5 NaNo Lessons I’ve Applied to the Rest of My Life

Although our events currently only run during certain months throughout the year, the NaNoWriMo community remains year-round, and the things you learn while writing a novel can be applied to many different situations. Today, participant Anna Fagundes Martino shares some of the most important lessons that writing a novel in a month has taught her:

Every November since 2011, as soon as I post the “NaNoWriMo Participant” banner on my social media outlets, I hear two things from friends and family. One is, “You’re mad to tackle 50k words in a month.” The other is, “I wish I had the drive to do that sort of thing!”

I never said I’m not mad (I am a writer, after all). As for the drive… take the word of this former owner of the Pan-American record for Writing Procrastination: that can be taught. So much so that I applied what I learned in six seasons of November madness into other areas of my life that have nothing to do with fiction writing.

After all, most big deadlines can seem like the elusive 50k in November: an Everest of a situation. Whether you want to do it (e.g. get to dance at the Lindy Hop ball, finish a race for the first or tenth time) or you have to do it (e.g. a school essay, a job presentation), the first and irrational reaction, of course, is to panic and freeze, and then say “Nope, won’t do it. There are better people doing it already.”

That’s where the NaNo mind-frame comes in handy.

1. Break things down into manageable segments.

Like in the beginning of November, we must break down the goal into manageable pieces. Fifty thousand words in a month equals 1,667 words a day. It looks more manageable–and our brains love whatever makes a task look easier. Instead of looking at the big picture, begin with the one phrase. I started to apply that to running: I am not the fastest, nor the one that goes the farthest, but mile by mile, I can finish the race.

2. Track your progress.

Do you remember the cool wallpapers that appear at the beginning of the month, with all the number of words needed for each day, the funny incentives and uplifting quotes? Well, they are not only for November, they are for life: adapt them for the situation at hand. When you start noticing how far you’ve gone, you feel guilty about quitting–and inspired to fill out the rest.

(Extra points if you adjust the “You Should Be Writing!” meme for the project at hand as well. My favorite involves the Tenth Doctor looking rather miffed. It does the trick every time).

3. Remember that there are plotter and pantser situations in real life. 

Some writers are natural-born plotters: they make charts, outlines, character sheets and Pinterest boards covering all the minutiae of their novel. Some are pantsers: there is a story out there in the middle of that chaos; all you need to do is to find it.

There are situations that demand the “plotter” outlook–a school presentation must be thought about carefully, for example. Then there are situations that demand a bit of pantser courage, like grabbing the microphone at the karaoke party when you are shy, but also dying to sing. Adapt accordingly. The one sure way to lose if you don’t try.

4. Celebrate the small achievements. 

Nobody does this better than the NaNo crowd. We celebrate when we reach 10K, 25K, even when we get to write 1K in an awful, no good, “If you need me, I shall be in Australia” sort of day (Phantom of the Opera fans will get the reference). So why not do that with all the other developments in life? Break out the nice china or the fancy lipstick. Find support from like-minded folks. We NaNoNinjas have the online boards and the MLs–if you’re doing something, whatever it is, it’s highly plausible you are not alone. Your community is here to help.

5. Don’t get down on yourself when you’re in a rut.

When in a rut, remember that the first draft of everything is crap. Get it finished, by hook or by crook. Quote the encyclopedia. Do a song and dance. Add aliens to the text if needed–not recommended if you are doing, say, the AP History presentation, but, then again, if Lin-Manuel Miranda got away with a George Washington spouting hip-hop lines… anything can be done if you have enough research and the talent to back it up. And there lies the most important thing that NaNoWriMo taught me: if you can dream it, you can put it to paper.

So get it to paper–even if it’s not fiction. Don’t wait for November or any other special date.

Anna Fagundes Martino is a writer based in São Paulo, Brazil, and an editor at the Dame Blanche publishing house (www.editoradameblanche.tumblr.com/).

Top photo by Flickr user planetlight.