NaNoWriMo #2

The more you do something, the more you learn, right? And what I learned this November is that I need to be on solid footing with my story before NaNoWriMo if I expect the month to work for me.

NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month. I explained the idea and methods for it in last year’s post, found here, so I won’t repeat myself. But let me just say, NaNoWriMo 2022 was a success for me because I knew where I was going with the story before the start. This year? Oof, no.

See, I plot my stories. Other writers don’t. Whichever method works for you is great, but I’ve found I do better if I’ve thoroughly thought through my story, all the way through to the end. So I had planned to think deeply about my story ahead of time. I had planned to outline so I wasn’t wasting time writing drivel. Alas, time is a runaway freight train. It was suddenly November! I had to get my first day’s word count in! No time to lose!

Well, I kinda think I lost half the month, if you want me to be honest. My final word count was well below what I’d hoped–primarily because I was adrift, going back and forth and rethinking parts and blah blah blah.

So. Hear me, writers. I highly suggest you keep following your tried-and-true, nice-and-toasty, satisfying method ahead of NaNo. If you typically plot your stories, do it again before you start. NaNo is no time to charge across uncharted lands while also expecting to double or even triple your daily word count and yet expect magic. You know yourself, so believe in your trusty process. My two cents. I wish you luck.