Day 29: The Push to 50k

This post goes out to Ian. I hope those issues you mentioned resolve themselves and everyone is all right. As much as I would love to be able to say "Just focus on NaNo this month. Everything else can be put off," we all know there are things that need to come first. Sometimes it's hard to prioritize (edit that paper better, or work on NaNo? Go out for dinner with a friend, or work on NaNo?) but if you're blessed with a family and friends you love and who love you, and those people need help and support... then there isn't really much of a choice.

Just remember, when things settle down: NaNo may end on December 1, but that doesn't mean the writing needs to.

Or, hey, if the world has already calmed down a little... there's almost 48 hours left! You could still be in the game!

Quotes of the Day:

"There is no royal path to good writing; and such paths as do exist do not lead through neat critical gardens, various as they are, but through the jungles of self, the world, and of craft."

~Jessamyn West, Saturday Review, 21 September 1957

John Wilmot penned his poetry
Riddled with the pox
Nabokov wrote on index cards,
At a lectern, in his socks
St. John of the Cross did his best stuff
Imprisoned in a box
And Johnny Thunders was half alive
When he wrote Chinese Rocks
- Lyrics from “There She Goes, My Beautiful World,” Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds

Tip of the Day:

I already gave you a tip, above! What' you want more?

It's almost 6am EST, which means we're down to... what? 42 hours?

My tip of the day is, MAKE THE PUSH. Wherever you are. Don't give up. And stop wasting time playing Facebook games and reading blog posts (like this one) because you feel so behind. Go write!

I'm currently at 41,423 words. This means I need to average 4289 words today and tomorrow to win. I'll leave for work at 7:30 today and won't be home until 4. Similar hours tomorrow. And unlike many lucky people I've heard from, I don't have a chance to write at work.

On the plus side, I unexpectedly have Thursday off work, so I can stay up late on Wednesday... if I have the energy to do that, which tends to be questionable, given the hours I get up.

But I'll do it. Because, why not?

Day 15

"Life can't ever really defeat a writer who is in love with writing, for life itself is a writer's lover until death - fascinating, cruel, lavish, warm, cold, treacherous, constant."

~Edna Ferber, A Kind of Magic, 1963

"Writing is easy: All you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead."

~Gene Fowler

As many of you have noticed and inquired about, there hasn't been a new blog post in a while. If you've looked at my NaNo page, you may also have noticed that while today's "on track" goal is 25,000 words, I am currently at 18,530.

Except for the fact that my main character is totally devoid of all personality, the writing has been going very well. .. except for the carpal tunnel. I didn't write that last post out of nowhere. This NaNo has been one of the most physically difficult NaNo years I've had, with days where I simply seem to be unable to use the computer. Bad times.

But I'm not far enough behind yet to despair! If I can make the hands work, there is still plenty of time... despite the fact that I need to prepare a Thanksgiving dinner somewhere in there. On the other hand, this is the first year that I've brought NaNo into the school where I teach. The kids in my classroom are doing so amazingly well that even if I don't hit 50k this year, I will feel like I have accomplished something incredible by giving them the chance to accomplish something incredible.

Tip of the Day:

Don't worry if you feel like what you're writing isn't quite right. There's a quote from Arthur Polotnik that says, "You write to communicate to the hearts and minds of others what's burning inside you. And we edit to let the fire show through the smoke."

During November, just let it burn. To give you an example, I am already very sure that all the chapters told in Tony's point of view are going to require a great deal of revision once I get a better sense of Tony himself. At the moment, he's a bland character whose responses are wildly inconsistent. However, it's November, and if I go back to try to fix it now, I'll struggle. I won't make my word-count and, more importantly, I will probably lose all momentum in the story.

Notice what I said there: "once I get a better sense of Tony." This isn't just a matter of putting editing off to get words down. Through writing, I will learn who Tony is. Then I can edit. The point of NaNo is to teach you to do it in that order. Write first, to figure out what you want to say. Then you can edit to make it clear to others what you have said.

Tip of the Day #2:

I just realized- when I went to write the title of this post- that today is Day 15. Do you know what that means?

BACK UP YOUR WORK.

In at least 3 places.

I'm serious. Even if you only have 1000 words, back them up. Get in the habit of doing this regularly, and you'll thank me some day.

Prompt of the Day:

A character (it doesn't have to be your main character) reveals a long-held secret.

(thank you, Sha, for the prompt)

or

For some reason, your character can't get into his/her house. What does he do?

(thank you, Qara-Xuan, for the prompt)

or

This one made me chuckle, and is mostly for those who hate something you recently wrote:

Have all of what you wrote yesterday (or last chapter, etc) turn out to be a dream-- now the character has to either do all that again, or progress differently from the starting point

(also from Qara-Xuan)

Day 6

"A deadline is, simply put, optimism in its most kick-ass form. It's a potent force that, when wielded with respect, will level any obstacle in its path. This is especially true when it comes to creative pursuits."

– Chris Baty, No Plot, No Problem

Tip of the Day:

This tip comes as I am somewhat behind in word-count, because I took it easy yesterday after having a couple rough days, physically.

Whatever your goal, however far behind you may get, if it hurts, take a break. This is one of the few tips I will ever give you that puts anything above getting word-count, but it is one of the most important things to remember during NaNo. Your body is precious. November will end, but you want to keep those hands, and wrists, and back, and stomach and eyes for the rest of your life.

If your wrists start to feel like you're being stabbed; if your hands tingle and go numb; if you can't turn your head because of that sharp pain up your spine; if you find you are struggling to hit the right keys because your hands feel sore... TAKE A BREAK. Eat something, take an anti-inflammatory (don't take aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxin, any of those things on an empty stomach- trust me), and/or use ice or heat until your wrists/neck stop hurting.

Do not keep pushing yourself because you can take the pain.

According to an article published in the New York Times:

Employees with CTS who try to work through the disorder often put more stress on the wrists to compensate for the weakness and pain. The end result is to make the condition worse and impair work performance.

Eventually, the worker with CTS may be forced to give up his or her livelihood. In one study, nearly half of all patients with CTS changed jobs within 30 months of an initial diagnosis.

Repetitive motion injuries are not a joke. It's not a matter of a sore muscle you can ignore and deal with later. It is your nerves being compressed and quite possibly damaged. Nerves don't heal the way other parts of your body can. Take this advice, coming from someone with loss of sensation in her hands, and take care of your body before you take care of your word-count.

... now that I may have scared the hell out of you, get back to work! Just be careful, and stop when you need to. Many people on the Nyeusigrube forum report that taking a warm shower or making and eating a meal your character would enjoy (or hate, actually) is a nice way to get past writer's block, anyway.

Prompt of the Day:

Your character suddenly recalls a previously unremembered appointment.

or

Your character walks by (or stops to watch) a street-performer.

Day 5

"The pages are still blank, but there is a miraculous feeling of the words being there, written in invisible ink and clamoring to become visible."

~Vladimir Nabakov

Tip of the Day:

I didn't get a chance to pre-write all 30 Blog posts this year, so it is likely that I may miss quite a few. It's sometimes hard to find "prompt of the day" options that work with an ongoing story (most sites with writing prompts expect that you are starting something new) but here are a couple options for you:

The NaNoWriMo Young Writer's Program has a "Dare Machine" on their front page, which includes prompts. Click "Dare Me" to generate a new one.

Adam Maxwell's Fiction Lounge will generate a sentence as a "writing prompt." I haven't had a chance to look at much of the website yet, but "incorporate this sentence" (or idea) makes a good prompt.

Or, if you flip back to last year, or the year before, I'm sure you'll be able to find something you didn't use before, or which you could use in a new way this year. I usually recycle a few of the favorites, anyway.

Prompt of the Day:

Your character falls, or is in some kind of accident, and is injured in a way that affects his or her ability to do what needs to be done.

or

A secret admirer sends a beautiful (or creepy) gift

Day 3

"Don't try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It's the one and only thing you have to offer."

~ Barbara Kingsolver

Tip of the Day:

Sometimes, even during NaNo, less is more. Those of you who might be reading this blog from the school where I work may have heard this already, but I'm going to summarize a bit here.

Someone asked me, "How do I make my fantasy setting seem old-fashioned, without referencing things that don't exist in that world?" My answer is, you never TELL your audience the world is old-fashioned. Think instead about how your character lives. How do they wake up in the morning (probably not an electric alarm clock)? How do they bathe? Get and cook food?

In real-writing-life, spending twenty pages discussing the ways your characters needs to pluck and prepare a chicken to cook it in the cast iron stock-pot hung over the fire may be excessive (during revision, you'll probably cut back), but during NaNo, figuring out the little details of your fantasy setting, such as how people do simple tasks, will not only help you world-build in your own mind, but will generate words.

So, in that way, more-is-more.

On the other hand, if you can't figure it out, be vague for now. Don't know a thing about horses, but know your characters need to ride them? Skip the extensive research during NaNo! Hint! Leave yourself notes if you want to, like [I'm sure there are words for the part of the saddle you hold on to] but don't get distracted for 10 hours on Wikipedia during NaNo.

For the record, this applies to everyone, fantasy setting or not. If you're stuck in your storyline, spend some time describing the basic, boring parts of your characters' lives. Even if it is something you know you will cut out later during revision, it isn't just wasted junk-words: It's valuable insight for you as a writer, and it might give you an idea of how to move forward.

Prompt of the Day:

Your character finds $50 (or your world's equivalent) in the street.

(Thank you, J, for that prompt)

or

In the spirit of the tip-of-the-day, have someone cook something.

NaNo'11: Day 2

To answer two FAQs I normally hear about this time:

Question 1.

Who are you on the NaNo site, and can I friend you?

Answer 1.
I am NeseraRai, and you absolutely may friend me. However, please do not be hurt if I do not friend you in return. In the past, the NaNo site has been a little odd about the friends list, so I'm in the habit of only friending people in my writing group, and some folks that I'm attending physical write-ins with.

Question 2.

What's the point of this? Don't you just end up with 50,000 words of crap?

Answer 2.

No, I generally end up with 30,000 or so words of crap. The rest, mixed in somewhere, is about 20k of good storytelling. I've been doing this for a few years, and publishing for a few years before then, so my ratio of crap-to-keep is actually pretty high. But the point is, if at the end of NaNo you have 50,000 words and a vague idea of your world, characters, and story, you have now accomplished something you never would have while trying to get the first 100 words perfect.

That said, today's quote of the day...

"And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt." – Silvia Plath

Tip of the Day

Save constantly, and back up frequently.

By "save," I mean do not trust your auto-save. In most text-editing programs, you can hit ⌘S (Mac) or Ctrl-S (Win) or probably something similar in any other OS, and your file will SAVE. Do this all the time.

As for backing up, do not trust one copy on one computer. Ever year, I hear of computers frying, getting left in the rain, stolen, reformatted by Dad, destroyed by little Sis, or just dying for no good reason at all. Backing up to a thumb drive is good. If you do this, make sure you know how to properly eject your thumb drive, or you can destroy your data. Also, if you lose your thumb drive, it will inevitably communicate with your computer, and that is when you are most likely to suffer spontaneous computer failure. For that reason, every time you complete a large chunk of work (whatever that means for you), I would recommend backing up in a THIRD place. An internet email account like Yahoo or GMail works pretty well.

Prompt of the Day

Your character has lost something, or left it behind, and needs to go back and look for it.

NaNo 2011

Welcome, everyone, to National Novel Writing Month (2011!). I have participated in NaNoWriMo every year since 2006, and for the past two years, I have dedicated my blog through the month of November to providing quotes, tips and prompts.

For those of you unfamiliar with NaNoWriMo, here's the summary: 30 days, 50k. The slightly longer version: In the month of November, participants attempt to write 50,000 words of a new novel. Rules are somewhat flexible on the definition of novel, but the main point is that this should be a NEW project. You are absolutely forbidden to use any prose written before November.

Obviously, I'm not the NaNo police; however you define "new" or "novel" or "50k" or for that matter "30 days" is up to you and I won't argue (though you may consult the official site, if you would like). The goal, however, remains the same: CHALLENGE YOURSELF. Present yourself with a goal that is such a push that it forces you to think differently. 50k in 30 days is designed to push writers beyond their hangups and desire to get it perfect. NaNo is about getting it on paper (or computer); editing comes later.

In addition to this blog, Nyeusigrube hosts a NaNo forum every year, featuring daily "rant" posts. Please feel free to join us! Even if you don't plan to spend the month writing, you can spend it supporting the writers.

That said... welcome to NaNoWriMo!

"The scariest moment is always just before you start." – Stephen King
"You can fix anything but a blank page." – Nora Roberts

Tip of the Day:

Write!
No, seriously, that is the tip. You're past pre-planning now. Your only goal at this point is to put words on paper. Don't worry about starting it right or even starting it good. I frequently go back and delete my entire first chapter, once I start revising. Start rambling, and it becomes like a conversation: eventually, you'll find something to talk about.

And in case you need some extra motivation, you might check out Dr. Wicked's "Write or Die." I adore this gadget, especially during NaNoWriMo. I love it enough I spent the $10 to have the desktop version, which is not internet dependent and has more options, but there is a free version along the right side of the page I linked you to.

Prompt of the Day:

Look out the window - what do you (does your character) see?

or

If you're already procrastinating by watching television,
then wait for a car commercial (or something similar) to come on.
Use the setting (rugged mountain, ice-covered tundra, city streets?), characters (family of five, guys on vacation, business man?), and/or conflict (flat tire, lost, kids driving them crazy?) from that commercial for your first scene.