Fall brings cozy sweaters and yummy coffee, the perfect combination to cuddle up with words. It also brings NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month, where writers from all around the world compete with themselves to write 50,000 new words on their novel in 30 short days. It's a writing marathon that requires commitment, energy, and dedication to your story. To successfully prepare for NaNoWriMo, the writing community has also created Preptober. A portmanteau of prepare and October, this month-long retreat gives you the time to plan your story, create your characters, write an outline, and manage your obligations outside of writing so you can focus and succeed during your writing marathon. Learn all about Preptober and get the resources you need to successfully plan and prep your novel!
Read moreNovel Notes: Update #1
For a long time I've been in the dark of what actually writing a whole novel looks like. I believed it was straightforward: writing chapter one, then chapter two, all the way to "the end". But in reality, at least for me, the process doesn't really look like that. I'm sharing my process–the good, the bad, the epically messy–to document the novel-writing reality that's true to me. Hopefully, if you're writing a novel and struggling with questions of "Am I doing it right?", sharing my process will give you the confidence and calm that no matter how messy and crazy your draft is, you can get through it. So, here's what this novel has been through so far and what's yet to come! This is Novel Notes Update #1!
Read moreHow to Write + Revise Your Story in 5 Draft Phases
The way I go from BIG IDEA to finished story is kind of weird. I always thought it would be this linear, very defined approach, but I don't function like that. My draft phases follow building the anatomy of a story through specific, key craft elements. My phases aren't defined by "The End" or "Draft 4", but by mindset and attention to certain story pieces. If you're curious what a "skeleton draft" is (or what a "freckle draft" is), click through to read how I write, revise, and edit my stories to completion in five distinct phases.
Read moreEverything You'd Ever Need to Write a Novel: The ULTIMATE Novel Packing List
Perhaps you're ready to attack Camp NaNoWriMo next month or classic NaNoWriMo in November. Perhaps you're just embarking on your own personal writing quest on your own schedule. The truth is, you want to write a novel, and that's awesome! You're about to do an amazing thing. It's going to be difficult. It's going to be a challenge. But it's going to be well worth it. Before you get started with your novel, you have to be prepared. There's a lot of time, effort, and energy that go into writing a novel, so you want to make sure you're well-equipped for whatever's going to happen. This is the ultimate packing list of everything you'll need to write your novel.
Read moreDoes Your Novel's Genre Matter? How to Fuse Genre and Literary Fiction to Create a Strong Story
There's an ongoing war between literary fiction and genre. They're placed at odds with each other, a black or white fight to who's better. But in fact, there's a BIG gray area. In order to write a Real+Good Story, you need to know the actual differences between the two, how they're made up of the same stuff with different levels of emphasis, and how you can cater to that in your novel so your reader is satisfied. Plus, I made you a workbook that asks you the right questions about your novel so you can fuse genre conventions and literary conventions to write the best story possible.
Read moreAn Open Letter to My Novel (+Why You Should Write Your Own)
Your novel is a complex, emotional thing. You can't fight it forever. If you're having issues, writing a letter to it that expresses your frustrations, admits your faults, and finds an appropriate solution to move forward may be just the thing to get your back on track. It worked for me. Read my letter and why it's important to treat your novel like you're in a relationship with it.
Read moreHow to Approach Your Novel: Thinking about YOUR Process for Big Things
With so many resources out there telling you how to write your novel and how to write at all, it's easy to feel like you HAVE to do things a certain way. But the only person who knows what's best for you is you. So what SHOULD you do? Step #1: Figure out what you know about how you approach big things. I tried considering what I do in two separate case-studies of "big things" I've tackled in the past, and it illuminated a process that I didn't know I had. Here's what I learned, how you can figure out your own process, and apply it to your current work-in-progress.
Read more5 Ways to Stick with Your Novel When You Feel Like Giving Up
You started your novel with Motivation! Excitement! Power! And now you're feeling... anything besides that. You believed in this project at one point, and you don't want to quit on it now, but you've got to find a way to reignite your passion. Here's 5 quick tips that will get you refocused on your novel, recommitted to it, and ready to write, so you can make your writing dreams a reality.
Read more8 Steps to Mentally Prepare to Write Your Novel
Let's assume for now that you've already got that hard stuff figured out. This isn't about planning the intricacies of your novel. This isn't a craft lecture. Rather, this is figuring out how to get your mind in the right place so that when it comes down to doing it, YOU ACTUALLY DO IT. This is about mental preparation to set your goals and achieve them in the time period you allowed. Learn how to get your mind ready so that when you're ready to write, you write.
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