Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Taking the NaNoWriMo Plunge

Remember that time I said I'd try to be better about blogging? And then I wasn't? No, not that time, I mean the most recent time.

Stuff got in the way. I'm not even talking about normal life stuff -- everyone has that. I'm talking herds of wild burros, lions and tigers on the loose, and egging Harvard.

That's the thing about having a job you love. Sometimes it's hard to stop working, especially when people and animals need help.

But here's the problem: There's this other job I love, too. The one where I make up lives with the hope that I'll see them on a bookshelf someday. 



So when do I work on my novels? Whenever I can steal time. I am not a wake-up-early-to-write kind of person. I'm a little envious of my friends who are dedicated morning writers, but I'm just not that functional before dawn, and saving my writing energy for a couple evenings a week or a weekend afternoon is far more productive for me than a week's worth of battling my morning mental fog.

Still, sometimes it's good to set goals. To refuse to let life (or wild animals) trample my latest manuscript. And that brings us to NaNoWriMo.

For those not inducted into the speed-writing cult, that's National Novel Writing Month.

In just a few days (holy crap, it's already November?), National Novel Writing Month will begin. This is where (crazy) creative people around the world spend a month banging out 50,000 words of fiction. If I can give that kind of attention to either of my current projects, I'll end the month with a first draft* and a shiny feeling of accomplishment.

I can do anything for a month, right? Stop laughing at me, world. It's worth a try. And now that it's posted online, I guess I'm committed.

So, who's in? 

And if you've done it before, I welcome any hints on setting up a caffeine drip, letting yourself write crap, teaching the dogs to feed themselves, and whatever else helped you get through the month.



*Tip: NaNoWriMo should be known as NaNoFirDraMo (National Novel First Draft Month). It's not a good idea to query on December 1st. Take a breather. Revise. Then revise again. Then have someone else read your work. Revise again. Then maybe it's time to query.

Calendar via Surly Muse

2 comments:

  1. I usually give up on a social life and sleep. It seems to work. And write any time I can. Fifteen minutes here or there adds up. And while at work, I'll sneak a sentence or two in every once in awhile during dead periods.

    Also, I did most of mine by hand last year, and it was awesome. It's a lot easier to carry around and open a notebook than a laptop. Accessibility makes a huge difference. And people. Write-ins are gold. I never would have made it through the past two NaNos with other support from other WriMos in my regions. That I meet with in person and not online on the forums.

    You can also save time by not cooking. Prepare meals with leftovers for the next day, order pizza, have someone else do the honors, or due mircowave meals. And if you are cooking, have your laptop on the counter. Stir, write a sentence, pour, write a sentence, stick in the oven and write pages. Multitask like non-other.

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  2. I don't cook, so no problem there :).

    I'm betting on write-ins being pretty key -- having a focused time and place with other people holding me accountable on the spot will mean I can't give in to the distractions I tend to allow myself at home. Good point about accessibility, too. I'm rarely far from my laptop, but there are times and they could probably be used to squeeze in a few words.

    Good luck, Jenny!

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