Week two of nanowrimo, here’s how I did. I also have a few more tips for you at the end.
Day 8:
Emma:
Word count -1033
Total – 12 839
Emotional state – grrrr
Writing the whole time today has been an up hill struggle. I didn’t manage to get much writing done. It was the first day of my holidays and
Day 9:
Emma:
Word count – 657
Total – 13 496
Emotional state – dead
I got even less writing done today. I think I am breaking through this difficult patch though, and I would have written more but I was exhausted. Lucky I have a writing day planned tomorrow with some of my writing buddies.
Day 10:
Emma:
Word count – 2564
Total – 16 060
Emotional state – revitalized and determined
I spent around five hours with my writing buddies and even thought we got basically no writing done it was time well spent. I did a lot of character building and plotting and it was great for getting me excited about my story again (thanks guys).
I also wrote a bit before we met up and a whole lot afterwards. Well maybe not as much as I could have, I did get distracted by pinterest for quite a while. But I have managed to find what I like about the story again and I am ready to smash the word count. I’m still a bit behind because of the past few days but I’ll catch up soon – trust me.
Day 11:
Emma:
Word count – 2462
Total – 18 522
Emotional state – uhh gosh
I am getting frustrated by writing. The words are coming a bit more easily but I am in a bit of self doubt right now and it seems like my story is going no where. I am back up to date though, and I am determined to keep going.
Day 12:
Emma:
Word count – 1548
Total – 20 070
Emotional state – Rushed
I felt like I could have done more writing today but I am just so busy. There is so much school stuff going on.
Day 13:
Emma:
Word count – 1904
Total – 21 974
Emotional state – Ooh yeah
I have basically just been writing the mythology of the world as stories and arguments between my characters as to what to do next. It’s been fun.
Day 14:
Emma:
Word count – 0
Total – 21 974
Emotional state – tired
I aimed to write today… I totally did… only I got a bit sidetracked by homework and then I was so tired I went to bed at like 9pm. I will make up for it though, I can totally do it.
Writing Tips
As we’re reaching the point of nanowrimo where the writing gets tough (or tougher) because you’ve written most of the scenes that you really want to read that were clear in your head. We’re reaching the point where you don’t really know what is going on in your story, so here are some tips on how to figure out what to write.
Character Arguments
This is forever be one of my go to methods when I don’t know what to write. Firstly by having your characters argue over what to do you are figuring out what you want to do and why you feel like it isn’t a good option. This method helps you to think about the perspectives of characters other than your main character and helps you get to know your characters better. If you want to know more about this then read my Standing out from the Crowd post.
Back Story
If you don’t know where your characters are going then maybe you know where they’ve come from. You could write a flash back, or a scene heavily influenced by your character’s past where they have to make a difficult decision or reveal something to another character.
World Building
So currently I am enjoying writing the mythological stories for my world. They’re told to my main character by her grandmother and I don’t know if they’re going to end up in the story but I was just really feeling like writing it. I wanted to know how dragons would fit into my world, so I wrote a mythological story about it. I still don’t know whether there will actually be dragons in my world but now if they do turn up I’ll know how they’ll fit in. I also have no ideas whether my other mythological stories will be true, but they’re a part of the culture and could make for some interesting additions later in the book.
You’re doing great Emma! Go you :) I thought *coughs* of doing Camp Nano but idek I haven’t even written a word XD My new year of school started a week ago and just… it’s been really hectic :/
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You wrote 6/7 days this week! That’s something to be proud of!
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I love your world building tips there!! I always info-dump world building in my first drafts, because I feel like if WE authors really understand our worlds and make them deep and complex, it’ll work it’s way into the writing without us even having to try (or use those dreaded info-dumps).😂 And I’m glad you seem to be going well there!! Yay for encouraging writing buddies! 🎉🎉
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That’s so true. It’s super important that you as the writer understand the world and the characters and that will make the whole book come alive.
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