Comments on: Everyone’s got something to say

By: Dara

Dara — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 02:43:31 +0000

I love it too–it's one of the things I look forward to all year. Mostly because of the communal writing experience and all the energy it brings, plus it helps get me focused on writing instead of listening to the inner editor (who sometimes won't let me get past the first two or three chapters throughout the rest of the year…)

By: Natasha Fondren

Natasha Fondren — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:52:30 +0000

I love it. Although a 50K month is pretty normal for me, NaNo is always the time I use the community and energy to push through the fears of trying something new. This year, I'm trying a new genre!

By: Mary Witzl

Mary Witzl — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:11:23 +0000

I'm not doing NaNoWriMo this year, though I've had fun doing it in previous years. What isn't quite so much fun is all the rewriting you get to do afterward, turning all the quantity into quality. But I never once managed to get anything whipped into shape by December. Even January would have been a real stretch.

By: Angie Ledbetter

Angie Ledbetter — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:19:13 +0000

I'm a NoNoNaNo in Twitterville. I've got enough on my plate without that November buffet overload.

By: Bryan B.

Bryan B. — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 02:59:38 +0000

I love what John Green had to say about Nano: It gives you permission to suck.

By: Amalia T.

Amalia T. — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:55:34 +0000

I've participated in some shape or form since 2002, and loved the community experience. It's great company to be in if you're struggling or celebrating.

This year I've already hit 50K (I was as surprised as anyone) but my book was always intended to be actual novel sized (80-100K) so I'm still working, and my goal is to finish the book before the month is out. Then I'll put it away for a while and do revisions on my other manuscripts while I let it age!

For me, anything that encourages and reinforces the habit of daily writing is a good thing. That discipline is so important!

By: Steph Damore

Steph Damore — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:22:43 +0000

Nano came at a good time for me this year so I'm giving it a go to work on a sequel. I'm 10,000 words in so far and hoping to keep up the writing schedule. I usually write 1,500 words at a time, just not every day – more like every other:)

By: Vodka Mom

Vodka Mom — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 21:33:20 +0000

That last paragraph made me laugh out loud.

thanks!

By: Shawntelle

Shawntelle — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 21:30:06 +0000

I started Nano, but I may not finish it. I have too many other projects to work on.

Great post, Jim! And yes, I'm getting back to work.

By: Tere Kirkland

Tere Kirkland — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:52:00 +0000

My NaNo novel from last year turned into the novel I'm currently querying.

But forcing myself to write almost 2K words a day can also be counterproductive. I wind up writing less because I spend too much time thinking while I'm still "in" the story, when I should be "outside" of it, planning ahead. So I'm stalled out right now, too.

I'm usually a plotter, and unless I have the story fleshed out already in my notes, it just doesn't want to come out as I write. I already know I can write 50K words in 30 days, just not when I haven't done enough planning, and I haven't spent as much time plotting as I should.

The only month that would be worse than November for me would be February or March, depending on when Lent-- and hence, Carnival-- falls that year. ;)

But NaNo IS keeping me from messing with the first draft I finished in October, and that's really all I wanted. Hands off that draft till December!

Good luck to everyone else.