How Can NaNoWriMo Help Authors?

 

 

One word, people—Community. And productivity. Wait, that’s two words…

Two words, people—Community, productivity, and inspiration. Okay… this isn’t working.

National Write a Novel Month holds a special place in my heart. It was not where I started writing. (I was an eleven-year-old kid under the covers with a flashlight adding love stories to The Outsiders.) It wasn’t where I went professional. (Thank you Romance Writers of America for that.) But NaNo is where I found my grove.

I’m a fast drafter. I can write a 1000 words in an hour if I press. Sixty percent of it will be “was,” “had,” and redundance sentences, but I can do it. I’m also a plotter and usually have my entire novel thought out. (Not the details. Characters tell me stuff all the time as I draft, but they rarely change the plot.) But I don’t write every day. I can go months without new words for a fiction piece. (I’ve been good with these blogs. Crap, now I’ve jinxed it!)

My competitive streak likes to peek its head out once in a while. I’m not malicious, but I love to win things. I like to be first. It goes without saying that eBay is a problem. But I digress. I remember working alongside another new author with my first book. For me, it was a race to the finish (though I tried NOT to be competitive about it). NaNo used to let me compare myself to other writers through the Buddy view and another add-on program. Those features are disabled, and that’s a good thing.

What it boils down to is NaNoWriMo is great for me.

What about you?

Are you looking for writing partners? Buddies, Groups, and Forums will help with that. Find your friends, find local authors, find writers from around the country and the globe. Connection is as easy as responding to a forum post. I’ve found that most authors who participate in NaNo are down-to-earth and approachable. You won’t find the elites who disparage certain genres or types of writing. If you post in a forum something like “I’m drafting an erotic witch story about a bus driver with political aspirations” no one will poo-poo your idea. They may brainstorm with you, ask questions, and cheer you on, though. That’s pretty awesome.

Do you need inspiration? Search for the wonderful messages NaNo sends out from professional authors. They talk about the industry, the head work, the real meat of writing. In our Albany group, our MLs send out inspiring messages all the time. And it’s not just a November thing. The National site has talks and things going on all year round. Again, check to those forums to ask for ideas, encouragement, and support. If you have a local group, read their forums, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram pages.

Do you need to be productive with your own writing? NaNo is a great way to get moving forward whether you are starting a project, finishing one, or dealing with a saggy middle. Besides the November push for an entire novel, there are two “camp” sessions. These mini NaNo events allow you to create your own goal. Rather than fifty thousand, you can choose another number, an editing goal, or even time spent working on your project. The site uses a summer camp theme to inspire authors to write. Look for these events in April and July.

On the same note, having a designated time (month, week, etc.) dedicated to your writing can help you work through blocks, find your story, explore a new genre. In other words, use November to be productive as a writer. I know it’s tough with Thanksgiving in the middle, but check out this list of books written during Nano. If that doesn’t inspire you, I don’t know what will.

I keep singing the praises of my local group, which has blossomed in the past few years. Thanks to the effort of our ML, Shannon, and later by her two co-MLs, Grace and Rose, the Albany group has grown into a wonderful family. Perhaps your local group feels lacking. My advice is to stand up and help the group grow.

Community is one of the best things for writers. Finding other professionals (and amateurs, of course) who love writing, adore story, and want to share. Be a part of it. Put yourself out there. If you are nervous, this is a great year to do it. Since all events must be virtual this year, host a Twitter or Facebook event. You don’t have to turn on a camera. Merely post “Start” and “Stop” to begin. Ask people after a sprint how it went. Begin small or big. Just start.

I could go on (and I have!). In short, National Write a Novel Month can seriously help you as an author to build a community, be inspired, and get that book finished (or started). Please participate!

 

 

 

How To NaNoWriMo

 

 

I promise it’s not that painful.

Signing up. Visit the site here: https://nanowrimo.org/sign_up and create a new account (if you don’t already have one). Make your screen name easy to remember and use. You’ll need it often. Note: There’s no commitment in creating an account. You don’t have to prove you’re a writer or submit anything.

Region. Next, find your region. Writing Community is important and NaNo recognizes that. We all do better when we support each other. Click on the Community menu and select Find A Region. Enter your city/town in the search bar, and join the closest region to you. Some regions are HUGE. The Community menu will now have a Home Region option. Open the menu to find info about people and events in your area. Mine in Albany, NY has tons of links to NaNo things, and the Municipal Liaisons (MLs, for short) will get back to you quickly on the mini chat there.

Profile. It’s not a bad idea to fill in your profile. As mentioned, NaNo is all about community. Filling in a few details about yourself can help you connect to other writers. Open on the My NaNoWriMo tab and select Profile. Click on the small pencil with paper icons under your pic. Add details such as a picture, a bio, your favorite reads, links to your social media, etc..

Creating Your Project. Open the My NaNoWriMo menu and select Projects. The site will list all the projects you’ve announced so far with stats, goals, and dates. Click on Announce New Project. Add a name, status, privacy level, and type of project. When done, press the On to Your Goal button. Give the goal a name like NaNoWriMo 2020, a type of goal, a word count, what type of project (novel, etc.), and a timeline. If you are doing the November challenge, it will fill in the NaNoWriMo 2020 name and 50k goal automatically. But the goal tracker is not just for November. You can also add links to a Spotify playlist and a Pinterest Board. If you are feeling very creative, add a cover for your project. (Simple book covers are easy to create on Canva. See my April 14, 2020 post.) Click Save Goal.

Now go write the novel.

Word Count. Click on the small plus sign on the top of the header on the website. (Be sure the correct project is listed in the dialog box.) Add your word count—either the total of the project written or the daily count. Click on one of the emojis to tell how the writing went. (optional) Click on more options to add further details—where, how, length of writing session. Click Update Progress. You can also add the data through the Update Project button on the home page, which lists all your projects.

Stats. NaNoWriMo generates a graph of the data entered. Click on the My NaNoWriMo button and choose Stats. This page is a marvel. It shows your progress in both a circle to complete, a line graph, and a bar graph. It lists all your updates on your project and recommends how many words to write to keep on track for the goal. (During November, each day is a mere 1,667.) It also tracks the time of day you write, your mode, your writing implement. (All these are optional but fun.)

Writing Badges. As you work, you will earn writing badges for your progress. They are token digital pictures to celebrate your writing. It’s a nice little boost to give you credit for the work you are doing. The badges are displayed on the home page. Things such as First Update, 10k Words, 20 Days in a Row are just some of the badges you can earn.

Personal Badges. You can also give yourself personal badges. Open the My NaNoWriMo menu and select Projects. Click on the current Project and click Badges in the center of the screen (just over your cover). Here you can earn badges for being a Planner or a Pantser, Voting, Making a Playlist, and many others. It’s fun and validating.

Finishing. Once you have completed your goal, you will be crowned a winner. For NaNo events such as November’s challenge and the two camps, there are actual prizes for winning. Many sponsors have coupons and discounts for products. The site itself will give you a digital certificate, and pictures to use on social media for bragging rights.

It’s that easy. It’s that hard (the writing part). If you get stuck, hit the Help Desk button on the header. They are wonderful in getting newbies (or old confused writers like myself) through technical issues.

Happy Writing!

NaNoWriMo

 

November is upon us, and writers out there are chanting, “Nano, Nano!” If you haven’t heard, November is National Write a Novel Month. The website/group challenges authors to write a 50,000-word book in just thirty days. What? How can this be done? Well, with 1,667 words a day, you too can write a novel in a month. Okay, let me back up.

National Write a Novel Month is, at its base, a challenge to write—to put pen to paper, fingers to keyboard, pencil to cardboard, and dash out a whole book quickly. It started over twenty years ago with a small group of authors challenging each other to finish a book in a month. It’s grown widely over the years. Now with upwards of half a million people participating, the community and contest have become a part of the writing community vernacular.

NaNoWriMo is touted as a contest, with those hitting the 50k goal deemed “winners.” What do you win? A set of coupons and some digital pics for your social media. What? That’s it for writing an entire book? The point of the site/forums/contest is to get people writing and support them throughout the drafting of a novel.

Rules (if you choose to comply…) are as follows: You must start a new project on November 1st and write at least 1,667 words each day. No cheating. No reworking old work. No editing old work. Nothing but fresh words on the same project all month. If you be a rebel, none of the rules apply.

What can you write? Anything and everything, as long as it’s the same project. Or not, if you rebel. You can enter word counts on the website to track your progress. You can also team up with friends through Buddies or find local writers through your region and forums.

If the rules don’t matter and the points don’t count (I say in a Drew Carey voice) then what’s the point? Writing, community, and resources are the point. NaNoWriMo gets the writer off the couch, at the workstation, and writing with tons of support.

 

 

 

 

Ideas for Using Scrivener

 

What can I say? Scrivener is one of the most perfect apps for writers. It’s designed to create books, novels, scripts, epic poems, and nonfiction masterpieces. How can you use this program to enhance your writing? Start by opening up a doc and playing. There’s so much inside this program that will strengthen your writing process. Here are a few of my favorites.

Word Count—Deadlines are a thing, whether you are under contract, participating in National Write A Novel Month, or just trying to learn your own process. Scrivener has a great word count feature to help you keep on track whatever your time restraint.  Under the Project menu, use the Project Targets option to set up your goals. The app will keep track of the total goal and the word count for each session. The feature is very helpful to not only stay on track but to determine your writing pace. Under that same menu, you can explore Project Statistics, like the number of printed pages, useful for a set contract goal.

Drafting—I use Scrivener exclusively for drafting. The Binder on the side of the screen shows all the chapters/sections I’ve written in order. If I need to change a scene, it’s easy to find the spot in the doc. If I need to move a scene, I just click and drag. Editing doesn’t get much easier. I also use the Binder to make a mini bible for the book. I add a few extra folders—character, setting, timeline, the reject folder. As I’m drafting, I can refer easily back for details.

The Forums—I cannot stress enough how valuable the Literature & Latte forums are. Writers from all walks are on there and happy to talk shop. They have fantastic ideas for how to use and customize the program, especially templates. Many writers have taken the basic novel or script template and customized it to create a unique usable doc. You’ll find every kind of genre and subgenre. Get on those forums and talk to people. Learn a few customizations of your own to generate your own template to make the program even better for your writing. 

As I mentioned in an earlier post, there is a learning curve for the program. Play with it, export to Word once in a while, just in case. But the best way to understand Scrivener is to use it. And for the price, I’m not sure you’ll find a better writing tool.