Camp Nanowrimo

National Novel Writing Month is an annual event that spans the entire month of November. If you've ever been a participant, you know that, for writers, November is a month full of lack of sleeping, overcaffeinating, and basically having no life outside of your own mind and word processor.

I participated in NaNoWriMo for the first time in 2012, and I got realllllly close to completing 50,000 words, but I didn't quite make it, to my own disappointment.

That's not to say I didn't take anything away from the experience. I learned to just write, and having a goal and a deadline really helped push me to the next level in my writing. And now that NaNoWriMo is over until November 1, 2013, I'm finding that I'm getting less and less done as I get stuck, overanalyze, and constantly critique myself before I've even finished a scene. I find that I need to get back to just writing.

I tell myself this, and I set goals for myself, but it's so awesome to have that support system through NaNoWriMo along with tips, articles, and inspiration. It gets you riled up, inspired, knowing you aren't alone in your writing endeavors and the road blocks you face when writing.

So, joy to the world, I was so excited to find in my inbox an invitation to participate in Camp NaNoWriMo! Heck yes! You set your own goal, have "cabin mates," and have all the basics of NaNoWriMo at your fingertips. If anything can set a fire under my butt, it's this. All I'll need is marshmallows.

So, if you need that extra boost between now and November, swing on over to Camp NaNoWriMo and sign up!! Donate!! Get some sweet merch!! Plan your novel and rough it with the rest of us :).


Happy Reading (and Writing) Everyone :)

NaNoWriMo

Well, I didn't reach my goal this year of 50,000 words, but I got pretty darn close. What does that mean to me? That I can definitely pull it off next year by managing my time a little better. SO much happened this month, I don't even know where to start. Between writing and working, my husband trying to talk while I write and two furry children's cold noses nudging my arms. It was crazy. But throw in a holiday and family visiting every weekend... I'm amazed I made it as far as I did. 

I'm not trying to make excuses. Trust me. Now that I look back on this month, I see where I could have squeezed in a paragraph here or a few pages there. It's a work in progress and you learn as you go. Next year I'll nip this in the butt and cross off my list of "things I want to accomplish." 

What did I learn? A whole helluva lot. I've tried to start writing, but my inner critic usually gets the best of me with that negative voice saying "that's crap," and I typically end up highlighting and deleting and ending up with the blank page I started with. Not this time.

NaNo taught me to just write. To give your inner editor the cold shoulder and just get those fingers flying across the keyboard. That's what proved to be the most difficult, but I've finally learned how to just keep plowing forward and let my imagination do the rest. 

I learned that I surprise myself. When I'm reading, I can't help but wonder how the author came up with that or how they created these characters that are so easy to fall in love with. It may be different for everyone, but for me, I think that once you get to know your characters and the story, the rest just kinda flows over.

In all my previous attempts at writing, I've never experienced that moment where the characters and the story takes over and things just pop up on the screen and you wonder "did I write that, or did they?" It's the most amazing and astounding thing, and I'll read it back over a few days later completely shocked that that came from my mind. I guess I didn't think I was capable. 

Now, instead of wondering how in the heck I'm going to get started on my novel, I'm rushing home from my day job because I can't wait to continue working on it.

Although I didn't accomplish my goal according to the numbers, I don't feel like I failed. I don't feel lost in my own little world anymore because I know I can now put it down on paper. NaNo helped me find the confidence to know that I am capable of creating a story, inventing characters, and just writing. 

Probably one of the best things I've ever done was sign up for this crazy month of writing, despite my fear. I've learned so much, and will, without a doubt, be back in the running for next year.

Happy Reading (and Writing) Everyone :)

~ Keely ~

NaNoWriMo

LOL, that cartoon kinda says it all. For the life of me, I couldn't get myself to just friggin' write! I'd sit at my computer with my ideas and good intentions laid out before me, but I'd get so caught up in trying to make in perfect, that I'd lose the story and ultimately my inspiration.

This month, I've decided to participate in NaNoWriMo. It was a split-second decision, made about four hours before the thing was supposed to begin, and honestly, I was scared to death. How in the heck was I going to write 50,000 comprehendible words in thirty days? But then I remembered last year, when I'd heard about for the first time, and how, once I saw what everyone was doing and checked out the website for myself that I just had to participate in 2012. I clicked the "sign me up" button before I really chickened out, pushing myself to quit being such a weenie.

It's day five, and you know what? I think it's the best decision I've ever made when it comes to my writing. I perused a few of the "get started" articles, and most of them said just write. Don't worry about editing until December. Take your inner-editer, lock her in a sound-proof cage, and throw away the key ~ for now. I've heard this concept before, but it never seemed to work for me. Try as I might, I'd always get caught up in needing my novel to be perfect the first time around.

Turns out, that goal is simply impossible and I was setting myself up for failure every time I sat in front of my computer to write.

One thing that's a huge help is closing my eyes. If you can type without looking at the keyboard, I highly recommend it. Close your eyes, and just type. You can't see the screen; all you can see is the story in your head, and it just, surprisingly, comes pouring out of you.

And whattaya know, sometimes a little unexpected twist occurs. The character takes on a life of his own, says what's on his mind, and completely becomes out of your control. Sounds strange, I guess. He's a fictional character that I created. But as I've gotten to know him over the past four days, he's starting to feel comfortable with telling me how he'd react or what he'd say. It's crazy, and I find that I can't stop writing.

This has never happened to me before. Not getting stuck or completely frustrated with myself. Just write is a tool that truly works if you can find a way to boot your inner-editing out the door. I like the way one of the articles put it: "We're just making all this stuff up...Take your novel seriously, but don't take yourself too seriously." ~ something along those lines, but it's fantastic stuff.

With that in mind, I found that I might be able to go back over my few days of work to just get a better handle on where the story is going. I kept thinking don't take yourself too seriously, trying to maintain my focus on the just write philosophy. And it worked. If I saw something that didn't sound just how I wanted it to, but I couldn't come up with something on the spot, my exact thoughts were, "Fix it in December."


I just plowed through the words, made a few changes to smooth out the flow of the story line, and guess what? I came up with a couple pages full of ideas to work with.

Meaning, I have a crazy amount of writing to do.

What was it Nora Roberts once said? "You can fix crap, but you can't fix an empty page." I've gotten more done in regards to my novel in the past four days than I've ever done in the years that I've said I was going to do this. By just writing.



Happy Reading (and Writing) Everyone :)


~ Keely ~