Tag: National Novel Writing Month

  • NaNoWriMo Day 25: Two ways to write your scene

    NaNoWriMo Day 25: Two ways to write your scene

    I haven’t been writing much the last few days. I got busy with work and yesterday was Thanksgiving. I wrote a little, but I didn’t push myself. You see, I’m on vacation until December 3, so I have the next five days to write and reach 50k. I have about 12,000 words left. That’s about…

  • NaNoWriMo Day 24: Thankful for what I’ve learned in NaNoWriMo 2022

    NaNoWriMo Day 24: Thankful for what I’ve learned in NaNoWriMo 2022

    I am reading about people on Reddit, Twitter and other social media platforms who have decided to stop NaNoWriMo. That’s okay. I’ve had my years where I just wasn’t into it. But I have never subscribed to the thought that someone who doesn’t finish NaNoWriMo, doesn’t win. Everyone wins at NaNoWriMo, even those who don’t…

  • NaNoWriMo Day 23: Rules

    NaNoWriMo Day 23: Rules

    Last day of work until December 5th. I’m a little behind on NaNoWriMo, but I intend to spend my free days in November finishing my NaNo and getting to 50k words. My story arc is complete, but I won’t be writing the entire story out as a narrative before the end of November. That always…

  • NaNoWriMo Day 22: Starting with dialogue

    NaNoWriMo Day 22: Starting with dialogue

    When I start a scene, if I’m not sure what to write to start things off, I go to my default: dialogue. Then I add in some physical actions followed by interior thoughts and emotions. Then I layer in some description – I make sure the reader knows what the characters look like as close…

  • NaNoWriMo Day 21: Think before I write

    NaNoWriMo Day 21: Think before I write

    Still on par for my word count, but I’m not ahead. I only wrote a couple hundred words yesterday. It was very cold out and I was lazy all day. I am finding the benefit of planning out my scenes before I write them. One last thing I do before I actually write a scene…

  • NaNoWriMo Day 20: A 6,000-Word Day. Not.

    NaNoWriMo Day 20: A 6,000-Word Day. Not.

    In his book No Plot? No Problem!, NaNoWriMo founder, Chris Baty, suggests getting ahead in your word count by “harnessing the power of 6,000-word days.” I tried it. I got to 4,000 words for Saturday and I decided I was far enough ahead and to stop for the day. It just wasn’t fun anymore. I…

  • NaNoWriMo Day 19: From Regular to Rebel

    NaNoWriMo Day 19: From Regular to Rebel

    What I like about the four steps I used this month for NaNoWriMo is how they can be used in both Preptober and NaNoWriMo. Ideally, the writer can use Preptober to develop the characters. Once that is done, they can start using the four steps; the only question is which step to start NaNoWriMo with?…

  • NaNoWriMo Day 18: Completing the story arc

    NaNoWriMo Day 18: Completing the story arc

    I knew from the first day of NaNoWriMo I would not complete the story. Yes, I will reach 50,000 words. Yes, I will write a narrative, but it will only be part of the narrative–or what I’m calling “step four” in my NaNoWriMo plan. My writing process for NaNoWriMo 2022: Step 1: Write one complete…

  • NaNoWriMo Day 17: The Big Conversion

    NaNoWriMo Day 17: The Big Conversion

    My writing process for NaNoWriMo 2022: Step 1: Write one complete sentence summarizing each scene. Step 2: Turn each sentence into a five sentence paragraph. Step 3: Turn each paragraph into five paragraphs. Step 4: Turn the five paragraphs into a narrative. Now that I’ve reached step four, I’m converting everything to Scrivener. Up to…