Hm.

And today I decided that what I need is a goal. A deadline. Something to shoot for that will let me say “It’s finished and ready for the public.” Often, without a deadline, I’ll meander along forever, doing a lot, accomplishing a little.

So, with that in mind, here goes.

I will send out my first agent query letter for the novel by September 1. Of course, that means the novel will have to be finished and ready for review. I’ll also need whatever the agency typically wants (synopsis, sample chapters, etc.)

Anyone else working on a novel with no end in sight? Care to announce your goal and join me for a summer not just of writing, but of finishing as well?

Photo courtesy of mysticchildz

I’ve been working hard at finishing/editing my novel, and I just had to share a nice little piece of software that I found.

YWriter

If you’ve been looking at Scrivener and can’t use it because you’re not on a Mac, this might just be the answer.

It has the storyboard layout that I’ve been looking for. You can drag and drop scenes and rearrange them easily, which also means all the text associated with the scene moves too. This is much easier than copy/paste in a word processor.

The thing that really sold me was that it will import works in progress. Go through your existing document and make sure chapter titles are “Chapter 1″ etc. Then, put “* * *” between scenes. (Note, that’s *space*space*). Save your file as RTF.

YWriter’s import tool will bring it in and automatically split it into chapters and scenes. How cool is that?

March is NaNoEdMo. That’s National Novel Editing Month.

If you participated in NaNoWriMo in November or just have a novel in a drawer that needs work, then consider signing up. The rules are pretty simple: spend 50 hours in March editing your novel. If you have more questions, then go here.

I think editing is much more difficult than writing the rough draft, and having some motivation to put butt in chair and pen in hand every day is a good thing. I’ll be participating this year, and we’ll see what we get by the end of March.

If anyone else is interested, post a comment here. My username is jkay on the site, so look me up!

Edited to add:

Here are a few tips to get started…

• If you like to work from paper, then print your novel now.
• Buy whatever pens, sticky-notes or other supplies you’ll need.
• Clean off your desk or work-space.
• If the novel is unfinished, spend the next couple weeks writing. If you can’t finish it, at least jot down some scene ideas so you know where things are going and how it will end.
• Make a list of your characters with name, age, description and a few crucial notes. This is especially helpful if the novel has sat untouched for a while.
• Make a one page outline of major scenes so you can see where the plot is going and decide what needs to be changed.
• Talk to your family about delegating some work next month. You’ll need almost 2 hours a day to make the goal, so think where you can get that time now.
• Practice getting up earlier if you plan to do that to get more writing time.
• Consider having lunch at your desk and getting some editing time there if that’s do-able where you work.
• Have fun with it! Spend some time socializing with your fellow writers as well; don’t forget that this is meant to be enjoyable.

Outlining vs. Spontaneous

If you’ve done something like NaNoWriMo, then you probably have some experience with trying to write a novel by the seat of your pants. That works well for some people, not for others. I say, you’ll never know if it works for you until you try. I enjoy this method, but it doesn’t usually result in a good first draft for me.

The pros: You’ll have fun watching the novel unfold as you write. You’re probably less likely to get bored, and you’ll enjoy the plot twists and surprises this novel writing technique provides.

The cons: You’re more likely to write yourself into a corner and not know how to get out. You may write and write and have no idea how to end the novel. The draft is likely to be much less tightly structured and need a lot more revision on your second pass through.

If you choose to outline, you’ll avoid some of these pitfalls, but this novel writing method brings its own problems as well. I find writing from an outline can be boring and stale. Often, I’ve worked on the story so much I’m already getting a bit tired of it.

The pros: This draft should be better organized and the novel structure should be tighter. You’re unlikely to get lost or find yourself with 100,000 words and no ending in sight.

The cons: You may find this writing method stale or boring. If you find it boring, then your readers certainly will.

My compromise is this… I outline a little ahead of where I am in the novel and work from that, allowing it to change if it needs to. I don’t know the novel’s ending when I begin, but I do know the first few scenes. I keep that perspective throughout the work.

Editing vs. Proofreading

Editing is much harder than proofreading and should be done first. You’ll ask yourself tough questions, like

• Does this scene work? Ask yourself whether it advances the plot, or shows something crucial about the characters involved. If the answer is no to the former, then can you show the same thing in another scene that is necessary?
• Does the scene belong in the novel at all? If you removed it, would anyone but you miss it?
• Would a person really do that? I’ve seen this one in my writer’s group a lot. For whatever reason, fictional characters do things in the novel that no real person would ever consider. Even if you need the character to do it for the plot, you can’t make it happen if it doesn’t make sense.
• Does the plot need restructuring? Flashbacks are a good example. They’re tough to handle well, so you might want to avoid them if you can. Also, many writers start the book much too early, with too much backstory. Start the novel as late as you can.
• Is the point of view right for this novel? Is it consistent? Even if you’re used to one point of view, consider trying one scene in a different one to see if it works. Make sure that your point of view is consistent throughout the novel.
• Do people really talk that way? This one is a little tricky. You don’t want your characters to sound stilted or fake, but you don’t want to mimic real conversation either. Real people use lots of incomplete sentences, mutter, add ums and uhs, skip around, etc. Read your dialogue aloud to make sure it sounds real without sounding TOO REAL.

You’ll typically do more cutting than adding, and you’ll need to be ruthless. This is a good time to show the novel to someone who can do a critique for you. Be clear that you’re not interested in commas and quotes at this time, you’re interested in the larger view.

When the story is tight, the scenes are well-developed, and the characters believable, then you’re ready to tackle proofreading. Spelling, grammar, punctuation should all be on your list of things to check. This is a good time to get someone who’s good at that sort of thing to review your work, even if you’re good at it too. You can’t catch everything.

For one thing, I’ve got a pretty decent novel underway. I’m happy with it, all 30k or so words. Here’s my take on how things went and what worked (and what didn’t).

1. I went back and did some serious rewriting about a week in. That lost me two or three days and about six thousand words. However, it also made the novel a lot better.
2. I re-read the previous day’s work and did some minor edits along the way. It helped me get back in the “flow,” but overall, it was probably a waste of time.
3. I just didn’t spend as much time this year writing. I missed a few days entirely, and with a goal of almost two thousand words a day, you can fall behind very quickly.
4. I followed an outline, for about a week. Then, I realized there were problems and re-worked the whole thing. I’ve done the first 30,000 without an outline, but now I’m finding that I need one.

I do have something else going on that’s taking a lot of my time and attention, so I’ve been lax on writing and blogging. I’m not quite ready to talk about what’s going on, but maybe soon!

I should be back to a normal posting schedule now. So, please stick around. I have some interesting posts and changes to the site scheduled for December.

Household Tasks 

Delegate and plan now. Start telling your family what you’re going to be doing, and ask for help. Remember to be specific. Ask someone to take over handling dinner, doing dishes, taking care of laundry, etc.

Take a few minutes and jot down everything you’ve done so far this week that you might want to ask for help with. Your list might look like mine.

• Cook meals, pack lunches
• Clean house
• Look after pets
• Walk dog
• Laundry!
• Pay bills
• Buy groceries
• Drop off mail, bills
• Caulk bathtub

First, ask yourself if anything can be put off. Can you order pizza one or two nights a week instead of cooking? Can everyone be responsible for his/her own laundry next month? How about buying paper plates to cut down on dishes?

If things can’t be put off, then get someone lined up now to help you with it. Even a couple days help a week can take a lot of stress off.

Blogging 

If you’re a blogger, start lining up extra posts now. You have two problems with blogging and NaNo-ing. The first is time (obviously). It’s going to be tough enough to find time to write your novel without adding the pressure of keeping up with a blog schedule.

The second issue is one I have to be careful not to succumb to. Blogging is often a very tempting distraction from the stress of the novel, particularly in the long second and third weeks.

One option is to write some extra posts now, if you haven’t started already. Set aside a few hours this weekend or a little time each night, and put together some posts for your blog. Most blog software will even let you schedule the post now to appear some time next month, so it’s truly something you can do now and forget.

Another option is to ask for a guest poster to contribute to your blog next month. If you have a person who frequently posts good comments, then ask if she’s open to guest posting. Another alternative is simply to ask (gasp!). Of course, you’ll want to read the posts before you post them on your site, but it can be a great time saver.

Thanksgiving 

In the U.S., we have the added challenge, and excitement, of having Thanksgiving fall during NaNo month. Cooking and family time are important, and you don’t want to miss thanksgiving dinner. My best solution is to plan on missing a couple days’ writing during the holiday.

Yes, as hectic as it will already be, I’m telling you to plan on writing your 50,000 words in about 28 days, not 30.

By the time Thanksgiving rolls around, you’re going to be exhausted. I know the respite from writing actually does me a lot of good. I rest, eat too much, and then start writing frantically the weekend after Thanksgiving.

Writing the Novel 

Which brings me to the core of the challenge. How do you keep your writing momentum through the month?

The short answer, you won’t.

In my case, I usually start and finish strong and struggle during weeks two and three. You may experience something different, but I doubt that many people can maintain their momentum through the entire 50,000 word trek.

I do a couple of things to make sure I don’t get too far off track during the rough times.

• First, I write more than my daily quota every day that I can. I know that even a few hundred words here and there will come in handy when I’m struggling to fill even one page.
• Second, I write every day (except Thanksgiving). Even if I don’t even come close to quota, something is better than nothing.
• Third, I don’t make myself write the novel in order. If I’m stuck on a scene, I skip it and move on to something a little easier.
• Finally, when I start wondering if I’m going to make it, I think about how great it feels to hit that 50,000 word mark. Believe me, it’s worth it.

What are your tips for making it through NaNo month?

Note: This post is a part of the group writing project at The Writer’s Manifesto Blog. The entry deadline isn’t until the 20th, so head on over and participate.

If you’re looking for a little help writing your novel, or you feel that you need a little more structure, Susan Hill is running a creative writing course for free on her blog.

Marie Phillips gives some great all-purpose tips on writing. Tip #6, “Be wary of telling people too much about what you are doing” really strikes a chord with me. I never talk much about a work in progress. The more I talk about it, the less I’m inclined to write it!

If you’re looking for NaNo-specific tips, then Angela Booth has some links that cover getting your novel underway.

Mark Terry talks about the struggle between writing for money and writing for art, and why we choose to write in the first place.

Kate Elliott has some advice for first time science fiction and fantasy writers.

I’ve done Nano three years so far, and each time I’ve done it with very little preparation. I had an idea and a general idea of where I wanted the novel to go, but that’s it. I reached 50,000 words each time, but the results were mixed. I got two viable rough drafts and one draft that’s absolute swill. What’s more, the two rough drafts were VERY rough; both need extensive rewriting before they’ll be even close to ready to go out.

To be honest, both probably need to be completely rewritten.

While I really enjoy the creativity of writing by the seat of my pants, I don’t enjoy having to rewrite every novel I produce, so this year I’m trying something different. As I’ve said before, I’m working on an outline, using the snowflake method. I’m hoping that this year the rough draft I produce will be much less rough than previous years’ have been.

If you’re not ready to put together a detailed outline, I’d recommend doing some sort of plan for your Nano novel before November. At the very least, know how the novel ends, your main character, and the major catastrophes that will befall the protagonist and how those will move things forward. If nothing else, that will keep you from getting bogged down as the month progresses.

I think the second and third weeks of Nano are the toughest. The first week is easy; you’re excited and the story is still fresh and intriguing. In the second and third weeks, however, you run the risk of having your ideas dry up, or you wander off your original course and get “lost.” If either of those happen, it can be tough to get back on track.

For me, dealing with the sheer exhaustion of writing so much is tough. If you aren’t already writing daily (or nearly every day), then I’d suggest you start now. Also, try to get as much of your word count in your first week as possible; you’ll need the cushion later.

What are your tips for getting through November?

I’m really intrigued by the Snowflake method. In fact, I’m using it this time around to get ready for NaNo. You start with a one sentence synopsis and gradually expand it to a full-fledged plan, including a scene-by-scene outline. Randy Ingermanson is the creator, and he recommends taking as much as a week for some steps, so don’t put off getting started!

Justine Larbalestier describes a more seat of the pants approach to novel writing. You sit down and write first, and only after completing a significant chunk of writing do you start to plan out the novel. If the Snowflake method seems a bit too much work up front for you, this might be a good option.

And here’s some tongue in cheek advice on writing your novel while at work.  I wouldn’t recommend everything in the article (okay, not even most things in the article), but arriving a little early to work on the novel before your real work day starts might be a good option for some. Using your lunch time is another option, but that’s one that I try to avoid because I need the mid-day break to mentally recharge.

As I’ve said here before, I tend to not be an outliner. I like writing that way, but the problem is, it leaves the novel in a bit of a mess when you’re finished. This year, I’m hoping to avoid the hefty rewriting process by trying to outline up-front. I’m not at all sure how well I’ll like it, but I know that a lot of (may most) writers swear by outlining.

Since I’m not an outliner in general, I can’t offer a lot of personal advice on how to do it. What I will do is talk about what I’m doing, what’s working (and not), and point out some good resources. If you use outlines for your novels, toss in your ideas below.

Holly Lisle is a great resource in general, and her workshop on story outlines. No, it’s not specific to the novel, but it’s a good start. She also has a workshop on how to finish a novel.

You all know I’m a big fan of Paperback Writer’s site. She has a post on how she outlines that’s very detailed and useful.

In “Outline your novel in 30 minutes,” you’ll answer some questions that will help you put together a plot outline.

If you post your NaNo novel outline on your blog or site, drop a link here in the comments and I’ll put together a post linking to all of them.