NaNo is for Those Who Struggle

We passed November 15^th, so in terms of NaNoWriMo, we’re halfway done. Maybe. If you’re participating and on track with your word count, you’re halfway done. If you’re ahead, great. If you fall into the other category, this is for you.

Word count obsession is a form of OCD and it’s contagious. I fought it for years and Word Count OCD relapse is one thing I don’t like about NaNo. I’ll only ever be eleven months Word Count carefreeless. And I worry a little about my peers, particularly the ones who struggle.

This is about what’s best for you. Maybe it’s a pep talk, maybe it’s a reality check, that’s your decision. If you’re using every trick in the blogs to legally pad your word count, or if you’re farther away from your goal than you like, take a step back and look at what you’re doing.

NaNo is a lot of things. It’s not meant to be easy. Don’t compare yourself to those who already have 50,000 words. Depending on the type of writer you are, there are tricks (mostly involving plotting and organization) that help you write 8-10,000 words/day. You’ll get there. To me, NaNo really isn’t about that. To me, NaNo is for those who struggle. It’s for those who haven’t finished a book yet, or only one and did so only at great personal cost. This is for the beginner, and it’s meant to be challenging.

For those that really and truly benefit from NaNo, it might take more than one or two attempts to finally meet that goal. That’s fine. The secondary goal is to develop habits and learn.

If you’re reading NaNo blogs, you’ve heard already to put your inner-editor away. This is no place for him, he fights with your muse. A lot of people who start to write a book never finish because they keep going back to rewrite that first chapter or two until it’s perfect, and they never get any farther. NaNo is about breaking that habit. That first chapter is not going to be perfect in a first draft, and it shouldn’t be. Actually, it’s common to finish your book and then have to go back and change the first chapter significantly. I’ve had to cut one altogether. If your inner-editor is on vacation, this isn’t a problem.

Sometimes writers never finish a novel because they get stuck. They get their characters to a point and then don’t know where to go next. Writer’s block has as many causes as cures and it’s different for everyone. This is trickier, but also a reason for NaNo. If you’re in a hurry, you don’t overthink it. If you absolutely cannot decide whether your character turns left or right, you should try letting your character decide. Put yourself in their shoes - with their goals, strengths, weaknesses and motivation - and decide what they would do.

If your character has no idea either, flip a coin. With NaNo, you don’t have time to debate it. Make a list of possible next steps and throw a dart at it. If you’re wrong, then: A, you learned something and B, you can fix it.

If you’re so overwhelmed you can’t even think of possible next steps, skip ahead. Books don’t have to be written in order. If you’re stuck in Chapter 2, but you know XX is going to happen at some point, write it. How you got from Chapter 2 to Chapter 6 is something you’ll obviously have to fill in later, but hey, 6 happens. Frequently I find that, looking back, I can see what had to happen in Chapter 3, 4, & 5 in order to get to 6. Or I come back to it when I’ve had more sleep/caffeine.

Sometimes life gets in the way. There may be little you can do on this one, but there are some things. There is a valid reason to track word count other than NaNo. When you sit down to write, make note of where you are, what time of day it is, day of the week. Details. Keep a log for a while and then review your productivity. Many writers have a best time of day to write. They’re either more productive or more creative first thing in the morning when they’re fresh, for example, or late at night when the house is quiet. It’s not uncommon to have a favorite place, and not being there throws you off your game.

When you don’t have a lot of time to write, make sure the time you do have is optimal. The right time, place, conditions, mascots, whatever you need. It takes time to discover this.

Where do you waste time? Find out, fix it. I look up most things on my phone to keep me away from the internet on my computer. Cats on the computer are funny, on a cell phone - not so much. There are blogs, use your resources. After your fingers are tired and you can’t write anymore anyway.

The end-all of NaNo is not 50k in 30 days, no matter what the banners say. More important than winning NaNo is: are you learning anything from it?