Caroline Starr Rose

picture book and middle-grade author

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Five Things I Learned From NaNoWriMo

12 Comments

Here’s an oldie but goodie for those of you in the NaNoWriMo trenches. Enjoy!

It was with a bit of reluctance I decided to join in this year’s National Novel Writing Month. For those of you unfamiliar with NaNoWriMo, it’s a month-long challenge to produce 50,000 words on a new piece of writing. I’d tried NaNo in 2009 and failed miserably. I never, ever was going to do it again. But things came together for me this year in a way that joining in made sense:

  • BLUE BIRDS was off with my editor
  • I was at the point with my research for a new novel that I was itching to get started
  • I read this blog post by Darcy Pattison
  • My critique partner, Valerie Geary, promised me peanut butter cookies if I made it through

I didn’t sign up officially. Instead I created a contest of one I called Fake-o NaNo, where I aimed to write 1500 words a day six days a week. I missed one day, had a good number of sessions I didn’t hit 1500 (and a couple I wrote more), and felt finished with the draft a few days before Thanksgiving — the exact day BLUE BIRDS “flew” back to me in a big padded envelope.

Here are five things I learned from the experience:

  1. Slow and steady has been my writing mantra this year. But sometimes fast and furious is just as important. Typically, I write verse novels and picture books. It’s a sloooow process, especially when I’m initially drafting. But with this new novel, I’m trying my hand at prose, something I haven’t poked at for seven or eight years. Throwing words on a page was a very liberating, non-committal way to reintroduce myself to this form. With my first NaNo attempt, I got stuck during the first week and decided to stop. This time around was no different. I faced the same impossible rut one week in. But I kept moving, mainly by sticking to the next lesson I learned.
  2. Sometimes you just have to write about the writing. While I’ve kept a journal for this book since April, I still have a lot of exploring to do. Many days I found myself writing about what was working in the story and what wasn’t. Things I’d have to look further into, characters I needed to add, relationships I needed to develop. Really, the draft became a running commentary, an in-the-moment chance to reflect on my ideas (or lack of them). I know this will be invaluable when I return to the book in a few months.
  3. Practice holds the fear at bay. I’ve written here a lot about how much angst is bound up in my first drafts. The creative process is a scary thing for me, and beginning (and finishing) a first draft is my biggest challenge. By holding myself to a daily goal, I was able to break through some of that fear by simply showing up and doing the work.
  4. Embrace the mess. The “draft” I finished with is quite possibly the messiest, worst thing I’ve ever written. But it’s been such a great experiment in getting words down, feeling out characters, and sometimes learning exactly what I don’t want to write about (by first doing just that). Knowing I could toss it all took me in some directions I might never have discovered if my approach had been more careful.
  5. Did I mention the cookies? Committing out loud to a friend kept me honest. And the cookies were a great pay off!
Are any of you participating in NaNoWriMo this year? What has your experience been like?

 

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Filed Under: Blue Birds, Jasper and the Riddle of Riley's Mine, the writing life

Comments

  1. Darcy Pattison says

    December 2, 2013 at 2:41 pm

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    Reply
  2. Rebecca says

    December 2, 2013 at 5:40 pm

    I was an official NaNoWriMo participant for the fifth (I think) time. In the past, I’ve never really intended to reach 50,000 words because, like you, I generally write in verse. But I tried something a little different this year and ended up with 50,033 words by 11:45 p.m. on November 30. It was awesome. And messy! And I learned a lot.

    Reply
    • The Spellbinders says

      December 2, 2013 at 5:50 pm

      That’s fabulous, Rebecca!

      Reply
    • Kate Burak says

      December 2, 2013 at 5:57 pm

      I didn’t get a single word for Nano due to the insanity of my day job. I LOVE your Fake-no idea. It’s so much kinder. Thanks for sharing this, Caroline. I find the “suffering” over the big mess to be a huge impediment. I get self-conscious and do a lot of self-loathing. But I love your kindness to yourself.

      Reply
    • The Spellbinders says

      December 2, 2013 at 6:01 pm

      I’m really trying to be kind! It’s more in my nature to be a rule follower (and I can cook up some ridiculous, self-imposed rules). While I didn’t come close to what 1500 words/six days a week would have totaled, what I’ve done is a decent start. I’m taking it!

      Reply
    • Caroline Starr Rose says

      December 2, 2013 at 9:25 pm

      Looks like I didn’t sign out with my alter ego identity earlier. I’m The Spellbinders.

      Reply
  3. Augusta Scattergood says

    December 2, 2013 at 9:10 pm

    Thanks, once again, for reminding me and inspiring me!
    http://ascattergood.blogspot.com/2013/12/nanowrimo.html

    Reply
    • Caroline Starr Rose says

      December 2, 2013 at 9:25 pm

      You’re so lovely, Augusta. Off to read!

      Reply
  4. Marcia says

    December 6, 2013 at 7:02 pm

    I agree that knowing you can throw it all away is so freeing. We have to allow ourselves to write “whatever” in the first draft. We can always edit it out, but we can’t add what we don’t write in the first place.

    Reply
  5. Mia says

    December 8, 2013 at 12:53 am

    Congrats! I love how you created your Fake-O NaNo and it worked perfectly for you!

    Reply
  6. hannahrtv says

    December 21, 2013 at 3:28 am

    I completed NaNo this year for the first time and I won. It was thrilling. I consider myself a writer (along with a wife, a mom of three, a musician, and a former missionary to India). I have no writing “credentials” but I loved the process so much that I’m going back and revising what I’ve written. It’s a completed manuscript at 80K words, and I love it. I left a piece of my heart in it. I plan to do NaNo again next year.

    Reply
    • Caroline Starr Rose says

      December 21, 2013 at 8:41 pm

      Hannah, that’s incredible! Congratulations! It amazes me how many people have “NaNo-ed” and found success this way. Please keep in touch about your revision process.

      Reply

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