Keep Calm and Keep Writing

Worried about your writing slump disturbing your story? Anna C. has given us her techniques as a young writer  whenever she needs to keep herself writing. 

Hey guys! Ready to face another long month of writing? I know some of you guys are super excited, and some of you are kind of-(you know, groaning and being desperate for ideas…) Lucky for you all, I got some keen advice. If these tips don’t work out for you, it’s totally fine. These are some things that I do to “Keep Calm and Keep Writing”. 

1. Listening to music.

Who doesn’t have crying little sisters, loud vacuums, and your older sibling’s friends yelling at you to refill their tub of popcorn? I know I have plenty of these scenarios. When I put on my earbuds, open Spotify, and play my favorite songs, I can settle. Music helps me to calm down, even if there’s lots of chaos around me. Sometimes humming along helps. 

2. NOT write an outline.

I know, right? Sounds crazy! But for me, my hands run smoothly when there are no barriers. Of course, occasionally, I would write down a few details (like characters and places), but other than that, I just write down what comes to my head. If I think about narwhals, singing, and golf balls? I would write down that special narwhals would play golf by singing. Sounds pretty silly, but it’s super practical. This helps me to write a story that even I would never be able to imagine. 

3. Write stories with what you like, or enjoy.

Ever mashed up monkeys with the Titanic before? I think not. Well, monkeys are my favorite animal, and the Titanic is my favorite ship (the event I would say, but we shall go with ship). If I put these two together, I’m pretty sure this is going to turn out into an interesting story. Again, I would be able to write a story that even I wouldn’t be able to think of in my dreams.

4. Taking a book break.

Every hour or so, I take a break from the computer and sit down to read a nice trusty book. About 1/3 of my ideas come from other books. Most of my books are probably FanFiction books. Sometimes I merge my own story with an extremely popular book. The result? Euphoria. 

5. Using lots of detail and advanced vocabulary.

Bland sentences are what I start with. You know, for the drafts. The second time I go over the writing piece, I upgrade everything. This is what it looks like:

“I do not like dancing,” Sarah said. 

→

“I absolutely despise dancing,” Sarah remarked. 

See? By changing a few words, the sentence seems polished and new. 

6. Revising other people’s writing.

I do this with my parents, or with my friends. Every week, we check each other’s progress and give tips n’ comments. By reviewing other people’s work, I learn a lot of things. I learn things like new words, new sentence construction, and even self-tips to improve my own writing. 

Well, good luck fellow writers. Even if you can’t see us physically, the NaNoWriMo community is cheering you on! All of us here behind the screen are rooting for you to finish your novel (or at least start it). So, stretch your fingers, get a warm cup of milk beside you, and get writing! 

Anna C. is a 12-year old that has a passion for writing, reading, and paddleboarding. If she’s not working on homework and schoolwork, she spends her free time writing fictional short stories. Anna is currently typing up a short novel called “Mysteria”.

Top Photo by Danielle MacInnes on Unsplash