How to Win NaNoWrimo, part 2 (How to find time for writing, how to come up with a plot, tips and tricks)(100 Followers)

Yay! Congrats to me! I've finally, finally reached 100 followers after about a year and a half of blogging! This makes me slower  at gaining followers, but I've always wanted 100 followers and now I have them. ;) I may think of something to celebrate later, but for now I will proceed with my regularly scheduled Nanowrimo post. :)

This is the second in a series, so check out the first post here.

What you've all been waiting for-a premature cover of my novel,+ a pitch:

We believe in our city

Perfect place, very pretty

No bad leaders, no disease

No poor people in the streets

Everybody here is safe

All you have to do is stay*

I live under the sea, with the fish and the mermaids(jk).

The Bubble. The last refuge for those driven underwater when the world went crazy and started persecuting Christians and revolutionaries and speakers of truth. Or at least that’s what I hear. How could I know for sure? I was born here, and I’ve never seen the surface.

My dad designed this place, the most high-tech haven the world has ever seen. We’re supposed to be peaceful and perfect, because God’s blessing is on us. Right? All we wanted to do was stay safe from the craziness and depravity outside of the Bubble. What’s wrong with that?

But the council is warring under the strain of a (dare I say it?) idiotic leader. Mysterious cracks have begun to appear in the Bubble’s structure. A strange visitor has showed up in Bubble HQ, claiming to be from the surface(which is impossible, in case you’re wondering.)

Oh, and did I mention I’m deathly afraid of drowning?

*This city “pledge” was written by aforementioned idiotic leader, who might also need to take a course in poetry

So there it is. It's no good, I know, but it'll be revised and changed along the way.

Now for the post. I recently found this excellent free ebook about NaNo. You can find it here.


http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/84837

So here are my tips (some of these you can find on the NaNoWriMo forums. :)

The NaNoWriMo Hurdles
I used to have a fear of hurdles, but I got over it! Ha ha.


Hurdle One: Finding Time to Write and Staying Motivated

1. One of the best ways of staying motivated is writing with people. The Wrimos who Win almost always have one or two writing buddies with whom they compare plots, word war, and celebrate word goals with. It's a lot harder to give up when there's someone who's running the race right next to you.

2. They provide a handy word bar on the site which helps you stay on track if you're a perfectionist like me!

3. Lets face it. Everyone has time to write everyday. They just spend it doing something else! Everyone gets exactly 24 hours in a day. Everyone has school/work/dance/instruments/tutoring/chores. But only a lucky few get their NaNo done. That's cause they priortize! If you really have a limited time on the computer, write your 1667 BEFORE you check your email, blogger, Lakehouse!

4. And do not go on the NaNoForums for problems with procrastination. That's like a drunk going to a bar for advice. Go on there for specific problems, but if you have something important to do(like WRITE) STAY OFF THE FORUMS AT. ALL. COSTS.

5. Set goals. Have a writing calendar with specific dates marked out. for example. " November 14: Begin writing start of war. November 19 Write MC's brother's death scene" etc.

Hurdle Two: Need a Plot? and Writer Block


1. The best way the ONLY way to avoid writer's block is to PLAN AHEAD. Write an outline! Some people swear by winging it, but their sanity is generally doubted.





2. So how to come up with a plot? Don't get me wrong. You NEED a plot. Some people like to come up with their cliched main character(usually some sarcastic chick who can fight really well and has a tragic past) and then come up with a plot based around her. Plot driven stories almost always work out better than character driven stories because most characters(sorry to break it to ya) aren't deep enough to work a story around, especially for noob writers like us.




3. Write what you love! What do you like to do? What do you always wish you could do? What's a place that has always fascinated you?

4. You could always try adapting a Bible Story or fairy tale to modern times. There are a ton of good ones out there!

Hurdle Three: BLARGH I HATE MY STORY MY CHARACTERS ARE HORRIBLE AND CLICHED THIS SUCKS I GIVE UP!

1. Everyone has these moments. Take a deep breath. Then say it with me again. Everyone has these moments. If you're expecting this, it won't be so overwhelming when it hits.

2. Set aside the section that you hate(usually the one you're currently working on.) Skip ahead a couple chapters and get a fresh start.

3. Send your story to one of your writing buddies. They'll help you with it and help you proofread it and stuff.

4. Take deep breaths and get iced tea

Hurdle Four: I changed my story in the middle and now my beginning doesn't fit the rest of the story!
1. Nearly everyone has this problem, because stories develop as they move on.

2. Don't delete the beginning and write it again. Your time is precious! Make a big mark where the discrepancies start, and jot down some suggestions for when you begin to revise.

3. Keep movin' on.

Dirty Tips and Tricks for the Desperate

aka The Marvelous Word Padding! Thou shalt never find more ludicrous examples throughout the world than the NaNoWriMo community!

 1. These will not contribute to the general quality of your novel, most likely. That's why they're for the DESPERATE!
2. I might be posting these again during November, but it's good to build up an aresenal
 3. These come from the NaNoWriMo forums!

A persons name. Instead of Dr. Pascal, It would be Doctor Pascal Jonathan Himes
+3 words

I had a company named Shilo but the full name was Shilo Helping Hands Psychiatric Care and Rehabilitation Facility. Ridiculous to write each time, but I did.
+7 words

"Sing a song or recite a poem
Find a song/poem you think the character would sing/recite and add it in in its entirety.

DBP if the the song is "This is the song that irritates people" and continues on and off for pages on "

One word: EPIGRAPHS! :D


-Have a character talk in a foreign language and have some have to translate it. 

"

-Have a deaf character.

"Do you want to go to the store?"
"What?"
"Do you want to go to the store?"
"Do I want to show the core? The core of what?"
"No, do you want to GO to the STORE?"
"Why would I want to mow a store?"

Etc., etc., etc."

-"The Chinese Restaurant Menu

A group of characters goes out to a Chinese restaurant. They read the entire menu aloud to each other. Sometimes the waiter translates things for them. Everybody orders something different. Then they compare their food to the description on the menu. There are always lots of fortune cookies after, which must be read aloud and discussed at great length."

 -"On the twenty seventh day of the eleventh month of the year of our Lord two thousand and eleven by the Gregorian calendar, as the sun rose above the [insert landscape of choice here] in the morning at twenty five minutes past six o'clock..."

nuff said.

- "Long, drawn out examinations of my MC's inner feelings. Document how EVERYTHING makes him feel. Antagonist gave him a mean look? Two paragraphs detailing how hurt he is."

-Never delete anything!

My signature got lost somewhere along here.

Oh well.

Love ya and thanks for all the follows,
Amaranthine