Have you successfully launched your NaNoWriMo project? What are you writing about? How many words have you written? Are you stuck yet?
We want to hear from everyone who’s participating, so don’t be shy. Whether you’ve written 50 words or 10,000, if you’re moving forward, that’s all that counts. Tell us what you’re working on and how you’re feeling about things so far.
Nov 6, 2023Liked by Jackie Dana, Chevanne Scordinsky, Alexx Hart
I'm over 10,000... mostly a combination of sketching out characters and putting some scaffolding up for my novel structure. I have the beginning and end of the novel and have written scenes with dialogue based on where my interest and energy lives.
Voice right now is the toughest thing for me to find for each character. It seems super important to establish distinguished voices and points of view so I can hit that sweet spot if juxtaposing ideas and create some heat and energy.
I am posting daily in notes and excerpt to help with accountability.
Anyone have some articles/ resources to recommend for creating voice?
Nov 6, 2023Liked by Chevanne Scordinsky, Alexx Hart
If you build a dramatis personae / character sheet that should guide the voices. You wrote the end already, which is something I never do. Getting the voices to fit into achieving that end might be easier for you. In general, I think some of the villains should be smooth and measured and some of the heroes might be a little rough around the edges/ caustic just so you're not telegraphing. George RR Martin is a master of that.
Nov 6, 2023Liked by Chevanne Scordinsky, Alexx Hart
Thank you for commenting in your advice! I'll look for some character sheet ideas. I've just basically been doing character sketches with as much back on as possible to develop preferences and quirks and backstory.
Right on! Once you’ve filled in those sheets the details will also give you a great start for something that helps me immensely. To either write the same scene in different 1st person perspectives or answer the same set of questions in 1st person. Even have different characters say the same thing: “Yes, ma’am, absolutely. Thank you.” Vs “Yup.” 😜 This gives me each character’s style and how they use: contractions, slang, grammar, word length/syllable complexity, sentence structure/complexity, flow & comprehension (um...like...ya know...uh...sentence fragments cut off mid-thought, run-on ramblings, interrupting themselves and/or others, monosyllabic grunting, personality intensity, etc), body language, tone, directness/avoidance of communication, honesty to others and to themselves...
I started with 3 characters of vastly different education, economic, class, nationality, gender, and personality types and got the crash course by writing a series in multiple person 1st person POV. 🤪🤯😵 But it gave me the above criteria I always consider when distinguishing character voices--whether for dialogue or narration. After the big picture portraits have been painted, the geeky fun for me is having two similar characters (similar siblings, twins, besties, people who hang out together all the time) and constructing the little idiosyncrasies that, if you didn’t name them, would still distinguish them in glaring clarity for readers who know them really well.
I hope that helps and gives you some fun toys! Congrats on the 10K marker!
Nov 6, 2023Liked by Jackie Dana, Chevanne Scordinsky, Alexx Hart
Knowing that Thanksgiving never gives time to write, I've already gotten a day ahead of schedule with writing. Establishing the Thanksgiving buffer is an important part of early NaNo for me.
In terms of actual story, my portal fantasy has been slow paced because I'm taking the time to dig into what I want to, the relationships between characters. But there are little scenes at the start of each chapter separate from the rest that make it clear more is being set into motion. Still definitely not for people who get bored by characters talking and telling stories.
For this project especially I'm not sure how other people will view it since the protagonist takes so much from me. So having friends to share it with is good. Reader reactions always feel like a bit of a mystery to me.
Going to try to give a rough 'book back' synopsis. A boy named Sora and his uncle/ legal guardian Akio wake up one day in the fantastical world of Abraxion, where humanity is an extinct race from legends. Akio quickly accepts a political marriage with the naga king Prasert until they return home, hoping to better protect Sora, much to Sora's frustration.
Despite Sora's untrusting nature, especially towards his new parent, he slowly comes to open up to the people of Abraxion. But the demon king's mysterious human generals have their sights set on Sora and a terrible power that lies dormant within him, one that could destroy any hope of making a new life for himself, and even Abraxion itself.
But as I've said before, I'm kinda cheating with this challenge because the bulk of what's there (and going to be there) is already written beforehand. Honestly, the whole thing felt like a mess because so far I've been mashing together a bunch of stories that originally have nothing to do with each other into one coherent narrative.
I expect things to somewhat slow down when I run into my WIP story that I still need to finish.
Nov 6, 2023Liked by Jackie Dana, Chevanne Scordinsky, Alexx Hart
I had a good weekend on the research side, on my two fronts. For the main project, finally reading The Girl Who Was Plugged In. For the side project, reading in more depth about vaso-vagal syncope, and about the question of whether the adrenal glands are always taken with the kidney in cancer for Wilms Tumour.
Nov 6, 2023Liked by Jackie Dana, Chevanne Scordinsky, Alexx Hart
My new fantasy novel ( along the lines of Tad Williams, Gemmell, early Feist ) is at 9500+ on NaNo, but I did write 2490 words of it prior to deciding at the very last minute to sign up for NaNo. I'm glad I did. It's pushing me and I'm happy with the content though I feel like in the middle of a long hurdle race I might have to pause to tie every character's shoes.
Hello! This is my first NaNoWriMo and I am about 6,000 words into a novel. I've been thinking about writing it for several years now. It's terrifying to finally begin, but also feels right. I want a first draft. I want to hold a printed manuscript in my hands.
I am aiming for 1100 words a day, which would mean I would finish the book in 2-3 months. I'm grateful to follow alongside all of you as you navigate your own projects. It's nice to feel less alone!
Hi all! It's great to see everyone having success with their stories and making all this progress! I want to reply to each and every one of your comments but I feel like I need to save my words for NaNoWriMo.
If you are struggling or have any questions or need any ideas/resources, please don't be shy about chiming in. Sometimes it can feel daunting to take on this challenge only to see others with success stories when you are behind or not achieving the goals you set for yourself. So I hope anyone who feels this way will also comment.
And one more point: even if you haven't started writing yet, you can still jump in. NaNoWriMo lasts all November long and all new words are good words, so if all you write is a 3000 short story or a single novel chapter you wouldn't have written otherwise, you're still a winner in my book!
As for me, I'm just shy of 12K this morning on book 3 of my oldest trilogy, the Chronicles of Sarducia (I published the first one, By Moonrise, on Amazon back in 2015). This novel had its genesis at least 20 years ago, as I had ideas that didn't fit into book 1. But figuring out how to start it was a huge problem - so much so that I ended up writing book 2 to give me more of a transition. Anyway, I've tried for years and years to figure out the story issues, and I landed here at this NaNoWriMo, with book 2 complete, determined to sort it out.
And, miraculously, I have! Seriously, the story is unfolding perfectly and I am so happy with it. Just last night, in fact, I wrote the heretofore most problematic scene (what takes my protagonist out of her current world and into the new one) and I think for once it actually works. I can't tell you what a relief this is, as it allows me to move forward and pull together many of the pieces I already have in a logical way. If I stopped now, NaNo would already be a success for me - and I still have most of the month to go. Can I finish this novel by December? It actually seems possible!
I'm taking another run at a past project, found myself in the day 5 doldrums, and pushed through a bit, now to catch up after the weekend of lax fooling around. On track with over 1650 words until I hit the wall, this week will tell the tale!
Making it my own, I'm switching to editing soon so I don't get caught in the fun of writing and then have even more to edit later on. It's a different mindset.
Any idea on how to track it so I still have a positive word count and feel that tiny reward at the end of the day?
I've used "one hour of editing = 1000 words" equation (during Camp NaNoWriMos), which seems fair if you can do a solid hour without many distractions.
Personally, I won't edit while I'm drafting. It's a method I learned doing my first NaNo and it made me a better and more productive writer. But to each their own! :)
Nov 6, 2023Liked by Jackie Dana, Chevanne Scordinsky, Alexx Hart
I was about 25,000 words into a novel that I had been working on for months, being lucky to average 500 words a day. NaNoWriMo was my attempt to kick up the word count, and so far it has really worked for me. I have over 11,000 words written, although today because of medical appointments I won't do as well. However, what has worked for me is my willingness to dump fragments of previously written drafts that I deleted for earlier books in the series, and the short sentence outlines I produce (I am a planner) and then doing more editing than new writing. This has sped up the process...a bit messy...but it is working. I can actually imagine finishing the first draft now in 3-4 months!
Yes, I have launched. I'm probably 6k words in. Meaning I'm behind. But I'll catch up quickly. I'm writing book 4 of my novel series. The book is a mystery novel entitled, Sesame Swallow and the Secret of the Missing Fucks. Art heist. Cryptic clues. Shocking family revelations. A heroine willing to go the extra mile for her friend.
🤣🤩🤣 OMGs I’m dyin’! Secret of the Missing Fucks. If we’re heisting, do we get to hear “Open sesame” somewhere in there? That all sounds marvelously fun!
Actually, I've started throwing together some, um, alternative mysteries in what I'm calling the "Swallow: After Dark" stories, and the first little 6-episode erotic mystery serial absolutely includes the term "Open Sesame". And there is some sexy fun in this novel, too, but not quite at the same level as the After Dark stuff.
I wrote for 2 days and hit a wall! Hoping to pick things back up this week. Honestly, it's proving more difficult to keep up with the same speedy NaNoWriMo cadence I have in past years because I'm juggling more with my Substack and Wattpad now. We'll see if I hit a stride before the next check-in. Fingers crossed. Or not! I'm not really sweating it. 😂
I can't recall what you said your project was, but can you jump to something that excites you? That sometimes helps me. Or maybe you need one of your characters to have a monologue or something. Maybe write a side story?
Right?!?! This is exactly why I didn’t do NaNo last year--because I had a really good rhythm going that I didn’t wanna break.
The only thing saving me in keeping up with my normal triple-publication insanity on Substack right now is the fact that I have 6 years of writing to migrate from my old (nuked) website and another platform, so these pieces only require a bit of formatting and a slight dusting. Easy button. If I do NaNo again once the migration is done I’m gonna have to make sure I front-load the Substack drafts in advance.
I hope you get your rhythm back! And if not, can you straddle the Substack work and the NaNo novel work as a Rebel? I’ve definitely straddled 2 projects some years. The main novel and my palate cleansers from other projects that kept me writing, no matter what. Of course, I’m rarely a purist. I’ve been a Rebel many years. But not everybody has the temperament for that. Here’s to all the pompoms!!!!
I'll pick it up again. I'm posting the first chapter of my WIP on Thursday, so am hopeful a little cheerleading from my peeps will stoke the fire. Either way, I'm not aiming for 50K this round. Will just be happy to get enough of a start on the project to want to finish it. On rebel terms. 🙂
I have been known to do what Alexx suggested - last year I counted Substack words towards NaNo since in the end everything goes towards the singular goal of promoting myself as a writer. This year I have plenty of novel to write, and I have already scaled back my Substack work to finish my previous book, so I'm not doing that this year.
I guess my point is, it's not cheating if you count words from a variety of projects towards your goal, if that works for you. Personally I wouldn't count freelance projects etc. since those words have to be written anyway, but work toward personal projects like Substacks seems like fair game.
I just 🤮🤮🤮 the 16K marker today. Oh yes, the early bird word padding because...Thanksgiving. A gazillion appointments later this week. The Day 20 Fatigue Factor. Unexpected monkeys throwing wrenches between now and the 30th.
(If you’re new or stalled, don’t look at my ridiculata and despair. This is a book overhaul with massive prep and 30 years of subconscious fermentation, not starting from scratch this week.)
Mine is a project I haven’t looked at since 1991. It’s called The Wreck Room, a synchronistic title delivered by the shenanigans of darned dictation. Because one of the primary locales is a place that had been simply called the rec. room and as I was dictating notes this summer, it kept recording it as...yup. Wreck room. “Well, that’s annoying,” I thought...until the magic wand hit me over the head for my never titled novel-wanna-be I started as a teenager.
Especially because this coming of age story that opens in 1987 starts with a big car wreck while coming home from a parentally forbidden concert. Seeing as how this incident catapults the two main siblings from a Minneapolis suburb up to the North Shore of Lake Superior...well...that primary locale can only be called the Wreck Room with its shipping paraphernalia, stormy painting, weathered cap’n nerdy decor, dontcha know. 🤪🤓🤣 So dat dere is my project. (Textylicious snark brought to you by my father, born n bred Minnesota boy. Who yes. Texts dat way to dis day. Even do he’s no Ranger, stranger.)
I love "Wreck Room" so much! And the title sounds perfect. I hear you about front-loading the word count. I just got wrangled into speaking at an all-day event on the Saturday after Thanksgiving! Gah! told the organizer/cafe owner that I would have to leave after my talk since it is still NaNoWriMo! But now I really need to load up the words in advance.
Well, I'm lucky that it's at the same place where I host monthly history talks (associated with my Unseen St. Louis Substack) and I'll be talking about something I've already written about, so the prep is minimal. Still, it wasn't on my November bingo card at all!
Hello! It’s my first NaNo and I’m 10k words in. I’ve been slowly shifting my pace and writing up until midnight to reach my quota, then writing after midnight to get ahead start in the next day. I’m also going to try writing on my lunch hour. I wasn’t stalled but had reached out to some professionals to consult on a part of the book I couldn’t put together. After speaking with two people over the last few days and getting some links, I’m going back to an earlier part of the outline and filling it in. Hope to meet my mark by midnight.
I’m so glad I decided to do NaNo because I'm having so much fun! I caught up to 10k yesterday after a few days sick last week. I’m finally writing scenes that I’ve had outlined and just waiting to be written for almost a year. Act 1 and the beginning of Act 2 are fully outlined, so that will get me to about 25k. I’m still waiting for a few of those “a-ha moments” to click in to figure out the convoluted plot that comes after that! But I’m really enjoying getting back in touch with my characters! 😊 (I'm sgyawriter on NaNo for anyone who wants to connect!)
I have about 5,000 words written. This was a work I had previously started but lost interest in. It's nice watching it progress into something more and now I'm much more involved in it so I every intention of finishing up the first draft in the next month or so.
#nanowrimo 22,548 words and counting. Shot out hard and strong. But, hitting a wall this weekend. Looking at my outline for the rest of my full draft scrambled my brain and fried my imagination. Help! I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed.
You're doing great! Are you feeling like there's too much to do? Or does your outline feel broken? If it's the former, don't focus on ending it... just focus on today's words. You might not get to "the end" by Nov. 30th but you will be SO MUCH CLOSER than you were on Nov. 1st. Or do you feel like you've hit a wall with your story and you're not sure where to go from here? If it's that, then maybe turn to AI. I told ChatGPT everything I knew about my novel project and asked it to do a "save the. cat" outline since that's the structure I (loosely) follow. When I made some changes (cutting out a POV), I had it revise that outline. You can also brainstorm with it and say, given all of this, what could happen next? Or do something like, "given this situation, what if I ___"?
And if you don't know where you're going, it's also okay to explore a side plot or play with characters to get in words. Do an interview with your protagonist (or antagonist). Write some backstory that you might not actually include in the novel. Give yourself a day to design an elaborate setting (a party at a rich person's house or something) or someone's outfit. Turn to some writing prompts and use them to advance your story.
See if any of this helps, and feel free to comment in Monday's new thread with where you're at.
I also wrote a couple of drabbles--hoping they'll be important imagination floss!
I find your use of Chat interesting. I have ideas in my head of conversations and I feel I just need to get it all out versus writing and re-writing it in my head.
Also, I asked for ideas on Facebook and will on Substack next!
Awesome! That's what we're here for! Basically my rule of thumb is:
1) write new words moving story forward unless thats too hard, and if so,
2) write other words within the story but not in any order, unless that isn't working, and then
3) write anything having to do with the story like I suggested, like backstory or whatever.
Most of all keep it fun and keep it moving. If you get stuck or burned out, find something new about the story that's fun. (For me, there always is something).
I'm over 10,000... mostly a combination of sketching out characters and putting some scaffolding up for my novel structure. I have the beginning and end of the novel and have written scenes with dialogue based on where my interest and energy lives.
Voice right now is the toughest thing for me to find for each character. It seems super important to establish distinguished voices and points of view so I can hit that sweet spot if juxtaposing ideas and create some heat and energy.
I am posting daily in notes and excerpt to help with accountability.
Anyone have some articles/ resources to recommend for creating voice?
If you build a dramatis personae / character sheet that should guide the voices. You wrote the end already, which is something I never do. Getting the voices to fit into achieving that end might be easier for you. In general, I think some of the villains should be smooth and measured and some of the heroes might be a little rough around the edges/ caustic just so you're not telegraphing. George RR Martin is a master of that.
Thank you for commenting in your advice! I'll look for some character sheet ideas. I've just basically been doing character sketches with as much back on as possible to develop preferences and quirks and backstory.
You're looking for guideposts that help you develop voice in an already created character?
Yes
Like this? https://www.dabblewriter.com/articles/character-template
Right on! Once you’ve filled in those sheets the details will also give you a great start for something that helps me immensely. To either write the same scene in different 1st person perspectives or answer the same set of questions in 1st person. Even have different characters say the same thing: “Yes, ma’am, absolutely. Thank you.” Vs “Yup.” 😜 This gives me each character’s style and how they use: contractions, slang, grammar, word length/syllable complexity, sentence structure/complexity, flow & comprehension (um...like...ya know...uh...sentence fragments cut off mid-thought, run-on ramblings, interrupting themselves and/or others, monosyllabic grunting, personality intensity, etc), body language, tone, directness/avoidance of communication, honesty to others and to themselves...
I started with 3 characters of vastly different education, economic, class, nationality, gender, and personality types and got the crash course by writing a series in multiple person 1st person POV. 🤪🤯😵 But it gave me the above criteria I always consider when distinguishing character voices--whether for dialogue or narration. After the big picture portraits have been painted, the geeky fun for me is having two similar characters (similar siblings, twins, besties, people who hang out together all the time) and constructing the little idiosyncrasies that, if you didn’t name them, would still distinguish them in glaring clarity for readers who know them really well.
I hope that helps and gives you some fun toys! Congrats on the 10K marker!
Knowing that Thanksgiving never gives time to write, I've already gotten a day ahead of schedule with writing. Establishing the Thanksgiving buffer is an important part of early NaNo for me.
In terms of actual story, my portal fantasy has been slow paced because I'm taking the time to dig into what I want to, the relationships between characters. But there are little scenes at the start of each chapter separate from the rest that make it clear more is being set into motion. Still definitely not for people who get bored by characters talking and telling stories.
For this project especially I'm not sure how other people will view it since the protagonist takes so much from me. So having friends to share it with is good. Reader reactions always feel like a bit of a mystery to me.
Going to try to give a rough 'book back' synopsis. A boy named Sora and his uncle/ legal guardian Akio wake up one day in the fantastical world of Abraxion, where humanity is an extinct race from legends. Akio quickly accepts a political marriage with the naga king Prasert until they return home, hoping to better protect Sora, much to Sora's frustration.
Despite Sora's untrusting nature, especially towards his new parent, he slowly comes to open up to the people of Abraxion. But the demon king's mysterious human generals have their sights set on Sora and a terrible power that lies dormant within him, one that could destroy any hope of making a new life for himself, and even Abraxion itself.
Right now I'm at over 10k words with Project Holy League Universe 3.0. I've gone a long way since my first weekly log: https://germanicuscaesar117.substack.com/p/nanowrimo-2023-log-1
But as I've said before, I'm kinda cheating with this challenge because the bulk of what's there (and going to be there) is already written beforehand. Honestly, the whole thing felt like a mess because so far I've been mashing together a bunch of stories that originally have nothing to do with each other into one coherent narrative.
I expect things to somewhat slow down when I run into my WIP story that I still need to finish.
I had a good weekend on the research side, on my two fronts. For the main project, finally reading The Girl Who Was Plugged In. For the side project, reading in more depth about vaso-vagal syncope, and about the question of whether the adrenal glands are always taken with the kidney in cancer for Wilms Tumour.
My new fantasy novel ( along the lines of Tad Williams, Gemmell, early Feist ) is at 9500+ on NaNo, but I did write 2490 words of it prior to deciding at the very last minute to sign up for NaNo. I'm glad I did. It's pushing me and I'm happy with the content though I feel like in the middle of a long hurdle race I might have to pause to tie every character's shoes.
Hello! This is my first NaNoWriMo and I am about 6,000 words into a novel. I've been thinking about writing it for several years now. It's terrifying to finally begin, but also feels right. I want a first draft. I want to hold a printed manuscript in my hands.
I am aiming for 1100 words a day, which would mean I would finish the book in 2-3 months. I'm grateful to follow alongside all of you as you navigate your own projects. It's nice to feel less alone!
Thanks, Julia
Hi all! It's great to see everyone having success with their stories and making all this progress! I want to reply to each and every one of your comments but I feel like I need to save my words for NaNoWriMo.
If you are struggling or have any questions or need any ideas/resources, please don't be shy about chiming in. Sometimes it can feel daunting to take on this challenge only to see others with success stories when you are behind or not achieving the goals you set for yourself. So I hope anyone who feels this way will also comment.
And one more point: even if you haven't started writing yet, you can still jump in. NaNoWriMo lasts all November long and all new words are good words, so if all you write is a 3000 short story or a single novel chapter you wouldn't have written otherwise, you're still a winner in my book!
As for me, I'm just shy of 12K this morning on book 3 of my oldest trilogy, the Chronicles of Sarducia (I published the first one, By Moonrise, on Amazon back in 2015). This novel had its genesis at least 20 years ago, as I had ideas that didn't fit into book 1. But figuring out how to start it was a huge problem - so much so that I ended up writing book 2 to give me more of a transition. Anyway, I've tried for years and years to figure out the story issues, and I landed here at this NaNoWriMo, with book 2 complete, determined to sort it out.
And, miraculously, I have! Seriously, the story is unfolding perfectly and I am so happy with it. Just last night, in fact, I wrote the heretofore most problematic scene (what takes my protagonist out of her current world and into the new one) and I think for once it actually works. I can't tell you what a relief this is, as it allows me to move forward and pull together many of the pieces I already have in a logical way. If I stopped now, NaNo would already be a success for me - and I still have most of the month to go. Can I finish this novel by December? It actually seems possible!
Oh that’s awesome to hear!!! That IS a win by itself! Woot!!! 🥳 Thanks so much for the hostliciousness, and heck yeah. Save it for the sprints!
I'm taking another run at a past project, found myself in the day 5 doldrums, and pushed through a bit, now to catch up after the weekend of lax fooling around. On track with over 1650 words until I hit the wall, this week will tell the tale!
Making it my own, I'm switching to editing soon so I don't get caught in the fun of writing and then have even more to edit later on. It's a different mindset.
Any idea on how to track it so I still have a positive word count and feel that tiny reward at the end of the day?
I've used "one hour of editing = 1000 words" equation (during Camp NaNoWriMos), which seems fair if you can do a solid hour without many distractions.
Personally, I won't edit while I'm drafting. It's a method I learned doing my first NaNo and it made me a better and more productive writer. But to each their own! :)
thanks, good equation, good tip re: draft vs edit. Onward!!!
I’m the same as you. But that is cool to have an editing equivalent for Rebel Mode. 🤓
I was about 25,000 words into a novel that I had been working on for months, being lucky to average 500 words a day. NaNoWriMo was my attempt to kick up the word count, and so far it has really worked for me. I have over 11,000 words written, although today because of medical appointments I won't do as well. However, what has worked for me is my willingness to dump fragments of previously written drafts that I deleted for earlier books in the series, and the short sentence outlines I produce (I am a planner) and then doing more editing than new writing. This has sped up the process...a bit messy...but it is working. I can actually imagine finishing the first draft now in 3-4 months!
If you learned a new trick that helps you become a more effective/efficient writer, then you're already a winner no matter your word count!
Yes, I have launched. I'm probably 6k words in. Meaning I'm behind. But I'll catch up quickly. I'm writing book 4 of my novel series. The book is a mystery novel entitled, Sesame Swallow and the Secret of the Missing Fucks. Art heist. Cryptic clues. Shocking family revelations. A heroine willing to go the extra mile for her friend.
https://open.substack.com/pub/sjstone/p/food-fight?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=43kcb
🤣🤩🤣 OMGs I’m dyin’! Secret of the Missing Fucks. If we’re heisting, do we get to hear “Open sesame” somewhere in there? That all sounds marvelously fun!
Actually, I've started throwing together some, um, alternative mysteries in what I'm calling the "Swallow: After Dark" stories, and the first little 6-episode erotic mystery serial absolutely includes the term "Open Sesame". And there is some sexy fun in this novel, too, but not quite at the same level as the After Dark stuff.
Whoooah... Annnnnnd link to excerpts saved. Cuz I’m starving and needz to go eats. 👹🤩👹
I wrote for 2 days and hit a wall! Hoping to pick things back up this week. Honestly, it's proving more difficult to keep up with the same speedy NaNoWriMo cadence I have in past years because I'm juggling more with my Substack and Wattpad now. We'll see if I hit a stride before the next check-in. Fingers crossed. Or not! I'm not really sweating it. 😂
I can't recall what you said your project was, but can you jump to something that excites you? That sometimes helps me. Or maybe you need one of your characters to have a monologue or something. Maybe write a side story?
Right?!?! This is exactly why I didn’t do NaNo last year--because I had a really good rhythm going that I didn’t wanna break.
The only thing saving me in keeping up with my normal triple-publication insanity on Substack right now is the fact that I have 6 years of writing to migrate from my old (nuked) website and another platform, so these pieces only require a bit of formatting and a slight dusting. Easy button. If I do NaNo again once the migration is done I’m gonna have to make sure I front-load the Substack drafts in advance.
I hope you get your rhythm back! And if not, can you straddle the Substack work and the NaNo novel work as a Rebel? I’ve definitely straddled 2 projects some years. The main novel and my palate cleansers from other projects that kept me writing, no matter what. Of course, I’m rarely a purist. I’ve been a Rebel many years. But not everybody has the temperament for that. Here’s to all the pompoms!!!!
I'll pick it up again. I'm posting the first chapter of my WIP on Thursday, so am hopeful a little cheerleading from my peeps will stoke the fire. Either way, I'm not aiming for 50K this round. Will just be happy to get enough of a start on the project to want to finish it. On rebel terms. 🙂
Niiiiice. Rebels Untie!! ✊ (That’s a combination of rebels doing the opposite of the usual and my Lyzdexia.) 🙃
🙂
I have been known to do what Alexx suggested - last year I counted Substack words towards NaNo since in the end everything goes towards the singular goal of promoting myself as a writer. This year I have plenty of novel to write, and I have already scaled back my Substack work to finish my previous book, so I'm not doing that this year.
I guess my point is, it's not cheating if you count words from a variety of projects towards your goal, if that works for you. Personally I wouldn't count freelance projects etc. since those words have to be written anyway, but work toward personal projects like Substacks seems like fair game.
I just 🤮🤮🤮 the 16K marker today. Oh yes, the early bird word padding because...Thanksgiving. A gazillion appointments later this week. The Day 20 Fatigue Factor. Unexpected monkeys throwing wrenches between now and the 30th.
(If you’re new or stalled, don’t look at my ridiculata and despair. This is a book overhaul with massive prep and 30 years of subconscious fermentation, not starting from scratch this week.)
Mine is a project I haven’t looked at since 1991. It’s called The Wreck Room, a synchronistic title delivered by the shenanigans of darned dictation. Because one of the primary locales is a place that had been simply called the rec. room and as I was dictating notes this summer, it kept recording it as...yup. Wreck room. “Well, that’s annoying,” I thought...until the magic wand hit me over the head for my never titled novel-wanna-be I started as a teenager.
Especially because this coming of age story that opens in 1987 starts with a big car wreck while coming home from a parentally forbidden concert. Seeing as how this incident catapults the two main siblings from a Minneapolis suburb up to the North Shore of Lake Superior...well...that primary locale can only be called the Wreck Room with its shipping paraphernalia, stormy painting, weathered cap’n nerdy decor, dontcha know. 🤪🤓🤣 So dat dere is my project. (Textylicious snark brought to you by my father, born n bred Minnesota boy. Who yes. Texts dat way to dis day. Even do he’s no Ranger, stranger.)
Lexx: 🎤💥
I love "Wreck Room" so much! And the title sounds perfect. I hear you about front-loading the word count. I just got wrangled into speaking at an all-day event on the Saturday after Thanksgiving! Gah! told the organizer/cafe owner that I would have to leave after my talk since it is still NaNoWriMo! But now I really need to load up the words in advance.
Oh gosh! The holiday AND speaking event?! I wish I had my GIF keyboard access here. There are several rabid keyboard pounders that I’d respond with.
It’s always nice when a DumbPhone moment gives you gold. ✨🥰✨
Well, I'm lucky that it's at the same place where I host monthly history talks (associated with my Unseen St. Louis Substack) and I'll be talking about something I've already written about, so the prep is minimal. Still, it wasn't on my November bingo card at all!
Indeed. Well that’ll help!
Hello! It’s my first NaNo and I’m 10k words in. I’ve been slowly shifting my pace and writing up until midnight to reach my quota, then writing after midnight to get ahead start in the next day. I’m also going to try writing on my lunch hour. I wasn’t stalled but had reached out to some professionals to consult on a part of the book I couldn’t put together. After speaking with two people over the last few days and getting some links, I’m going back to an earlier part of the outline and filling it in. Hope to meet my mark by midnight.
Good luck out there, friends!
Look at you - you're doing great! Keep it up my friend!
Thanks!
I’m so glad I decided to do NaNo because I'm having so much fun! I caught up to 10k yesterday after a few days sick last week. I’m finally writing scenes that I’ve had outlined and just waiting to be written for almost a year. Act 1 and the beginning of Act 2 are fully outlined, so that will get me to about 25k. I’m still waiting for a few of those “a-ha moments” to click in to figure out the convoluted plot that comes after that! But I’m really enjoying getting back in touch with my characters! 😊 (I'm sgyawriter on NaNo for anyone who wants to connect!)
That's awesome! I'm so glad you're enjoying it. That means you're doing it right! 🥰
I have about 5,000 words written. This was a work I had previously started but lost interest in. It's nice watching it progress into something more and now I'm much more involved in it so I every intention of finishing up the first draft in the next month or so.
#nanowrimo 22,548 words and counting. Shot out hard and strong. But, hitting a wall this weekend. Looking at my outline for the rest of my full draft scrambled my brain and fried my imagination. Help! I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed.
You're doing great! Are you feeling like there's too much to do? Or does your outline feel broken? If it's the former, don't focus on ending it... just focus on today's words. You might not get to "the end" by Nov. 30th but you will be SO MUCH CLOSER than you were on Nov. 1st. Or do you feel like you've hit a wall with your story and you're not sure where to go from here? If it's that, then maybe turn to AI. I told ChatGPT everything I knew about my novel project and asked it to do a "save the. cat" outline since that's the structure I (loosely) follow. When I made some changes (cutting out a POV), I had it revise that outline. You can also brainstorm with it and say, given all of this, what could happen next? Or do something like, "given this situation, what if I ___"?
And if you don't know where you're going, it's also okay to explore a side plot or play with characters to get in words. Do an interview with your protagonist (or antagonist). Write some backstory that you might not actually include in the novel. Give yourself a day to design an elaborate setting (a party at a rich person's house or something) or someone's outfit. Turn to some writing prompts and use them to advance your story.
See if any of this helps, and feel free to comment in Monday's new thread with where you're at.
JUST DON'T GIVE UP! 😊
You are very motivating! I won't stop. THANK YOU!
Today I decided to take a mental break and give back by raising up amazing writers: https://medium.com/read-or-die/so-many-medium-writers-delivered-amazing-stories-to-us-b9be200502fa.
I also wrote a couple of drabbles--hoping they'll be important imagination floss!
I find your use of Chat interesting. I have ideas in my head of conversations and I feel I just need to get it all out versus writing and re-writing it in my head.
Also, I asked for ideas on Facebook and will on Substack next!
THANKS again - your note is helpful to me.
Awesome! That's what we're here for! Basically my rule of thumb is:
1) write new words moving story forward unless thats too hard, and if so,
2) write other words within the story but not in any order, unless that isn't working, and then
3) write anything having to do with the story like I suggested, like backstory or whatever.
Most of all keep it fun and keep it moving. If you get stuck or burned out, find something new about the story that's fun. (For me, there always is something).