I'm hoping to get some pointers from anyone out there who has done it before (or something similar). I work full time so I'm worried about how much time I can commit and how to be the most productive with the time I have. Should I update my blog during that month or devote all of my writing to NaNoWriMo? How can I keep myself interested enough in my story to keep writing so much everyday? Anything else I should prepare myself for?
Since I think I will be writing a dystopic novel (my favorite genre right now), I decided I should read as much as I could in that genre before all the writting starts. This brings me to the second point of this post a link up with Seven Day Push. The challenge this week is to read a book and I will gladly take on that challenge. I'm going to read Genesis by Bernard Beckett (a nice short book, yes) but it is one I've been wanting to read for a while.
I'm doing Nano this year, too! It's my second year, and I love it.
ReplyDeleteYou have two more weeks, so write down those ideas you have. Make notes about scenes, maybe an outline. A lot of people use outlines. They don't really work out for me, I'm more of a write as it comes to you kind of person, but a novel is a lot to take on.
You should set time aside each day for your writing. Then acknowledge that for the first couple days, maybe weeks, everything will hold more importance than actually writing. There will be dishes to do, house to clean, a blog to write :P, things you need to pick up. The important thing is to write anyways. Forget all the reasons you don't have time, or shouldn't do it, and just do it. Usually those things only pop up around writing time because there is some self-doubt going on.
If you lose sight of your plot, or can't seem to keep it going, write something else, free writing will inevitably bring you back, or at the very least count towards your word count.
You should prepare for those days when you think this whole Nano thing is complete crap, you can't possibly write a novel in a month, nothing's working out, your a horrible writer. Recognize those thoughts as fear, and get back to writing!
That being said, the writing is probably going to be complete crap. You're writing a novel in a month, nobody spews out a 50,000 word masterpiece in 30 days. My last Nano was so horrible, I changed names, ages, occupations in the middle of my story because the others just weren't working out. This is also the beauty of Nano. Crazy stuff comes out in the middle of the rush.
Go to write ins. Talk with other writers. They will pull you back from the deep end of giving up.
Long reply, I know, but I love Nano. Check my blog for my Nano post and good luck!!
I am attempting Nano this year :) I have always wanted to do it, but this is the first year that I actually think I have the time and energy to put in. It is such a huge challenge, but I am pretty excited to give it my best shot and I am taking it as an opportunity to push myself and see what happens.
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