We’ve reached day four already, I can’t believe it! How is your word count looking? The stated goal for day four is 6668 words, and if you’re on track, awesome! If not, don’t fret, there’s always time for a word sprint or three, and you have more words written than you did when you started. That alone is worth celebrating. (I am fully aware that the challenge of NaNoWriMo is about quantity, not quality, but I also can relate to needing to take it easy sometimes. So if you don’t make your daily word count, you can always celebrate having written anything and plan to make up the words tomorrow.)
NaNoWriMo: Looking Ahead
Here’s a tip: aim for 2000 words per day this week. (It’s okay if you haven’t done so already.) Week one is full of eagerness and crazy writing sessions, and it’s a good time to get some extra words written. If you can find time for an extra writing session, do it! The extra words will serve you well when Week Two’s predicted slump hits. Not everyone reaches that slump at the same time, but most people do find a slower period coming as the reality of writing every day sinks in. Write madly while you can. I like to aim high the first week, 14k or 15k by the end of the weekend. (This may or may not actually happen in reality, but I’ll aim that high regardless.)
Sometimes the slump coincides with discovering a plot hole or character inconsistency. Do not let your inner editor win! You may update a character profile or rework your outline, but this is not a time to get lost in the weeds. Even if you end up scrapping the scenes later, write your daily word count of prose, not just plot notes. If you have to use up the extra cushion of words you wrote week one, use it to fix whatever you need to fix as quickly as possible and then move on. Did you read that? Move on! NaNoWriMo is not about perfection—quite the opposite. NaNo is about getting words on the page, conquering that blank screen, and putting thoughts in some kind of vague order. That’s it!
It’s a draft, not a masterpiece.
In need of some inspiration to get words written? NaNoWriMo has virtual write-ins planned all month long, and your local region (https://nanowrimo.org/regions/find) has both a regional forum (search the region name on the NaNo Forums (https://forums.nanowrimo.org/search)) and probably has virtual events set up. If you’re in a low-density region, there are also plenty of open forums with other international writers taking part. Tip: the forums are set to mute (hide) any forums you aren’t involved in (https://forums.nanowrimo.org/t/where-did-all-my-forums-go/180124)! This means the list of visible forums is much shorter than what’s actually there, so if you don’t see the Coffeehouse (all-ages discussion) or Finding Your Crew (writing communities), you’re missing several forums! Scroll down to the bottom of the main forum page (https://forums.nanowrimo.org) and click the “Muted categories” header to expand all the other forums. You can choose which you want to keep visible with the little bell icon at the top right. It’s probably struck out on most forums (muted), but you have control over what you want to see.
Find your region and see what they have set up already. My region has Discord write-ins, Zoom write-ins, as well as combination Discord/Zoom 12-hour write-ins every other Sunday set up for us to cheer each other on and help one another with any plot holes, name failures, or other quandaries that you might run into. I believe I saw a house architecture and layout conversation yesterday, a few “I need a better name” discussions, a discussion about intentions for scenes, and not overdoing the chaos level in chapter one, to name but a few of the conversations that happened during my region’s 12-hour write-in yesterday – I was only present for several of those twelve hours, so there was quite a bit more!
Gamification: Extra Win
I also enjoy word crawls (https://www.wikiwrimo.org/wiki/Word_crawl), which are designed to make a game of writing your words. These can be done by yourself, but are often more fun if you do it with a friend, writing group, or random people you met on the forums. They’ve added so many to the Wikiwrimo page list I don’t even remember which I’ve done at this point. Some are complicated and lengthy, others are more direct. Find something that seems interesting and make a game of it! I subscribe to 4thewords (https://4thewords.com) for this same reason; gamification adds another level of pushing toward progress. If you join 4thewords, use my referral code (KSQZP52502) and if you end up subscribing we’ll both get a bonus! (I am typing this blog draft in the 4thewords interface right now, fighting a cloud monster that’s part of their NaNoWriMo special event.)
If you are part of an mIRC channel or Discord server related to NaNoWriMo (or even the #NaNoWriMo2020 twitter conversation), use the support of other people participating to celebrate your wins when you make your daily word count, and don’t forget to celebrate theirs, too! I have yet to find a more powerful driving force than seeing or hearing someone else having beaten me to the word count of the day. Whether it’s other people celebrating or just a bot command that says YAY! in big letters, it’s positive reinforcement for both you and others. I recommend finding a place to take advantage of this!
Carrot and Stick: Your Motivational Tools
“This theory is derived from the old story of a donkey, the best way to move him is to put a carrot in front of him and jab him with a stick from behind. The carrot is a reward for moving while the stick is the punishment for not moving and hence making him move forcefully” (courtesy of businessjargons.com (https://businessjargons.com/carrot-and-stick-approach-of-motivation.html)). Find ways to reward and punish yourself. Rewards include doing something that you’ve been wanting to do but haven’t had time, special food or drink, even that leftover Halloween candy has a good use here. (My first 500 words each day get a lollipop – plain and simple. I enjoy it while I keep writing.) Punishments aren’t to penalize you harshly, but to keep you moving. Today I told myself that I would write two thousand words, or else I have to clean the bathroom. Yes, eventually I have to clean the bathroom anyway, but having it waiting as a potential downside to not making my word count means I’m twice as motivated to write. If it’s not chores, or unpleasant tasks, offer to do things for your friends and family. Give them an IOU for whatever chore they’d like you to do, and set it based on your word count. Could be your daily words for that day, or it could be a total word count by the end of the week, whatever pushes you to write. I often try to set up several at different intervals, such as knowing I needed to hit 5,000 words yesterday, or aiming for 14k by the end of the week.
The Sticker Chart
Okay, you might be thinking, sticker charts are for grade school kids who do their homework. Maybe they started there, but that is not at all where they have to remain! This is just a natural progression from the idea of rewards and celebrating your wins. NaNoWriMo even designed a printable sticker chart that goes with this year’s theme/design. I have a whiteboard calendar with fun magnets and plain magnets with stickers that I add when I meet or exceed my word count goals. I also have a page I doodled on in the back dot grid pages of my Self Journal. Here’s an image from earlier in the week:
Author’s Note: Blog Update Schedule
A quick note on blog updates; I do plan to keep updating this blog during National Novel Writing Month, but updates will likely be shorter, with real articles on a bimonthly schedule as best I can. This will probably be December’s reality also, with holidays coming up, and that’s if I can get something written for the last week of the year beforehand. If my project gets complicated, blog updates will absolutely resume in the new year on a more regular schedule.
Thanks for reading!
~Marie
Marie Efromson 