From NaNoWriMo to Published: The story of HIDDEN IN SEALSKIN by Thea van Diepen

I have a secret to tell you: Hidden in Sealskin was written during Camp NaNoWriMo.

I know, right? Who in their right minds would do something like that?

Well, besides me.

Surviving NaNo (with a First Draft to Show for It!)

The first time I did Camp NaNo (writing Hidden in Sealskin in 2012 was my second time), I’d used the experience to figure out my writing speed: 500 words per hour on a slow day, 1,000 per hour on a fast day. Thus, I knew how much time to dedicate each day to writing—3 hrs at most, 1.5 hrs at the least.

This calculation is vital for me, and also the reason I’ve only ever done Camp NaNo before this year. Trying to do university and work and NaNo in November would be too much, and I knew it because I had the numbers to prove it.

After that, it was a matter of writing every day.

This is where I let you in on another secret: I didn’t stay caught up the whole month.

The point, for me, wasn’t being perfectly on top of things. I knew that, some days, that simply wasn’t possible. So long as I made progress towards my destination every day and arrived there on time, it would work.

Like a race, the goal of NaNo is not to make each step utterly perfect, but to keep the end in mind and aim for that.

For me, that meant having an outline ahead of time, giving myself the time I needed to write each day, and catching up when I fell behind. Some people don’t need the first on that list, but the other two are essential. No-one is going to remind you to write each day. You have to do it yourself.

Which is what makes it so worth it.

Editing the Aftermath

The manuscript I was left with afterwards needed a lot of editing. Which freaked me out, so it wasn’t until this year that I actually got to it and didn’t stop until I was done.

Which is another point to keep in mind: stuff takes time. Don’t let that throw you.

Even if you’re a verified genius, your NaNo first draft will not be ready for publication as-is. With Hidden in Sealskin, I had to chop out chapters, characters, scenes, lines of dialogues—everything you could think that might get chopped got chopped. New things got added, too, like the beginning, the complete reworking of the end, several bits of worldbuilding, and a scene or two. This was all a Good Thing.

Why?

My first draft was rambly and unfocused. The edited version was tighter, cleaner, and the book I wanted, rather than almost the book I wanted.

Publishing the Result

When I was done, I sent the edited version to beta readers and a professional editor because, improved as it was, Hidden in Sealskin still had problems I knew I couldn’t see. And, since I self-published, I got to work at the rest of publication.

If you want to write a book, that’s one thing. Do NaNo, and you’ll have written a book. Maybe edit it, if you want. If you want to publish, though, there’s a few more steps.

Since I take this self-publishing-is-a-business thing seriously, I hired a cover designer to make sure the cover was gorgeous (and it is!). I also brushed up on formatting and typography to make sure that Hidden in Sealskin looked good enough that you didn’t notice and just enjoyed the read.

After I’d tested/proofed/dealt with everything I could see to be dealt with, Hidden in Sealskin went live. Granted, I still ended up selling a few copies from the future, but that only goes to show that being professional ≠ being perfect. It just means you know the standards and you work to hit or surpass them. And, if when you make a mistake, you fix it.

You can't edit a blank page, but you can fix it. You do that by filling it.

Which is what NaNo is for.

So let’s get going. :)

Hidden in Sealskin is the story of Adren, an outlaw who hates humans, as she sets out to steal a sealskin in exchange for a cure for her insane unicorn. Matters are complicated by Nadin, the awkward teenager who insists on helping and who Adren isn't sure she can trust, the mystery surrounding the sealskin, and the awakening secrets of Adren's mind.

Here's to hoping no one gets in the way.

From Short Story to NaNoWriMo to Publication - a guest post by John Ayliff

Note From Liana: Continuing with our NaNo prep we have another author who turned his NaNoWriMo project into a novel that was published this summer by HarperCollins. If you're inspired to try NaNo yourself please check out NaNoWriMo Boot Camp. If you're looking for the Page Curl Halloween Hop (or just want free stuff) you can go HERE.

I began writing what eventually became my first novel in summer 2009. At the time I'd written a few short stories, and even had a couple published in non-paying markets, but I'd never completed a novel. I thought of myself as a short story writer rather than a novelist.

Someone in my writing group shared an anthology call-for-submissions for stories about female pirates. I didn't usually write stories based on prompts, but I found I had an idea for story called Belt Three, about a space pirate in a setting in which the planets had been destroyed by alien robots. The story would be told from the point of view of someone the pirate kidnaps, and we'd see that she was using her piracy to fund a personal crusade against the aliens.

The anthology politely rejected the story, saying that the focus wasn't sufficiently on the female pirate character. (Which was fair--the prisoner I'd intended just as a point-of-view character had ended up being co-protagonist.) Meanwhile, several members of my writing group gave the same feedback: that it didn't read like a short story so much as the start of a novel.

I'd already been introduced to my local NaNoWriMo community and was thinking of taking the plunge that year. Based on the feedback on my short story, I decided to make that my NaNo project: treat the short story as the start of a novel and extend it by 50,000 words.

I started November with the first couple of chapters already written (but not counting these towards the word count I needed to reach), and only a vague plan. I took my space pirate and her prisoner and sent them on a quest for a macguffin, and came up with some antagonists to chase them. There was all the usual NaNo-novel ridiculousness: a character with a verbal tic specifically designed to increase my word count, a scene in which I lovingly described a meal because I was hungry when I wrote it, characters named after snacks I was eating while I wrote, scenes that ended abruptly with [Add more here]. Turning off the inner editor in order to write 1666 words every day comes more easily to some writers than others, and I'm one of the ones for whom it's difficult. But I kept at it, spent a lot of time in the public library, drank a lot of coffee, and eventually succeeded. Not a finished novel, but 50,000 words of more-or-less coherent text.

I spent the next couple of months writing at a slower pace until I'd got an ending, bringing my total
up to about 80,000 words, and then the next couple of years revising. And by revising, I mean I threw out the NaNoWriMo draft and started from scratch. The very approximate story structure is the same, but the details and all the actual text are new. But I couldn't have written that new, decent novel without having written the NaNoWriMo draft first.

After several rewrites, I eventually had a novel I thought was good enough to publish. It was rejected by a few agents, and then I saw that Harper Voyager had an open submissions window for unagented manuscripts, and sent it directly to them. And, a few months later, I was astonished to receive an email saying that Harper Voyager wanted to publish the novel! Belt Three came out in June 2015, six years after I wrote the original short story.

NaNoWriMo is more helpful for some writers than for others, and it might be more helpful at some places in your writing career than others. Back in 2009 I was in exactly the right place for it: I had an idea that I thought was novel-worthy, but I'd never written a novel-length work before and needed to prove to myself that I could. In the years since then I was mostly too busy revising Belt Three or working on other projects to stop for NaNoWriMo. This year, though, I find I'm in a place where a bit of peer pressure to get a terrible first draft out quickly is exactly what I need, so I've signed up for NaNoWriMo again. If it's the right thing for you this year, I hope you'll join me!

John's Website | Amazon Page | Twitter |  Facebook

Love what you see? Why not share it on Twitter and Facebook? 

From NaNoWriMo to Published - a guest post by Jayne Fury

Note From Liana - this is part of an ongoing series of articles from authors who have "won" National Novel Writing Month, polished their books, and pushed them to publication through one method or another. Jayne Fury is a sci-fi romance author who has serialized her NaNo novel. 

It’s been two years  since I “won” NaNoWriMo by writing the draft of FREEDOM BOUND. With the naïveté of an ingenue, I thought the hard part was done. Nope. Not by a parsec.

Let's back up. What finally got me to sit down for the entire month of November to write a novel? A long walk. In Spring of 2013 I walked the ancient trail of the Camino De Santiago from Léon to Santiago de Campostela. The lessons learned on the Way carry me forward daily. Lesson One: Take one step at a time.

After I finished  the long slog through November 2013's NaNoWriMo, I was left with a load of mush. I thought it would need a little editing. As a newborn writer I was completely unaware of what lay ahead. Like every newborn enamored with each new discovery, I cooed at my poo and thought myself a mother-loving genius.

You see, I've been writing cooperative fanfic writing for over twenty years. Words? That wasn't the tough bit. I could shoot out words. I often produced several thousand words  a day for both my marcom business and the fanfic hobby. I led stories, prodded people for their parts, critiqued, and gave constructive feedback. But I had only ever been given positive feedback for my writing. I had never done an entire story on my own. Nobody had even told me how to improve. As a writer, I needed to grow into an author. Now that I had a manuscript. What came next?

First you leave the manuscript alone for a month or two. Then, you read it. What happens next? The five stages of grief come to mind. Denial was a doozy. Scotch is the sovereign remedy.

After a first pass of edit it was time to let someone else read it. Enter the Beta readers. The next step was to send it to someone else to read and give feedback.  A friend of mine was Beta reading for another author for several years so I asked, she agreed and I sent the draft. The feedback was positive with excellent input. I set about the second rewrite. I thought, "Done!" Yay?

Remember those grief stages? Depression came and sucked me in. The fear of not being good enough. Not knowing what to do next. Where to turn to to publish. How was I going to get this book and my name above the noise?

Help and advise came from my local RWA group's membership. Many of the members are traditionally published and were also self publishing their back catalogs. Indies and indie publishing being embraced by the Romance community drew my focus. I decided to investigate. The more I did, the more I saw a fertile publishing platform for SciFiRomance. The more I thought about it, the more I realized self publishing was a perfect fit. I had a background in Marketing. And I already knew how to write marcom, brand, and play with Google algorithms because I had been running my own business for several years promoting others. Why not take myself on as a client?

I took a workshop on book covers led by a member of my local RWA group, Anthea Sharp, who was already well on her indie journey. Marie Force, a pioneer and giant in indie publishing was running a short online class about self publishing. I took that. When I found conferences like UnCon, a gathering of indie writers sponsored by Marie Force, and IndieReCon, an online resource for independent self publishing authors, I attended. I hit all the writing panels at my local conventions and networked with indie publishers, sought mentors, and read books on indie publishing. I became a sponge.

In the midst of all of this, my bestie and brilliant co-shennanigator, Melanie Greatheart, was quietly watching and supporting me on my journey. In true form, throwing caution to the wind, she cannonballed into the deep end serial publishing her paranormal western, DEADMAN BALLAD.  That shook me up. I realized I was procrastinating. It was me holding myself back. Somewhere along the way I had stopped going forward.  But, I had all the tools, I just needed to get out there.

Remember those stages of grief?

Acceptance. I wasn't walking out into the unknown. I was already on the walk. My Camino, my walk in publishing, started the day I decided to begin my outline. I had a map. I had a destination. I had a backpack full of tools and there was plenty of pubs along the way filled with smiling faces and experiences. I was stuck. It was time to get going again. Spurred on by Mel's Western (see what I did there?), last month I began to self publish the first novel in the Solar Flame series.  My 2013 NaNoWrimo novel, FREEDOM BOUND began release in October 2015, in episodic serial format to maximize visibility.

Whatever is ahead, life is constant forward momentum. Don't stop writing on November 30. Ultreia!

Jayne Fury is a SCIFIROM author who writes pulpy serials about bodice ripping ninjas in space. She lives on her urban farm in the Pacific Northwest with her three cats, five chickens and extremely tolerant husband. If asked, she will deny that she's creating nest in her office out of old socks and wooly pooffs. She is also a performer in Tacoma's one and only Ukulele Sing-a-long Circus. Her current project FREEDOM BOUND  is currently publishing on Amazon.com

Links:

www.jaynefury.com 

Twit: @JayneFury 

Goodreads: Jayne Fury Facebook 

Fan Page: facebook.com/JayneFury

From NaNoWriMo to Published - a guest post from Sherry Ramsey

Note from Liana: Continuing our series of authors who took their NaNo dreams to published books we have guest blogger Sherry D. Ramsey talking about ugly first drafts and beautifully finished books.

One doesn’t have to look very far on the Internet to find complaints that National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo to the initiated) does little but provide a lot of terrible fodder for editors’ and agents’ slush piles. Now, it may be true that a small percentage of “winners” (participants who write 50k+ words of their novel in the month of November) submit those first drafts in the futile hope and expectation that they will be met with open arms. I think, however, that most people—certainly anyone serious about writing & publishing—recognize that the best you can come out of NaNoWriMo with is a first draft that still needs a lot of work.

I’ve participated in NaNoWriMo every year since 2002. I’ve written 50k+ words every one of those years. I’ve typed “The End” some years; I’ve made it maybe halfway there others (getting to the end is better!). And four of those novels are published—three by traditional publishers and one by myself. So that’s four out of thirteen; what’s wrong with the other eleven? It’s simple: they’re just not done yet. Because when I said “a lot of work,” I meant it.

Let’s just admit it: first drafts are generally terrible. There’s a Karen Joy Fowler quote I keep pasted up near my computer to remind me of this. In an essay about her story “Lily Red” in the anthology Paragons, she said “I do not save my first drafts. They are too stupid to live. My motto: The brain is not a pretty organ. Never show anyone yours.”

I keep this quote handy to remind me that it’s okay—even expected—for first drafts to be terrible. I’m not sure how I’d be able to write anything at all if I didn’t believe this. And I think for most of us, it doesn’t matter if we write those first drafts in thirty days or five years, they’re still going to be, if not terrible, certainly unfinished. They’re raw material. They’re just a start. But the wonderful thing about a first draft is that, no matter what kind of a mess it is, you can make it better.

That’s where the work comes in.

My first published NaNoWriMo novel took ten years from first draft to publication draft. Now, that sounds like a long time, but of course I wasn’t actively working on it all that time. There can be a lot of waiting time in publishing. I wrote a second draft based on feedback from friends and family, and submitted that draft to a regional competition for unpublished manuscripts. After almost a year in that process, it took second place, and with the feedback I received from that, I wrote a third draft. That went to a publisher, for whom I eventually wrote a fourth draft. For another publisher I wrote a fifth draft—and that one was published.

For the self-published novel, I didn’t cut myself any slack. I decided to self-publish because it’s a quirky novel of mashed-up genres, and I thought it would be challenging to find it a niche in the traditional publishing world. But I used the same process: I started with feedback from my trusted readers and wrote a new draft. I asked for input on that and wrote another one. I revised. I line-edited. I let someone else read it. I didn’t let the final version go out without more input from people whose opinions and expertise I trusted.

So that’s the kind of thing I mean when I say “a lot of work,” and it’s gone into every word that I’ve published. Input from trusted readers, other writers, editors and people in the industry. Rewriting. Multiple drafts. Fixing, tweaking, adding, subtracting, refining. Editing. Polishing. A much more significant time investment than the thirty days it took me to write the first draft. No, it doesn’t have to take ten years, and as with anything, you improve with practice. I write much cleaner first drafts now than I did ten years ago. They’re still terrible. But they’re not as terrible. So maybe now I can write three drafts instead of five. The rewrites are simpler. There’s less line-editing.

Unfortunately, I can’t tell you in detail how you should do this work. I can only tell you that it’s a necessary part of a good novel. There are as many ways to write a good novel as there are writers. We discover the process and tools that work best for us through a long period of trial and error, and I think it’s essential to be always asking questions that can help us improve. Make an outline or not? Join a local or online writing community? Who makes a good trusted reader? What can we learn from courses and workshops? Can we write more effectively with a particular software? How much can we do ourselves, and where do we need outside help? Whatever the answers, the first step is accepting the work that needs to be done.

But all that comes later. This is the power of NaNoWriMo: first drafts should be fun. They’re where your brain comes out to play, in all its exuberant, messy, imaginative glory. They’re where you create, where you bring something new into the world that wasn’t there before. They may be terrible, but they have potential.

And the work that later goes into realizing that potential? It may be more demanding than that flash of first draft exhilaration, but it’s not all dark drudgery. Whatever it takes, it’s worth it in the end. Because seeing that terrible first draft turn into something that readers will love—well, isn’t that really why we sit down to write in the first place? 

* * *

Sherry is the author of ONE'S ASPECT TO THE SUN, THE MURDER PROPHET, THE SEVENTH CROW, and DARK BENEATH THE MOON. 

From NaNoWriMo to Twitter to Published! - a guest post by DJ Davis

Note from Liana: November is National Novel Writing Month. Several of my books started as NaNo projects. THE DAY BEFORE wasn't, but it was written NaNo-style one crazy February, and I love the idea of a fast first draft. You can't edit a blank page! To help persuade those who are sitting on the fence debating the merits of NaNo I've invited several published authors to share their experience at taking a book from the 50,000-words-in-a-month challenge of NaNo to finished product on the shelf. Our first guest is crime write DJ Davis. 

On November 1, 2013, I sat down at my computer for my third year of NaNoWriMo. I had a blank screen and a goal to write 50,000 words in thirty days. As a confirmed “pantser” I had no plan. I wanted to write about a dog, I knew that much. And I had a title in mind, Courageous Cain. That was it, the big plan. A dog story.

Thirty days. That’s 1,666.666 words a day. Okay, maybe it’s better not to think about all those sixes. I didn’t write every day. I’m human. I have a job. I need a break sometimes. I also have bouts of insomnia so I wrote a lot at night. But I made it, and then some. At the end of the month I had over 70,000 words. I also had a manuscript that was taking on a life of its own. I kept up my November writing pace for another six weeks until I came to those two magical words, “The End.” What a feeling!

So now I had a 130,000 word… mess. A first draft mess. This was my first manuscript which showed any real promise and I found myself deep in the jungle of revision and editing. My best writing buddy and critique partner (Trace, know you who you are!) helped tremendously. What a job that was! After seven months I offered it to other test readers and they liked it, too. So I began learning how to write query letters.

I started slowly and queried a dozen agents over the next two months. I received a few nice rejections, some form rejections and that was it. Then one day I heard about a book pitching event on Twitter called Pitmad which was founded by Brenda Drake.

Outside of having some fun on Facebook, social media isn’t my strong point at all. Pitmad was to be held on September 9, 2014, just a couple days away. I had never been on Twitter, but I wanted to give it a try, so I signed up. My first tweets were pitches for pitmad. Two were favorited, which meant somebody was interested in my story! One was an agent and one was an ebook publisher, Champagne Books. I sent the required query to both. The agent kindly rejected me. The publisher wanted to see my manuscript. While they were reading it I was researching them and found nothing but good things.

Champagne Books offered me a contract. My first finished manuscript had a publisher and I was in writerly heaven! It was like having a new family. Everyone was warm and welcoming and I was honored to join such talented authors. I was handed over to an editor, the wonderful Nikki Andrews. She made spot-on suggestions and corrections that improved the book and my skills all the while coaching a newbie to the ebook publishing world.

My debut novel, COURAGEOUS CAIN, was released on September 7, 2015. Nearly two years from that first day of November when I sat down to a blank screen and blinking cursor. I’m now learning how to promote an ebook, another step on this amazing journey.

I’m still a beginner, honing my skills and finding my style. I won last year’s NaNoWriMo and again spent months (though not quite as many as I was more prepared with a three sentence premise) editing my story. I think it has a future. I’m excited for this year’s November madness. This time I’m going in with a simple outline. I hope to see you there.

To The Finish Line!

How are we doing, NaNoWriMo Lovelies? Are you almost to the finish line? Did you manage to use the Traveling Shovel Of Death? Is your body count higher than your word count? Go on, you can tell me, is this a kissing book????

Only a few days left and it's time for that final NANO charge!!!

Write all the words!

Kick in the plot holes!

Write more words!!!!

NaNoWriMo Boot Camp: Day 6

One last day of boot camp and then you'll be ready to write your novel like a boss!

... okay, so let me be honest here: I could write more. You could do 31 Days of NaNo Prep. You could spend a year getting a novel together. You could skip all of this and make it up as you go along (fiction is beautiful like that). But there are only six days of boot camp for a reason.

To little preparation leaves you flustered and confused. To much and you get bogged down in the world building. Trust me, if you're a person who loves research it's very easy to spend a lifetime building a world and never writing in it. You know who you are.

Because the world matters, because the physical stage you set for the characters influences the story so much, it's important to take a few minutes before you write the book setting up the background.

Exercise 1: Make A List
- Write a list of 25 places your character may go. You probably won't use them all, but having them saves you trouble later on.
- Pick specific names e.g. Don't write The Castle write Berringham Flittworthy Castle. Wolven Woods, Screaming Skull Nebula, Starbreaker Catina
- When your hero needs to rushing off somewhere, grab a name from the list and keep writing.

Exercise 2: Pick Your Main Locations
- Unless you're writing a traveling story (the quest story line) your scenes will probably only take place in four or five stage settings. Decide where the book opens, where any dead bodies or clues are found (fist bump for the mystery writers), and where your four plot twists will occur.
- Don't feel you need have lots of locations. There are some great books out there where all the action happens in one building or one room. Use only what you need.

Exercise 3: The Setting Thesaurus 
- If you haven't already, bookmark or buy the print copy of The Setting Thesarus by Becca and Angela of Writers Helping Writers (buy link - not an affiliate link). Then read through.
- Make your own setting thesaurus for your main locations.
- If that's too daunting list the 3 main stimuli for each sense in each location.  

Happy writing!

NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 1: Establish a Baseline
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 2: Finding a Plot
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 3: The Antagonist
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 4: The Protagonist
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 5: Keep the Book Moving
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 6: Set The Stage

NaNoWriMo Boot Camp: Day 5

Let's practice a little visualization...

You sit down in front of your computer on November 4th with 6,000 words written and the plan to write Chapter 3. You have your notes and your outlines. This is the perfect time of your writing day, and everything is how you need it to be to be the best writer you can be (which is a lot of be's). You take a deep breath, open the manuscript, and stare.

What the heck should you write?

Nothing comes to mind. Your creativity has flat-lined. You start to panic about making your word count for the day? What are you going to do?

I'll tell you what you're going to do. You're going to close that document and go get yourself a heavy dose of inspiration. Like a shot of adrenaline, these pre-packed doses of inspiration will fire up your creativity and get you writing in no time.


Exercise 1: Make A Mood Board
- Hit Tumblr, Deviant Art, and Instagram to find images that remind you of your character. Since you'll be using other people's art be respectful and keep it for personal use, not promotion. I have a Deviant Art folder just for setting inspiration.
- If you won't have access to the internet while writing consider saving your mood board images on a page that let's you rearrange them, like PowerPoint or OneNote.

Exercise 2: Make A Playlist
- You can make one for the book, or one for each POV character, or even mood playlists that help you set the tone for each scene.
- Either buy the music legally, or set up a Spotify or Pandora playlist.
- If you get stuck during NaNo crank up the music and stare at your mood board for five minutes.

Exercise 3: Make An Inspiration List
- Think of what books, movies, or TV shows inspired you. Keep them handy for NaNo.
- If you're stuck beyond reason, retreat from your writing area and get inspired. Part of an author's job is to read. Read widely. Read frequently. Read everything. The more you read, the better your writing gets, and it's better to sacrifice an hour of writing time to a good book than to whining on Twitter about how you suck at writing. Trust me on this one.

Exercise 4: RED ALERT!
- If all else fails, and nothing is working, know when to pull the plug.
- I'm not saying quit NaNo, but know when to call it a day. There are going to be times you simply can't write. Emotionally or physically you are drained and your brain is gray goo between your ears. Beating yourself up about isn't going to help. In fact, repeatedly telling yourself that you can't write will hurt you.
- Plan a non-writing activity that fires up your creativity. I like to go for a Zombie Run. Maybe you like to cook, or paint, or play football, or wash dishes by hand. Go do that thing.
- Forgive yourself, and plan on forgiving yourself for missed days. Remember, the 50,000 words is only a way of keeping score, it isn't the actual goal of NaNoWriMo. The goal of NaNo is to make good writing habits. Understanding that there are non-writing days is a good habit. Hating yourself for missing a writing day is a bad habit.
- Don't form bad habits.


NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 1: Establish a Baseline
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 2: Finding a Plot
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 3: The Antagonist
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 4: The Protagonist
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 5: Keep the Book Moving
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 6: Set The Stage

NaNoWriMo Boot Camp: Day 4

What makes a hero a HERO?

Some people like to think a hero is born special, a Chosen One with a destiny written in the stars. Some people think the hero is simply the right person, in the right place, at the right time. Maybe they're both right.

Either way, when you're writing a book, your Protagonist needs to be more than a character that actions happen around. A hero who only reacts to situations isn't very fun to read about. A hero who could be removed entirely from the book without changing it in the slightest is even worse.

So, before you decide if the color of your hero's eyes, let's figure out what your hero's strengths and flaws are. Shining blue eyes like icy tarns won't get your hero out of a dungeon, but lock picking skills, charm, and magic will.

Exercise 1: What are your hero's weaknesses?
- There's a special name for a protagonist with no flaws: Gary Stu (or Mary Sue if the protagonist is female). A flawless hero sounds fun, and most authors start with one because they're easy to write, but they don't make for good books.
- Clumsiness, not realizing everyone thinks they're beautiful, and crying at random times do not counts as weaknesses. Red hair is not a weakness. Being born rich and charitable is not a weakness. Get those ideas right out of your head.
- The hero's weaknesses will change over the course of the book, and they should relate in some way to what the character wants. If they want to win a battle, they'll should start out without weapons training.
- Make a list of 5-10 weaknesses your character could have.

Exercise 2: What are your hero's strengths?
- This comes second because part of the hero's character arc will be turning weaknesses into strengths. The weakling learns to fight, the timid child learns to speak with strength, ect ect ect.
- It is absolutely crucial that one of your character's strengths, learned or otherwise, is the key to solving all the problems in the book. The protagonist is a hero because they are the only person who can make everything better.
- If you're writing about a group than only with the group working in harmony can the villain be defeated.
- Make a list of 3-5 strengths. They don't need to have all of these in the opening chapter, or even the first book of the series, but decide what strength they'll have. You'll need it for setting up the plot twists later.

Exercise 3: When will your hero learn these things?
- Tell yourself the back story for the hero. It may never be part of the text, but you need to know these things.
- Where was the hero born? What was their childhood like? When did they learn these things that help them save the world?

Exercise 4: What is your hero's personality?
- What gets this person up in the morning? What's the drive behind all they do?
- Don't know? Try taking the Meyers-Briggs Personality Test for your character.
- Ask a lot of questions. The 100 Questions list is a bit long to do for every character, but give it to your primary protagonist and keep it for reference during NaNoWriMo.

Exercise 5: What is the One Thing?
- Every person has one thing. One line they won't cross. One thing they won't do. One thing they can't lose and stay sane.
- If your character has a line they won't cross, the climax of the book needs to push the hero until they think they must cross this line or fail. It's up to you whether they cross over, or find another way,
- If the protagonist has one thing they can't lose, threaten it. Take it away. Ruin that thing. It's up to you whether the hero will triumph or the loss, realize the One Thing wasn't that important, or recover their lost Precious in time.

NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 1: Establish a Baseline
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 2: Finding a Plot
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 3: The Antagonist
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 4: The Protagonist
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 5: Keep the Book Moving

NaNoWriMo Boot Camp: Day 3

Oh, the antagonist.

There are people who say the hero (or protagonist) defines the book. It's certainly the hero that people remember. Frodo will not be forgotten. Han Solo and Luke Skywalker were role models for a generation. Harry Potter? He was such a famous protagonist they didn't even need to put a title on his last movie poster. Everyone knew about The Boy Who Loved.

But what are these protagonists without an antagonist?

Frodo without the dark lord's ring is just a hobbit who stayed home. Han Solo would have had a quiet smuggling career, no wife, and no best friend if it weren't for Darth Vader. Harry Potter would have grown up in a normal wizarding household, gone to Hogwarts, and had an uneventful seven years (possibly being a bully) if it weren't for Voldemort.

Without an antagonist, you don't have a plot.

Without an antagonist, you don't have a book.

Day 3: Creating The Perfect Antagonist
I subscribe to the Three Villains Theory of writing. It's entirely possible I made the theory up (or renamed it - I'm not sure), but it works! With the right three villains you can write any novel with confidence and ease.

Exercise 1: The Immediate Villain
- Who is the bad guy on page one? A teacher assigning homework over the holidays? A bullying uncle or aunt? A boss who won't let you leave work early? Who is the bad guy causing trouble on the first page?
- This person may or may not be important to the overall book.
- This person may die before the end of chapter one (possibly in a way that frames the hero for murder).
- This person could become the love interest if you're using an Enemies-To-Lovers trope.
- Describe this character in detail. What do they want? Why are they bad? What are their goals?

Exercise 2: The Intermediate Villain
- This is the one who takes up the bulk of the narrative for your book. In the first Harry Potter this would be Snape: obnoxious, rude, bullying, but as it turns out, not such a bad guy in the end.
- The intermediate villain can also be a series of thugs sent by the Big Bad to cause trouble. Especially in a quest story. In The Hobbit movies Azog is the Intermediate Villain, always nipping at Thorin's heels but not doing a bulk of the damage.
- Define this character. What do they want? Why do they do what they do? How do they interact with the hero?
- Give the Intermediate Villain a win. While the hero can defeat (or avoid) the first villain succesfully the Intermediate Villain should give the hero trouble. Round about the middle of your novel the villain should have a definite win. They get the magic thing first, they kill someone the hero tried to save, they get the girl, they win the big game. Whatever. Plan on giving your villain a win. It adds complexity to the narrative and raises the stakes. Also? It's usually an easy scene to write because you can beat your hero up as much as you want.

Exercise 3: The Big Bad
- This is the villain that's secretly controlling things from behind the scenes, the betrayer who has been secretly working against the hero the whole time. Dark Vader. Voldemort. Sauron.
- In a series, you may not see this person until the end of the series (think Kate's dad in the MAGIC BITES series by Ilona Andrews). The best part about this kind of antagonist is it invites readers to reread so they can catch the earlier clues. You really can save this villain for the very end, or at least the last 1/3 of the book.
- They usually appear around the hero's Moment Of Despair, when the hero has lost all hope, friends, support, and belief in themself.
- This is the villain that defines the hero. Because the hero looks up from the mud and blood and despair and say, "I cannot let you do this. I cannot let you win even if I lose everything." The decision to fight this villain when all hope is lost, at great personal sacrifice, is what makes an ordinary person a hero. And because the hero is coming from such a low point, beaten and fragile, their victory is all the more sweet in the end.
- Describe this character? When will they appear? What are they like? What do they do? Why are they the villain?


NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 1: Establish a Baseline
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 2: Finding a Plot
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 3: The Antagonist
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 4: The Protagonist

NaNoWriMo Boot Camp: Day 2

Got a plot?

If you've completed the exercises from Day 1 of NaNo boot camp (and you may not have because some of them are multi-day projects - don't stress it) then you know how you write. Step two for planning a successful NaNoWriMo is finding a plot.

NaNoWriMo attracts all different kinds of authors. Some of you have the idea already there, you know the book, you just need that last push to give writing a try. Others are on deadlines and are using NaNoWriMo to get a rough draft out of the way. And then there are people who really want to write but don't know where to start. This day is for you.

Day 2: Find a Plot
The plot is what your story is about. It's how the characters move from Point A to Point Z and all the choices they make in between. If you're a literature major (or have spent time around them) you've heard about climaxes and construction and probably snowflakes. Those are all wonderful things but useless when you're staring at a blank page thinking about lunch instead of prose. Here's how to make that blank page a masterpiece...

Exercise 1: What's on your bookshelf?
-  Look at the books you read and love. What do you love about them? What are the similarities between them? Do you read a specific genre or theme?
- If you have nowhere else to start, this is a great place. Look at your shelves and what you love, and envision the book that fits in, but isn't there yet.
- Two very important things to remember here: one - all writer are readers, two - all books are derivative. There is no such thing as a truly original plot, all stories have their genetic roots in other books, and that's part of the reason we like them. Looking to your favorite books will give you an idea of what you love.

Exercise 2: What movies do you watch?
- Think of your favorite movies and shows. Do yo1u see a theme? Is there a kind of character you love watching? Great!
- Imagine a character who takes traits from each of your favorite TV characters. What do they act like? Where would they live?

Exercise 3: Make a List of 25 Things That Could Happen
- Go wild! Pick a genre and write down twenty-five things that could happen within that universe, cliche to cray-cray.

Exercise 4: Let the idea sit for a week.
- You aren't forgetting it, you're letting the idea mature. If you come up with an idea for one of the plots, by all means take note!
- A good story idea is the one that still excites you a week after you think of it. Anything that loses it's energy after a few days won't keep you writing through the tough parts, or editing for years after that. Look at all your options and see what you still love on Monday.


NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 1: Establish a Baseline
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 2: Finding a Plot
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 3: The Antagonist (coming Tuesday)

NaNoWriMo Boot Camp: Day 1

The best way to fail is to not prepare.

You think you're going to start NaNoWriMo November 1st with no preparation, no practice, and no prior thought? Well, honey, that's just setting yourself up for failure.

No worries, though. I am a certified* NaNoWriMo Boot Camp instructor. Every Tuesday and Thursday for the rest of October we will meet right here to put you through your paces and make sure you're in fighting shape for NaNoWriMo.

Day 1: Establish A Baseline

The number one mistake of new NaNoWriMo participants is assuming that they will find the time to get their writing done. Worse, there is a tendency to woefully underestimate how much time it will take to write the daily word count.

Free time does not magically appear. A gap in the space-time continuum won't open up between your favorite TV shows allowing you to write 1666 words in under three minutes. Like everything else in life, you need to plan ahead. You need to make time in your schedule for writing.

This is where the second mistake comes in, and it's a common mistake for newbies and seasoned NaNoWriMo authors, they schedule the wrong amount of time, for the wrong time of day, for the wrong days of the week.

That's why the first day of boot camp is devoted to getting a baseline and figuring out your writing schedule.

Exercise 1: Set a timer for ten minutes, sit down, and write. 
- Repeat three times (or more if you like)
- Average your word count to get an idea of how many words you can write in ten minutes. Don't worry if the number seems low. You'll be faster by the end of NaNoWriMo.

Exercise 2: Set aside three hours and write until you can't any more.
- The goal here isn't to write for three hours straight (good job if you can, though). This exercise measures your natural writing rhythm. Can you focus for fifteen minutes? Forty? Ninety?
- There is no wrong answer.
- Do three sets of writing at your natural writing pace. Figure the average. This is your Writing Pace Word Count.

Exercise 3: Look at a calendar of November and decide what days you will actually be writing.
- In a perfect world you'd write all 30 days, but realistically it's not going to happen. You're going to have days where work, school, family, or health prevents you from writing.
- Pencil in your writing days. Now, divide 50,000 by the number of days you intend to write. This is your Daily Word Count Goal.
- Divide your Daily Word Count Goal by your Writing Pace Word Count. This is the number of writing sprints you'll need to do for each writing day in November.

EXAMPLE: Julie wants to write 50,000 words in November. She has 5 days she can't write, and she can write 500 words in 15 minutes.
50,000/25 = 2000 (daily word count goal)
2000/500 = 4
Julie will need to schedule 4 writing sprint so of 15 minutes each to hit her daily word count goal. 

Exercise 4: What do you need to write?
- Very few people can sit down in any environment and write without problems. If you're one of those lucky people, bask in the glow of your own awesomeness and skip this exercise. If you're not, no worries.
- Over the next week take notes about what was going on around you on the days you write best.
Do you work better at a desktop or on the couch using a laptop?
Do you like music or silence?
Will any noise work, or do you need a specific playlist?
What time of day do you feel the most creative?
Do you write better in pjs or dressed up for work?
Do you need a snack?
Do you need some water?


NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 1: Establish a Baseline
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 2: Finding a Plot
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 3: The Antagonist
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 4: The Protagonist
NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 5: Keep the Book Moving

The Tale of Two Calendars

 Let me introduce you to two calendars. My writing calendars. This first calendar was my planned writing schedule for the past three months. I take Sunday's off, and the other six days of the week my schedule requires at least 1000 words of new writing each day and, on editing days, five to ten chapters cleaned. The color blocks are each a project I'm working on. Gray was the family reunion.

This second calendar is what actually happened. Notice the large chunks of white space. Notice the holes in my schedule. Notice the lack of coherent theme. It's depressing, isn't it? 

This is what happens when you have too many projects and not enough focus. Or perhaps not the right priorities. 

You see, juggling multiple projects at once is a required part of writing for most young authors. We have short stories, novellas, and multiple novels all in different stages of development so that no time is wasted. You can't spend a week writing a 10,000 word short story and then six months twiddling your thumbs and watching cat videos on Youtube waiting to find out if the story was accepted by a publication that's going to pay you five cents a word.

What you need to do is spend a week writing the 10k short story, another week editing it, and then kick it out the door so you can go back to work on a novel or novella that will definitely get published in the next 12 months. And as soon as that project goes off to your beta readers, or editor, or agent, you need to open up the next thing on the list and get writing.

This can be a very smooth process if you're somewhat smarter than me and have a plan for both success and failure.

What happened to me in mid-July was I had a crisis of faith. 

After sending off my latest novella to my editor and my revised novel to my (soon-to-be) agent I was worried that both of them would come back with rejections. The longer I waited, the more I was convinced my writing career was over. I didn't have anything ready for publication, and when a short story rejection came in I started making a plan for escaping the publishing madness.

I started looking for graduate programs that taught what I was interested in. I made budgets and a five-year-plan. I talked to my family to see if they'd support another parent in grad school. Luckily, my husband's experience had been fairly decent and the kids didn't see anything wrong with mom doing homework. If anything, it was divine retribution.

Then, a few weeks after I started planning to bury my dead career, my agent called to make The Offer. My editor sent me a contract for EVEN VILLAINS HAVE INTERNS (Delilah on the calendar), and mentioned that the press was considering expanding to print and audio books. Suddenly my world was flipped upside down and I floundered like a frog on a hot skillet. 

Instead of having vague, self-appointed deadlines I had two hard deadlines with more coming. I had contracts. There were people waiting on me to get things done. A lot of those white days were planning, but quite a few were days I curled in on myself because I had no clue what I should be doing. 

Indecision paralyzed me. 

And I wasted most of August and September panicking over what to do next in between rounds of edits with both my agent and my editor. Finally my good friend Kait Nolan sat me down and made me figure out what I needed to actually do.

Now the problem is getting back in the habit. It's painfully obvious from my calendar that I'm out of the daily writing habit I'd developed back in May. Vacation is murder for good behavior. October and November will be spent remedying this lapse of behavior. October is the month for finishing everything. LADY OF THE LAKE and EVEN VILLAINS SAVE THE DAY need words, about 20k apiece which is just a few thousands words shy of the 50k everyone aims for in November.

November will be the month I tackle JANE 2 and let LADY and SAVE rest with the betas. And then in December I'll kill all my good writing habits by moving to Alaska and dying of frostbite. But at least I have a plan! 

The NaNoWriMo Question

No! Don't panic! It's not November yet. It's okay. Take a deep breath. Sit down. Relax.

Let's talk books.

Every year there is an event called National Novel Writing Month, and it's international and 50,000 words really isn't a novel. But that's beside the point. The point is: it's a month to write your book!!!

It is possible to write the first draft of a novel in 30 days. This won't be a one-draft-and-published paper like you did in school, but it will be the start of a novel you can edit. And this prospect seems daunting to many. I was dragged in, kicking and screaming, several years ago and I loved it!

I think writing the book in a month is the best way to write a rough draft.

So, to help you (and myself) out for the month of NaNo, send me any questions you have about plotting a novel, writing a novel, or successfully tackling NaNoWriMo. I'll work on answering them and putting them on the blog in mid-October so you have everything you need to finish your first, or fiftieth, or five hundredth novel this November.

5 Ways to Keep Writing During NaNoWriMo

So, how's NaNo going? By the end of today you should have 8330 words. That's not a small number, but it's not even one fifth of what you need to win this thing. And by now you're approaching the boggy section of the book. Wit and charm are wearing off, now you need substance, determination, and a whole lot of inspiration to keep going.

Week One sees a lot of drop outs. People disheartened by the ones who've already crossed the finish line. People overwhelmed by the idea of doing this for twenty-five more days.

But you are a survivor! And I have the magic potion you need to turn these fatal fens into a solid foundation for your novel. So without any further ado, and without any more gilding the lily...

Five Things To Do When You Get Stuck! 

1) Make A List
Make a list of everything that could possibly happen to your character next. Write at least twenty-five ideas, be outrageous, be dangerous, get messy, make mistakes! The first five ideas are probably going to be pretty tame, or (worse!) they'll end the book. Yes it's tempting to shoot Mister Obnoxious right now, but this isn't a short story and you need that antagonist for a few more pages.

The next five ideas won't be bad, but they probably won't be the ones that you want. Look to the bottom of the list where the desperate ideas are. Look for the one that says YES! to possibilities. Look for the idea that will provide temporary comfort to your hero, but will draw them deeper into the web of trouble. You want to find the idea that makes your character's life a living nightmare, but a hopeful one. Find it, and write on!

2) Name That Thing
There are two ways to handle the naming issue that is bound to arise during writing: either insert (Person 1) instead of a name, or have a list of names for people, places, and things already generated for you before you start writing. This also works for unsticking a stuck plot. Save your work, close Word, and make a list of names that fit the world. Name the ships, the swords, the people, the places. Try to come up with some really crazy place names, or names that have an inner conflict "The Swamp Of Silent Screams" or "The Pit Of Despair". Nothing good is going to happen in a Pit of Despair. You know it won't. But wouldn't it be fun to put your character in the Pit for a bit?

3) Plot twist!
Ideally, you have a plot stepping stone for your book every 4 pages (roughly 2000 words or every chapter ending), but you also need plot twists at regularly intervals. For a full length 90,000 word novel the plot twists should come around 20,000 words (that's this Friday if you're doing NaNo right now), 40,000 words, 60,000 words, a major twist at 75,000 words when you hit the climax, and another twist at 85,000 to end the book and make the reader gasp is surprise one more time.

If you're stuck right now, plan those plot twists. Even if you are a pantster who shoots from the hip, knowing the plot twist you're building to can help you get the book moving again. You have to make sure the logic works.

4) Abandon Ship
Literally. Save. Close Word. Walk away.

Go read a book, watch a movie, meditate, run, have a great meal... You can achieve output if you put nothing in. It seems counter-intuitive to walk away from writing on a deadline, but your brain needs down time, and a chance to relax. Take a six hour vacation from NaNo, and come back after you've let your brain have some true down time.

5) Some Good Advice
If you've come this far and you're still staring at the blank screen in despair may I recommend you turn to the wise words of the master wordsmiths who have gone before?
Chuck Wendig has some excellent (expletive laced) advice
Neil Gaiman has some advice
All These Authors have advice ... and it all boils down to... WRITE.

Put your butt in the chair. Nail your doubts to the wall. Tape your Inner Editor's mouth shut, and write.

This is a rough draft. It's meant to be rough. It's meant to be imperfect. It is meant to not be as pretty as a finished draft. If it is pretty, you've failed, you've played it safe, and this novel won't be as good as it could be. Make it rough. Make mistakes. Keep writing.

Scientifically Proven Methods to Surviving NaNoWriMo

 So, my ambitious young friend, you have decided to dare the dangerous waters of National Novel Writing Month. You have embarked on an epic quest to write a coherent novel, or 50,000 words of it, and keep your sanity intact.

That's adorable.

As the veteran of NaNo Campaigns past may I offer some tips to see you safely, and sanely, to the finish line?


1 - You Don't Have 30 Days
First and foremost, let's dispell the myth that you are going to have a Drama Free month and will get to write every day. It's not happening.

There's illness, holidays, Evil Day Job deadlines, book deadlines, agents making offers on the novel you're querying, and just days that don't have a free second to spare. It's cool.

You don't need all 30 days. If you miss a day, brush it off and move on.

1- WriteOrDie.com is Your Best Friend
Three writing sprints of 800 words a day will get you a novel by the end of the month. Go to Write or Die, set it like this:
Word Goal - 800
Time Goal - - (none)
Consequences - Normal
Grace Period - Evil

Write.

One of two things will happen, either you will realize the scene isn't fully formed in your head and die around 400 words (which is still 400 words than you had 5 minutes ago), or you'll hit 500 and fly past 1000 because the scene is working. Either way, three sprints of 800 words gives you 2,400 words at the end of the day, and a nice cushion for that day you get the flu.


3 - Give Yourself Time
You need to budget 2-3 hours a day for writing. That's a generous amount, and it seems like a lot, but it's not. Two to three hours is the time it takes an average-speed typist (like you) to write a little over 2000 words. Theoretically, if you type 50 word per minute you could write 3000 words in an hour. In reality, thinking about what you're typing slows the fingers down.

You will get faster as the month goes on.

You can break those three hours into smaller chunks (15 minutes before work, 20 minutes at lunch, another 40 minutes while dinner cooks). And if you can write 80 words in under 30 minutes, you're golden.

DO NOT: give up sleep, give up food, give up your workout, give up your loved ones... for NaNo. It's not worth it. Your brain needs downtime and a healthy body, skipping food, sleep, exercise, and social interaction (of whatever kind you normally get) will make you a worse writer.

4- Tell People What You're Doing
Let your family/roommates/co-workers know that you're carving 2 hours a day out for writing 6 days a week this month. Tell them what day you're free for fun stuff. Tell them you are recording all your shows and ask them not to spoil them for you. Tell them you will not kill the character named after them if they bring you tribute.

5- Clean Off Your Desk
Studies show that having a clean work area helps you focus. The clutter distracts you. So, if you're stuck and can't write, get up and tidy up. Clearing the trash out of your work area will lower your blood pressure and help free up the brain.



Keep your butt in that chair, 'wrimo fans, tomorrow I'll have some tips for getting out of the sinkholes of NaNoWriMo.