Getting Prepared for NaNoWriMo! (With BookTuber FictionalFates and Scrivener)

Every year, we’re lucky to have great sponsors for our nonprofit events. Scrivener, a 2020 NaNo sponsor, is an award-winning writing app that has been enthusiastically adopted by best-selling novelists and novices alike. Today, they’ve partnered with BookTuber Joel Rochester, a.k.a. FictionalFates, to help you get prepared for the month ahead: 

At thirteen years old, I participated in NaNoWriMo for the first time. At that point in my life, being challenged to write 50,000 words in thirty days was daunting and very scary. However, I persevered and I somehow managed to do it, albeit the novel I wrote that year will never see the light of day.

However, now at twenty years old, I’ve learned that NaNoWriMo is a great time to break the spine on a new tale, or one that I’ve been working on for years. (Rebels, I see you.) I guess you could refer to me as a “NaNo-Veteran”; someone who’s participated in NaNoWriMo for many years now. Scrivener has very kindly asked me to impart some wisdom on my experiences, whether you’re participating for the first time or looking to refresh that writer’s memory.

But first, have you announced your project yet? This November, I’ll be writing The Dream Prince, which is an enemies-to-lovers fantasy following two princes, one alive and one cursed to die, who converse through their dreams. They are forced to work together to break the curse, or both war and the plans of an ancient cult will come to fruition.

Now that’s out of the way, let’s get to how YOU, beginner or fellow veteran, can better your NaNoWriMo experience, with the help of Scrivener! I have used Scrivener for seven years now, and I don’t think I would’ve been as organized with my writing if it wasn’t for them.

NaNoPrep

Usually, everyone takes the month of October to figure out and plan out their projects to write in November. However, we’re not always as organized as we’d like to be, scrambling at the last minute to come up with an idea. Don’t get discouraged — planner, pantser or plantser, there’s definitely ways for you to prep in your own way, and it’s on a sliding scale.

In my experience:

Pantsers (people who write off the seat of their pants) just need to know what direction their novel is going in, and perhaps some minor details about their characters and world. Planners (people who extensively plan their novel) plan enough that you know the general beginning, middle and end of your novel and that they know their characters to some extent. However, as with most plans, they might be thrown out the window throughout the month as they begin to realize more details about their novel. Plantsers (a combination of both, this is me!) plan until they’re comfortable, and then discover the rest. In my experience, I mostly have the beginning and end planned, and tiny bits of the middle, and then the rest is to be found during the month!

Scrivener makes it super easy for beginners to prep their novels. By using their corkboard view, you can plot cards and rearrange as you wish. Plus, they have templates for character and setting profiles too, making it easier for you to flesh out your characters as you wish. And with the index on the left, you can arrange them into folders, making everything very neat and organized!

NaNoWriMo

November will come and go as swiftly as this year has gone. Whilst on average, it’s roughly 1,667 words per day in order to write 50,000 words a month — our schedules don’t always accommodate that. So I would say to pace yourself according to your schedule throughout the month.

Have a free day? Try to get as much writing done during that day as it’ll make other days much easier to reach your goals.

Need to be productive? Check Twitter or the NaNo Forums, there will probably be someone hosting writing sprints, where you can write for short periods of time in order to contribute to your larger goal.

I’ve found that in the past, spending five 10-minute sessions throughout the day writing 100 words was much more productive than one 50-minute session trying to write 500 words. Small amounts of progress add to a larger feeling of completion.

This is also what makes Scrivener exciting as I’m able to set word count goals and see the progression bar fill up as I write. Just seeing that visual confirmation really keeps me motivated to keep going throughout the month.

Plus, with Scrivener I’m easily able to organize and write my novel on a scene-by-scene level — plus, I won’t have to copy and paste everything into a manuscript as Scrivener’s compile feature does that for me without the hassle!

Have Fun!

Lastly, NaNoWriMo is a lighthearted fun challenge which most of all, encourages writers to write and make progress in their novels. Whilst winning and achieving the 50,000 word count goal is amazing, if you don’t win, the progress you made in November is still something to be proud of.

It’s important during this month to strive for progress rather than perfection. The words that you write during the month of November will only be the first of many drafts, so ensuring the words are down first of all is an essential step.

Have fun with your characters, have fun with your fellow writers. Maybe look to pick up the Traveling Shovel and use it in one of your scenes. This is a time to celebrate the fact that you have chosen to give life to an amazing story, so write it.

Overall, NaNoWriMo is such a fun month to get to know other writers, hone your craft and begin the progress of a novel you want to write. I hope that all of you make amazing progress over the course of November. Who knows, I might see you in some writing sprints!

For now, if you wanted to try out Scrivener, you can try out a free trial for 30 days and revel in the awesomeness. I highly recommend it, especially for those who are getting started with writing novels. Plus, if you use the code NaNoWriMo, you can get 20% off!

Good luck friends, and happy writing!

Joel Rochester is a writer of Welsh and Jamaican descent. As a young child, he saw books as an escape from the real world but he often found those books never truly represented him. He loves to read and write books about emotional boys, daring worlds, and intriguing tales. He advocates for more diversity in media. Particularly, more QPOC representation.

Presently, he reviews and discusses books through his popular social media presence, ‘FictionalFates’. He is also currently studying a BA (Hons) Creative Writing and English Literature at the University of Winchester.
When not writing or reading, Joel can be found consuming other media. Whether it be video games, Korean dramas, or browsing social media. He also never goes long without a mug of matcha tea by his side.