5 Tips For NaNoWriMo Survival

I looked at the calendar today, and realized that it’s October 21st.  This means a number of things, chief among them that it will be November 1st in approximately ten days.

Is it just me, or does that thought fill you with a magnificent and insatiable desire to write 50,000 words of a novel in one month?

Since I’ve survived it before and can therefore call myself a “veteran,” I present Beth’s 5 Tips For NaNoWriMo Survival:

1. Be Flexible

Go with the flow.  Roll with the punches.  Whatever.  The point is, what you think your story will be about before you start writing and what your story is actually about are probably two different things.   Chances are you don’t want to spend thirty days in a tug-of-war with your plot and characters, so step down and let them write the story.  Who knows—they might have some good ideas.

2. Think Small

1,667 words per day comes out to around five to six pages of double-spaced text.  Personally, it takes me about an hour to write one double-spaced page.  It goes without saying that most of us won’t be able to get the 1,667 in one sitting.  Take small chunks of it to help you along—ten-minute word wars with crazy writer friends will get you an extra 250 words here and there, or you could pit yourself against the clock for a five-minute micro-burst.  No one doesn’t have the time to do NaNoWriMo; some of us just aren’t as good at managing the time we have.

3. Relax

You’ll get behind at some point.  So when it happens, take a deep breath and keep writing.  I’ve found that the last week of November is usually my most productive—that’s when all the adrenaline kicks in, and you’ll make up for lost time almost without realizing it.

4. Embrace the Cliche

Or the bad writing, or the weak plot, as the case may be.  NaNoWriMo isn’t intended to create publishable material—but it will give you the competitive edge you need to get that first draft on paper.  Chances are the story will change in the first re-write, so let yourself have fun with it.  Tie up the inner editor and toss him in the closet.  You’ll be thankful for it later.

5. Write

As fun as it is to write up these cool numbered lists, there’s really no formula to getting the 50,000.  If you have difficulties along the way, the solution will be to just write. And that’s that.

Oh, yeah—caffeine helps, too.