You've been preparing all year for NaNoWriMo, writing shorts, flash, and even dabbling in poetry. All for the mad dash to submit in September. What do you do in October to stay committed to your craft in preparation for National Novel Writing Month?
NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month, is one of my favorite parts of the year. There's a website created just for people who want to participate and try their hand at writing 50,000 words in one month. The best thing about the website is the resources and tools. I recommend taking a peek at what lies ahead at least a month before. You would assume sitting down every day to write a novel is easy, but sometimes, you just want to curl up on the couch after a long day at work, picking your nose. With NaNoWriMo's website, there is no lack of motivation.
The second-best thing about NaNoWriMo is the prizes. You get badges for participating passively by logging your word count or actively by engaging with others in the community. You would be surprised by how insular your insecurities about progress can be. I've had days when I didn't hit my daily word count and went into the forums to learn that others were thousands of words below their goal, just like me. We are not monoliths: everyone has bad days and creative slumps, too. I've had days where I logged in just to keep my streak going, not thinking I had anything worth writing, then sat at my computer, hammering away for three hours. It's the prizes for writing streaks that do it for me.
If you want to avoid the Fall Fiction creative drought, I can think of no better way to commit to your craft. Just don't go into it thinking you're writing the next Great American Novel. Go in to create the best writer version of You. Flush out ideas, stay motivated, and seek support when you feel like you're running on fumes. Below, I've made a list of Five Steps for Preparing for NaNoWriMo with additional resources you can use in advance.
Some links may require you sign up for a NaNoWriMo account, others are there for immediate use.
Writing Prompt Bursts
The first year I participated in NaNoWriMo, the piece I worked on came from an idea generator on the website. I listed as many nouns as I could in a box, and the selection of three were selected as the themes of what I was to write. My three were Books, Wine, and Library. My genre was Mystery. Tell me you haven't seen a cozy mystery with those themes, and I'll ask if you've ever shopped in the mystery section of a Barnes and Noble. Turn on Lifetime Movie Network and see at least five films, all tackling similar themes. What I wrote wasn't new, but I was at least writing a story with subjects I enjoyed. I even discovered a few factoids about wine along the way. All this combined to make NaNoWriMo's intention clearer: write what moves you. If you go in without a direction, you'll get lost and lose interest along the way. We're not writing Pulitzer Prize-winning novels, here. Those can take a phenomenal human being years! I'm not saying you aren't phenomenal, but let's not be delusional here, okay? The month of November is to develop a manageable routine to get your butt in the chair; to meet a writing goal and keep a commitment to yourself.
But, Candice, I'm not planning on writing a novel; I want to write a collection of Flash Fiction, Short Stories, or a chapbook of poems. I hear you, but what will be the anchor? What ties all your pieces to make the collection cohesive? This is where generating a thread can be worthwhile. You must develop a synopsis or prologue representing your final work. Write short one to two-sentence summaries of sections of your collection. Keep it austere if you don't want to tackle too many writing prompts and muddy the final product.
The concept behind using a generator is to maintain your focus on how to begin and where the piece should ultimately end. The last thing you want is to get to November 15th and realize you've run out of ideas and have no story to tell.
The best way to stick to your end of month word count goal is to make sure you have motivation to hit or surpass your target.
And let's face it, writing a synopsis once you're done can be a challenge.
I'm a big fan of Reedsy, and they've created writing prompts for a variety of story themes. In their list of over 1,800 creative writing prompts, you're sure to find one that matches your chosen genre.
When a cement wall blocks your writing, you can turn to Writers Digest for prompts and plot twists that will keep you spinning with ideas that move your pen.
There are other resources available if you simply google writing prompts, but in addition to NaNoWriMo's resources, the two listed above are certain to help. Go spark an idea.
Revisit Old Pieces
Remember that short story you wrote in that Creative Writing Workshop you took your Junior Year in college? The one you signed up for as a way to get an easy Humanities Lab. Yeah, that one. Did you actually like the story you wrote despite the bashing it took from your group? Revisit that now that you're older and wiser and, hopefully, have read several quality books. How can you flush those exact characters out in dynamic scenes that encourage a reader to flip the page? Even celebrated authors revisit older pieces to inject them with fresh energy. We've all read an unanticipated sequel that makes us appreciate the book that came before. Or a rerelease with new chapters the author just had to include. Those are basically rewrites. Everyone is doing it, and you should too.
We're just newb's who have nothing but time to transform something from rubbish into something more satisfying to read.
I have many pieces I began earlier in the year as short stories. Each one could stand to be further explored. Be it key background elements that can round out a character's motivation or scenes I alluded to that should be flushed out on the page. Maybe I was too mindful of word count and shrunk the piece to fit in 5,000 words. In situations like these there are often unrealized areas of opportunity. Expanding on what you've written is easier than shrinking it into something like Flash, so dig in.
Rest up & Read
So you've decided you want to try your hand at Romantasy. You've seen friends diving into books by people like Sarah J. Maas, Holly Black, and Charissa Weaks, and you're pretty sure you have an idea that fits that genre. The best thing you can do to prepare for what's ahead after generating an idea is to read a few books from that genre. Maybe it's a characterization idea, but you haven't familiarized yourself with the arch a character requires. Or it could be world-building that looks to be your biggest hurdle. Don't just read the books for entertainment; read closely and highlight areas that spark an idea. Get inspired as if you are writing a book review. Soak in the story by building a mental map.
Maybe you are a fan of a particular series and decide to write Fan Fiction for a part of the novel you wish would have been elaborated on. Consider your Romantasy a spin-off. For genre writers, there is no limit to what you can do. Just look at BookTok or YouTube for some creative art projects inspired by these stories.
If you are not a genre writer and instead prefer literary fiction, pick up a recent title from one of your favorite writers and explore titles that other fans of the work have also read. I like to read literary fiction with a gothic twist, so I'll spend time gnawing through Donna Tart's The Secret History and Carlos Ruiz Zafón's The Shadow of the Wind. From these novels, I hope to pull inspiration from crafting scenes bleeding with atmospheric tension. From how a piece of paper is torn from a notepad to the sounds of water as it drips with an echo from a darkened kitchen in the middle of the night. These authors, to me, create suspense that keeps me in a constant state of anticipation, pressing the page to my nose.
Take a break from ideation and read what you want to write, but don't just read - read closely. Pay attention to the details until you feel like you're ready to challenge yourself.
Another part of rest can be establishing where you want to write and spending time setting up your writing nook. Think ahead to what time of day you'll be writing and remove any distractions, replacing them with things like a candle or an electric coaster to keep your warm beverage of choice toasty as you write. Whatever you need in the space to keep you in your seat. Make a ritual out of the writing process that doesn't involve writing before you even begin.
Join a Community
It's hard to write by yourself. Let's face it. A vacuum is only appropriate for removing dog hair. Having a community makes any creative pursuit a more satisfying experience while simultaneously generating fresh ideas. Though NaNoWriMo has a global community of writers, sometimes you need a group closer to home. Your group might just ideate over a game of pool at a local pub. Or, they may all like to meet up for breakfast at a diner on Sundays to discuss their work. The group you choose is up to you. Many local libraries offer writing workshops and other meetings for writers, like two-hour writing sessions. Here, you can connect with people who are brimming with new takes.
You might be stuck on a scene where your character needs to get up a flight of stairs, but you've run out of ideas on what motivates them to get from point A to Point B. Just dropping your query in a group chat can give you fresh thoughts that your singular imagination couldn't see. A writing community's usefulness goes beyond helping you with your characters and plot. A community can encourage you when you feel like giving up. Everyone has hurdles that make sticking with a project challenging. The more you are there to offer support, the more you can also inspire yourself.
If you aren't a social butterfly and leaving your house isn't viable on most days, there are plenty of Facebook groups, Discord Channels, and other community-driven social media platforms where you can find your people. Every writer likes to get feedback on their writing, and online groups can be some of the easiest ways to get that immediately. Start there.
NaNoWriMo also offers writers the gift of Regional and Local groups. You may be writing by yourself in a room, but believe me when I say, you're not alone.
Keep Your Circle in the Loop
You may have a family and kids waiting outside the bathroom just to bombard you when they hear you flush. You might live with grown-up children called roommates. Hell, you might even live alone with a full social calendar. All of these seem far removed from one another for writers, but believe me when I say they are not.
The people you have included in your life are a source of motivation despite the distractions they may cause. Tell your partner about your objectives for the month so they can give you space when it's time for you to write. Let your kids know you will provide yourself with a daily timeout and defer decision-making to the eldest or your spouse. You can even urge your kids to spend an hour working on a creative task they don't often have time for. Let that friend who likes to call you at the most inconvenient of times know what you're working on so they think twice before calling you when they assume you're free to talk. These people will astonish you at how much they keep you on-task. They may even become another branch on your community tree with leaves of ideas you can build a story from.
If you want to take your writing seriously, it starts with the boundaries you designate in your home. It begins with a mutual sense of accountability.
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