My Wrimo Sticky Post!
National Novel Writing Month
So you think you can write? You've written fanfic, and you've taken a few classes. But can you fly screaming by the seat of your pants through sleepless nights of furious novelling?
Do I have your attention?
Nanowrimo, for those of you who don't know, is a self-inflicted torture personal challenge to write 50,000 words (the definition of a novella) in 30 days.
That's right. 30 days.
But it's all right, because you're not alone. You have tons of people to commiserate with. Nanowrimo draws over 75,000 people each year, and they're increasing in number. HOWEVER, only 10% of those who participate actually manage to reach that glorious 50,000th word.
So if only 7,500 out of 75,000 people actually finish, why should I even bother, you ask. Well, never fear! Hope is here!
I have some tips that will help you get through the worst of your writing woes, and hopefully you'll cruise toward your 50,000th word by November 30th.
Tips:
1. Do not ever, ever, ever, reread what you wrote. Just don't. You're aiming to get your shitty first draft done. You can go back later when you revise it. Rereading breaks your writing flow, and only emphasizes the mistakes and plot holes you've left behind. So just don't do it. It can wait 30 days.
2. If you're stuck, you're not listening to your characters. Some common symptoms include: you've used the wrong view point character (VPC), your character wouldn't do that action, your character would never kiss that character, your character has a trait that you've been ignoring. Do not fear your characters. They love being in the limelight, so let them have it.
Example: When I wrote my 2006 Nano, Remembering to Breathe, my main character (MC) Joz was supposed to inherit leadership from his mentor. I designed Joz to be strong and capable, a leader basically. But I kept getting stuck at the beginning. When I started writing him, I realized that he wasn't at all like I had planned. Instead of stepping up and being responsible, he instead threw a hissy fit that nearly got him and his boyfriend killed within the first 10,000 words. I was not happy. It got my story rolling though.
3. If you're still stuck, take a break. Step away, you may be getting frustrated. And while it's nice to finish, you shouldn't kill yourself getting there. Browse the forums, the people are exceedingly friendly and it may help stimulate your motivation! I find that when I'm at a block, my forum count increases by 50 posts almost each time.
4. If you're still stuck, jump ahead in the timeline to something you're more interested in writing. You're possibly getting bored and all the boring bits can be filled in later while you're editting. So jump to a fight scene, or a sex scene.
5. If you're still stuck, then break out the plot ninjas. All you have to do is add one ninja to the front step of your character's house and have said ninja bust in the door and go from there. Not writing historical fiction? Two men in guns. Scifi? Two aliens with ray blasters. It will solve any Writer's Block larger than the Great Wall of China, guaranteed. For smaller Blocks, see 2-4.
6. Getting sleep is important. You can only run on so much caffeine before you crash. Forestall a crash by taking a weekend off or so. Usually I get a good head of steam going in the first two weeks and then burn out during week 3. I take a breather, maybe two or three days, and then get back to my story refreshed and ready to deliver some pain to my characters.
7. Sustinence is key in novel-writing. Getting the right foods will keep your mind focused and alert to face the challenges your character throw at you. So brow-beat your roommate until she feeds you. :D
8. Coffee is your best friend. It is a lot healthier than those energy drinks, and does just as effective a job. I also live on Vitamin water and chocolate mints. Make sure you have munchies within arms reach. Sometimes you just cannot stop writing to get something to eat. Placing your box of Cheeze-its at your desk negates the need to leave the keyboard.
9. Find a buddy to write with. Someone who will drag you through your wordcount if need be. You can support each other. I took on a few newbies one year and one of them (you know who you are) actually managed to pull me through a few thousand words during my darkest hour. You can do 15 minute sprints with each other, which is always fun. If you win you can rub it into your friend's face. That makes them try harder next time.
10. Last but not least: LEAVE THE EDITTING FOR MARCH! Don't worry about typos. You can fix them later. They become nanoisms and everyone gets a chuckle. You wouldn't want to ruin that for the forum readers, would you? here's a few gems of mine:
"They all kept getting dick"
Should have been: They all kept getting sick
"He slipped his injured arm into the shit first, and then his other."
Should have been: He slipped his injured arm into the shirt first, and then his other
See, if I had been editting, I never would have let these happen! Ignore your inner editor. Tell him/her to go away and hide until March. It keeps you sane and you have a lot more fun.
If you need me for wrimo, just drop me a line:
AIM: TresaCho
MSN: tresa.cho[at]gmail[dot]com
Y!M: tresacho[at]rocketmail[dot]com