As the end of November approaches, so does the finish of National Novel Writing Month, and the novels of thousands of participants.
[pullquote]“Write the stories you want to read, not the stories you want to write.” Jenna Moreci, science fiction writer.[/pullquote]
To recap, NaNoWriMo is a competition of sorts to encourage writers of all ages, backgrounds, and genres to write. An aspiring or established author can enter and write a 50,000 word novel, and then they are accepted into the NaNoWriMo community, given access to publishers’ and authors’ critiques, and offered special deals with companies like Scrivener, Masterclass, and Pronoun.
The whole purpose is to simply encourage writers to write without fear of failure. The only requirement is to have 50,000 words or more by the end of the month, not to have a perfectly edited story ready for publishing. This fact drastically affected my desire to compete.
My Experience
The outcome of this month of writing was not what I originally wanted for myself. I did not complete the 50,000 word challenge, and, in fact, I fell short by many words. However, I still came out of it with an encouraged spirit and an even stronger desire to write.
To me, that means I didn’t really fail, I just delayed my success.
[pullquote]Find a mentor, read a lot, write every day, make a road map, and don’t get discouraged. “Writing a book is always hard work. It’s much easier to think of new ideas. You’ll get to the middle of a manuscript and you’ll think, ‘Oh, this is too hard. I think I’ll start another book instead and that will be easier.’ DON’T! That new book won’t be any easier. Soldier through and finish.” Rick Riordan, adult and young adult fiction writer.[/pullquote]
I will outline the things I believe I did wrong, the things I did right, and the ways NaNoWriMo helps writers and some resources I found helpful during my writing experience.
What I Did Wrong
I started writing for NaNoWriMo on Nov. 1st by outlining my basic plot and main characters. That was the extent of my preparation, and I wish I had done more. It took me longer to begin writing because I had to make decisions for my main characters without thoroughly knowing their motivations.
- I could have done this better by mapping out my characters’ physical appearance, major and minor motivations, goals, and faults. That would have made scene writing much easier.
Another issue I had was finding a consistent time to write. I tried to wake up early in the morning, have coffee, and write at least 2,000 words per day, but that did not fit with my personality or schedule.
- What I decided to do was to write or plan scenes anytime I thought of surfing social media and during the weekends and holidays when homework and sleep were not big problems. I realized I surfed social media around two hours every day, and that really surprised me. When I learned this, I decided that writing meant more to me than Facebook.
Finally, I felt bad for not staying on track for the month. The feeling made me want to write even less and totally derailed my progress for a week and a half.
- What I could have done instead was to understand the meaning behind NaNoWriMo. The goal is to inspire people to write, not to slave over finishing the 50,000 words. I am under the impression that while anyone can write 50,000 words in a month, not everyone should. Each aspiring writer should work toward finding a writing plan that works for them.
What I Did Right
My favorite thing that I did during the competition was to team up with a friend of mine and stay accountable to him. Together, we updated each other on our word count, our struggles, and what we liked and disliked about our books. It was so encouraging to talk to someone who was in the same position as I was.
I also liked the way I kept trying to write, even when the story felt blocked or bland. When writing got hard, I went into character development. If something stopped character development, like my horrible fashion sense, I would consult friends or the internet for more information about the time period and color coordination. Just sticking with the writing process was very important to me, and though I did not meet the 50,000 words, I felt I did well creating a story I and readers will one day love.
NaNoWriMo and Other Helpful Resources
NaNoWriMo has several neat features that help a writer continue growing. For example, there is a place on the NaNoWriMo website to upload the word count of the novel for the day and a graph to track progress. The website also lets writers connect with each other and become writing “buddies,” read a blog with advice and humor, and stay updated with the news from people in the writer’s “region.”
[pullquote]“Whether it’s a vignette of a single page or an epic trilogy like ‘The Lord of the Rings,’ the work is always accomplished one word at a time.” Stephen King.[/pullquote]
Each state has many NaNoWriMo regions in which writers can meet and write and connect with each other in person. My closest region was Tyler/Longview, so I never had the chance to meet since I reside in Lufkin. Hopefully, NaNoWriMo will grow in popularity in our area, and there will be a region in the Lufkin/Nacogdoches area.
As Providence or luck would have it, I recently ran into the municipal liaison for the Longview/Tyler region of NaNoWriMo, Laura Beaird, and she gave me advice very similar to what I had learned through this process. Beaird is a senior studying creative writing at Stephen F. Austin State University and a tutor at the SFA Academic Assistance and Resource Center. It just so happened that she met with me at AARC on Wednesday to talk about time management, and I found out she was the municipal liaison.
Beaird told me she also did not reach the 50,000 words for the month, but she gave me some excellent advice.
“Not all of your goals can be reached, but that’s OK,” Beaird said. “You can just roll with it and move on, getting better each time.”
A resource outside of NaNoWriMo I found was Airtable. Airtable is a free website that allows users to make lists, upload pictures and information, and create tables of many different kinds. It has free templates available for travel planning, book cataloging, applying to grad schools or other places, and more.
When a co-worker showed me the book planning template on Airtable, I was sold.
Other resources include advice from successful writers and/or publishers, especially from writers of one’s favorite books. Chances are, a successful writer will have tips on their website or even a YouTube channel. Reach out to the greats and the unknowns alike, but don’t just stick to one preferred genre. Even if the goal is to write one specific genre or style, it is still helpful to seek out advice from all sorts of authors because challenging oneself is immensely important.
Hopefully, what can be gained from the NaNoWriMo experience is that any person can become a writer if they put in the effort and accept their writing for what it is: a rough draft. A wise English professor I once had in college said that a successful writer knows a work is never truly finished. Words are a work of art and a living, breathing entity with the eternal potential to get better.
