Who’s doing Nanowrimo this year? With my packed teaching and writing schedules, I’m definitely not, sadly.
I’ve done it several times in past years, though. I’ve even created finished manuscripts from my NaNo drafts, so I thought I’d share some tips for success when it comes to writing a draft of your novel in a month. Here they are, in no particular order:
1. Freewrite: Go for five or ten minutes without allowing yourself to stop. Stream-of-consciousness writing is fine, and you might be surprised by some of the nuggets of gold you’ll find in the mix when you’re done.
2. Buy a digital voice recorder: I bought one a while back for when I’m walking or doing other activities during which decent ideas seem to show up with greater-than-normal frequency. Phone apps can work well for this, too.
3. Look back at the last thing you wrote (or the thing before that): See if there are any loose threads that might provide a nice entry point for today’s work.
4. Inhabit your characters: Visualize them in their daily lives. Imagine walking in their shoes, focusing on as many details as possible, especially sensory details (what they’re seeing, smelling, tasting, hearing, seeing). What do they love? What do they hate? What do they fear? What do they want?
5. Create deadlines: This is one of the things I love most about NaNoWriMo. The pressure can get intense, and it’s a little masochistic to even attempt to write an entire novel in a month. But if one’s mental health can withstand it, this sort of deadline can be a great way to generate a huge amount of content in a relatively short time. Other, kinder, self-imposed deadlines can be a good way to go, too.
Good luck, Nanoites!
