My NaNoWriMo Toolbox: Reward System

When my momentum is flagging, when my characters seem flat and listless and my plot pointless, I turn to an old standby: the reward. Last year I was actually a bit ahead near the end of Week One, and I promised myself a treat if I could crack 15,000 words by the end of the first weekend. I succeeded, but I think I forgot to buy the reward I had in mind. The ploy, whether it was fulfilled or not, did the trick. I made my self-imposed goal in time.

A mid-stream prize can do wonders for your self-esteem. It doesn't have to be anything grandiose and you don't have to spend a lot of money on it. Take yourself out for a movie (perhaps after NaNo is over). Spend time at a spa. Buy that new technological trinket you've been wanting. I also advocate a treat for winning, as that's the ultimate goal we're chasing here. When I won NaNo one year, I bought my first mp3 player, a cheapie little Sansa Clip, as a reward. It was inexpensive and drove home the point that I'd accomplished a not-insignificant achievement. I've found myself wanting more space, though, so this year I may upgrade in December. Then again, I really would like a starter video camera...

Your reward can be as simple as a day off from whatever mundane chores you may have around the house. You'll probably need the agreement of your housemate(s) for this one, but if you live with nice people, they'll take it in stride, despite the fact you probably chased them off with a broom throughout the month of November. Or you may choose to get ahead one day, promising yourself you don't have to write the next. This choice would be more dangerous for me. I need the momentum I get from writing each day in order to keep going.

If you dangle a carrot out in front of you this November, you may find yourself writing more than you thought.

My NaNoWriMo Toolbox: The Road Map

It helps me immensely to have a plan, an outline, or just a rough sketch for my story before I actually sit down to write it. You're not allowed to write any prose until the first of November, but you can certainly write outlines, timelines, histories, or character sketches. If you know you want a scene where the protagonist unexpectedly bumps into the antagonist during a spring downpour, then scribble a note down to that effect. If you know they'll be discussing a certain topic, mention it in your note. But don't write any of their dialogue, nor any setting descriptions that you'll be tempted to use in the actual novel.

In the few years I've taken on the NaNoWriMo challenge, I've discovered that somewhere in Week Two or Three I invariably end up at a 'well, now what?!' moment. I've used Week One's head of steam, I've stretched into characters who were less three-dimensional and given them some motivations and background, and I can't think of anything else to actually write about that will be useful in the story. In NaNos past I've been plagued with the problem of being able to write something, but not what I need to write to advance the plot and get to the end. It's because I don't know where the end actually is. With a plan or outline in my hand, I have a road map to the various points of interest in the story. It's like a built-in tour guide, defining the important stops along the way. And even if all you do is scrawl down a few index cards' worth of scene notes, you'll have something to help get you back into the swing of things when the plot winds down. To continue the example I mentioned above, you might grab a 3x5 card and write: "Sally and John meet by accident in the parking lot of the mall in a spring downpour, argue about last summer's disastrous company picnic". Then file it away or tuck it in your writing notebook (don't lose it!) and take it out when you run out of story. It might just save your butt.