, in the end, I can’t really use.
Not to mention the paragraphs of, “This is awful, why do you keep writing this? You should just stop. Just stop now. This is going nowhere…”
Great post, Lisa. Maybe January needs to be ReYoMo–revise your novel in a month. It will have simmered all through December, and the writer can come back with a fresh eye.
I’m intrigued by the NaNo movement, and have been toying with trying to bang out a draft sequel to THE K STREET AFFAIR this November.
Anyone NaNo before and have strong opinions as to whether the exercise can actually yield a WORKABLE draft?
All so true!
I’ve done NaNoWriMo and their summer program Camp NaNoWriMo. And now have two fairly strong *first* drafts.
This coming November I’m embarking on my own NaNoReMo — you guessed it, the Re stands for revision! Now I’ve had some time to evaluate one of those drafts and plan to revise it throughout this upcoming month, rather than start something fresh. If anyone’s interested in joining my group of one, I’m sure I can get us some bumper stickers to support the beast that is revision!
I’m with you Joanna. Nano- is a fun fab way to let it fly but I love the idea of spending this time around revising.
My biggest issue with NaNo is WHY THE HELL DID THEY CHOOSE NOVEMBER? That’s always one of my busiest months of the year, and throws in a long holiday weekend and the beginning of holiday gift shopping, to boot.
Why not a more neutral month, like August, when most Big Publishing activity grinds to a halt? Or February, when working on a manuscript can take our minds of the fact that February is often a pretty dreary month?
I’m tellin’ ya, when I become King, you’re gonna see some big changes…
I agree about the ill-placed month! I tried NaNo several years back (five? six?), and was doing okay until a few days before Thanksgiving when I turned to baking pies. After that, my drive to write went into a tryptophan-induced slumber.
Great post, Lisa! Revision is king.
You might want to look into Camp NaNoWriMo, which is basically the same thing (and run by the same organization), just held during the summer and with a camp theme. Last year there were two sessions, in July and August; this year, it was June and August.
Keith, I agree. It’s a crappy month with the holiday in there, but it’s a wonderful month to hunker in from the cold and write. I usually don’t get 50K. I think I didn’t even manage 6k last year, but this year I’ve a plan – A PLAN! – so hope I can get closer to the mark.
I’ve never actually participated in NaNo, but I’ve done the write a book in a month thing twice now. Both were 95k+ words. It’s eminently doable. That’s not to say they were CLEAN drafts and didn’t require substantial editing, but I like the idea behind NaNo.
Great tips, Lisa. I especially have to work hard at not falling in love with my words. I have killed more darlings in my time, than I have written work to show.
I tried NaNo last year, but I went in with an outline, and as a result did not make the 50k word goal. However, I did get a nice start on my first draft, which was what I had aimed to do-so the spirit of NaNo and all the positive creativity in the air, helped me to stay on track. This year as I work on rewriting, I haven’t joined for the reasons you stated above.
I think the benefit of NaNo is in the inciting factor. It may help someone who has always dreamed of writing to dip a toe in the water, and try it, or as in my case last year—okay, yeah, I admit it—I needed a cheer leading squad to kick my ass so that I could start my sophomore effort. I was all about the fear of diving in deep again and stuff, and NaNo helped me to overcome that.
The one thing I’ve learned among the many, many things I still need to learn about writing is–you don’t dive into the waters unprepared. Your NaNo prep kit has advice that can help with any writing routine. Thanks.
Good post about the pitfalls but also good comments.
Did NaNoWriMo first in 2011 and first draft had good plot and characters that reads okay BUT I had a clear idea in my head of where I was going. Aware of the pitfalls as they loomed so tried to avoid with some seat of the pants writing – yes pantser approach.
However 3rd attempt at a novel & have always planned in my head. Even though I was a ‘winner’ avoided temptation of using one of prizes to get published – just grateful for the emailed prizewinners newsletter on all the post-November advise.
Already started plotting what I will do for NaNoWriMo this November – a sequel to WIP so know some of characters well. And have outline storyboard as guide.
This will be my first NaNoWriMo. Honestly, my initial reaction when I first heard of it a few years ago was very similar to your reaction to the weight loss poster. “That’s crazy! I can’t possibly write a whole novel in a month!” But part of me really wanted to try.
Thanks for some great tips. I’ve already started working on an outline – plot, characters, etc. I was extremely relieved when I read in the rules that outlining and preplanning is allowed. I’d been thinking of myself as a pantser, but have finally come to the conclusion that style just does not work for me, so I’m giving this whole plotting thing a shot. :)
Since this is my first year, I’ve basically decided that it will be a win for me if I can actually get my inner editor to shut up long enough for me to write 50k words. I hope to also have a workable first draft (hence the outlining!), but if not, I’m sure I’ll still learn something, and will hopefully have some better writing habits to show for it as well.
It should be called National Write A Bad Novel in A Month. That is my goal.
I’m not a NaNo-er simply because I like prepping way too much before beginning a novel, and that seems sort of against the spirit of the thing, doesn’t it? But these tips are great for starting any first draft! Don’t fall too in love with your words, be prepared for how tough a job rewriting is, plan ahead so you have a plot rather than random events… It’s all good advice.
And I appreciate any post that reinforces how bad most first drafts are, whether they’re written in a month or over years. It makes me feel better about my own. XD
To you about to embark on this venture, I salute you!
Don’t forget that March is National Novel Editing Month (NaNoEdMo).
That is when you can get all sorts of support and cheerleaders for editing the novel that you wrote in November. The holidays will be out of the way and it will get your mind off the looming tax deadline of April 15th.
Then in April, you can adapt you novel for the screen with Script Frenzy.
Loved your perspective. I still toy with the idea of doing it, but so far not so good! I wrote a post on my blog about why I’m not doing it this year! https://inaroomofmyown.wordpress.com/2012/10/11/to-nano-or-not/
This will be my fifth NaNoWriMo and, hopefully, my fifth publishable novel to come out of it. You’re right on, Lisa, that writing 50,000 words often produces crap that needs to be completely rewritten. But I find that no matter what my initial approach–whether pantsing it, or going into it with a seemingly solid outline–my first draft is always bad. Always. So November offers, for me, a chance to get that bad first draft out of the way quickly, so at least I have something to work with.
It’s a good approach for me. Mileage may vary :)
6th year NaNo-er here. It really is a situation where you get out of it what you put into it, and there’s a lot of flexibility depending on individual goals.
The original event was geared towards “someday writers”, and that’s still where a lot of the value is, getting people to actually start the process, get over fear of the blank page, and start learning what works & doesn’t work for them. Ideally people don’t stay at that stage, unless they want to.
Pre-planning definitely isn’t against the spirit of the event; the only ‘rule’ there is that you start with Word 1 of actual prose on 11/1. Afterwards there’s the December and Beyond forum with resources and discussion about what to do next. Plus, as people said, spin-off events like NaNoEdMo.
I’m a big fan of NaNoWriMo, but I completely agree with your points. I think NaNo is a really great tool as long as you go into with realistic expectations.
If you go in expecting it to be easy, or expecting to come out with a perfect draft, or expecting to miraculously have extra time appear out of the ether, you’re in for some big disappointments.
Writing a workable first draft during November is defintiely possible — but it requires some serious life changes and commitment. If you go into NaNo with your eyes wide open, it can be a life-changing event.
I believe your caveats have validity, your post is greatly needed, and you can lose 30 pounds in 30 days, but it’s not fun when you really like tasty foods.
Like anything else in life, there are pros and cons. Nanowrimo is a tool that can be used properly or improperly. That’s why it’s important for post like Lisa’s to spread like wild fire before November hits.
One of the few habits I developed during Nano was, write first and edit later. Although it increased the editing process, it allowed the writer in me to remain unblocked.
I think a lot of writers look at Nanowrimo with the wrong perspective. 1500 words per day is really not that much in the life of a professional writer. I know writers who write upwards of 5-10k per day. Nanowrimo just forces you to write 7 days a week, which many writers don’t want to do.
Most authors talk about not being able to write a novel in a month, but they are really talking about 80-100k word novels. Nano is only 50k. It’s really not that much, and should be easily achievable for a regular writer.
Nobody ever said you can’t plan, but just because you are a planner doesn’t mean that pantsing doesn’t work. It’s just not the method that works for you. I wrote a very good first draft the first year I won Nanowrimo. It did require editing, of course, but I’ve found my subsequent novels, which I took longer to write, have actually needed more. Perhaps it’s because I’ve grown as a writer and editor, but I think there is something to be said about letting our subconscious go free. I do plan now, mostly because I’ve got a series going and need to think several books ahead, but I think it dulls my writing to some extent.
I agree that November was a poor choice for the main event. Camp Nanowrimo is now available, but it doesn’t have the local support that November Nano does, at least in my area. That local support does make a difference in making you feel energized about crossing the finish line.
Thank you. This post is spot on. I’m hosting a novel prep program just days before NaNo kicks off so hopefully our writers will be ready to type fast and furiously when Nov. 1st hits. We also plan on doing a revision workshop in late February. And since I set it up, I need to make darn sure I commit to writing, too. My goal isn’t the first 50K, but my last. I already have 30K on my mystery novel so I hope this helps me finish the first draft by early December at least!
I’m skipping NaNoWriMo again this year to focus on my WiP.
For the past few months my word count has stagnated because I’ve been stuck editing and rewriting. To counter this trend, I’ve worked out a new plan of attack to get my story going again:
The NaNo 10% Project. Exactly as it sounds, but not affiliated with NaNoWriMo whatsoever. As you can guess, the idea is to get 5,000 words written in a month on my WiP. Not meaningless prose, but thought out writing.
For people intrigued by NaNo, but focused on their current WiP, employed full-time and have kids, give it a go! Even if it means writing 167 words daily at the office, it might be all you need to get words written.
I participated in NaNoWriMo about four times. It was a great way to get started as a novelist, and the encouragement of the cheerleaders was a huge help. I think NaNoWriMo is a great tool for beginners or for people who think they’d like to try writing a book, but don’t really aspire to writing over the long haul.
NaNoWriMo taught me that I can pound out more than 50,000 words in a month. I’ve actually accomplished that same level of output in months other than November when drafting a new story. I find now that my writing discipline is well enough established, I don’t need the November kick start any more.
I am going to skip the fun this year. I’m about three quarters of the way into drafting a new story, and I don’t want to lose my momentum.
Best of luck to Wrimos everywhere!
While I agree with you wholeheartedly (I am a huge plotter and believe in the painstaking care of crafting words) –
NaNo isn’t necessarily about writing a polished book. It’s about the joy of getting a book down, about getting taken with a story and abandoning the caution that usually leads authors into years and years of diligent work. NaNo is not about diligence. It’s about knowing that you can write a book, that you can find incredible joy not only in writing the story you want to write (without those incessant inner editors) but in a writing community that not all writers have (in RL, that is).
I say this because the community is the most important thing about it. Anyone can write 50,000 words in a month – if they have the right motivation. With so many other people ecstatic about writing, excited to talk to you about your work, and jovially partaking of the drunken word-frenzy, you can’t help but get caught up in it, too. Now, I see this is your point – drunken word-vomit for the sake of quantity is not what we want, and better to start now than later on crafting a map to go by so that we don’t waste our creative energy. But as in all things, there must be a balance. All work makes Jill a very dull NaNoer.
I used to believe that my true creativeness came from not constraining my ideas within the confines of a plan when writing, however, now that my skill set has changed I have developed a different way of working.
I think although each writers process is different, I can whole heartedly say, that planning has raised my productivity by 200%.
It can sometimes seem like a bit of a slog, but for me it pays dividends.
NaNo will still be a challenge, but I am very much looking forward to it.
As someone who has participated in NaNo for 6 years running, and won 4 times, I’m not sure that you have the right idea of what NaNo is. As many people have said, it’s not necessarily about having a polished novel at the end, or even a good one. Not everyone goes into NaNo with the intention of publishing their novel, some just do it for fun.
I’m not a planner. I have an idea of where my story is going to end, and an idea of where it is going to start, but the bits inbetween tend to come to me as I write. I often don’t know how I’m going to solve a problem until after I’ve finished creating it. My novels need work after the end of November, but it’s important to realise that you can’t edit a blank page. Before you can even think about revising, you need to have a draft.
The NaNoWriMo boards are rebooted each year at the beginning of October to start fresh. After NaNo is over, there will be lots of information on revising, editing, and where to go from there. It’s a great community, that stays active (though less so) all year around.
And for anyone who isn’t participating because they’re in the middle of a story they don’t want to put down, there are plenty of us continuing stories hanging out on the Rebels board.
Great article! Perhaps we should declare December NaNoEdMo and get on with those rewrites and edits?
I’ve done NaNoWriMo twice and, while I agree that you end up with 50,000 to rewrite, for some of us just putting 50,000 words on paper is the challenge. And, NaNo is a great way for people who’ve never thought they had 50,000 words in them to break though that barrier. Also, it is a great community and there are lots of opportunities to meet and cultivate a writing community.
Just want to add that I absolutely love Wired for Story. I recommended it to my critique group and, to a person, they all loved it as well.
Thank you for the warnings and the tips. I am signed up for NaNoWriMo and it is my first time. Like Lynda, I am hoping that having a deadline gets me writing. If that is all the project does, it will be a success in my mind. But you’re right, it sure would help to have a plan and some structure. Will do!
I agree with you on every level. I’m not a published writer yet, or self for that matter. I have however taken the time to understand what could be my pitfalls if I went about writing without a proper vision and without knowledge of what makes a great story. I think when people are a novice or even an intermediate writer foundation is necessary otherwise frustration, disappointment, and failure sets in. ‘
I have been writing since before I was a teen and reading great novels (The Hobbit, Ender’s Game, Wizard of Earthsea, ect…) long before that so now I’m 33 and I think I have found my voice, ie: direction. Yet I’m always a work in progress. Good works takes some time, great works can take a lifetime.
Great advice to follow Lisa, you presented it well and I like the idea of NanoWrimo but I have not participated because it’s not the right time for me. Maybe one day, maybe not. No matter what I do with the artistic outlets available I will always remember to be true to myself instead of a fad or exciting development. Lastly I think anything worth doing should be done right; therefore speeding through passions without enjoying the journey can make a person miss all the pretty colors, smells, tastes, and audible relationships which constitute a beautiful life and Universe.
Hi Lisa – great post and really useful for someone attempting NaNoWriMo for the first time. I’m planning on giving my first proper attempt at writing during Camp NaNoWriMo in April, blogging about it along the way at http://www.firsttimewriter.co.uk. I share your concerns about just hashing out a bunch of events in the hope of a story taking place and don’t want to end up with a jumble of ideas that causes a load of trouble during rewrite. The problem is I have a lot of difficulty in planning, so figured my best bet was just to write for 30 days and see what happens. Any tips on planning for those who find it hard to plan?
Matt
Thanks Matt, and good luck. Excellent question. I’m assuming that you have a premise — a story problem — something that you’re going to explore as you write. So the question you might want to focus on before you begin writing is: who is your protagonist? What do they come into the story wanting, and what is holding the back? I don’t mean holding them back on surface level (like, they want to climb Mt. Everest but get winded walking around the block), but in the internal sense. What misbelief must they overcome in order to succeed (or, realize they don’t really want it to begin with)? Next ask yourself, WHY do they want what they want. And, as important, what triggered the misbelief that’s standing in their way? The more you know about your protagonist’s past as it pertains to the problem your plot will force them to solve, the better. That way you’ll know how they see the world, and so can filter their reactions to what happens through it. For help on doing just that, you might want to check out my most recent Writer Unboxed post, “Does Your Protagonist Have Amnesia?”
Once you’ve got your protagonist nailed, you can let loose in April, and see what kind of plot develops that will force them to go after what they want, all the while battling with the thing that’s stopping them. Hope that helps!