November is one of my favorite months of the year. I’m almost positive you’re confused as to why I adore boring November so much — after all, isn’t the only fun thing about this month Thanksgiving? But it’s not my favorite month because I get to hang out with my family and eat tons of carbs (although that is definitely a plus). I love November because it is the month during which hundreds of thousands of writers, experienced and inexperienced, fly in from all around the globe to write a 50,000-word novel as a part of NaNoWrimo, or National Novel Writing Month. While this task seems daunting, I have eagerly participated in NaNoWrimo every year since 2010 and have even won a few years. Here are my top ten tips to NaNo success!
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Plan out catch-up days where you can write more than the usual daily word count of 1,667 words to compensate for days when you might have been writing less.
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Find a group of fellow NaNo participants! There are so many NaNo write-ins and other fun events happening at bookstores, coffee shops, libraries, and so on all over the world. If you can’t attend any of these real-world events, fear not — the NaNo forums are a great resource.
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Speaking of the forums, you should definitely make an account on the NaNoWriMo website. There are so many amazing resources on the site, like dozens of helpful forums, pep talks from published authors, a word count tracker, the NaNo merchandise store, and more.
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Try to establish a routine. Maybe you write best in the morning before you even get out of bed, or perhaps you get some of your best work done in between classes. Whatever it is, having a routine is so helpful during NaNo, but don’t stress if you sometimes break that routine!
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Participate in word sprints! Word sprints are a period of time — usually around five to twenty-five minutes — where you compete against other writers and try to write as many words as possible. The NaNo website has a forum specifically for word sprints, and, in addition, you can follow @NaNoWordSprints on Twitter to get involved in this surprisingly fun activity.
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Don’t worry about editing yet! Right now, you’re trying to get a rough draft of a novel on paper. It doesn’t have to be perfect — you just have to write it.
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If you’re very busy during November and aren’t sure if you will be able to meet the goal of 50,000 words, you should still try! Using NaNo as a month to inspire you to write more than you usually do is totally valid. I’ve done that before and I’m doing it again this year.
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Use any spare time possible to write. Instead of bingeing the latest episodes of your favorite show on Netflix in between classes, try to get some writing done,
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Take time for yourself if you’re stuck in your novel. Go to the gym, listen to some music, take a walk, or do whatever else it takes for you to clear your head and get back to writing.
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Most importantly, have fun!
You can learn more about NaNoWriMo at their official website, https://nanowrimo.org/.