The first question almost everyone asks when they learn I\u2019ve written a novel is, \u201cDo you plot everything out in advance, or do you figure it out as you go?\u201d The answer is \u201cBoth.\u201d I have a general idea of where I will end up, and I point the plot in that direction, but the route is unclear until I get there. Thousands of people\u2014many of whom have never written a book before\u2014are discovering their fictional paths this month.<\/p>\n
We are reaching the middle of National Novel Writing Month<\/a> (awkwardly abbreviated NaNoWriMo). Participating authors from countries around the world already report they have set down some 1.2 billion words. Skimming the long list of NaNoWriMo participants whose books drafted during this annual literary frenzy were ultimately published, I found Hugh Howey\u2019s Wool<\/em>, Kindle Book Review\u2019s 2012 Indie Book of the Year. I happen to be listening to Wool<\/em> on my iPod. I\u2019ll bet there are authors in the list<\/a> whom you know, too.<\/p>\n NaNoWriMo encourages participants to write a novel of at least 50,000 words in 30 days. In its first year, 21 writers participated, and six reached the finish line. (I use that term loosely, since completing the first draft of a novel is pretty darn far from anything resembling a \u201cfinish.\u201d) Last year, the 14-year-old program had 256, 618 participants, 14 percent of whom reached the goal. Though they undoubtedly will have further work to do, this is a tremendous accomplishment.<\/p>\n The whole idea of NaNoWriMo appeals to me as a helpful boot camp for writers, aspiring or accomplished. It stresses the importance of writing every day\u2014sustained effort\u2014and shows writers they are capable of actually finishing something. Too many of us have promising, half-complete manuscripts languishing in drawers and Word files, \u00a0awaiting the return of a Muse who has apparently decamped to Brazil. NaNoWriMo\u2019s fixed and tight deadline requires writers to power through at a blistering 1700-words-a-day pace, barely leaving time to roast the Thanksgiving turkey.<\/p>\n NaNoWriMo offers moral support and coaching through regional support groups. It took my breath away to learn that my region (Central New Jersey) has almost 3500 NaNoWriMo participants! The \u201cshared experience\u201d this encourages is based on the founder\u2019s first experiment with the concept in July 1999. \u201cWe called it noveling,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd after the noveling ended on August 1, my sense of what was possible for myself, and those around me, was forever changed.\u201d<\/p>\n A wistful look comes over people\u2019s faces when they find out I\u2019ve written a novel and published short stories. \u201cI\u2019ve always wanted to do that,\u201d they say. If they do, there will be a rocky road ahead, but what I tell them about is the joy in traveling it. In future, I\u2019ll also tell them about National Novel Writing Month.<\/p>\n As the NaNoWriMo folks say, \u201cWin or lose, you rock for even trying.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The first question almost everyone asks when they learn I\u2019ve written a novel is, \u201cDo you plot everything out in advance, or do you figure it out as you go?\u201d The answer is \u201cBoth.\u201d I have a general idea of … Continue reading