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November 4, 2010

How’s NaNoWriMo going? [Discussion]

It’s day 4 of NaNoWriMo, and I thought it was time for a check-in. Shannon posted her experience so far on her blog, but we want to hear from you! If you’re participating, tell us:

  • How many words/chapters/sections/characters do you have so far?
  • Does the time constraint throw a wrench into your writing process, or does the deadline give you a direction and tangible goals?
  • Do you feel pressure to write a certain number of words each day, or do you wait for inspiration to strike?
  • What are you enjoying most so far about the process? What have you found most difficult?

Share your experience/thoughts (and shoot us a link to check out what you have so far) below in the comments. If you can tear yourself away from your WIP, that is! 😉

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  • This is my first nano and I’m really surprise about the results so far. I work full time so it’s kind of hard to keep the energy up to write once I arrive home. However, I’m so in the plot line that even when I’m trying to take a writing break I realized I’m back to writing.

    Today I have to write a little more (I force myself to write at least 2 hours a day) but so far: 6 chapters, 12,000 words.

    I hope all of you are enjoying nano as much as I’m doing.

    • Toni

      Thanks for the reply, Jesse! I’m so glad things are going well for you. It definitely can be hard to keep up the energy while working full-time, but it’s great to see that you’re chugging along and are so inspired by your plot. Keep it up!

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  • Best as you do this “nano thing” this month. I am busy – work and have a thriving blog site. so time is a hot commodity. I write when I’m inspired. When I do that I usually can crank out 1500 – 2000 words. I’m probably 500 words short of my goal for today but I haven’t written yet.
    I think people do this for different reasons – some like to join the bandwagon of anything, others have never done anything at this level. I am using it as a motivator. As a writer / artist I struggle with putting things down and never finishing the project. If I can’t write my novel in 30 days it won’t happen. This novel is important to me for many reasons. anyone want to follow along I am blogging my progresshttps://litmoondustwriter.wordpress.com

  • This is my third NaNoWriMo. My first one “Tumbler” is now self-published and is successful enough to cover my monthly car payments. My second novel, “1884” is currently being shopped around for representation/publication. I’m now working on “The Hidden Institute” and I’m about 8k into it (keeping pace with NaNoWriMo, basically).

    Does the time constraint mess with my writing process? No. I try to write 400 words per day, so this is about four times more intensive, but I’m lucky in that my whole family is working on it at the same time. So we all take an hour out of our day and put down a couple thousand words.

    Do I wait for inspiration to strike? No. In my experience, inspiration strikes most often while I’m writing. So, I have to keep writing if I want to have inspiration strike.

    What am I enjoying most about it? I like the fact that it’s going to help my productivity by bringing a social element to what is basically a very lonely pursuit.

    What is most difficult? I don’t like the idea that I can’t go back and edit. I know why it’s that way, and I make furious notes in my text about things to change, but it still nags at me. As Hemmingway said, “The first draft of anything is sh*t.”

  • I’m a little over 15k into my NaNo WIP. I try to write every day but it’s tough with a two year old at home. I don’t feel much additional pressure – I put a lot of pressure on myself to write anyway because if I don’t sometimes I get lazy. 😉

    I write fast anyway, so this isn’t agonizing for me, but I’m a pantser, so I don’t have a well-developed outline, which can bring things to a screeching halt every now and then.

    Overall, though, I’m enjoying the process and the buddies/support system the most. You can read the synopsis for the book at https://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/user/698327

  • Toni

    Thanks for the updates, everyone!! I can’t wait to see how things progress throughout the month.

  • Hello

    I have put my name down for this year’s nanowrimo. It is my first time and I am excited about it. I have so far decided on what the book will be about and started to plan my approach.

    My first book was written under pressure because I only decided to write it when I spotted a competition. The deadline was 6 weeks from then and I had 50,000 words minimum to write. I enjoyed the pressure although I don’t think the novel submitted was anywhere near the finished article that it could have been given more time for polishing.

    Good luck to everyone taking part.
    Kerry