So, we’re on day 15 and how are people’s NaNoWriMos coming along? I’ve hit 40k and you’re probably thinking ‘that’s amazing you’ve nearly finished’ but I don’t feel like that. For me the challenge isn’t getting to 50k in one month it’s completing the first draft of a manuscript from start to finish in one go. It’s writing everyday and using my time efficiently to produce a good first draft in a few short weeks. This, realistically, is what a serious writer needs to try and achieve, especially a writer who has chosen to self publish. The reason is – time is money.
Every self publisher I’ve spoken to advises fellow self-publishers to write another book to boost sales. This is the most effective way to increase sales, better than advertising, better than marketing on social media and better than reviews. The problem is that it takes time to produce the book, to write it, proof-read it and edit it. So for me NaNoWriMo is an experiment to see how quickly I can write that first draft and then it will be how quickly I can edit and proofread the draft into a book of real quality.
Here’s how my Nano journey has been so far:
The first 20k flowed really well. I had it done in a few days, I got into the characters and the exposition. I’m writing in a different genre with some creepy and gothic moments which I loved writing. It was enjoyable and exhilarating.
20-40k was a bit more serious. I had to add in some plot points and action events. I found that the mid-points between actions were difficult to write seamlessly. I also found that characters were beginning to change as I went on, affecting the plot.
At 40k I am now about halfway into my manuscript, which I’ve estimated to be about 80-90k. This is the hardest bit. A few of my characters have changed a little and that means the plot has changed a little too. So now I’m a bit stuck. I’m not afraid to admit that I’m procrastinating and avoiding working on it! Maybe I’ve burned out and need a few days off. Working through the weekend and then intensively before the day job takes it’s toll and perhaps all is needed is either a change of scenery or a break for a few days.
I’m interested to know how other writers feel when they are working on a new project. Do you give yourself a deadline? Do you have a publishing schedule in your mind?
I thought I would be able to turn around a completed book in three months, but now I’m not so sure. That doesn’t mean I’m not feeling positive about the experience, because I really am! This month has produced some of my best ever work and definitely the most interesting characters. I know that once I’m past this sticky point the words will flow again. I also know that a lot of problems can be ironed out in the re-write. I just sometimes feel frustrated that things aren’t going as quickly as I would like!
Stop by and let me know how your nano is going! I’d love to hear from you. 
The halfway point is always, always the hardest–no matter what your end goal is.
I’m about 22k into my current WIP. Technically not a NaNo, since I started it towards the end of October, but I do have it in mind to have at least 50k by the end of the month, with a total ending word count of 60k. (That’s usually my word count goal for YA, which is what I’m working on.)
However, this is also a project that I decided to go back to once I realized my NaNo project wasn’t working out–I got burned out by the beginning of the second week, and yesterday blogged about why: just couldn’t get a feel for the characters.
The last project I finished, I realized something: I have a tendency to think in terms of a series, and with that in mind I sometimes hold back information that would be better suited to that first book. I’m working on getting over that, because I figure it’ll help me out with my word counts (which are usually quite low).
Hi Laurel,
I know exactly how you feel. I’ve just written a YA series and now I’m working on something else which will be a standalone book. It’s hard to make that transition. I’m contemplating jumping ahead to write that last 20k of the book and then going back to write the middle. But then the characters won’t transition as well.
Decisions… decisions!!
Good luck with your WIP.
Hello there
For what it’s worth, I find I can’t really rush my writing, which is why I often work on more than one book at a time. It hasn’t felt like it recently because I’m doing a series but I’d written the end of the third book before I’d finished the first one. It has changed, of course but that isn’t really the issue.
I am dong NaNo because I’m hoping to knock my current WIP on the head before Christmas. I won’t but it’s certainly focusing my mind!
I’ve finished two books and I’m writing a third, I have got stuck about a third of the way into every single one. Resting it is a good way out for me, so that might be worth a try, or you might try writing something else, another solution I swear by! So do a short story, an article, extra blog posts, or just be extra chatty on any forums you visit… I even write product reviews is I’m really stuck.
Often, just writing something, anything, is enough. Don’t sweat it, let your subconscious get on with it and eventually you’ll find you get a lead on one plot strand and before you know it, your characters are back in action and once somebody starts moving, all the others begin to react and before you know it, you’re done.
To be honest, I am always amazed when I finish a book and when it’s edited and done and I look at the final product I am always gobsmacked that it’s anything to do with me. I don’t really know how the drivvel I produce initially turns into the final book… it’s weird and kind of eerie! Good luck, my nano is at 17k, although I can only write a few hours a day so I only mange 6k words a week and only then in school term time, so I’m only aiming for 20k on Nano – 30 if I blow myself out of the water!
Good luck and don’t panic. Your subconscious will work it out if you give it space and time.
Cheers
MTM
Cheers MT!
Well, I made it to 50k but then sort of stopped. In a way the nanowrimo mentality is a bit restrictive because you find yourself feeling like you’ve finished when in reality you haven’t! Still it’s an amazing achievement to get there so I’m not going to split hairs about it.
Good luck with your writing. Everyone works at a different pace but slow and steady often really does with the race. I’ll probably be putting my WIP on the back burner for a while so that I can edit another book I have in the pipeline. I’d like to finish it but I don’t think I’ll have time to do both.
Thanks for the advice!
Sarah