4 Steps for a Successful Preptober
Happy October, writers! November is on the horizon, along with NaNoWriMo. If you’re planning to participate this year (or even if you’re undecided), I have some tips to help you prep to set yourself up for success.
What is NaNoWriMo?
If you’re not familiar with NaNoWriMo, the abbreviation stands for National Novel Writing Month. It’s a challenge to writers to write 50,000 words within the month of November which, divided equally, means about 1667 words per day. While the original challenge is to start with a fresh story you haven’t yet started, many writers also use the momentum and inspiration of the month to work towards different goals they define for themselves. Whatever goal you want to work towards, the community energy of NaNoWriMo can be a great motivator to strive for a lofty goal and push through your obstacles to be successful.
What is Preptober?
While the “rules” of NaNoWriMo state you’re not supposed to begin counting your words until November 1st, you can (and should) do all the planning and preparation you need to beforehand in order to be successful – hence, “Preptober.” Writers will often spend the month of October planning their stories, outlining, and coming up with a game plan so they can start November off strong and finish with 50,000 of their novel completed.
So, how can you make the most of October to ensure you’re successful in November? Here are a few tips.
1. Decide on your story and make the commitment to writing it.
While this might sound basic, it can be intimidating to decide on one story we want to tell and commit to seeing it through. Particularly if this is your first manuscript, but even for those more seasoned writers, spending the amount of time required with any given story to complete a draft can be overwhelming. Often, we start out strong because we have a clear vision of what we want our beginning to look like, but as we eek into the middle, we lose steam and momentum. But you’ve chosen this story for a reason, so commit to seeing it through. And always remember, this is just a draft. If it’s not exactly how you pictured it (and it likely won’t be at this point), that’s what revision is for!
2. Plan/outline your story however much YOU need to.
There’s a hot debate in the writing universe about plotting versus pantsing – aka, those who outline extensively prior to beginning a draft and those who just jump into writing without any pre-planning. But I’d argue most of us are actually somewhere along that spectrum and each of us need different levels of preparation to feel ready to jump into our draft. There’s no right or wrong way, there’s only what works for you and what doesn’t. And no matter how much or how little you plan and outline, there will always be revisions to do, and things may change. If this is your first attempt at a novel and you’re unsure how much planning you need to do, I’d suggest trying for something in the middle – make a rough outline, plan out your characters and get to know them, and have an idea of the story you’re hoping to tell. You’ll learn from experience whether you need more or less planning in the future.
3. Plan your writing schedule and routine.
Aiming to write 50,000 words in 30 days is no small feat, and it won’t happen by accident. If you jump into November without at least a tentative plan of how you’ll find the time to get words on the page each day, you’ll likely run out of steam and motivation quickly. Instead, sit down with a planner and take a look at your schedule for the coming month. What other obligations do you have that will need to be worked around in order to meet this writing goal? Where can you find some time to dedicate to writing? Write out your planned writing times so you can see them visually and they feel more concrete.
Once you have an idea of when you’ll be able to focus on writing, next consider where you’ll write. Some people find it easier to write at home, while others need to get out of the house in order to focus. Again, whatever works best for you is the right answer. You might also want to try one thing for a few days and see if it works. If it doesn’t, you can always try something else. The key to successfully completing NaNoWriMo is to not become discouraged if your first plan doesn’t work as well as you’d hoped. Stay flexible, stay open to changing the plan, and you WILL find something that works for you.
4. Prepare a mantra to keep you motivated and focused when your energy wanes.
Thirty days of writing new words at this volume is most certainly a marathon, not a sprint. There will be days where the writing flows without a hitch, and other days you’ll stare at your computer for a while without getting any new words down. Both are expected and being aware of this ahead of time will help you get through the tough days. But one thing I like to suggest is to come up with a mantra that will motivate you and refocus you on your goal, and then write it down somewhere you’ll see it every day. On those challenging days, look to your mantra to remind you why you committed to this goal in the first place. And if that still doesn’t help, close the computer, get some sleep, and trust that tomorrow is a new day and, more likely than not, you’ll wake up and be in a better headspace.
NaNoWriMo is a great tool for getting words on the page and using the group energy to keep you dedicated to your writing goal. It’s a challenge, but one that’s so rewarding if you stick with it. The two biggest things to keep in mind:
1. You can always revise what you’ve written. It won’t turn out perfect the first time, and that’s okay. That’s what revision is for. Don’t worry too much about making it perfect at this stage. Just focus on getting the story out.
2. If you don’t finish all 50,000 words, that’s okay. You still have more words than you did at the beginning of the month, and that’s what matters at the end of the day.
Happy prepping, writers! I’d love to hear how you’re planning to succeed with your NaNoWriMo goals or what your story idea is. Email me back at lisa@lisafellinger.com to share!
