For years, I used to wait until I had a good stretch of time to write. I'd get myself comfy in my favorite chair, get my favorite drink ready, have my special writing music playing and work on my book for hours. Sounds good, right? Except for the fact that long...
Founder Chris Baty talks about the origins of NaNoWriMo & tips for success with Blurb & Grant Faulkner
It's a ton of fun to listen to Chris Baty talk about the early days of NaNoWriMo and how this crazy event got started. If you missed the live webinar that Blurb hosted on October 20th which also featured NaNoWriMo Executive Director Grant Faulkner, you can catch the...
Some words will be harder than others to write. #NaNoPrep (NaNoWriMo What to Expect series)
Some parts of a novel are much easier to write than others. Those first few words? Terrifying! But once you get going, things will go pretty smoothly in the beginning. Words will just be spilling out, you’ll be excited about your story and then… boom. You’ll hit a...
Your story is longer, both literally and figuratively, than you think it is. #NaNoPrep (NaNoWriMo What to Expect series)
Your story won't be the length you think it is. At some point over the course of the month, 50,000 words is going to feel like an impossible amount to write, every word like drawing blood. There are also going to be days when you’re sitting there saying, “I really...
Everyone writes at their own pace. Comparisons & jealousy do no good. #NaNoPrep (NaNoWriMo What to Expect series)
They'll be writers who write much faster or slower than you do . Some writers will actually hit their entire 50,000 word count within the first day or so of the competition, their counts ballooning past 100 or even 200 thousand words. On the other side, you'll see...
Your first draft won’t be as good as it sounded in your head. #NaNoPrep (NaNoWriMo What to Expect series)
Most of the time, you'll hate what you write. Your ideas are so awesome in your head but when you write them down on paper they seem like garbage. You'll get discouraged and frustrated and start to doubt yourself so I want to make sure you know ahead of time that...
Writing is work. It will require sacrifices to finish your novel. #NaNoPrep (NaNoWriMo What to Expect series)
You'll have to make sacrifices and prioritize your writing. This comes as a shock to many people with dreams of writing anything at all so let's just get this out there right now: Writing is work and it takes time. Maybe you have a job, kids and a variety of other...
Writing a novel is both fun and difficult. #NaNoPrep (NaNoWriMo What to Expect series)
Writing is easy. Writing is hard. You’ll hear two different voices throughout the month. "NaNoWriMo is so much fun!" say that people for whom it's going well. Meanwhile, the people who are having trouble are complaining that NaNoWriMo is stupid, impossible and way too...
Starting is hard. Everyone is terrified of the blank page. #NaNoPrep (NaNoWriMo What to Expect series)
You’ll probably feel a overwhelmed, especially in the beginning. After all the anticipation, the beginning of NaNoWriMo can sometimes be killer on your creativity. You’ll be staring and that blank page with this feeling that all of your ideas have completely left you...
Tips for keeping a new idea fresh when you’re stuck working on something else
I'm so excited. I can't wait to start my NaNoWriMo novel. I want to be writing it RIGHT NOW! Usually, when people complain about having to wait to start their NaNoWriMo novels, I point them to this post and all the reasons I recommend just going ahead and starting it...
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Hillary DePiano is a playwright, fiction and non-fiction writer who loves writing of all kinds except for writing bios like this.



