WRITING
It’s October Which Means it’s Preptober
NaNoWriMo is right around the corner.
November is full of family, turkey, football, and all things pumpkins! And for those crazy people who think that writing 50,000 words in a month is fun, there is NaNoWriMo.
For those new around here, NaNoWriMo is a non-profit organization that challenges authors, writers, novelists, dreamers, doers, and pretty much anyone who is willing to take on a challenge to write 50,000 words which is an average size for most novels.
Their website says it best: “National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to creative writing.”
Now I bet most of you are trying to do the math in your head. Let’s see, take 50,000 and divide it by 30 that equals — drum roll please— 1667 words written each day!
Sounds like a lot, well that’s because it is. But trust me it’s doable!
2018 was my first attempt at NaNoWriMo.
I first heard about this challenge on a podcast earlier in the year. I remember thinking that it sounds like a daunting task and a newbie writer like myself had no chance to achieve it. In a roundabout way, I was correct.
You know the famous quote from Henry Ford, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t — you’re right.”
Yep, I had already made up my mind that this was something that I could never complete.
When fall rolled around, I completely forgot about it till my social media blew up. My fellow writing community was posting their goals, ambitions, and outlines for the upcoming month. So on November 1st, I gave it a try!
Technically the challenge is to start a new novel but with my lack of experience, I figured this was a great opportunity to test my limits. I worked on my very first novel that had 8,792 words written.
The goal of 1,667 words scared me to death, so I customized my goal and focused on 1,000 words each day. And guess what, I wrote nearly every day ending the month at 36,055 words.
I tracked my progress using the simple Notes app on my phone:
Of course watching the progress of my book was exciting but it was rather fulfilling to record my final number at the end of each day.
I’ll help you with the math, I was approximately 2,700 words shy from reaching my 30K word goal. Seriously, not too shabby for someone who was averaging about 500 words a week which breaks down to an average of 60 words a day.
Looking back now after a year has passed, I am actually really impressed with my growth as a writer. I 100% write way faster. I no longer edit as I type the first draft and I give myself grace when the words seem aloof.
So I am excited to see how this year goes! In fact, I am heading into this NaNoWriMo better prepared.
October is the month to prepare that story outline
Are you a “panster” or a “planner?”
Allow me to explain…a panster is someone who writes a book “flying off the seed of their pants.” Hence the name PANTSer, get it? Or are you a planner? You create a detailed outline that pretty much tells the story before even starting it.
I like to think I am a mixture of both. At least for now.
With my first novel, I knew the beginning and the end in such detail that I could hardly wait to get it typed onto the page. However, the middle was very murky and nearly my breaking point.
With this in mind, I plan to outline better this year.
During the murky middle, I drafted bullet points which sorta helped but didn’t provide a strong enough outline. In brief, I knew where the story was going but did NOT feel confident about it either.
With 31 days in October, now is the perfect time to put pen to paper.
Literally, pull out your idea notebook and start that outline!
How to build an effective storyline
You have this idea and can’t seem to shake it. In fact, your palms are twitching to type out the story.
Whether you choose to let the story flow organically or choose a detailed outline, I recommend jotting down some ideas. When you’re feeling stuck, reference back to the notes and hopefully, this will spark inspiration.
This NaNoWriMo I plan to actually create a detailed outline. I’ll be attempting the full 50K so I want to start the month as strong as possible.
Failure to plan is a plan for failure.
I am no expert in outlining. In fact, this will be my first attempt! Here is my plan of action on creating one:
Character Profiles - get to know the characters in detail before starting on the adventure. This includes names, background, personality traits, physical features, fears, hobbies, favorite things in life, pretty much anything and everything. Getting to know my characters in detail will help with the development of the story along with their growth throughout. Feeling stuck? I suggest checking out Pinterest and/or Instagram to see if an image sparks an idea.
Theme - this is the why behind the story. What is the underlying message? This creates a deeper meaning for the novel and helps the reader feel apart of something bigger. As a writer, I’m taking the reader on a journey but I want to leave an impression after “The End”.
PLOT CREATION: Problem, Climax, Solution - this is where the actual sequencing of the story is outlined. Also, this will help develop the proper pacing for the novel. The story shouldn’t be too fast-paced because the reader may get lost or confused. But going too slow, the reader may get bored and stop reading altogether. That’s why I suggest building 1 or 2 strong plot builders to maintain pacing. The problem is what characters are facing in the story, the climax is the “adventure” they embark on to resolve the issue and the solution is the lesson learned or the final outcome of the problem. Need further clarification? Check out this blog post by Jerry Jenkins. He does a fantastic job of explaining the plot without making it too complicating.
I always write my outline using pen and paper. There’s more authentication to my story when I just spend some alone time with my notebook creating my storyline.
Now it’s time to write
The novel has been outlined. Excitement is maxed out and November is approaching. Now sign up online and meet that word count!
Here are additional tips before starting this exciting endeavor:
- Break up the word count throughout the day. Some authors can sit down and type their word count in one sitting. That’s not me, so I break up my writing throughout the day. During my 15 minute breaks at work, I can usually type 300 words and I average around 600 words during my 45-minute lunch break. Leaving me approximately 500 words to finish at the end of the day. This is manageable. Otherwise, I stay up way past my bedtime to achieve that daily word count.
- Type every single day of November. Try your hardest to never miss a day — otherwise, your word count will double, triple even quadruple after missing a few days. I don’t know about you, but I have never successfully written 5,000 words in one day. There are authors who do this on a daily basis, I am not one of them.
- Lastly, have fun and connect with others who are participating within the writing community. In fact, follow me on IG as I share my raw emotions with NaNoWriMo this year. The writing community is very welcoming and you never truly feel alone while on this journey of becoming a novelist.
I am looking forward to November and ready to take on the challenge. Are you ready to push your boundaries as a writer?
I wrote this article in 2019 and never published it.
For NaNoWriMo last year, I wrote 25K words and became lost within the murky middle and simply stopped. And it has been collecting dust ever since that fateful day.
2020 has been…interesting, to say the least.
However, my writing habits have improved and so has my discipline but I haven’t worked on a novel since January.
Officially we are 1day away from November 1st and I’ve decided to participate once again in NaNoWriMo. But I am doing it my way this year. In fact, I feel called to revisit my third novel started earlier in 2020. The characters are begging for my return, and so, I shall go.
So here is my commitment to NaNoWriMo — I will write 1,000 words a day. Or close enough. In fact, if I show up daily to write on my novel, that’s good enough for me!
Hope that you can do the same, without placing too much pressure on yourself. Writing is still working toward your goal, even if the word count is smaller.
KW Davis is a freelance writer during the day and a novelist at night. Articles are centered around helpful writing tips, self-growth insight, and encouraging words to all. Explore other writing pieces at writekwdavis.com 🖤
