17 Things I Learned from Writing My First Novel at 17

Writing a novel has been my dream for as long as I can remember. Ever since I picked up my first Junie B. Jones book in elementary school and fell in love with reading, I knew that writing was what I was meant to do with my life. I knew that I wanted to write something someday that inspired someone else as much as Barbara Parks inspired me.

Sometime a few years later, I made a promise to myself that I would write my own book before I graduated high school. At the time, it seemed so far off, and the books I wanted to write then are much different than the books I want to write now. It seemed like such a lofty goal at that age, and as my deadline started to approach this summer, it still felt so unachievable, especially with half a year left and nothing written.

So over the summer, I started my first novel. Long story short, it was terrible, and nothing actually happened in the 23,000 words I got written, so I abandoned that project for good. I was disappointed by this failure, but I wasn’t that quick to let my younger self down.

I started blogging about a month after my first failure, which introduced me to a whole community of writers who had their own experiences and advice to give, and I learned a lot. Most importantly, I was pulled into the hype of Nanowrimo, something I had tried in the past but never succeeded beyond a few words.

With the support of the blogging community behind me, I committed to writing 50,000 words in thirty days. I went into the month feeling nervous but excited, and I set my writing goal at 2,000 words a day. Overall, the experience was amazing. I had a few days where I wasn’t feeling up to it and I wanted to quit, but I knew that the feeling of finishing would outweigh the inconvenience of taking an hour or two of my day to just write.

And as a result of my persistence, I finished my novel and achieved my lifelong dream five days early, on November 25th. Needless to say, I was so proud of myself to have pushed through any obstacles and go after what I wanted. I kept my promise to my younger self with a month to spare, and I know little Bailey is smiling at me right now from somewhere in the past.

So with all that said, writing a novel at 17 was one of the most pivotal experiences in my life so far, and it taught me so many amazing lessons that I will carry with me as I go into any future projects.

1. YOUR FIRST DRAFT IS GOING TO SUCK

You’ve probably heard this about a million times by now, but I thought it might be nice to start off with this classic cliché. I’ve read this phrase on more blogs and Pinterest graphics than I can count, but those words never really meant anything to me until I began my novel-writing journey. My story sucks. It is really, truly terrible, but one thing I love about this phrase is that it reminds me that it’s okay that it sucks, because there is so much room for improvement and it can only get better from here.

2. IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER #1, BUT THAT DOESN’T MEAN THAT YOU SHOULDN’T TRY TO MAKE IT SUCK LESS

This is a mistake that I am unfortunately very guilty of. I went into my story knowing that it wasn’t going to be the best and that I had plenty of time to go back and edit it later, which allowed me to finish the first draft with less stress. However, when I started editing a few weeks ago, I realized that I may have let myself off the hook a little too much, and now my editing will suffer because of it. It’s okay to turn off your inner editor and just keep getting words on the page, but it’s also important to make sure the quality doesn’t slip too much because of it.

3. SHOW, DON’T TELL

I’m not proud to admit it, but this is my biggest issue in my writing. I try to play it through my head like a mantra as I write, I’ve even considered getting it tattooed in huge letters across my arm, but for some reason this concept just goes right out the window for me when I write longer works, and that makes all the difference between a good novel and one a kindergartener could write. This is never an issue for me when writing short stories, but for whatever reason when the word count is longer my descriptions go downhill, and that’s one thing I will definitely be working on in my next project.

4. SOMETIMES QUANTITY COMES BEFORE QUALITY, SOMETIMES IT DOESN’T

The main goal of Nanowrimo is pretty much just to get words onto the page as fast as you can, and that’s one of the things I love about it, but also one of its downfalls. In some instances, it’s better to just skip over some things (like detailed backstories, poems, or anything else that requires a great deal of time and effort), but sometimes quality should be prioritized higher. In the case of my story, my main character is writing a book of her own, but I mention nothing in the story about what her book is about. I planned on going back and adding that in later, but I realize now that her story could have affected major plot points and ultimately changed the course of the story, so I would have benefited from taking more time here.

5. WRITING A NOVEL IS HARD, BUT IT’S NOT NEARLY AS IMPOSSIBLE AS IT FEELS IN YOUR HEAD

Writing a novel always seemed like some far-off thing to me, something that somehow millions of other people managed to do but just wasn’t realistic for me. That mindset seems so crazy to me now, and I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t matter who you are, you are capable of writing a novel. It may seem like an insurmountable task, but once you get started it’s just putting words on a page from your heart. You can do it.

6. PLANNING IS NICE, BUT SOMETIMES YOUR CHARACTERS MAKE DECISIONS FOR THEMSELVES

When it comes to writing, I definitely categorize myself as a planner. I even wrote a whole blog post on why I chose to outline my story, but I may have failed to mention one important thing about planning: your plans will change. I had my whole story planned out chapter by chapter when I went into it, but once you start getting to know your characters better you start to realize what would be natural for them to do in certain situations. With my first draft finished, I now have 2+ characters that I wrote nothing about in my outline and a whole list of new plot points, and that’s okay. Planning is great, and I still swear by it, but sometimes the magic of writing is in giving your characters a little room to think for themselves.

7. YOU WON’T GET THROUGH IT IF YOU DON’T BELIEVE IN YOURSELF

This is definitely a big one, and part of the reason I didn’t finish my first novel attempt. If you don’t believe you can do it, or if you don’t believe it will be good enough, you just aren’t going to be able to push yourself to finish. While I was writing, doubts would pop into my head constantly because I knew what I was writing wasn’t the best or even worthy of being read yet, but I forced those thoughts out and pushed myself to finish anyway. Everybody is going to doubt their abilities at one point or another, and that’s okay, but it’s important to remember that it’s a learning process, and nobody is going to be a bestselling author overnight.

8. IF YOU THINK YOU DON’T LIKE COFFEE, YOU’RE WRONG

This one is a little different from my other tips, but also true. If you think you don’t like coffee or don’t need it to survive your writing, you probably just haven’t found the right kind of coffee (I recommend the Donut Shop k-cups, they changed my whole view on coffee). I waited until the third week of Nanowrimo to discover this and I wish I would’ve known sooner, so don’t make the same mistake as I did. Coffee makes everything easier, no argument.

9. PACING IS EVERYTHING

This is yet another thing I struggle with, mostly in my beginning chapters. I have a tendency to jump right into the story with only a few paragraphs of introduction, and when I read it over later it just sounds rushed and sloppy. I want to make a point to slow things down my next time around, paying attention to character and setting descriptions mixed in with a few back stories. Making sure your reader knows what’s going on and can picture it vividly can be the difference between them reading on and abandoning the book.

10. EDITING IS MUCH LESS FUN THAN WRITING

Being the perfectionist that I am, I was more than ready to jump into editing and wave my red pen freely over all my imperfections. Unfortunately, it only took about three pages for me to get so discouraged that I decided to put it away for awhile and revisit it later. I thought editing would be much more fun than writing and much less work, but it turned out to just be a big headache that I don’t really want to deal with. My best advice for this (though many people advise against it) is to every so often while you’re writing just go back and reread a few chapters. This can avoid a domino effect that comes from changing one thing early on and therefore having to change everything after it.

11. YOU MIGHT NOT WANT TO PUBLISH YOUR FIRST NOVEL

In most cases, your first novel isn’t going to be your best work or something that you’re going to want to present to a publisher (I don’t speak for everyone, but this is definitely true for me). Publishing is a daunting process to begin with, and when I decide I’m ready to give it a try I want to go in with something I’m confident in, and something I built from years of experience and plenty of failed novels behind me as a cushion.

12. DON’T LET BEING “TOO BUSY” HOLD YOU BACK

This is probably the most common excuse for not writing, but in most cases, it just isn’t true. Again I can’t speak for everyone, but most people can take at least five minutes out of their day to sit down and write. Any little time you put in will add up quickly until one day you have a complete story to hold in your hands. Whether you wake up and hour earlier and write or go to sleep an hour later, there are always little things you can do to work toward your goal.

13. TAKING BREAKS IS IMPORTANT

While it is important to make time for writing, it is just as important to make time for relaxing. If you’re constantly on the go working or going to school or taking care of a family and you use up all your free time writing, you’re going to burn out and you just won’t be happy. Just pace yourself and know your limits and every day you will make yourself a better writer.

14. SET REALISTIC GOALS AND REWARD YOURSELF FOR ACHIEVING THEM

My favorite way to take on a big project is to set little goals for myself and put in place rewards for when I meet them. For example, my goal for Nanowrimo was to write 2,000 words a day, and I would come up with rewards for every 10,000 words or so. They don’t have to be big things, it could be as simple as getting an ice cream or taking a break to walk your dog, just as long as it’s something you look forward to that will make you want to write.

15. WRITING A NOVEL IS A LOT MORE FUN WITH A COMMUNITY TO BACK YOU UP

Probably the best part of my Nanowrimo experience, and maybe the main reason I made it through it is because of the amazing community that comes along with this challenge. There are so many people going through the same thing you are at the same time, which gives you plenty of people to talk to and to motivate you. Without this blog and the Nanowrimo family to hold me accountable I probably would’ve given up in the first week. If you want to write and it’s not November, don’t worry! You can find like-minded people online or even ask your friends and family to hold you accountable for your word count every day, whatever it takes to keep you motivated!

16. WRITING A NOVEL IS SOMETHING TO BE PROUD OF

This is something that absolutely everyone should remember. I would even say print it out and frame it if you think that will remind you because you should never forget that you’re doing something amazing. Writing a novel is hard, and it takes a strong and determined person to push through all the obstacles that come along with it and keep fighting until you’re finished. Don’t be afraid to celebrate, this is a huge win.

17. THERE IS NO AGE LIMIT ON ACHIEVING YOUR DREAMS

Finally, it doesn’t matter how old or young you are, your novel doesn’t know your age. Whether you’re five or ninety-nine, it’s never too late or too early to work hard for what you want. I always kind of thought in the back of my mind that only adults could write books, but I realize now how wrong I was. People of different ages have different stories and experiences to bring to the table that nobody else can. No matter how old you are, your story deserves to be heard.

This post is probably the longest one I have ever written, but it is also one that I have been excited about writing for months now. I’m so glad I got the opportunity to share with you what I’ve learned from my writing, and I hope you can learn something from it too.

I’d love to hear any advice you’ve picked up from your own writing experiences, so please let me know in the comments anything you have to share.

Happy writing,

WRITING UPDATE #1: After Nanowrimo

Hello!

As most of you know, I participated in Nanowrimo for the first time last month and hit 50,000 words on November 25th. My story continued on briefly after that, but while I had projected it would be in the 55,000-60,000 word range for the first draft, it actually ended up being less than 52,000.

So now that my first draft is out of the way, I’m left with the daunting question of what to do next. Do I give myself a break? Do I start editing? Do I try writing something else?

I’ve received a number of comments attempting to help me solve this problem, and the overwhelming response has been that I should wait so that when I return to the story I will be more distant from it and better able to look at it objectively. I was unsure about this at first, but when I caved in this morning and read a few pages I wasn’t completely repulsed by it, so it has definitely not been enough time.

So I’ve decided on option three: I’m going to start a whole new project, and only when I finish the first draft of that will I return to my Nano story. I’m hoping this goes as planned, because I’ve only successfully completed one full-length novel and expecting to finish another one in a short period of time may be a lofty goal.

I’ve already started planning out my new story, but this time I have taken a much different approach. I have always been a firm believer in the use of Google Drive and its automatically-saving, online-accessible wonderfulness, so it feels strange to say that I won’t be using Google Drive at all this time around.

That’s right: I have finally given into the hype of Scrivener.

I’ve always been a little skeptical about Scrivener, even though I’ve only ever heard positive things about it. I probably never would have even tried it out if it weren’t for the 50% off coupon for Nanowrimo winners. I figured that if everyone loves it so much, there must be a reason, and after playing around with the trial version I can see why people swear by it. I’m enjoying the ability to access my plans in the same document as my writing; it makes the process much more efficient, and I have a feeling it will help me to better stay on track.

I’m satisfied with how it’s helping me plan, and I’m even sort of excited about what this new idea might become. I’m not at all the kind of person who comes up with story ideas left and right (or at all, really: I have a decent one like once a year), so I’m crossing my fingers that this one might have potential. It centers around a heavy theme, so I’m going to do my best to pull that off!

I wish everyone the best of luck in all their writing endeavors! Now that Nano is over, I’m going to have to change a lot about my routine, and hopefully this new habit of writing daily will catch on in the long-run!

Happy writing!

 

Nanowrimo: Reaching 50,000 Words

Five Nanowrimo blog posts, twelve years of dreaming about writing my own novel, twenty-five long days of reaching my daily word count, and 50,000 words that nobody would ever want to read later, I am officially a Nanowrimo winner.

Just one month ago, I decided on whim to write a blog post about my feelings on Nanowrimo, with no expectation that I would reach 50,000 words or even get to one. I learned about Nanowrimo about three years ago and have always dreamed of the day I would win, but despite my good intentions, I never gave it a try until this year. I always used the excuse that I was too young, or that I didn’t have enough time, or that I wasn’t good enough, but I put all those thoughts aside for the last twenty-five days and did what I never thought was possible: I didn’t give up.

I’m still in shock that this day is actually here, but the winner banner is real and very, very beautiful. My story is not quite finished but it is close, and without this challenge I probably never would have started it at all. Right now it’s a complete mess, but it’s less of a complete mess than I expected it would be in the first place, and that in itself is a small victory.

The end of my story is well within view, and I’m happy with how everything came together, even if I did branch off a little from my original outline. In an earlier post I described myself as a planner, but looking back on the month I would say I am definitely more of a plantser, and it worked out well for me. I enjoyed the freedom of new characters introducing themselves by surprise and smaller conflicts cropping up in the middle of something bigger, while still having the structure of an outline and the guarantee that my novel will not reach a dead-end.

I haven’t decided yet whether I will edit this story right away or move on to planning my next project, but one thing I know for sure is that my consistency this month has formed into a new habit, and I don’t plan to take writing out of my daily routine for a long time. I feel this month alone has helped me grow as a writer more than anything else I’ve done before, and I don’t regret participating at all.

Overall, I’m proud of myself for sticking to my goals and working toward something I’ve wanted for so long, and I can’t wait to read my first novel when I’m finally finished. It’s not perfect and I still have plenty of room to grow, but I’m only seventeen and I have my whole life ahead of me to make my writing great, and now I’m confident in my ability to do that.

To anyone else who has reached their 50,000, congratulations! To everyone participating this year, whether you think you’ll make it to the finish line or not, we should all be proud of the hard work we’ve put in this month. And if you aren’t participating and you would like to, why not start now! Even though November is almost over doesn’t mean it’s too late to start something great. You’ll never regret trying.

Thank you all for keeping me motivated and accountable this month, and as always,

Happy writing!

Nanowrimo: Week Three Update

It’s the twenty-first day of Nanowrimo, and I’m ashamed to say that it took me until week three to discover coffee.

Coffee is mentioned on pretty much every single page of my WIP so far, but I have never really been much of a coffee drinker, so I had been avoiding this key Nanowrimo staple until finally, last week, I found some that I liked. I now credit all my writing for the past seven days to that coffee. Otherwise, I don’t know if I would have made it through.

This week was probably the best so far in my journey, and it almost feels natural to sit down and write those two thousand words at the point. I would love to keep this habit going even after the month ends, but I know eventually life will get in the way. As of yesterday, my word count stands at 40,390 words, and I’m on schedule to reach my 50,000 by Saturday, which is pretty exciting stuff.

At the beginning of the month, I honestly didn’t think I’d make it this far, and even wrote a whole post about why I wasn’t sure I should participate in the first place. But now that I’m twenty-one days into the month and still meeting my daily goals, I’m pleased with my decision to join. Had I avoided participating because of my worries that I wouldn’t finish, I wouldn’t be here today with 40,390 more words than I had at the beginning of the month.

I’m starting to dread writing less every day, and even though I stress about how horrible my story is about every other minute, I’m starting to enjoy the process of getting it onto the page. My words are starting to feel less forced, and my plot is finally moving along. I’m not sure how long my first draft will be once I’m finished, but I expect it will be between 55,000 and 60,000 words. Even though I plan to finish a few days early, I am still going to try to stay consistent in writing those last few thousand words before the end of November.

My overall feeling for the week is proud. I’m proud that I’ve kept going this far, and I’m excited to see the final outcome when all is said and done. It’s an amazing feeling to watch that blue bar get closer and closer to turning green, and I’m happy that I’m to the point where I’m fully confident in my ability to finish out the month, because the first week I wasn’t so sure I’d make it this far.

If it weren’t for this blog, I probably would have quit the second day, so thank you to anyone who read my previous posts and therefore kept me accountable to finish out the month. Without the pressure of an audience and the support from a community of fellow writers, I never would have made it this far. I hope your story is going well, and I hope you’re excited and prepared for the final stretch. No matter where you are in your story, stay positive, you can do this!

Time to go write those 2,000 words, let me know how your project is going and if you haven’t already, add me as a Nanowrimo buddy!

Happy writing!

Nanowrimo: Week Two Update

Today is day fourteen of Nanowrimo, and I’m pleased to say that I have not yet given up, despite how much I have sometimes wanted to.

My current word count stands at 26,048 words, and keeping up with my trend of 2,000 per day, I should be at 28,000 by tonight. The goal for today is 23,333 so I am still well ahead of schedule and I’m very happy with my progress.

For one thing, I reached the halfway point yesterday, so my outlook on the rest of the month has changed a little. It’s nice to see that I have fewer words remaining than I have written, and I’m quickly approaching those 50,000 words! (At this rate, I should be finished on November 25th). On top of that, I beat my own personal best for word count, which was 23,000 in my previous attempt. This week has been stressful, but I’m satisfied that I have been able to stick to my goals and keep working toward the end.

The second week was a little bit better than the first; I wouldn’t describe it as painful like I did in my previous update, but that’s not to say it didn’t come with its own obstacles. On two separate occasions, I found myself not having the opportunity to write until my later at night (and I am a morning person for a very good reason), and both of those times I wanted to skip writing for the day and go to sleep, but I forced myself to stay focused and get those words onto the page first.

While some may argue that it’s okay to take a day off, and that it may not be the best thing for the quality of my writing to write when I’m so tired, I find that I work best when sticking to a continuous goal. For me, that one day off is an excuse to take the next day off, and the next and the next, until my story is abandoned for good, and I don’t want to see that happen. Two thousand words a day has proven to not be as big of a time commitment as I had anticipated, so I’m going to stick to that goal until at least the 25th.

Overall, I am still feeling confident and motivated to finish out the month, and I’m happy I didn’t quit on one of the many occasions I was tempted to. It’s not easy, but I really think it will be worth it to me when I have a rough draft to build on at the end of the month and hopefully form into a real novel. I haven’t lost interest in my story yet, so I’m hoping everything stays on track from here!

Also, thank you to everyone who has left me encouraging comments in these past two weeks, it really helps to keep me accountable when I know there are people who believe I can do this. Thank you so much for the support!

Now time to write my 2,000 words for today…I hope everyone participating is having a great Nanowrimo, whether you’re on track for 50,000 or not. As long as you’re enjoying yourself and working toward your goal, it will be a successful month.

Happy writing!

Nanowrimo: Week One Update

Today marks the end of the first full week of NaNoWriMo, and I can think of one word to describe my experience so far: painful.

It’s day seven, and my current word count stands at 13,444 (the par for the day is 11,666, so I am a little bit ahead of schedule). I’ve made it my personal goal to go a little above the expected 1,667 words per day and shoot for 2,000 instead, which has been working well for me so far.

However, I feel my creativity is running out: I only have 556 words left to write for today, but I’m using any excuse I can find to avoid writing. I’ve already thought about quitting a few too many times, but so far I am still pushing through. But those 2,000 words are feeling like more and more every day, and where it took me only about an hour to finish for the first couple of days, it now takes me significantly longer.

Obviously, it isn’t an issue of the writing itself, because here I am, probably writing more words than I need for the rest of the day in this blog post. But as far as my story goes, I feel like it is a constant and difficult effort to keep the story on track while also keeping it from becoming boring. 2,000 words isn’t a lot, but it’s starting to feel like it when paired with my lack of inspiration.

That being said, I have no plans to give up. I will be writing those last 556 words for today, and another 2,000 tomorrow and for the rest of November. The idea is daunting and I’m trying not to think about it, but I’m grateful to have this blog to keep me on track and accountable for my progress.

As you may know, this is my first year participating in NaNoWriMo, so I don’t exactly know what to expect from here. Will it get better? (Hopefully!) Will it get worse? (Hopefully not!) Regardless, I feel that the only way to really give this experiment with novel writing the chance it deserves is to see this through until the end, no matter how painful that may be.

As far as my actual story goes, I’m liking this one much more than my previous failed attempt. In my past story, I was writing about things I hardly knew anything about, but with this new story I feel much closer to the plot (the main character is a reader and an amateur writer, much like I am). It’s not perfect, it’s not even good, but I see potential in this story that I didn’t see during my first attempt. With a whole lot of editing, it might even get to the point where I could share it with other humans! (Though I doubt it.)

I should probably get back to writing now (as much as I really don’t want to). I’d love to hear how your project is going, and if you have any advice for a new novelist like myself!

Happy writing!

 

Nanowrimo: Planning vs Pantsing

Happy Halloween!

Tomorrow is the first day of Nanowrimo, and I’m already questioning my decision to participate. It’s going to be a lot of work, but hopefully I can push myself through it until the end!

With less than 24 hours until the challenge begins, I want to address one of the big questions when it comes to Nanowrimo, or novel writing in general: are you a planner, or are you a pantser?

If you are a planner, you’re probably finished with your outline already and just waiting to turn it into a story, and if you’re a pantser, you probably have an idea and a whole lot of build-up creativity ready for next month. In just about every aspect of life, I am a planner, and my first attempt at National Novel Writing Month will be no different.

When I started my first novel this summer (and quit at about 25,000 words, realizing it was going nowhere), I went in with a very rough outline, and about a million unresolved plot holes waiting for me. Needless to say, this was a disaster; however, at that time I knew that planning would have stalled the project forever, and if I wanted to get something written I just had to go for it.

This time around, I went with a different strategy and made a detailed outline, and I’m already glad I did. I feel as though I know my characters better, and it was almost like their goals and desires propelled the plot along on its own as I outlined. That’s not to say it’s perfect, there are still a few blaring holes I have yet to fill, but I’m satisfied that this will keep me on track during the next 30 days.

To make my outline, I strayed from my usual paper-and-pencil method and opted for a spreadsheet, which I made using Google Sheets (I use Google Docs for everything, I am horrible at remembering to save files). I made two separate sheets: one for characters and one for the outline.

For the characters, I mixed and matched questions from a few different “character questionnaires” I found online, and answered the questions which I felt were relevent for each character. For my outline, I made a column for each of the following: chapter/scene number, description of scene, time/date, setting, characters involved, subplots relevant, and total word count per scene (to be filled out as I write). I am not completely finished with the outline, but hopefully I can squeeze the rest in tonight before November starts and it’s time to begin writing.

For me, planning is a great way to keep my focus and stay on track with my goals, because it stops my story from reaching a dead-end. I know many people swear by pantsing, and if you are one of them I would love to hear how you keep your ideas organized! Regardless of which category you fall under, I wish you a happy Nanowrimo and the best of luck on whatever project you choose to pursue.

I can’t wait to hear everyone’s Nanowrimo updates throughout the month and I’ll try my best to keep blogging; until then, happy writing!

NaNoWriMo: Is it Worth the Stress?

Today is October 23rd: just over a week away from the first day of November.

When most people think of November, images of falling leaves, pumpkin spice lattes (which are disgusting, by the way), and the occasional Christmas tree are probably what comes to mind. But for the writers out there, November is infamous as the most stressful, and perhaps most rewarding, month of the year.

November is National Novel Writing Month, 30 days where thousands of people lock themselves up in their offices and attempt to write 1,667 words a day, or 50,000 over the course of the month. Nanowrimo is simultaneously exhilerating and anxiety-inducing, and I have yet to decide which weighs out the other.

I have never personally tried Nanowrimo (though I’ve had more than a few hopeful Octobers, only to finish November with a blank page), but I have high hopes for this year. I have more writing experience than any previous year I’ve dreamt of Nanowrimo success, and thanks to my half-written novel I somewhat abandoned this summer, I have learned a few lessons about what it really takes to be a writer.

But part of me isn’t quite convinced. Thinking about it now, it sounds almost glamorous—sitting at the keyboard for hours every day and coming out much more productive because of it—but the realist in me knows that this could easily turn into a negative thing. 1,667 words a day isn’t an unrealistic goal, it would take only a few hours, but in those few hours you are forced to sacrifice other things that you might rather be doing: reading, blogging, sleeping, etc. This is the reality whether you write a novel in a month or in a year, but I worry that the stressful nature of the challenge might spark a resentment toward writing itself.

In other words, when I write a novel I want to enjoy writing a novel. Of course, it’s unrealistic to think that in any span of time writing such a long story will constantly be your top priority, but regardless, it should be something you love. But how do I decide that Nanowrimo is not for me without even giving it a fair shot?

In Nanowrimo’s defense, it takes a huge amount of discipline to get yourself to the computer or notebook and writing those thousands of words, and that amount of discipline would be good for anyone to learn. Discipline and stress are likely to go hand in hand, but all good things require hard work and sometimes pain. The idea of working so hard on something and giving up other things I enjoy scares me, but I know that the reward in the end will be worth much more than anything I have to give up to achieve it, and the difficulty of the challenge even makes it a little more appealing.

Really, it all boils down to one question: do I want my story written, or do I want to sit on it forever while waiting for inspiration to strike (which could literally never happen)? Nanowrimo isn’t an easy task by any means, but whether I finish or not, I’ll come out of it with a lot more if I try than if I let the bad days discourage me from the whole endeavour.

Whether or not you believe in Nanowrimo, it is always worth a try. Writing your story in such a short period of time has a lot of pros: the flow will be better, the ideas will find their way onto the page quickly, and you will have a few hundred pages of horrible writing that you can spend December turning into something that can one day be amazing. But you’ll never know if you don’t try.

I don’t know how far I’ll get this Nanowrimo, but if it’s a little more than one blank page, I’ll take that as a win. I would encourage anyone considering trying it out for the first time not to let fear hold you back, because every little effort counts.

Hopefully I will have positive updates in the future, now time to start planning…happy writing!