To NaNo or Not NaNo

July was Camp NaNoWriMo. Writers set a goal and fight to accomplish it before the end of the month.

I spent July pushing toward a goal of 40,000 words in my current WIP. And did I meet it? You bet! Though I went through some serious ups and downs, illustrated by my handy chart below.

During the 31 days of literary abandon, I went through a plethora of emotions:

Determination. July 1st. 40,000 words. Psh, I could totally do this.

                                     

Pride. I'm ahead by 2,000 words. Say whaaat?

                             

Laziness. Yeah, I'm so not writing today. Or... for, you know, four days in a row...

                             

Panic. Needing to catch up ASAP!

                                        

Awesomeness. Keeping a steady pace. You know that's right.

                                           

And, at the end. Pure and utter accomplishment. I couldn't believe I actually wrote 40,000 words!

                               

So, would I recommend Camp NaNoWriMo (or just NaNoWriMo) to writers? Absolutely! Before July, I'd been struggling for months to get myself to write. Camp NaNo gave me the push I needed. I also got to connect with some really supportive writers.

And, okay, getting this certificate at the end was pretty awesome.

Also celebrating with a round of mini golf was great too.

The next time NaNo comes around, I'd heartily suggest that you hop on the writing wagon. It's an awesome experience. The only thing you'll regret is looking back and not participating.

Congratulations to everyone who entered and persevered!

Getting The Right Paint

Writers know exactly how locations should appear in their books. There's a beautiful setting in their minds. Maybe castle, a forest, a bedroom. They just have to "paint the scene."

Easy, right?

                                                      

Where are you right now? Maybe you're in your car. The soft rumbling of the engine is your soundtrack as you read my blog. The heavy scent of bananas serve as a reminder that you really need to clean out your car. Air conditioning whisks out between the vents, slightly too cold. Hello, goosebumps. Through the window, cars of all makes and models are parked. The grocery store beckons, but you're not quite ready to brave the aisle yet. You pull out your gum, tired of the taste of stale mint, and put it in a napkin.

Not the best scene ever, but it shows my point. Now let me tell you (blog post on the lovely war between showing and telling to come).

We have five senses: sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch. And they all need to be used in writing. Taste is tricky and isn't used as abundantly, but the other four are a must. No, you don't need to jam them all into one paragraph like I did above. Talk about a sensory overload!

They should be interspersed throughout your writing as you set a scene.

So, as you're picture that beautiful bedroom your character is given at her aunt's country estate, consciously think to yourself. What does it smell like? What does your character hear?

 My advice would be to wait to add the sensory bits until you're going back to edit. But do whatever is best for you and your writing.

...On a side note! THREE DAYS until Camp NaNoWriMo is over! I'll give you full update on Thursday and the pros/cons of sprinting it. But where things stand right now?

I'm pretty sure I'm gonna win.

                                      

When You Hate Writing

I love being a writer.

Making up characters, worlds, and plots. Having a blog, Facebook, and Twitter where I can connect with other authors. Reading book after book and not getting tired of it. But, sometimes?

Sometimes I really hate writing.

                                                

It's exhausting. The words won't come out right. I'm not sure where the plot goes next.

The above sentences sum up my Saturday and Sunday. The words wouldn't come, and I didn't feel like forcing them. But I had to write. I had a word count goal to meet! So I developed a plan of attack to combat my slump. I did the following:

    1.  A form of physical activity. I'm lucky enough to have a pool so I went swimming. Or more like almost-drowning. Terrible swimmer over here.

                                 

    2.  Fueled up. I ate an awesome, healthy snack. No grabbing the chips and chocolate. Resist!

    3.  Went somewhere new. Usually I'll write in my room or on my front porch, but this weekend I sat on my back porch in a lounge chair overlooking the pool.

    4.  Writing sprints! I put myself on a timer. 15 minute writing sprint and then a 30 minute break. And of course I'd announce the sprints on Twitter. Had to hold myself accountable via the World Wide Web.

By the end of all this, I found myself writing for enjoyment. The 15 minute sprint became 20 minutes, then 25, then 30. My imagination swept me away and immersed me in the world of my WIP. It just took some...encouragement... to get there.

All For Naught

I'm behind on my CampNaNoWriMo word count. That's what happens when you take a three day break.

Woops.

I planned to do some serious catching up last night to the tune of 2k. Did I write that much? Totally. Does it sound good? For a rough draft, yeah. Am I going to keep it? No.

The direction I was trying to take the plot in made no sense. I had my characters trying to get off a train without being seen. They decided to wait until it was moving to crawl out an escape hatch. I got them on top of the train (after a heart-pounding almost fall, of course). Then what? They were stuck! I literally wrote myself into a corner.

                                   

Hello, delete button. Cue throwing self on floor, chucking laptop at wall, and stuffing chocolate in my face. Okay, not really. I wouldn't have minded the chocolate though.

Deleting those 2,000 words wouldn't have been a big deal during a normal month. But July isn't a normal month. It's Camp NaNoWriMo. I have to earn my t-shirt!

At first I wanted to do this:

                                    

But then I realized writing my characters on top of that train had some positives.

  1. I learned where I did not want the plot to go.
  2. I leaned action movies that have characters leaping off moving trains made no sense. (When did they ever?)
  3. Finally, I learned the best direction to take the plot. No daring stunt acts involved.

Sometimes writing in the wrong direction is exactly the thing writers need to get themselves going in the right one. Even if it's totally aggravating and sucks up three hours of your life.

                                  

Trust me.

So worth it.

On a super exciting side-note, my gift card giveaway ended today. The lucky winner is Michelle. Michelle, keep an eye on your email. You'll be getting the gift card shortly.

A HUGE thank you to everyone who participated. Consider connecting with me on other social media. I'll be having more contests in the upcoming months!

NaNo Nightmares

I've gone camping!

--Figuratively, of course. I'm not one for actual camping. Bugs, behind-that-bush bathrooms, and lack of showers don't have much appeal. For me at least.

This month, I'm cyber roughing it at Camp NaNoWriMo. What is Camp NaNoWriMo, you ask? For those of you too lazy to click the link, it's "An idyllic writers retreat, smack-dab in the middle of your crazy life". You pick your word count and strive to meet it in a month. Camp NaNoWriMo has an awesome cabin system where you're matched with other writers.

My goal for July is to reach 40,000 words, which will finish my current WIP. I've tried to participate in the last three NaNo's: two Camps and one November. I failed each time. Why?

I wasn't dedicated enough!

This time around, I've really gotten involved. I've made use of the cabin chat feature and connected with other writers. I've forced (seriously, forced) myself to at least get 1,000 words written per day. And those cool emails the folks at NaNo send that I used to ignore? Yeah, I actually read those now. I also bought a camp shirt. So a monetary investment and personal guilt trip certainly help matters.

And so far I'm on track, even slightly ahead. Which is an awesome feeling.

Actually, I think I'm a little too obsessed with CampNaNo. In fact, I had a nightmare about it. Apparently this t-rex-like monster would stalk and eventually eat me unless I was able to say a sentence with a certain word count.

                                   

Weird and creepy? Definitely.

What is the point of this post other than bragging and letting you act as a dream psychologist?

To show the importance of apply butt-to-chair and fingers-to-keyboard! I procrastinate sooo much when it comes to writing. CampNaNo is a world-wide writing frenzy that forces me to get on the computer to write. So, whether it be a NaNo activity, a friend keeping you accountable, or giving yourself a personal goal. Write!

Seriously.

                                

Like now.