Are You Thinking About Doing Nation Novel Writing Month Next Year?
NaNoWriMo! You’ve heard the buzz. You might know people who have done it. Writing 50,000 words in a month might scare the words right out of you. Or you might be toying with the idea of doing it next year.
If you are toying, read on. If you want to know more, read on.
Fifty-thousand Words in a Month?
I started NaNoWriMo two years ago. My mother got ill and was hospitalized. I tried to carry on, but the stress was too much. So, bowed out.
I signed up again this year. Everyone was healthy, chipper, and there were no clouds on the horizon.
Last month I wrote 50,330 words, nearly finishing my YA novel. I finished my word count, yay!
I still have a few chapters to write, which isn’t a problem because I’m keeping the NaNoWriMo pace until I’m finished.
Needless to say, I feel accomplished.
Feeling accomplished is great, but that isn’t what I want to write about. What I learned is much more interesting.
What I Learned
Here are a few of the things I learned:
- Preparation is worth every effort and second, it takes. A detailed outline kept me on track and focused. I think I have a better first draft than I’ve ever had.
- Writing without revising or writing straight through to the end works for me. Yes, it’s hard not to go back and tweak, but not impossible.
- Having a daily or weekly word count goal keeps me on track and makes me more productive.
Preparation: Pre-NaNoWriMo
If you are a true-blue, dyed-in-the-wool, don’t need any stinking outline person, perhaps you should skip this part. If you’re curious, read on.
First, some background: when I begin a writing project, I outline, but I use a sparse outline because I want to be able to take creative tangents and allow the passions of creativity to go wherever they want.
I admit that going off on tangents is fun.
There are some problems with my previous system. The biggest one is that sometimes I’d get stuck, stop, and problem solve. Need I say it? Yeah, time-consuming.
Since I planned to write 50K words, I didn’t have the luxury of spending an unknown amount of time stopping to iron out the fabric of the plot or any other problem.
I decided to create a detailed outline, character sketches, and setting details.
In the past, I’ve fallen somewhere in between people who don’t use outlines, like Stephen King, and those who do, like Elizabeth George. I didn’t want to do that for NaNoWriMo. When November began, I wanted everything in place.
I decided to try a hybrid system using Elizabeth George’s system and James Scott Bell’s Plot and Structure strategies–both writers work in a similar way. I chose to do this because I already use ideas and strategies from both authors.
I decided to go deeper and embrace the whole enchilada.
Plus, I love George’s and Bell’s fiction and writing books. I’m a believer in taking advice from people I admire.
Outlining and planning worked better than I thought it would. I didn’t have any moments of not knowing where I was going. I also felt free to explore tangents that came up as I was writing. I knew my characters so well that I never had trouble getting “in touch” with them.
The writing was easy, and I had a great, tight plot.
I’ve been converted. I’m a believer in deep, detailed planning. I’m not saying my processes is for everyone, but I won’t go back to my old ways.
Writing Straight Through
In the past, my writing system has been to write a chapter, tinker with it, revise, revise some more, tinker, and eventually move on. With this method, it’s not unusual for days or even more time to pass while I’m doing this.
Often, because the story isn’t flowing from one chapter to the next, I would lose the sense of story and structure. What resulted was a sometimes uneven story that needed a lot of revision.
Writing without revision or writing straight through as I’ve come to think of it has many advantages.
- I never lost the forward momentum.
- I never lost sight of the structure.
- I never lost sight of the theme.
- Because I was so focused, opportunities to underscore my theme came up as I wrote.
- Scenes were easier to write
- Character development seemed easier and more natural.
I have a draft that feels solid.
I find it fascinating that in a little over four weeks, I produced a complete draft. I’ll put my draft away until January, so I can come to it with fresh eyes.
Here’s what I’ll do then:
- Read the whole draft looking at what global revisions are needed and fix them.
- Revise and tinker with scenes and chapters, until I get them the way I want.
- Do sentence level editing.
It usually takes me six or more months to write the first draft. I’m sold on NaNoWriMo process.
I love the passion and energy that comes from getting the story fast. I found myself falling asleep thinking about the scenes I’d write the following day.
Word Count
Every writing book I’ve ever read suggests writing every day and having a daily or weekly word count goal. I do write nearly every day. Big things do come up, like Thanksgiving, Christmas, a new World of Warcraft expansion, but I’m pretty set in my writing ways.
What I haven’t done is to have a daily word count. I’ve tried it, but I either set my goal too high and fizzle out or too low and wind up dropping the habit because I can do that with my eyes closed. After all, I write about 350 days out of the year. Why have a word count?
World of Warcraft released their new expansion in November; there was no way I wasn’t going to play–I might have played non-stop for four days. Thanksgiving took more than a day away from writing time.
To finish my word count, I had to keep the numbers going to make up for the lost days.
I discovered that having a word count goal is motivational. With a set goal, I had the motivation to push through. Hopping on Google+, Facebook, Pinterest, or fabulous author blogs became my reward for meeting my goal.
Of course, there is a downside: I discovered the number of words I had to write to complete the 50K was a little stressful. It’s true I had six days I couldn’t write (read “made a decision to do something else”).
Having a daily word count works. I’ll continue, but my goal will be lower and realistic for me.
Will I Do It Again?
You bet I will!!
Revision
There could be a danger in NaNoWriMo if a writer thinks his or her draft is good enough to be published.
Ninety-nine point nine percent of all first drafts need to be revised. I don’t often make that kind of bold assertion, but when it comes to writing, I’ll be bold.
Revision is at the heart of writing; it makes an okay story, good, and a good story, great.
I’m one of those people who loves revision and looks forward to it.
For now, I’ll put this rough draft away until January. After I revise, I’ll let you know if I’m feeling the same as I do now.
The Usual Reminders
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