What
you need to do to SURVIVE Nano!
Good
morning readers! Wow, I’ts been a while since I had a Thursday Thought but here
it is, the tips I think you need to survive NaNoWriMo.
First
off, some of you may ask, what is that? Well, the head, Shar will tell you a
little at BL’s
today. Hop on over there once you get done reading me. *grins*
In
short, it’s writing a 50K novel in 30 days. Whoa, that’s a lot of words right?
However, when you break it down, it’s only 1667 words per day. That’s it? Yep.
Some can do that in their sleep. For others it’s a struggle especially when
they have families, jobs, and other responsibilities that take them away from
Nanoing. Luckily, I’m just the muse and I won’t have to worry about that, but
since Shar is conveying mine and then BL’s thoughts on paper, she might need to
follow these guidelines:
1.
Explain
to the family you’re doing something big!
Well, in the
scheme of things for you it is. With significant others who are already used to
the way their authors act when finishing any kind of story during the year,
they know a lot of things might not get done. Oh like, cleaning up the house
per say. Dinner might be a little late getting to the table and if it does, it
might be takeout as opposed to a home cooked meal. Still, try and explain it to
the family how you might be unavailable at some points. Try not to ignore
them! Get them involved somehow. Shar talks the story over with her husband and
asks him questions. Now this is not so easy with kids, especially when they’re
babies or toddlers, which brings me to the next one.
2.
Try
to write when the house is QUIET!
For Shar, she’ll
do it after two or three a.m. when the family is asleep. If you get your word
count of 1667 for the day then you have the rest of it to enjoy with the kids.
You won’t be disturbed by them asking for food or to play because you’ve done
the necessary words to stay on course.
3.
Don’t
worry about huge editing mistakes and write EVERYDAY!
Some don’t correct
ANYTHING and keep writing. For me and Shar however, each time we sit down to a
story, we go over the last parts of what was written during the last session.
Just basic mistakes like misspells, grammar or punction mistakes. Still, leave
the overall editing where you might repeat yourself or miss a full description
for when you go through the story later on. I hope if you’re planning on
publishing that you’ll use several betas and or editors beforehand. Also, take
the time to write everyday. Do sprints on Twitter with friends. Get together in
person or virtually with other Nano writers. Take advantage of the forums on
their site as well as forming your own group of friends to keep the focus!
4.
Take
time to relax BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER NANO.
I know in 2010
when Shar and I did African Sun, she was writing all year and even did a
different challenge in December which proved detrimental in 2011. The first
three months of that year, she had no real focus or determination to write. In
2011, she had several projects going on around November and we weren’t able to
finish writing Closely Guarded. Now this year, Shar managed to get BL’s book done.
As it stands, there are still only a couple of stories left unfinished because this
year Shar had a different plan where she didn’t start any new stories.
She finished out
the books for Rawiya and BL in the SNOTM series, the sequel to My Lieutenant, as
well as Closely Guarded and Wild Horses. Now, Shar is relaxing her mind, only
doing edits, blogposts, promoing, and no serious writing. Only fanfic and free
reads for now. *grins* Additionally, during Nano the plan is to write early and
leave the rest of the day to spend time with the kids and hubby as well as
friends to take her mind off the story waiting on the laptop. Afterwards, Shar
plans to take December only to write some fanfic and do revisions of Vertigo
Two for me and finish Trois in Treble for Rawiya. Might also do a read with
Rawiya for Xmas but she doesn’t want to burn out like she did in 2011. The key
is to do other things and not get so worn out at the end of November.
5.
DON’T
worry about making the 50k goal!
But wait
Michael, you said I must write everyday! Still, stressing over it doesn’t help.
Worrying about the goal only puts more pressure on yourself. I believe Shar did
that last year. She kept telling herself she had to make it! Yes the
write-ins are good and looking at the wordcounter, seeing that your close is
fun but try not to immerse yourself in stress. You might just discourage us as
muses and therefore make the characters in your story stop talking. Again, I
say take time away from it. Don’t worry about others who may finish in fifteen
days. Everyone works differently and at their own pace. If you didn’t do the
1667 today, try making it up on the weekends if time allows. The key is to not
beat yourself up when you don’t get there. If the will and the story is there,
you will do what is needed to make the goal.
6.
Lastly,
make sure you have fun!
Sure it’s a big
deal to make the 50k! You get the little things to put on your blogs and you
say, I survived and made it but the key is to enjoy the creation process. Sure
it’s stressful but I think sprinting with others makes it even more enjoyable.
Talking over your stories with fellow authors. Supporting one another and
cheering each other on is fun too. To know that a large portion of the world is
doing the same thing is very comforting. You’re not alone!
Take advantage
of the tools and resources Nano gives you. Enjoy your time doing the challenge
and in the end, you might have a finished product you can be proud of. In some
instances, you could give it to a publisher to share with readers everywhere.Perhaps
a bestseller? One can only hope.
I’m happy to be
doing this again with Shar and I hope these 6 tips will help you succeed in
your goal! I thank you for listening and enjoy he craziness that is Nano. If
you’re not doing it, cheer those of us that are onto the finish line.
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