A Guide to Surviving NaNoWriMo

NaNoWriMo is for survivors, y'all. I know it's more about the challenge than about winning, but I'm competitive. I want to win. Of course, this year will be a little different from the previous two years for me, because now I have a job to dodge while trying to accomplish my 1.6k every day...

(gif of widening freaking out eyes here)

...but it'll be fine. It'll all be great. I'll just not do anything else besides work, sleep, eat, and NANOOOOOOO for 30 days, and all will be accomplished.

But in the name of all that's writing, I want to give my NaNoWriMo buddies a guide to surviving this trial. And to make it easier on all of us, I'm going to give you my tips in the order one would use them. I mean, if you used all of them. Which I don't expect you to, but hey, it'd be cool.

• Let the idea stew in your mind. Think waaaaay ahead about what you want to do in November. Come up with the idea, then just let it sit for a while. It'll bounce around in your brain and stick to other ideas until it's bigger and better than ever! 
• Leave no blanks in your outline. If you're going to make it through November without getting stuck, you can't leave anything ambiguous. Make sure you know every turn of your story before you start it. Even if you're the kind of person who likes to change things as you go along, make really sure you know where you're going. 
• Get all the prewriting out of the way in October. Okay, this is basically common sense, but if you didn't know, you only need to worry about the first draft during NaNoWriMo. All prewriting should be out of the way by October 31^st. 
• Have your prizes ready! I am a firm believer in having self-prizes for milestone marks in the writing process. Per week, per 10,000 words, per quarter of the manuscript, whatever works for you (prize ideas: money for special drinks/snacks/other treats, candy, money to blow at your favorite store, self-permission to buy a new book). Set aside the stuff in envelopes and only open them once you've passed the milestone.

• Immerse yourself in the story. I do this every year, and I love it. Before November begins, I have my Pinterest board ready, I prepare my novel soundtrack(attach link) and I create a slideshow of pictures that make me think of the story to scroll across my home screen while I write. I think of nothing but writing all November long, and that's what keeps me from getting stuck and not finishing.
• Get to work bright and early. There are no ifs ands or buts in NaNoWriMo. He who gets up early and gets a freakin' move on his word count gets the worm, and the earlier you start, the greater chance you have of getting that 1.6k done that day.

• Get out o the 20,000s as fast as humanly possible. The 20,000s are a minefield for the NaNo participant. You're not even halfway through the story, you're starting to get a little tired, and you want to stop. Get outta there and into the 30,000s as fast as you can, because at this point, you'll be over halfway through, and you can't quit now!
• Listen to epic music. When you're listening to epic music while you're writing, you feel epic and you go faster and write harder. That's why you should have a novel soundtrack. But otherwise, I suggest going to epicmusictime.com. Just hit the play button, and you will be well supplied with epic music to keep you going.
• Add everything. If you think of a scene to add, no matter how unnecessary it may be, add it anyway. It'll add to your word count and might keep you from having to go back and add more when you run out of story and still haven't reached 50k.
• Write more than you have to. I always stay on schedule throughout NaNoWriMo, without any cuts, buts, or coconuts, but not everyone is me. If you think you might miss a day somewhere or have a couple days where you just can't make the word count, write more than you have to on days where you're in the groove. Don't burn yourself out, we've talked about this, but make sure you have a bit of breathing room (at least 500 words), just in case.
• FINISH!!!! This might seem like a no-brainer, but don't stop working on your project. I know it's hard, I've done it twice and I'm about to do it a third time, but don't stop just because you're tired or you want to take more time with the story. We're at crappy-first-draft status here. It doesn't have to be great. It just has to exist.

Once the thirty days is over, make sure you treat yourself. New notebooks, new books, pick something and reward yourself for slaving working so hard.

That's it, my NaNo people! What are you doing for this year's NaNoWriMo? Stick around on my blog throughout November to hear about my writing project for this November, how I'm doing, and my tips for getting through the month. Make sure to give me your updates, too! I really want to hear how you're doing! See you next Tuesday!

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