Lessons Learned From NaNoWriMo 2008
This was my second year participating in NaNoWriMo. Again, I had no classes and no job, so I really had no excuse not to play along. I "won" a day earlier this year (on November 19, as opposed to November 20 in 2007) and had a slightly higher word count total for the month. On the whole, I think I'm happier with this year's story, but I know it still needs a lot of work. Sometimes the lessons I learned last year helped me out this year; other times I did better when I paid them no mind.
Disclaimer copied verbatim from last year: Now, I'm not saying that makes me a NaNo expert by any means. I'm a newbie, I know it, and I probably was blessed with a combination of beginner's luck and fortunate circumstances aligning. What worked for me may not work for you, but that doesn't mean I'm wrong; it just means we have different writing methods. Either way, maybe what I learned can help you-either directly or indirectly. We usually learn the most when we screw up, so sometimes having a method or tip NOT work is more helpful than anything else.
1. WRITE.
Still the most important thing, and for the obvious reason: if you aren't writing, you aren't getting anything accomplished. Write as much as you can as often as you can. I did the "writing in spurts" technique again this year, and it still works well for me. Write as much as you can per day. Some days I wrote over 3000 words; other days, I struggled for 1800. Bank up as many words as you can.
2. Finish what you start each day.
For me, I need to keep the energy of a scene fresh. If I try writing it over several days, I lose the drive and the inspiration, so I did my best to write a contained scene each day, and to finish that scene that day. Granted, they were not perfect-no first draft, whether for NaNo or not, ever is-but I wanted to make sure I got down everything I wanted in the scene. Editing and revising comes later; it's National Novel Writing Month.
3. Read & replenish.
I still valued my downtime this year, but found I wasn't doing as much reading. I was watching TV shows and movies, reading comics and blogs, having random conversations. The end result, though, was the same: for all the story I was extracting from my battered little brain, I was refuelling with other stories. Like I said last year, this is not an invitation to plagiarize. Think of it as finding sources of inspiration. This year, I developed and named a character based off a captcha I had to fill out to sign up for a Twitter account. I shit you not. Inspiration is everywhere, but if you don't tear yourself away from your story, you'll miss it.
4. Limit your visits to the word counter.
I said this last year and I stand by it. I know the "point" of NaNo is to get 50,000 words, but it's not like you "fail" or "lose" if you don't, so calm down and focus on writing. Don't bother checking the word counter until you've got at least two pages written-and preferably not two pages of short dialogue.
5. Use separate files.
Another holdover from last year. I find it still works for me, especially since I like to finish a scene each day. I found it gave me a fresh start each day; I couldn't see what I'd written before, so I didn't feel beholden to it.
6. Keep a list of character frequencies.
I started doing this this time around purely out of curiosity, but it ended up being a neat tool. By seeing how often I used certain characters, I got a sense of what story elements were most important to me-and I had a source of new ideas. After all, if one character was in 14 scenes and another was only in 2, was the character with 2 really necessary? Could I do more with that character? Yes. That little Excel grid inspired me to use some characters in ways I wouldn't have thought of otherwise, all because I wanted to up their appearance numbers.
7. Have a NaNo journal online.
I cross-posted my NaNo story to three different journaling sites: LiveJournal, InsaneJournal, and Inksome. Not only is this a good way to back up stories, it also makes them easier to share (if you're so inclined) and the tags were a lifesaver. The character tags I made helped me generate the character list I mentioned in #6, and they made it easy for me to quickly reference something I had written before.
8. Stop checking the Internet.
Your e-mail will still be there. Your f-list will still be there. I'd tell myself I was just checking Twitter and then twenty minutes later, I was chatting on a message board. It got to the point where I almost disabled my Internet shortcut on my keyboard.
9. Do some planning in advance.
I'm not one for outlines, but it does help to have some general ideas in your head. I had a character list drafted before I started as well as some history points. What I should have done, though, was have a list of potential names for new characters. Every time I thought of a new character, I'd go to Google and try to find a name for him or her-and, like I said in #8, end up wasting a lot of writing time.
10. Schedule.
This was obviously a lot easier for me, since I had very few commitments, but I think if you set aside a certain block of time each day for writing, it becomes a habit. Obviously, if you have to juggle family, work, school, etc., this can be hard, but if you are seriously committed to writing a novel, this is something you WILL have to do.
11. Experiment!
Again in line with what I said last year, have fun. No one's expecting a perfect, publishable draft at the end of November. Try styles you've never used. Try things you hate. Shake things up. You should already be silencing your inner editor from commenting on typos and the like, so it's not a stretch to extend that silence into other realms. Just write. Write whatever comes into your head-even if it disgusts you or confuses you or frightens you. Perhaps especially so in those cases.
12. Reward yourself.
This doesn't mean just for winning. Did you set a new personal record for words written in a day? Treat yourself. Celebrate each milestone you hit: 10000, 25000, 40000. I would shy away from goals like "If I win NaNo, I'll buy myself a PlayStation", because then if you don't, you'll feel disappointed. Decide what your treat is when you reach your goals, whatever they-both the treats and the goals-may be.
13. Don't bring others down just to boost yourself up.
I saw a lot of NaNo bashing this year, and was disappointed by it. Don’t diminish anyone else or their success (or lack thereof). Maybe they didn't write as much as you, but that's not the point: the point is to WRITE. NaNo's supposed to be about fun and community, not deadlines and competition with others. If you didn't win, stop making excuses. Big deal. You didn't finish. Most don't. There's no shame in it-unless you make lame excuses and/or spiteful comments to lessen the blow to your ego. The only person you're competing against in NaNo is yourself.
14. Enjoy.
Writing's supposed to be enjoyable. I'm not saying it's not hard or that it's not work, but if it feels like a chore, why are you doing it? Honestly. Just let go of your hang-ups and inhibitions and just write for the entire month. Whatever happens happens. Maybe you'll never look at your manuscript again. Maybe you'll edit it into a bestselling novel. You never know until you try.
15. Do other things.
I guess this could fit under "Read & replenish", but I think it bears repeating. Don't chain yourself to your keyboard. Again, that's not the point of NaNo. Do you honestly think "real" authors spend all day at their computers? Of course not. They have errands to run. They have to sleep and eat and relax. If you're stressed, that'll show in your writing.
16. WRITE.
Write before NaNo. Write during NaNo. Write after NaNo. Practice doesn't make a perfect writer, but it will make you a better writer: more disciplined, more thoughtful, more realistic. No one's going to waltz up to your front door and magically offer you a publishing contract. Do you know how many people write "novels" every year, and how many of those never see the light of day? Thousands. Probably millions. And if you don't want to be one of those, you have to distinguish yourself from the horde-and you can only do that if you keep writing.
Disclaimer copied verbatim from last year: Now, I'm not saying that makes me a NaNo expert by any means. I'm a newbie, I know it, and I probably was blessed with a combination of beginner's luck and fortunate circumstances aligning. What worked for me may not work for you, but that doesn't mean I'm wrong; it just means we have different writing methods. Either way, maybe what I learned can help you-either directly or indirectly. We usually learn the most when we screw up, so sometimes having a method or tip NOT work is more helpful than anything else.
1. WRITE.
Still the most important thing, and for the obvious reason: if you aren't writing, you aren't getting anything accomplished. Write as much as you can as often as you can. I did the "writing in spurts" technique again this year, and it still works well for me. Write as much as you can per day. Some days I wrote over 3000 words; other days, I struggled for 1800. Bank up as many words as you can.
2. Finish what you start each day.
For me, I need to keep the energy of a scene fresh. If I try writing it over several days, I lose the drive and the inspiration, so I did my best to write a contained scene each day, and to finish that scene that day. Granted, they were not perfect-no first draft, whether for NaNo or not, ever is-but I wanted to make sure I got down everything I wanted in the scene. Editing and revising comes later; it's National Novel Writing Month.
3. Read & replenish.
I still valued my downtime this year, but found I wasn't doing as much reading. I was watching TV shows and movies, reading comics and blogs, having random conversations. The end result, though, was the same: for all the story I was extracting from my battered little brain, I was refuelling with other stories. Like I said last year, this is not an invitation to plagiarize. Think of it as finding sources of inspiration. This year, I developed and named a character based off a captcha I had to fill out to sign up for a Twitter account. I shit you not. Inspiration is everywhere, but if you don't tear yourself away from your story, you'll miss it.
4. Limit your visits to the word counter.
I said this last year and I stand by it. I know the "point" of NaNo is to get 50,000 words, but it's not like you "fail" or "lose" if you don't, so calm down and focus on writing. Don't bother checking the word counter until you've got at least two pages written-and preferably not two pages of short dialogue.
5. Use separate files.
Another holdover from last year. I find it still works for me, especially since I like to finish a scene each day. I found it gave me a fresh start each day; I couldn't see what I'd written before, so I didn't feel beholden to it.
6. Keep a list of character frequencies.
I started doing this this time around purely out of curiosity, but it ended up being a neat tool. By seeing how often I used certain characters, I got a sense of what story elements were most important to me-and I had a source of new ideas. After all, if one character was in 14 scenes and another was only in 2, was the character with 2 really necessary? Could I do more with that character? Yes. That little Excel grid inspired me to use some characters in ways I wouldn't have thought of otherwise, all because I wanted to up their appearance numbers.
7. Have a NaNo journal online.
I cross-posted my NaNo story to three different journaling sites: LiveJournal, InsaneJournal, and Inksome. Not only is this a good way to back up stories, it also makes them easier to share (if you're so inclined) and the tags were a lifesaver. The character tags I made helped me generate the character list I mentioned in #6, and they made it easy for me to quickly reference something I had written before.
8. Stop checking the Internet.
Your e-mail will still be there. Your f-list will still be there. I'd tell myself I was just checking Twitter and then twenty minutes later, I was chatting on a message board. It got to the point where I almost disabled my Internet shortcut on my keyboard.
9. Do some planning in advance.
I'm not one for outlines, but it does help to have some general ideas in your head. I had a character list drafted before I started as well as some history points. What I should have done, though, was have a list of potential names for new characters. Every time I thought of a new character, I'd go to Google and try to find a name for him or her-and, like I said in #8, end up wasting a lot of writing time.
10. Schedule.
This was obviously a lot easier for me, since I had very few commitments, but I think if you set aside a certain block of time each day for writing, it becomes a habit. Obviously, if you have to juggle family, work, school, etc., this can be hard, but if you are seriously committed to writing a novel, this is something you WILL have to do.
11. Experiment!
Again in line with what I said last year, have fun. No one's expecting a perfect, publishable draft at the end of November. Try styles you've never used. Try things you hate. Shake things up. You should already be silencing your inner editor from commenting on typos and the like, so it's not a stretch to extend that silence into other realms. Just write. Write whatever comes into your head-even if it disgusts you or confuses you or frightens you. Perhaps especially so in those cases.
12. Reward yourself.
This doesn't mean just for winning. Did you set a new personal record for words written in a day? Treat yourself. Celebrate each milestone you hit: 10000, 25000, 40000. I would shy away from goals like "If I win NaNo, I'll buy myself a PlayStation", because then if you don't, you'll feel disappointed. Decide what your treat is when you reach your goals, whatever they-both the treats and the goals-may be.
13. Don't bring others down just to boost yourself up.
I saw a lot of NaNo bashing this year, and was disappointed by it. Don’t diminish anyone else or their success (or lack thereof). Maybe they didn't write as much as you, but that's not the point: the point is to WRITE. NaNo's supposed to be about fun and community, not deadlines and competition with others. If you didn't win, stop making excuses. Big deal. You didn't finish. Most don't. There's no shame in it-unless you make lame excuses and/or spiteful comments to lessen the blow to your ego. The only person you're competing against in NaNo is yourself.
14. Enjoy.
Writing's supposed to be enjoyable. I'm not saying it's not hard or that it's not work, but if it feels like a chore, why are you doing it? Honestly. Just let go of your hang-ups and inhibitions and just write for the entire month. Whatever happens happens. Maybe you'll never look at your manuscript again. Maybe you'll edit it into a bestselling novel. You never know until you try.
15. Do other things.
I guess this could fit under "Read & replenish", but I think it bears repeating. Don't chain yourself to your keyboard. Again, that's not the point of NaNo. Do you honestly think "real" authors spend all day at their computers? Of course not. They have errands to run. They have to sleep and eat and relax. If you're stressed, that'll show in your writing.
16. WRITE.
Write before NaNo. Write during NaNo. Write after NaNo. Practice doesn't make a perfect writer, but it will make you a better writer: more disciplined, more thoughtful, more realistic. No one's going to waltz up to your front door and magically offer you a publishing contract. Do you know how many people write "novels" every year, and how many of those never see the light of day? Thousands. Probably millions. And if you don't want to be one of those, you have to distinguish yourself from the horde-and you can only do that if you keep writing.