Tales of Maora

I’m at around 46,000 words into my new story. Happily, I can say I have not missed a day of writing since NaNoWriMo started. That’s not because I’m such an incredible writer, nothing stops me. It’s because I committed to writing bit by bit each day, even when I knew what I was producing wasn’t great.

Adding stars to my calendar and hitting my numbers was all that mattered.

But now we face a new challenge as we enter the final week of NaNoWriMo: the Holidays.

It’s almost cruel to have picked November for this event. Obviously, we will run afoul trying to hit our numbers as the holidays approach. How can we keep the momentum going as we make plans for Thanksgiving, doing all the things we wanted to do?

While not everyone will be traveling this year, given restrictions, the holidays are a time when we should take a break, unwind, and just relax. There will be plans and events happen as well, taking a big bit out of our time.

But if we’ve stuck with NaNoWriMo this far, there’s no reason to stop. Even during the holidays, we can set a little bit of time aside to hit our goals–before getting back to friends and family.

That’s why setting goals, making the time to write, and staying focus is so important. As usual, the stuff you write during the holidays might not be great. You might rush through it or feel a tad distracted. That’s okay. What matters is you’re learning how to stick with your goals even when distractions are afoot.

That’s a good skill to have, no matter the month. Because life doesn’t stop just because you’re a writing. We need to learn how to get things done, regardless of what’s going on.

For the second week in a row, I’ve managed to keep my commitment to write 2,000 words a day for Nation Novel Writing Month. Last week, I decided to break through snags in the writing process by writing out my rough summary inside of prose, just to keep hitting my word counts.

That has proven to be an effective strategy. Many writers get frustrated and give up because they try to write out their prose when they haven’t properly brainstormed the next scene, chapter, etc. By moving into “sketch mode,” I have been able to continue to work out my story, hitting my daily quotas, without letting blocks or frustration get in the way.

But that isn’t a magic cure for the kind of struggles and procrastination that sets in when you write. Writing is hard work. Writing a story is very hard work. I find that trying to work out your story can easily become an excuse not to write.

The goal is to write, plain and simple. It doesn’t have to sparkle at this stage; it just has to exist. Anything “trick” you can use to get it on paper is worth it. Even then, I found myself struggling to really keep moving forward. Even with every trick in the book, committing to writing each day can feel like a massive chore.

But having that little calendar and seeing those gold stars is a great motivator. Making my focus just to get those 2,000 words done has been enough to get over my blocks and frustrations and just write. Hey, compartmentalization is a good thing when it comes to getting work done. I can forget about writing the “perfect” story, even let go of worries about how my “sketch” parts look, as long as my focus is on just hitting my numbers.

Afterward, I can edit, revises, and rewrite to my heart’s content. Then I can shift gears and look for ways to improve the story and prose. But for now, all that matters is putting words on paper.

So, I appreciate NaNoWriMo for helping me see that.

Last month I prepared to take part in National Novel Writing Month this November. The goal is to write every day to produce a 50,000-word novel. That comes to about 1,666 words a day. I rounded up to 2,000–because I’m a glutton for punishment.

I’m happy to say that this week has been successful. I’ve been able to keep to my goal since Sunday, with today reaching the goal of about 12,000 words. I am charting my progress using the handy calendar provided by the official NaNoWriMo website.

Writing at such an intense pace isn’t easy, even for people like me who write for a living. I’m used to churning out thousands of words a day (I literally write an average of 12,000 words total)–but it’s a very different kind of writing. Crafting prose for a book at 2,000/words a day is easier said than done.

Perhaps it’s not even all that easy to say.

So, how do I do it? Easy, I cheat.

Perhaps cheating is not the right word. But I think many writers fall into a trap when they think they have to craft perfect prose, every time they sit down to write. But a first draft can’t be “perfect.” That’s not the goal. The goal is to actually write the thing. Get whatever down on paper you need to get it done.

That means you need to hit your 2,000-word goal, regardless of how pretty or “right” the writing is. As long as you hit that goal, then you’re progressing. Which means, you can “fudge” what you actually wrote, so long as you’re moving forward.

What does fudging mean? It’s simple. Instead of writing out your word-for-word prose, just write out the rough descriptions of what you want to happen next. Most writers hit a block when they try to write out their prose when they need to brainstorm the next chapter, scene, steps, etc. You can’t brainstorm and wordcraft at the same time. It doesn’t work.

So, instead of trying to write out that perfect prose, at the very least, write out what you want to happen next as simply and in a straightforward way. I’ve been doing it when I get to parts that normally would slow me down, like action sequences or descriptions that are necessary but can trip up my writing progress.

It looks kind of like this:

Mark discovers that the gun used to kill the woman was lost in the river. He goes there, but knows that without help from the police, he can’t find it. While weighing his options, Jacks the crime boss shows up with two of his henchmen. They try to throw Mark into their car, but he fights them off, getting away just in the nick of time. A chase occurs and Mark finds himself in a part of town he’s never been to before. He jumps into a window and hunkers down in the dark.

Hey, as long as I hit 2,000–what does it matter? I can always go back and “flesh out” the rough parts when needed. The point is I’m not stopping to write. I’m moving forward with the story. Eventually, I hit my stride again and continue with the prose.

That example may not look pretty or be considered “real” writing, but it’s better than nothing. And it can get you to the next part where you can slow down and write it out properly.

There. My writing hack. It just might prevent you from experiencing writer’s block ever again. Or not. Just keep writing.

This November, thousands (perhaps millions) of folks around the world will be writing their tails off. The goal is to write a 50,000-word (or more) novel through the end of November. That works out to a little less than 2,000 words a day.

Sounds impossible? Not if you prepare!

Since I wanted to try to hammer out a novel this NaNoWriMo, I thought I’d take the month of October to prep.

Many, many, people who want to write a book defeat themselves from the get-go, because they think it’s harder than it really is.

Honestly, all you have to do is write one word after another.

Setting a goal to write 2,000 words a day is all you need to get started. After that, there is the follow-through: making sure you set time aside every day to get those words down on paper.

Here’s the big secret: they don’t have to be great!

Focus on a Reasonable Expectation: Just Getting it Done!

If the goal is to write the first draft of a novel, then as long as you get your 2,000 words done each day, you’ve achieved your goal.

Lots of people give up because they don’t think the novel is “good enough.” But remember, there’s only one thing a first draft has to be: it just has to exist.

The improvement comes later.

But before I jump into NaNoWriMo, I wanted to be prepared at least a little bit. Honestly, you don’t need a perfect outline to start writing. You don’t need to have all your characters, themes, setting, etc. all worked out. You just need an idea.

And like a literal journey, once you pick the road (idea), you just start writing.

Like so many other folks out there, I know I can easily run out of steam. So, I sketched out a few possible ideas for my NaNoWriMo story:

Pretty rough ideas. Nothing perfect. Just some jumping-off points that I know are interesting enough to keep me motivated. I have several ongoing writing projects I’m in the middle of, so I was thinking about writing something in those worlds.

But I didn’t want my NaNoWriMo project to be a continuation of something else I’ve done. I wanted to start fresh and see what I end up with.

So, one particular idea sparked my interest. Although I didn’t think I needed to, I ended up roughing out a (very simple) outline for the story:

I am using the Hero’s Journey structure (from The Writer’s Journey) as a guide.

I won’t start writing until November 1, but having some ideas written down beforehand is very useful. Once you start thinking about a story, your creative unconscious can take over. Thinking about your story (or brainstorming) over the next month can get you fired up by the time you put pen to page.

In the coming weeks, I’ll be chronicling my journey. Through November, I hope to post each day about my progress. The actual story I’ll keep to myself (for now), but I will share any insights or ideas that I pick up along the way.

If you’re interested in NaNoWriMo, then check it out! https://nanowrimo.org/