Chris Baty's Blog, page 20

Four Realistic Ways to Generate Ideas For Your Novel

Coming up with ideas can be pretty hard! With November right around the corner, YWP Participant Sahasra Nistala has some practical advice for writers looking for more material!

A long time ago, I decided I wanted to write a book. So I searched up “how to come up with a novel idea” and was immediately buried under piles of plot generators, mile-long lists of prompts, and creative flow frameworks I didn’t understand. When I went to my fellow writers for help, their advice usually went something like this: sit down and write anything. You’ll start writing something good eventually. But as we Wrimos know, there’s nothing more daunting than staring at a blank page, especially with the clock ticking down to the end of the month. Plus, we’re really busy—we don’t have time to write just anything.

Years later, after three false starts and long periods of “writer’s block,” I finally came up with an idea I couldn’t imagine letting go of. Here are some tried-and-true, realistic ways to come up with ideas for your next novel.

1. Think tropes.
Write down a list of your favorite tropes and think of ways you can make them fresh and interesting. What if the Chosen One had overprotective parents and a bunch of jealous siblings? What if the person organizing the gala was actually in on the big heist? When you’re finished with your list, take whichever ones seem interesting and find a way to connect them.  

2. Brainstorm elements.
In a notebook, doc, or something else you won’t lose, write down a list of random elements and scenes you want in your novel. Want your MC to have an epic battle at sunset with their hair billowing in the wind? Write it down. Want your MC’s hoodie to be green? Write it down! Don’t worry about connecting these things to your decided trope—you can do that later. For now, just write down things you’d love to see in a novel and make sure to include them in yours.

3. Record things your way.
When I first started to write for fun, lots of people told me to get a diary and write everything from my feelings to my “observations.” That way, I would have an endless supply of ideas whenever I wanted. Needless to say, I didn’t keep it up for very long. Things got better when I stopped trying to write daily entries and switched to something that was satisfying to create — comics! With two years of my life laid out in a simple narrative, it became easier for me to notice the differences in people’s habits and personalities. This inspired some characters. For the rest of Preptober, try recording your life in different ways, from voice memos to full-on essays analyzing your family members’ choice of breakfast. Trust me, you’ll find something that works for you.

4. Expand as much as possible.
Once you begin to get a general idea of where you want to go, expand on that as much as possible. If you’re a pantster, that might mean creating a Pinterest board or playlist to match your novel-to-be’s atmosphere. If you’re a plotter, you might want to think of major plot points that incorporate the scenes you already have in mind. 

Doing these four things really helped me come up with a great idea I’m definitely going to write come November (okay, maybe I’ve already written a little!). There is no cure for writer’s block, but having an idea before you start writing definitely helps. Good luck and have a great rest of Preptober!

Sahasra Nistala is a sophomore in high school. Her interests include writing (isn’t that crazy?), speech and debate, incessantly sampling new books in hopes of finding the perfect one, and making comics. During NaNoWriMo, you can find her fiddling around with title generators, filling entire pages with just dialogue, or doodling in her notebook.

Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash

6 Steps to Help You Read Like a Writer

What have you learned about writing from the novels and stories that you read? Whether you love them or hate them, there’s a lot you can learn just from reading books! Today, the folks at Reese’s Book Club have shared some tips to help you read like a writer:

While there are a hundred different books offering specific writing advice from writers, critics, and educators, there is one universal truth accepted by all: to become a great writer, you have to be a great reader. This doesn’t mean reading acclaimed literature or finishing the Man Booker List each year. Instead, it means reading with a critical eye and learning from every book you pick up.

Every book has something to teach you, whether you liked it or not. Below are six areas where we teach you how to read your TBR like a writer.

1. Study the POV

Point of View, or POV, is a crucial part of every story, changing the way the reader connects with the story. First POV tends to bring the reader in by sitting them in the heads of the main characters while third POV offers a more holistic scope of the story.

Questions to Ask: How do different POVs build tension and drive drama? Which characters and I’m sympathizing with most and why? How does the story use POV to tell us more about the world of the novel?

Required Reading: The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak

2. Pacing/Structure

Chances are you’ve stumbled across a book that’s struggled to hold your attention. Examining these moments and what’s going on can help you solve for it in your own work.

Questions to Ask: When are you growing tired of the story? Is it a page count issue? A scene length issue? On a scene level, what is missing that could add drama or push the story forward? On a story level, is the plot too straightforward? How might deeper character work or plot twists create a more engaging story?

Required Reading: The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott

3. Stakes

Stakes are the reason we care about a story, why we’re affected so much when one character doesn’t get the love interest or when another character dies a tragic death. Notice which characters you become most invested in and why.

Questions to Ask: How do the world stakes and personal stakes interact? Are they in conflict with one another? Are they aligned? Which of these two options creates more engagement for you as a reader?

Required Reading: The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

4. Character Arcs

As readers, we want to see characters develop and grow. Studying how this is done in a novel can help you structure character development in your own work.

Questions to Ask: How do the obstacles the characters’ face force them to pivot? What about the plot forces them to reassess their beliefs? How do other characters impact the protagonists’ behavior? How do the protagonists’ mistakes, assumptions, and ideals create new problems in the text?

Required Reading: The Alice Network by Kate Quinn

5. Secondary Characters

Don’t neglect your side characters. Think about what types of characters can bring conflict, tension, comfort, and hope to your character’s world.

Questions to ask: Who is challenging the main character’s beliefs in this world? Who is the antagonist? What does their dialogue cadence look like? How do their personalities bounce off of each other? What is their life outside of the protagonist’s story?

Required Reading: Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley

6. Main Character Development

We all love a morally gray character, but they are usually constructed in such a way that we as readers still fall in love with them. Character development is how you get your reader on the side of your character.

Questions to Ask: What makes you care about the characters? Especially the ones you’re not supposed to like? How does their backstory play into the situation? Does that make them more sympathetic? Less?

Required Reading: Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid

Each month, Reese Witherspoon, the founder of Reese’s Book Club, chooses a book with a woman at the center of the story. There’s no formula to the books chosen to be in the spotlight, and RBC likes it that way. They make their choices thoughtfully and look for ways to deepen readers’ connection to books, authors and ourselves. LitUp by Reese’s Book Club is an underrepresented, un-agented women’s writer fellowship helping to diversify our bookshelves.  To keep up with all news from Reese’s Book Club, sign up for their newsletter.

30 Covers, 30 Days: An Introduction

When the leaves are falling and prep time has us scrambling for November, it’s a clear sign of what’s to come next. What is it, you may ask?

It’s time for 30 Covers, 30 Days, which is arguably, one of the coolest parts of the year!

What is 30 Covers, 30 Days?

Thirty lucky Wrimos will be selected to receive a unique cover for their 2022 NaNoWriMo Novel! These covers are designed in 96 hours by a group of talented and diverse professional graphic designers, recruited by our amazing 30C30D coordinator, Debbie Millman. She’s a writer, educator, artist, brand consultant and host of the radio show Design Matters.  Plus, she’s President of Sterling Brands for the last twenty years and President Emeritus of the American Institute of Graphic Arts. Your novel is in super capable hands!

Then, when November hits, you’ll get to see a new cover daily on this blog, as well as the NaNo forums and Instagram! Everyone will get to see your super cool cover!

Past covers can be seen here.

I’m so excited now! How do I get a cover?

We’re excited too! All you have to do is fill out this form and nominate your own novel!

Here’s some things to keep in mind:

Read over your form carefully before you submit it. You cannot edit your information after submitting it. There are ways to withdraw though! You can see details on that here.
You do not have to share your real name on the nomination form. Preferred names, pen names, or any kind of name you’d like to use is not only welcomed, but celebrated!
If you have any questions, feel free to post in the forums or send me a NaNoMail .

In the meantime, why don’t you check out the NaNo Artisans forums? You can share covers you create or see if any other participants want to make your’s!

While you’re out there in the writing world, we’ll be working hard and reading through everyone’s submissions! You’ll hear from us again soon.

The submission form will be open until November 15.

Good luck!

— Josie

Raising Kids & Writing Books: Five Tips for Parents Daring to Try NaNoWriMo

Sometimes, it feels like we never have time to write, especiallyif you’re a new parent! NaNo Guest Ruth Harper-Rhodegives some tips on fitting writing into a busy lifestyle.

Writing a book while also being a parent of young children may seem like animpossible feat, and there’s no doubt that both parenting andwriting are challenging endeavors. Both can be vastly rewarding, too.I believe it’s healthy for parents to channel their creative muses,and NaNoWriMo is a great way to do that!

I won my first NaNoWriMo in 2019, while working full time and raising my daughter, who was 3 years old at the time. I’ve participated in NaNoWriMo ever since. This year, I’ve got an added challenge: I welcomed baby#2 in August. I debated participating at all this year before I realized something: it’s not about how “good” your book is at the end of the month, but about how much you enjoy the journey that is NaNoWriMo. It’s possible for parents to not only participate, but to have fun! Plus, your determination to write a book in a month can serve as a great example for your kiddos.

Here are a few tips I’d offer other parents – or any busy person, really — who decide to join in on NaNoWriMo this year.

1. Find pockets of time that work for you. For me, getting up 30 to 60 minutes earlier each morning — before anyone else in the house woke up — worked best. I’d also sometimes take 10 or 15 minutes of my lunch break and scoot off to a quiet place to crank out a few paragraphs. Of course, weekends or days off from work lend themselves to longer writing blocks that help you get ahead of thegame during weekdays.

2. Use tech to your advantage: Writing on a laptop or in a notebook works.However, you can also write on your phone while you are waiting in line or on your commute (if you aren’t driving). Then, you can what you wrote to your main document later.

3. Lean on your support systems — and tell them what you’re doing! I made sure to tell my husband I was doing NaNoWriMo and when I would be writing, so he would know why I had to skip Netflix that night or why I decided to go to the library for an hour (or three) on a Saturday afternoon. If people who care about you know you have a goal you’re working toward, they’re bound to want to lend a hand, especially if they know it’s only for a month.

4. Plan what you’ll write. There’s nothing worse than sitting down to a blank page in a tired state of mind with only 15 minutes to spareand no idea of where to even begin. That’s a recipe for giving up! Use October to plan as much as you can. I had my general plot ironed out and wrote scene ideas on index cards. Each writing session, I knew exactly what scene I’d be tackling. I’ve found that the first minute or two of writing is the hardest — but once you get going, it can sometimes be hard to stop! Setting a timer for yourself and putting on some quiet, relaxing music can help with focus.

5. Be easy on yourself. Writing a book as a parent can feel particularly intimidating. Just remember, this is your first draft! It’s not supposed to be perfect. If you only make it to 5,000 or 10,000 or 20,000 words — that’s still more than you started with. You can always keep writing once November is over. In fact, the month may serve as a jump start to a long, happy writing life — one that may continue even as your kids get older.

Ruth Harper-Rhode has participated in NaNoWriMo since 2019, writingstories as an emotional outlet. She works full-time in healthcarecommunications and is a mom of two humans, two cats and one dog. Whenshe’s not exploring the area around her home in Upstate New York,she enjoys curling up with a book or making something delicious inthe kitchen. She tweets @Ruthings and posts on Instagram at@What_Ruth_Ate.  


Photo by Jazmin Quaynor on Unsplash

Meet Our New NaNo Interns: Josie and Lena!

We feel super lucky here at NaNo HQ to be able to work with some excellent interns! Today, meet our newest cohort of interns: Josie and Lena. You’ll be getting to know them better throughout November, but today they’re here to tell you a little about themselves:

Josie, Editorial & Programs Intern:

I discovered NaNoWriMo at an important time in my life. I was in sixth grade and was known by my teachers as a lover of books, writing, and art. I never thought about combining those interests in a serious way, outside of the silly little comics I would produce.

And then I discovered there was a month-long challenge to write a novel. Anyone could do it, even if I was just a spunky twelve year old! I instantly signed up and dove right into the challenge. I don’t really remember what I wrote that year, since that word document was lost to the depths of time. I know it didn’t make any sense. I also know I didn’t even win that year. But I had fun writing way past my bedtime. I had fun drawing my characters and planning out wild shenanigans for them to get involved in. This experience with NaNoWriMo was something that would happen year after year and I enjoyed sharing that time with other young writers. 

Now, I’m an adult. I never lost my love for books, loving them so much I ended up getting a degree in analyzing them. I never stopped drawing either.

It would be a lie to say I stopped writing. I wrote plenty and I have many essays and scripts to prove that. It’s just been a while since I wrote 100% for myself, outside of a graded assignment. I started to miss that feeling of being surrounded by other writers and getting lost in the world I created. I was reminded of those Novembers long past and found myself thinking, “Hey, remember NaNoWriMo? When was the last time you did that?”

Then I saw there was a NaNoWriMo internship opening for this fall, and well, here I am, your new Editorial and Programs intern!  I’ll be writing alongside each and every one of you. It’s a daunting task and I have a lot to learn, but I know this journey will be an enjoyable one.

Lena, Marketing & Fund Development Intern:

Hello all!

As someone whose been following NaNoWriMo since the age of thirteen, now that I’m starting 21 as the first Marketing & Fundraising Intern, I’ve been nothing but excited to be on this journey. I’ve been in love with stories since I was small, reading, writing, daydreaming to procrastinate my writing, all the things.

My mother is Yaqui, Indigenous to a tribe from Sonora, Mexico, that later fled to the United States. In my journey to accessibility, education, and action, I’m hoping to tell stories of my family’s history and of the future of our world. It doesn’t hurt if there are magic and dragons involved though, right?

My go-to stories are fairytale and mythology retellings and re-imaginings, predominantly in the fantasy genre. Give me Legendborn, Percy Jackson, or Cinderella is Dead any day!

In lieu of my college career, I’ve become a full-time caregiver for a loved one. Being a part of a team that is so incredibly accommodating to that in my dream organization and being able to interact at community events has been the greatest blessing. I’m so excited to further engage with all of you this November!

Three Ways to “Live First, Then Write” Within Your Limitations

“Live First, Then Write” is common writing advice, but what does that mean for those living with a chronic illness? NaNo Guest Jessica Natasha Lawrencegives her thoughts and reminds us of the strength of everyday moments.

Asa person with a chronic illness, it’s often hard for me to hear theadvice to “live first, then write.” It makes me worry that Iwon’t be able to master my craft or create authentic stories unlessI find a way to have exciting experiences that I don’t have theenergy for.

Butwhat if “live first, then write” doesn’t mean “make a bucketlist and check off as many items as possible before you start yourstory”? Here are three things I’ve learned about how to applythis advice when you’re worried it doesn’t apply to you:

1. RememberYour Unique Experiences

Itmay be harder for me to know how it feels to be a busy collegestudent with a job outside the home, or what it’s like to travelthe world, but I can accurately portray life with a chronic healthcondition in a way that makes other people feel seen and understood.

Yourlimitations give you an opportunity to write about things that can behard to understand if you’re not living through them. You don’thave to hope someone else will write a character you can relateto—you can provide accurate representation and regain a sense ofagency by controlling how your story is told.

2. ReconsiderYour Definition of Living

Lifeis not only about what you do and where you go, but about what youthink and feel in ordinary moments. When you’re captivated by anovel, engrossed in a film, or delighted by a song, you are living,even if you’re too tired to leave bed.

Ifyou feel like there are few events in your life you can drawinspiration from, you can draw inspiration from your emotions andyour reactions to other people’s art. The long nights you spendreading and imagining your favorite characters in new situations arevalid ways of living deeply and preparing to write.

3. ReachOut to Others

Sometimesthe living you must do before you write is the quiet work ofconsidering someone else’s perspective. When you’re open tohearing someone’s thoughts and their pain without judgment, you’llrealize how beautifully complex people can be, and this will bereflected in your writing.

Thethings you’ll learn through ordinary, empathetic conversations willgreatly enrich your stories, and these conversations can be had onthe couch, with internet friends and people who understand that youcan’t always leave the house.

So,yes, live first and then write, but don’t let anyone tell you thatyour life is not full enough or good enough for your writing to meananything. There is more life available to you than you realize whenyou’re in bed with a book and your own thoughts, or when you openthe computer to say hi to someone for the first time.

Jessica Natasha Lawrence writes about chronic illness, realistichope, and the beauty and trials of ordinary life. She can be found onInstagram,Twitter,and Medium.

Photo by Sixteen Miles Out on Unsplash

Writer’s Block: 5 Ways to Help Yourself Over the Hump!

Every year, we’re lucky to have great sponsors for our nonprofit events. World Anvil, a 2022 NaNoWriMo sponsor, helps you develop and organize your characters, plot, and world setting. Today, World Anvil founder Janet Forbes is here to share some pro tips for world-building. Don’t forget to check out the offer to NaNoWriMo writers for 40% off a World Anvil membership!

Writer’s Block can hit anyone—but particularly when you’re writing a novel under time pressure (like during NaNoWriMo) it can be really tough! 

But you CAN get yourself over the hump! These 5 tips will get you out of writer’s block, and on with your novel writing—because just like NaNoWriMo, at World Anvil we believe the world needs your story, and we want to help you tell it! <3 

1. Explore your world-building

If you’re the kind of person that has a detailed world bible, sometimes just reading through it is enough to spark your inspiration. If you’ve created a world meta, you’ll already have an idea of current affairs and events in your world. Bringing in a plot thread from those is a great way to get things moving again if your character feels stuck. It can help introduce secondary conflicts which don’t revolve around the main character, making them feel less like the centre of the universe (Mary Sue, anyone?)! The magic sentence to ask yourself is, “If this, then what?”: 

If this (thing happened / place exists / character did that thing), then what effect would it have on other people, places, and things? 

You can also explore different cultures or settings in your world in more detail. For example, think or write a little about a day in the life of the richest or poorest person in this culture you’re creating. What are their rules and taboos, and how can your main character challenge them?

Changing locations can change the way you feel about a scene or situation, and sometimes give you ideas or impetus to move forward. Which nearby location matches best to your character’s current mood? What’s the highest place or lowest place in their immediate environment? Which location is the most contrasting with those previously used?

Preventative measures: If you haven’t yet, consider taking a little time to build a world meta and a world bible for your novel’s world. It doesn’t take long, and you only need to write in bullet points, but it will be a great resource for Future-You, and help with revisions too!

2. Interrogate your character

For a quick fix for a smaller writer’s block, interrogate your main character(s)! Often called Hot Seating in theater.

Essentially, ask your character questions, such as:

How do you feel about X character?How do you feel about what just happened?What do you need right now? (food, a rest, a girls’ night out?)What’s the worst thing that could happen to you right now?

This helps you figure out not only what your character wants to do next, but the most dramatic thing that COULD happen next! If they’re down, bring them up with a treat. If they’re up, maybe it’s time for some drama? 

Preventative measures: Character profiles are a great help when your characters are misbehaving—being passive, secretive, or downright uncooperative! Build some out, and you’ll get to know your characters better. We have a helpful template for this on World Anvil, if you’re looking for a good one!

3. Explore three paths

Often as writers (especially awesome and highly-focussed NaNoWriMo writers), we get very focussed on what’s the ONE thing that should happen next. The RIGHT thing. The PROPER thing…

But this can be very restrictive. It can stop us from being open to options, but it’s also a lot of pressure! If that sounds like you, then this method of curing writer’s block might help. 

Instead, if you’re encountering writer’s block, step away from your manuscript and think about what THREE things could happen next. Make a list. Expand to five if you like. A writing journal can be very helpful for this, too. 

Next, remove all your least favorite ideas until you have only options you like. If that leaves more than one and you still can’t choose, then pick one direction and know that you can come back and write the other one if you need to. Who knows—you might come up with an awesome idea or scene you can repurpose for later in the book! 

4. Talk it over with an amazing community! 

November is a time when the NaNo writing community really comes into its own, and over on World Anvil we have a fantastic year-round writing community too! 

If you’re stuck, talk over your roadblock with other writers. Sometimes simply explaining to someone WHY you’re stuck can help you.

Whether you prefer Discord, Facebook, or live streams, find a writing community that will support you and build you up, not tear you down.

5. And if all else fails… write where the heat is! 

Let me tell you a secret. There’s no Writing Police. 

Perhaps you’re super excited about that love scene in Act 3, but this muddle-through-the-middle has you stumped? In that case, jump ahead! Write what you’re excited about in your story. Future-You can make it all fit together, especially if you’re using a novel writing software that lets you reorder things easily. Present-You has one responsibility—to get out draft one however you can. 

And I promise you, nobody will appear from your laptop or jump out of your screen and berate you if you don’t write your book in order. At least, it hasn’t happened to me, yet! 

Janet Forbes (she/her) is a published fantasy author, game developer and (secretly) a velociraptor, and has been building worlds since she was knee-high to an orc. In 2017 she co-founded World Anvil, the award-winning world-building, writing, and tabletop RPG platform which boasts a community of 2 million users. She spends her days helping writers, and her nights writing novels, stories and games!

4 Tips for Success and LGBTQ Community Building

Amara Lynn is a five yearconsecutive NaNoWriMo winner and a member of the LGBTQ community.Today, they’re going to be sharing 4 tips for success and building yourwriting community!

1. Have a plan.

If you’re awriter, you’ve probably heard of the phrase “panster”, and youmight even be one! If you aren’t a big plotter or planner, that’sokay! You can still have a plan!

My first year, I was also a panster. What I did was make a word document full of thescenes I knew I wanted to include in the story. When I got stuck, allI had to do to was look at that file. I still had plenty of room toplay and pants!

Planningdoesn’t just go for writing, either! NaNoWriMo can be stressful,even without distractions and other tasks we all have to do day today. That’s why a little planning in your personal life can go along way!

This could beanything from catching up your house chores, doing some meal prep orplanning, or stocking up on your favorite snacks and writing fuel(coffee for me!). I also take some vacation days. If that’ssomething you can do, it can be very helpful, and brings me into mynext tip, which is…

2. Have awriting buffer.

We all know,no matter how much planning you do, something won’t go your way.One year, my waterbed burst and I had to spend all night cleaning itup!

If you havetime and the words are flowing one day, keep on writing! Being aheadcan only help! If you’re roped into Thanksgiving dinner prep, orthings just aren’t going well for you one day, it doesn’t upendyour chances of crossing that 50k mark.

3. Participatein writing sprints!

Sprintingwith your friends can add a bit of friendly competition, urgency, andcompanionship to your writing sessions!

It can be achallenge at first, especially if you’re going for that infamous 1kwords in 30 minutes! I’ve only managed that once so don’tfeel bad! Remember progress is progress and all words are great! Ifyou manage at least 500 words in 30 minutes, it’s only about oneand a half hours to get your words for the day.

4. Find acommunity.

Finding yourwriting people can be hard, but it’s one of the best things you cando to help you succeed!

I’ve knownabout NaNoWriMo for a long time. I would try, but never made it pastthe first day. It wasn’t until I had a community of writing friendsthat I won my first NaNo.

Because Ifelt having a community is important, particularly for LGBTQ+writers, I started a Twitter writing hashtag called #LGBTQWriMo! AnyLGBTQ+ writer is welcome to participate by answering the questionsposted each day. There are check in days, line shares, and more!

As a queer,nonbinary person writing queer books, I know how nerve wracking itcan be to participate in local events; not everyone may be welcomingof the content you write. That’s why an online communityspecifically for LGBTQ writers can be so important! It helps to knowyou’re not alone.

If you’reseeking to build up your writing community, I highly recommend onlinespaces like Twitter for doing so! The LGBTQ writing community hasbeen so welcoming and supportive to me, and I wouldn’t be where Iam without them!

Don’t go italone! Encouragement and enthusiasm others give is essential forsuccess!

Amara Lynn has always been a quietdaydreamer. Coming up with characters and worlds since childhood,they eventually found an outlet in writing.They wereborn and raised in the Midwest USA, where they remain stuck withtheir spouse and two cats. They love to write about soft monsters andcryptids, grumpy enbies, and forever will be weak for the grumpy oneis soft for the sunshine one trope. When not writing, they areusually watching anime, playing games, and obsessing over their outof control music playlists.

You can learn more about Amara and their books on their website or follow them on Twitter, Instagram, or Tiktok.

Photo by Kyle Glenn on Unsplash

5 Tips for Completing Your NaNoWriMo Novel Draft

Every year, we’re lucky to have great sponsors for our nonprofit events. Freewrite, a 2022 NaNoWriMo sponsor, is a dedicated drafting device designed just for writers, free of distractions. Today, comedian/writer Natalie Kim and Freewrite staff member Colin Butts share a few tips for helping you reach the end of your first draft this November:

Hello from Freewrite!  We’re thrilled to be taking part in the 2022 NaNoWriMo challenge. If you’re unfamiliar, we make dedicated drafting devices for writers without the distraction—or temptation—of browsers, email, apps, or notifications so you can get into and stay in writing flow. When it is time to edit, your drafts seamlessly sync with the cloud for export into Scrivener, Final Draft, Word, Google Docs, or your software of choice.

At the core of Freewrite’s design philosophy is an encouragement to move you forward. Intentionally lacking editing capabilities, Freewrite drafting devices help writers write more, not better. In this case, quantity trumps quality.

Ok, enough about Freewrite. How about insight from 2020 NaNoWriMo participant Natalie Kim about her experience drafting her project and what tips she has for you going in:

1. Make it a ritual

For NaNoWriMo in November 2020 I committed to writing after dinner, no matter what. Once my butt sank into our cat-scratched chair, my fingers immediately danced across my Freewrite keyboard and did not stop until I hit 1000 words. A car filled with clowns could have crashed into my living room and I would continue typing.

Also, there is no question that writing on the Freewrite helped me reach 50,000+ words. Had I used my laptop to write I would have 50+ browser tabs open, searching for “JUST ONE MORE THING”.

With the Freewrite it was just me and the words.

2. Always move forward

I remember the advice an instructor in a graduate film writing class said about the first draft. He said: “Never go back and edit your first draft while you are writing it. Always move forward”. I followed his advice and I did not read what I had written. I gave it the cold shoulder and moved on.

3. Guard your mind from the noise

Try an experiment during NaNoWriMo: Refrain from consuming media like podcasts, episodic shows or mindlessly scrolling social media on your phone. 

And before you throw your sneaker at me, hear me out.

Your mind is a valuable resource that must be protected from the mediocre din of every day society. You never know where your next precious idea will appear: walking back from the coffee shop, loading the dishwasher or driving back from the mechanic. Our greatest ideas emerge when we have a clear mind; free from other people’s ideas and voices. 

4. When you’ve reached 50,000 words

In Stephen King’s book, On Writing, King says that when you finish the first rough draft you need distance from it. King believes that if you read the first draft too soon you will be tempted to tinker with it. You might think it is harmless to tinker but it ultimately results in your work looking become a loaf of bread vivisected by a toddler: a doughy, crumbly mess.

Instead give the rough draft some breathing space. Then come back to it.

5. In conclusion

Please do feel free to use the helpful advice and throw out the rest. Go forth with confidence and be steadfast with your writing. 

50,000 words, here you come!

Warmly,

@NatalieKimNYC

Don’t forget to check out Freewrite’s special discount offer for NaNoWriMo writers! 

Natalie Kim is a comedian who likes to remind everyone that we are not as different as we think we are. This summer, she was a resident of St. Nell’s Humor Writing Residency for Women and performed in clubs around New York City. She is currently working on a collection of humorous essays about being the tough-talking, loud mouth kid from Suffolk County, Long Island.

As Head of Marketing for Freewrite, Colin Butts loves hearing from creative writers about their ideas and stories in development. Helping to provide a product that removes barriers for drafting artists makes his work deeply purposeful. Colin loves to read, is starting his own first short story, and enjoys adventure travel, yoga, and video games when he’s not busy in the literary world.

You Can Now Announce Your 2022 NaNoWriMo Project!

Are you excited to explore, discover, and create new stories this November? How about joining the biggest community of writers in the world as we embark on a fun and challenging adventure? If you’ve been waiting for the universe to give you a sign that you should write that novel you’ve been dreaming about, then consider this your invitation!

Announce your 2022 NaNoWriMo Project!

You can now officially announce your project for National Novel Writing Month 2022! You can choose the genre you’ll be writing, share an outline or summary, and even connect a Pinterest board or music playlist to your project to get in the brainstorming mood.

Explore what NaNoWriMo has to offer:

✍️ Get ready to write with NaNo Prep 101 — Our free NaNo Prep workbook will help you get ready to reach 50K in November with a 6-week course of guided exercises. Starting September 19, we’ll have themed weekly resources, events, and discussions to help you dive into your story. Or, you can visit the NaNo Prep page and do the exercises at your own pace

👋 Join a region to find events run by your local volunteer — Find your region, then join it to get updates from your local Municipal Liaison! (View our updated 2022 in-person events policy.)

📅 Check out upcoming events hosted by NaNo HQ — You can browse and RSVP to virtual events hosted by NaNoWriMo staff and partners, including Zoom meetup groups, yoga for writers, webcasts, and more.

🎁 Take a look at our Sponsor Offers — Every year, we partner with some incredibly generous sponsors. Check out our offers page to find exclusive deals on writing software, publishing resources, writing communities, and more!

📚 Write for the NaNoWriMo blog — Interested? Just fill out this form, and we’ll get in touch if we think you’re a good fit! (Please note that we receive a high volume of interest in writing for the blog, and may not be able to respond to everyone. This is currently an unpaid opportunity.)