How to Make It to 50,000 Words

Every year, we’re lucky to have great sponsors for our nonprofit events. Scrivener, a 2021 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 author Elizabeth Haynes to share some tips to help you reach your writing goal:

We’re now a little past the halfway point of NaNoWriMo, and it’s a good idea to check in to see how your project is going. The mid-point of this 30-day period can be a bit difficult; after 15+ straight days of writing you may be hitting a wall. You may be behind in your word count, or you may be running short of inspiration. 

We asked Elizabeth Haynes, who has written a half dozen novels all started during NaNoWriMo, for five tips on making it to the end of the month. 

1. What do you recommend for authors whose enthusiasm flags halfway through NaNoWriMo?

There is a wall that hits most people, usually around the beginning of week three. This is where fellow writers can help: push through any blockages with write-ins, virtual this year, or find round-the-clock writing sprints on Twitter to give your word count a boost.

2. NaNoWriMo is all about writing for a month, and word count is part of the way we measure progress. What if an author’s word count seems too low to make it to that 50,000-word goal?

I truly believe that every word is a victory. Even if you only manage 20,000, or 10,000, or 5,000 words, that’s still more than you’d probably have written otherwise. If you’re slipping behind and the 50k feels out of reach, KEEP GOING ANYWAY. Use the momentum of NaNoWriMo to write as many words as you can, and you never know; a sudden burst of inspiration may propel you over the finish line. If you stop, that’s definitely not going to happen.

3. Some writers feel that they absolutely have to finish their novel in November; is that really necessary?

I think you have to tell yourself that you’re going to finish, and then see how you get on. I’ve only ever finished once in November, although I’ve won the 50k every year since 2005, except for 2009 (long story). Usually I ride the momentum into December and finish a couple of weeks later.

4. At the mid-point of this process, can a writer decide they want to change direction, change their plot, reconsider characters, or even start over? Or is it too late?

There are no rules for your story. So, absolutely: change the plot, introduce new characters, kill people off, or start a second one; just don’t delete anything. Every word counts, even the rubbish ones!

5. Do you have any other tips for writers who are finding it difficult to maintain their rhythm?

The word count statistics feature in Scrivener is very useful. I use it to keep track of the total goal as well as the word counts for each sprint as I do them; it really helps to see the little bar change from red to yellow to green as you reach your goal. I also think it helps to tell people you’re writing a novel; the more you talk about it, the more seriously you take it. And try not to fall behind! It’s good to get ahead of target early in the month if you can, then if you have a day or two when life takes over and you can’t write, it won’t feel such a disaster when you’re able to get back to it. Good luck! YOU CAN DO IT!

Elizabeth Haynes is the author of more than a half dozen novels, all of which began as NaNoWriMo projects. You can also hear Elizabeth Haynes discuss her work, and NaNoWriMo, in episode no. 6 of the Write Now with Scrivener podcast.

Kirk McElhearn is a writer, podcaster , and photographer . He is the author of Take Control of Scrivener , and host of the podcast Write Now with Scrivener .

Top photo by Erol Ahmed on Unsplash.