Reflecting and Rediscovering Your Reasons

I had a busy summer this year. 

Back in March I had an idea for a new manuscript. It was one of those moments several writers have experienced, just walking around and living life when the brain goes off on one of its semi-frequent divergent meanderings and BAM!, you stumble on one of those golden “What if” questions that sets off an avalanche of possibilities. Before long, you start to realize that, yes, there is a legitimately viable story idea coming together. 

It was exciting to have something new come on so strong. I decided immediately I wanted to do it right. I was going to have tons of writing time available in the summer, so I gave the idea the rest of the spring to percolate. I filled the whiteboard in my office with comp titles coming from other books, movies, television shows, video games, and even podcasts. I began tapping idea fragments into a massive list on my phone. I sought out middle grade titles that felt similar to my idea in one way or another, to measure what the boundaries were for the story I was planning and figure out how I might be able to push them.

Once the work started, it came fast. I wrote chronologically with only a rough outline in my head, something I’ve never done before. When the draft was finished, I stepped away for a few weeks, giving my head some time to clear while waiting for feedback. When I got back to it, I powered through the revisions at a challenging pace with an approximate deadline in mind. There was a day or two of sweet relief when I finally reached that goal, but then I started feeling an itch….

I knew NaNoWrimo 2017 would be starting in less than a week. I've been a semi-regular participant over time, but have sat out the past two years due to other writing projects and different commitments. I thought about giving it a try this year, and came up with a number of reasons why it seemed like a good idea: I’ve always enjoyed participating; it would be an amazing feather in my cap if I could lay claim to drafting two complete manuscripts inside of the same calendar year; I had been hit with another idea — not exactly a new idea but one from the vault I wanted to try someday, and the time was feeling right. Since I thought it could be at least a few weeks until I was in a position to do any other revisions on the new manuscript, I decided to sign up.

The thing was, as much as I love this new idea, there is little reason for me to think it will ever see the light of day. I’m a writer of middle grade fiction. This new project would be a memoir, based around one particular area of my life, and not really directed at a middle grade audience. I have no nonfiction platform in this area, so as far as publishing aspirations go, it seems like it’d be a tremendous long shot. Really the only reason I would have for taking on this project is because I want to write it so much.

I felt just as passionate about my middle grade story earlier in the year when I was working on it. The big difference is I wrote that knowing it had a decent chance of eventually being ready for submission, and hopefully would get as far as publication someday. This new one might end up only being something for me and, hopefully, friends and family to enjoy.

It has me thinking:
*Why do we write?
*Is it for the love of it? 
*Do we let goals dictate or influence which projects we commit to?
*Would we still throw ourselves into the work as completely, even if we knew nobody else would ever read it?
*What benefits are there for jumping outside of the box and exploring new areas, just for the sake of exploring?

Not everyone would have the same answers to these questions. Maybe it’s not such a bad thing to occasionally consider the reasons we have for choosing this life. It might reveal something about our choices, or it could provide us with a renewed focus. 

All I know is that right now, with literally hours until NaNoWriMo begins, I’m looking forward to whatever self-discovery comes along with this new project, both personally and from the perspective of pure writing. I think it’s going to be a good month. 

To anyone else out there about to take on NaNo this year, or just entering a new stage of a current work-in-progress, I’d encourage you to reflect on it. You might discover some interesting things.

Three Tips for NaNoWriMo

It's almost November, and so here are my top three tips for National Novel Writing Month (i.e. NaNoWriMo):

1. Turn off your inner critic. If you're doing NaNoWrimo, chances are it's because you love writing. Maybe the idea of creating an entirely new world intrigues you. Maybe finishing a novel is a lifelong dream of yours. Whatever your reasons, bear in mind that writing is a (long) process, and it helps if you enjoy it. No, your first completed novel will not live up to the glory of your initial idea. Why? Because writing is hard and it takes practice. In fact, your first five or six or twenty manuscripts might all be practice runs, leading up to your breakthrough moment. Don't be discouraged by the crappiness of your writing. It happens to everyone all the time, even writers who have already sold books. NaNo is about getting that first (or fifth) novel under your belt, and you can't do that if you're constantly questioning every word. Believe in yourself. Take a temporary narcissism pill that only wears off once you type the words, "The End." When November's over, you won't regret writing a less-than-perfect manuscript, because, hey, finishing any kind of novel is awesome. You will regret it, though, if you gave up because you were worried about sucking. Embrace the suckiness, because that's how you'll eventually gain the skills to write a novel that sells.
   
2. Don't quit after November. Even if you finish your manuscript, the first draft is only the beginning. Now it's time for the fun part. That's right, revision, mwahahaha! I like to do it in rounds. Start with a read-through of the entire manuscript where you make notes of overarching issues. Then prioritize your list from largest to smallest. Let's say I identify five big things wrong with my story. I'll then do five more read-throughs, each one focusing on a single issue. After that, I'll give it one final read, and then it's ready to send off into the world. On a related note: don't submit your manuscript too early if you can help it. NaNo is about first drafts, but the piece you submit to an agent or editor should be waaaay more polished.
   
3. Find a community. Join an online or in-person group to vent and get support during NaNo season. And hey, while you're at it, why not join a local writer's group all year round. Fellow writers can be a great source of motivation and growth. I love the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) in particular. I've learned new skills, been inspired and developed a huge group of fellow travelers to keep me company on my writing journey.

Hope these tips help make your NaNoWriMo a huge success!!!

About the Author: Kim Ventrella is the author of the middle grade novel, Skeleton Tree (Scholastic Press). When she's not writing, you might find her working as a Children's Librarian or hanging out with her awesome dog, Hera.

Praise for Skeleton Tree

“Skeleton Tree is a powerful and tender story. Kim Ventrella knows when to be playful and when to break your heart.” —Cassie Beasley, NYT-bestelling author of Circus Mirandus

“Ventrella’s comforting storytelling reveals a magical world where a skeleton can grow and where a family’s love for each other can provide healing.” —School Library Journal

NaNoWriMo Revisions: Be the Tortoise

Congratulations!

Today is the last day of November, which means you very well might have finished NaNoWriMo with a successful run of 50,000 or more words to your name. If not, perhaps you're going to use today as part of your homestretch strategy, and by the time your head hits the pillow tonight you'll have all of those words counted and verified, and you'll be the proud owner of a brand new 2015 social media badge to display! Or maybe you didn't reach the goal, which is also okay. If you gave it your best try and still found yourself with a new pile of words that you'll someday be able to mold into a viable manuscript, it can't really be said that you lost.

So what comes next? Designing mock-ups of what the book cover will eventually look like? Prepping your bio and head shot for the dust jacket? Trying to decide which of the agents in that whole level of the publishing realm will be the favored few to be included in your first round of querying?

No, no, no, no a thousand times no. If you're serious about this, all of those things, and really everything else that would go with them, need to be stored up on your dream shelf for the time being. Save them, and revisit them on occasion because dreams are awesome and they can keep you going through the frustrating times, but if you want a legitimate chance at seeing those dreams climb up to the next step, you're just getting started on your work.

So let's say you finished a new draft. The chances are good it probably needs a coat or two of polish before its ready to see the light of day. I know, I know -- it's brilliant, you love it, you're so proud of what you accomplished that you're about to burst. Believe me, I've been there, more than once. The thing is, you've been living and breathing and consumed by that story for thirty days now, and once you give your head a little time to clear and regain your bearings about how normal life works, you'll see there's still a good amount of work to be done. Once your able to approach your work with fresh eyes, it's time to start revising.

I'm not going to give you a long checklist of tips on the best way to meet your revision goals because each writer has a different process, and what works for some of us might be a nightmare of frustration for others. I am, however, going to recommend you follow one big step in the revision process (to be used following NaNoWriMo or really any other time you finish drafting a new manuscript) which I personally think is crucial for making it all work the best for you:

Wait.

Don't dive in and start revising right after you type out that satisfying "The End" tag. Let your head clear for a few weeks, or months. Give the work a little space to breathe. Taking some time away from it will let you approach it with more necessary objectivity when you return, and allow you to identify both what's working and what isn't. If you can, go ahead and get the draft in front of some critique partners while you're resting up, and really think about whatever feedback they provide.

For me, revising has never been about applying quick bandage-paragraphs to fix the things that don't work. I usually have to do a lot more than that, and when I travel deep into that revision rabbit hole (which is where I've been living for the past month) I put a lot of thought into making sure everything is going in the right direction. I'm not saying my planning is so regimentally mapped out ahead of time that it won't allow for discovery, but I want to make sure the writing has the best possible chance to grow into something better.

Think back to the Tortoise and the Hare. Do you want to be the writer who charges through this critical stage of the process, which can be so beneficial to your work, or do you want to be the one who invests the time it takes to do it right?

Trust me. Be the tortoise. It can make all the difference.

Synopsis /səˈnäpsəs/ (n). the bane of any writer's existence.

I tried NaNoWriMo once.

And I failed.

Miserably.

I started out writing between 1500-2000 words a day, and then somewhere around mid-November my brain became a stew of ideas and twists and new character arcs that sounded a heck of a lot better than the ones I'd started out with.

So since many of you are currently halfway through your own NaNo projects (imagine me applauding you at this point because I am, I promise), I thought I'd pass along what I learned from my month-long stint in a creative hell. 

The Super-Simple Synopsis Strategy Sure To Satisfy Your Storytelling...Stuff.

Don't judge me. Titles have never been my forte. 

Anyway, this strategy is going to be absolutely priceless for those of you who will be querying your newborn manuscript in January (imagine me hugging you and telling you it'll be okay at this point because I am, I promise) and hoping no agent you decide to query asks for a ONE PAGE SYNOPSIS OH MY GOD.

But we all know agents will. They have to. And after this post, you're going to be prepared to write one. All thanks to my TS-SSSSTSYS...S technique. 

It's really quite simple. I use it to teach writers of all ages how to write the world's most simple and complete synopsis. And all you have to remember are five words: somebody, wanted, but, so, then.

That's it! When you fill in the responses to those, you've got a full-blown synopsis that'll easily fit on one page. So let's take a look at each of these words so you'll know just what to include.

1. Somebody: Tell us who the main character is, where she lives, her age, and anything else that you feel we should know.
2. Wanted: Tell us your main character's biggest inner desire. What's her biggest external goal?
3. But: Tell us the obstacle standing in her way of achieving these. There might be more than one or there could be one single challenge. This is going to be the biggest portion of your synopsis because we need to see how your character struggles and fails, struggles and fails, struggles and fails, and nearly gives up.
4. So: Tell us the method she uses to finally overcome this obstacle.
5. Then: Tell us the internal and external reward she obtains for solving this problem. 

That's it! As an example, we'll write up a quick (less than one page) synopsis for Bridge to Terabithia. Warning: major spoilers ahead if you haven't read the book.

1. Somebody: Jess Aarons is a fifth grader at Lark Creek Elementary School. He's been training all summer long on his farm because...
2. Wanted: he wants to be the fastest runner in the school. He knows if he can do this, he'll earn the respect of his friends, his rivals, and more importantly, the respect of his dad.
3. But: But when Leslie Burke, Jess' new neighbor and classmate, challenges the boys to a race, she leaves every one of them in her dust...along with Jess' dreams. Second place isn't good enough to brag about. Not to the other boys at school. And not to his dad. When Leslie attempts to befriend Jess, he resists at first. But somewhere along the way, he realizes she's not so bad. And her family is more than ready to welcome him as their new neighbor. Jess and Leslie quickly become friends and together they create Terabithia, an imaginary world in the woods, just across the creek beside the old crab apple tree. The more time they spend building their castle stronghold, the more the other boys tease him about having a girlfriend. And the more time he spends with Leslie, the more his parents worry about him not doing regular "boy things." But Leslie brings out the best in Jess--his creativity, his curiosity, and his willingness to see a world outside of Lark Creek. And Jess inspires Leslie, too. She tells him she's never been to church, so when Easter rolls around, she tags along with his family. Jess worries that her lack of understanding about the Bible will come to haunt her one day, but he quickly forgets about it. Soon after, Ms. Edmunds, Jess' music teacher, invites him to visit an art gallery and Jess accepts the offer. They spend the day exploring the different paintings, talking about imagination, and enjoying their time in the city. But when Jess gets back home, his parents are waiting for him with some devastating news. Leslie is dead. She drowned trying to cross the creek into Terabithia. At first, Jess refuses to believe it. He becomes angry at his family, at himself, even at Leslie. He runs away to the woods, ready to tear down the world he created with Leslie. Jess' father finds him. Jess confesses that Leslie's death is his own fault because he didn't invite her to go to the art gallery with him. And what's even worse, since Leslie never went to church before Easter, he's worried God sent her to hell. 
4. So: For the first time ever, Jess' dad consoles him. He tells Jess not to worry. That it's not his fault and that God doesn't send little girls to hell. They sit quietly together in the woods remembering Leslie and having their very first honest father-son moment. The next day, Jess finds the strength to revisit Terabithia. He decides to build a bridge across the creek and invite his little sister along.
5. Then: Together, they will keep the memory of Leslie alive so that Terabithia can live on forever. 

There ya go! Obviously, the synopsis I just wrote can be modified and greatly improved, but it at least gives you the idea of how you can use the somebody, wanted, but, so, then method to at least get your started in the right direction.

But until then, happy writing! You're only halfway through November, so there's plenty of time to finish and worry about that synopsis (imagine me giving you plenty of caffeine and chocolate at this point because I am, I promise. Except for that donut. I'll take that.)

What I Learned from NaNoWriMo (even though it doesn’t work for me)

When I started the manuscript that would be the first one I would ever complete, NaNoWriMo was just around the corner. It seemed like a great opportunity to keep the momentum going on this book I was already excited about. What I didn’t realize until I dove head first in, was that Nano isn’t for everyone. Despite that I did learn some valuable lessons.

You’re not alone

Just because you didn’t finish NaNo, or even if you didn’t start, it doesn’t mean you’re the only person in existence that didn’t. I know it’s hard to be in the writing community in November when everyone is shouting about their word counts, but there are many people who are quiet about the fact that they aren’t making their daily goal or aren’t even participating. It may feel lonely, but you aren’t the only one. I’ll shout from the rooftops right now, I’m not NaNoing!!! So you can join my saying no to NaNo club if you want.

Writing every day doesn’t work for everyone

This was something I learned fairly quickly during NaNo. I simply didn’t have the emotional energy required, or the brain power to sit down and write every single day especially with a full time day job. Now this probably sounds like excuses but in all honesty I needed time to plot, and let ideas stew in my subconscious before things gelled together and I could write more. And not writing everyday doesn’t mean you are a failure, it just means it’s not the right method for you. That said, I did learn the importance of a schedule. When I had time to write scheduled out, I was a lot more effective and got things done.

The importance of momentum

The more frequently you write the more your head is in the game. This is why NaNo can be so effective because your brain is in your story every day. While I determined that writing every day was too much for me, between the fatigue and needing down time, I did notice an increase in ideas and excitement to continue my story even on the days I wasn't writing. So once you find that momentum from whatever schedule works for you, keep it going.

Capitalize on the energy

The energy during NaNo is electric (boogey-woogie-woogie *sorry couldn’t resist*). Everyone is excited about their stories, and running word sprints. Even if you aren’t participating in NaNo, jump in on some word sprints or let the excitement grab you and take you down the path. You may not be writing 50k in a month, but you can still work on your manuscript.

Not reaching 50k in a month doesn’t make you a failure

Did you put words on the page? More than you started with? If the answer is yes and yes, then congrats you won. You added words to the page and that is the most important part of drafting. And even if you didn’t get 50K or finish your book, you did make progress. And now you have momentum and time to finish it. So keep going.

Even if NaNoWrimo doesn’t work for you, I hope you are at least able to find some value from it. Keep moving forward, persevere and finish! You can do it!

How NaNoWriMo Made Me a Better Writer

I’ve participated in National Novel Writing Month (aka NaNoWriMo) every November going back to 2008 (even though I’ve recently decided to remain on the sidelines for this year). For anyone not familiar with this event, people commit to putting forth their best effort to write an entire novel in a thirty-day span. If you reach that goal and report your word count to the NaNoWriMo website for verification, congratulations! You’ve won!

Producing that many words so quickly might seem like a daunting task, at the very least, but I promise it can be done. I’m seven-for-seven on NaNoWriMo wins myself, so I’m living proof. I’m not saying everything from those collective 350,000+ words has been brilliant, but I’ve managed to drag my tired bones across the finish line every time I started, and each of those wins was very satisfying.

Some people would probably tell you that’s half (or all) of the fun in participating — diving in head first with your eyes closed, writing with a process that isn’t even in the same area code as your comfort zone, and discovering if you really can meet that goal. I suppose those things are true, but I think a much bigger take-away from NaNoWriMo has been what I’ve learned about myself as a writer, and not just how I operate under the self-imposed pressure of a month-long sprint. 

I think anyone who decides to accept that challenge and manages to learn something about themselves or their process, whether they “win” or not, can say the experience was valuable and worthwhile. If you’ve never taken on the challenge before, I’d certainly encourage you to try. And if you do, here are a few bits of advice I have to offer: 

Set the Stage

A lot of writers create playlists to listen to for writing certain scenes, specific characters, or for entire projects. Anything that will help you find your way into the story more quickly is a useful tool. For a lot of us, that’s finding the right music to establish the scene, or define the character, or complement the entire book. If you aren’t a music fan, maybe you need the right drink, or the lucky sweatshirt, or perhaps a collection of various scented candles that perfectly reflects the personalities of your characters. Whatever gets you where you need to be is worth cultivating.

Find the Clay

I’d imagine some people might disagree with me on this, but I think writer’s block is a self-indulgent excuse for not getting words on the page. During NaNoWriMo, it’s not a luxury you have if you want to reach the goal. If you decide to make it a priority, you WILL find a way to build your word count. I tend to see writing a first draft as something similar to a sculptor getting her or his hands onto a nice new slab of clay, and all of the editing and revising that follows is when the artist molds that clay into the figure they carry in their head. You can’t sculpt until you have the clay. You can’t revise until you have the original words. No matter how tragically awful those words might seem at first, you need to give yourself something to work with.

Freeze the Lake

Forget chronology. You don’t have to start with “It was a dark and stormy night” on November 1st and finish with “They lived happily ever after” on the 30th. Write whatever part of the story is poking at you the most. I’ve described my NaNoWriMo process (which has really evolved into just being my process now) to non-writers by comparing it to how a lake freezes over in the winter: Big frozen chunks and ice floes begin forming independently of each other in the cold water until everything eventually comes together as one big sheet covering the lake. I’ll write the scenes that have the most energy, then let the gaps between them fill in along the way as those bigger scenes naturally develop outward until they connect. 

Work the Community

Writing is solitary. No news there. But encouragement can be motivating, and the writing community is (especially here in middle grade territory) very supportive. NaNoWriMo has different levels of social networking built into it, like writing buddies, online forums, and even local real-world events. You don’t have to go through it all alone.

Use the Tease

Try to end your writing day at a place when you would really like to keep going. That will make getting back to work the following day something to anticipate.

Ride the Flow

I hope a lot of writers out there are familiar with flow state, that mindset when everything feels effortless and your productivity is off the charts. You’re going to put in some serious hours if you want to write 50,000 words in a month, and sooner or later the flow is going to grab you. Try to recognize when it does, and take advantage of it for as long as you possibly can.

Take the Punches

Not every day will be golden and full of word count. This is okay. Remember that 1,667 words is an average daily pace and not a requirement. As long as you keep moving forward, you’re still approaching the goal. If a day doesn’t turn out to be a good one, take your hits and move on.

And Finally, Make the Effort

One month is plenty of time to accomplish some great things if you set your mind to it. The manuscript that first caught my agent’s attention began as a NaNoWriMo project, and I know I’m far from the only writer (or even the only Middle Grade Minded contributor) who can make that claim. Some of the bigger regrets in life come from the things we never dared to try. The worst thing that could possibly happen would be that you wouldn’t reach the goal, but would still walk away with some new ideas. 

Where’s the downside?

On Your Marks, Get Set…

I looked at my calendar today and got a little excited.

Well, no, actually, first I picked my lower teeth up off the floor, because that’s where my jaw shot when I accepted the horrifying truth that it’s somehow October 23rd, 2015 even though January 1st, 2015 was, like, two weeks ago (I’m pretty sure).

For real, where did my year go?

Anyway, after that, I got excited.  Not quite night-before-Christmas excited, but more about-to-get-on-a-rollercoaster excited. IT was that sense of nervous butterflies tickling the belly even as the heart picks up speed in the anticipation of something possibly, maybe awesome about to happen.

That is, something awesome is about to happen. First, Halloween. And if you don’t see the potential for a million and one delightfully creepy, crawly, sinister and scary MG stories being born of holiday that revolves around the dead walking the earth at the same time 90% of a community’s children are out begging for candy in masks and makeup, well, that makes me a little sad for you. You probably never love Goosebumps, either, did you?

But I digress. It’s after Halloween, see, that the real fun begins. Because on November 1st, millions of writers – pro and amateur alike – will slam down the gas pedal and surge out of the gate on another insane National Novel Writing Month. That’s NaNoWriMo to you and me, Russ. And, yes, I’ve gone on and on about this before – including why I think NaNo is extremely well-suited for Middle Grade writing – so I’ll spare you the recap*.

Today’s point is this: as writers considering NaNoWriMo, we find ourselves standing at the edge of a cliff dive down into the gully of 50,000 words worth of novel-drafting. Which begs the question: are you bungee jumping or throwing caution (and some would say sense) to the wind by going for it damn-the-torpedoes, full speed ahead? That is, do you plan and scheme, plot and outline ahead of time, using October to draw up character profiles and imagine scenes with the care of a model-maker sketching out a diorama before gathering up a shoe box, glue, and a set of pipe cleaners and setting to work?

Or do you just…jump off?

Myself? This year? I’m a jumper. I will, at some during this last week of October, settle on a basic idea for the book I intend to NaNoTackle™.  After that, I might even go so far as to name the protagonist, if I’m feeling, you know, frisky. But that’s it. No plotting. No outlining. Just November 1st, an opening sentence, and a drive to see where this manuscript takes me.

Sounds crazy?

Yeah, it kind of is.

Fact is, NaNoWriMo is the one time in the previous or future 12 months that I’ll approach writing this way. The rest of time I’ll drafting with sense and caution, by making sure I have a good idea of where I want to go before I put the keys into the ignition.

But it seems to me that if we always do the same things the same ways, we’re likely to usually get the same kind of results.  And that’s fine if you’re making cars on an assembly line. But that’s not what we’re doing. We write stories for middle graders, a group that’s mostly defined by constantly trying new ways in the interest of learning more about themselves and the world they live in.

So maybe join me this year? Put down your color-coded outline cards and set aside your character sheets. Take off your parachute and/or that bungee cord, step up the edge of the cliff, and take the headfirst plunge with me into the Great Word Void this November. Sure, it might not work for you. Might not work for me, either. But there’s a always fantastic rush in finding out.  And at the end of the month, “win” or “lose”, we’ll have some words written that we didn’t have before, and hopefully we’ll have learned a little something new about ourselves.

And isn’t that kind of the whole point of middle grade?

Pud’n

---

*Click that link. Click it! Cliiiiiiick it!

Saying No No to NaNo

It's November, and every year I feel the pressure. No not the pressure of the impending holidays, but the pressure to write. November is National Novel Writing Month, a month where writers try to slam down 50,000 words in 30 days to finish the first draft of a novel. Only problem is, NaNo and I do not get along.

Do I feel the twinge and ache when I see people blasting their word counts on twitter and running sprints? Oh, heck yes! It honestly hurts to know others are writing lots of words, even full novels, when I'll be lucky if I write a few chapters this month. But you know what? It's okay for several reasons.

1. I can't write every day
NaNo relies on the fact that you average about 1700 words per day. That's a lot of words in one day. It's also a lot of time that I unfortunately don't always have. My day job sucks up eight plus hours a day, and when I get home I have to think about planning a wedding, selling two condos, and trying to buy a house. Now that sounds like a lot of excuses, but it's not. It's simply that I know my limits. I have a writing schedule that works for me, and it's not a sit down and write every day kind of schedule. I block off times a few days a week and that's when I write. And that's what works for me.

2. I can't fast draft

I write slow. Plain and simple. I'm lucky if I can have a 1000 word hour. Which means if I had to slam down 1700 words in a day, that would take me 2-3 hours. I do get faster the more I write, but I tend to be a fairly strict plotter. I need time to actually think about what I'm writing as I write it. So fast drafting is a skill I just don't have, but one that is almost a requirement for NaNo.

3. I need time to decompress

My brain often works a ton in the background. I need time in between writing sessions to let that happen. If I write every day, my subconscious doesn't have time to work through those plot issues that are bugging me and seemingly have no solution. For me to keep moving forward, I need space between my writing sessions.

4. I like to edit

I like relatively clean first drafts. I've grown up knowing good grammar, spelling, etc, and my brain is wired not to leave mistakes when I see them because I might miss them later. So I tend to make minor edits as I write. I also like to read my previous work before each writing session. This is a time where I get wrapped back into the story, but also a time I make changes to things that aren't quiet working. It's how I get into the mood of piece again, and how I find my flow. This is all part of my writing process. Neither of these things, though, is conducive for NaNo, an environment where you just have to ignore the mistakes and keep moving forward.

In the end, I know NaNo doesn't fit into my writing style and that's perfectly okay. I have a system and schedule that works for me and I go with it. Again I definitely feel the pain during this time of year, but I've tried NaNo and unfortunately it's just not for me. So if you're one of those people that does NaNo every year and succeeds, I bow to you. If you do NaNo just for the motivation to write and get words, even if it's not 50k, I bow to you as well. And if you're like me and NaNo just doesn't work, I bow to your strength to get words on the page despite the craziness that is writing in November. Whether NaNo works for you or not, just keep writing. We will all have shiny manuscripts one day.

Do you participate in NaNoWriMo? Why or why not?

NaNoWriMo, Middle Grade, and You

I woke up last Saturday morning to the dire buzz of alarms sounding.

I’m not kidding. It was, literally, like, 6:30 AM on the morning after Halloween, and I had two kids to get to a soccer game in 35 degree weather. Even worse, no matter how much I begged, Siri wouldn’t let me go back to sleep and take the edge off the Snickers hangover I’d shamefully backed my way into after a few hours of trudging behind four Trick-Or-Treaters the night before.

It’s safe to say that Siri and I haven’t been on the best of terms this week.

The morning alarm wasn’t the only one going off, though. In my head, I could almost feel the thunderous peal of bells clanging, warning that, at the tone, the date will be November 1st.

To novelist types like me, it’s a date that looms large every year in the subconscious, demanding focus on one thing and one thing only: the firing of the Starter’s pistol on another NaNoWriMo.

You might remember that I mentioned NaNo before. If you didn’t, and aren’t familiar with it, you could be thinking to yourself, “Nana? NeNe? Nanoo? Is this someone’s delightfully spunky grandmother? No, wait, it’s a dance routine, right? Or some kind of alien greeting?”

If you’re thinking any of the above, let me help you out a little here.

NaNoWriMo is a word-whammed abbreviation for National Novel Writing Month.  It’s this wonderful exercise in masochism where someone (say, like me…or you) gets an idea for a novel and pushes aside all the nagging, gnawing voices of uncertainty and self-doubt in an effort to coax 50,000 words of that book into actually existence over the span of one (1) 30-day month. The month of November, to be precise.

Lots of people swear by NaNoWriMo. For others, the pressure and stress of having a mere 30 days to usher forth a story takes too much of a toll, hampering their creativity.  Especially with a major US holiday standing in the way like a 10-foot hurdle in front of an Olympic runner.

If you’re a MG writer, though, and a little extra pressure tends to brighten the fire under your backside as if Bugs Bunny himself was manning the bellows of your dinner cauldron, NaNo can be a great way to go from ‘aspiring to write a MG novel’ to ‘actually being a MG author’.

The most obvious aspect of the whole crazy endeavor that makes it perfect for MG-ers is, of course, word count.  No matter what lies you might tell yourself in the dark hours spent huddled over your manuscript, or how much flattery you might attempt in that candle-lit bathroom mirror, 50,000 words does not a novel make. At least, not for adult works of either the standard or “Young”  variants.

For a Middle Grade draft, though, 50,000 words is more often than not right at the sweet and tender center of the total word count bulls eye.

But word count is far from the only thing that makes NaNo helpful for producing a MG draft.  The compressed timeframe, too, can be quite an asset. Sure, it might make you feel a little bit like Alice’s White Rabbit—always late, always late for a very important, um, daily goal—but it also lends itself to the right “feel” for a Middle Grade story.  As the life and circumstances of the MG set are, very often, largely out of their control, channeling a sense of “rushing headlong towards adventure in a big, unexplored world with nothing but the soles of one’s Keds to use for brakes” into a story can be vital.

When it comes time for letters to hit the page, few things can help an author with deliver that tone as much as bearing the press of the steady march towards November 30th, knowing there’s nothing anyone can do to stall the month out for day or three, just to catch one’s breath.

And then, there are the revisions. NaNo has even more benefit for the MG writer there. Since the initial process is a chaoticc 30-day sprint to get something down on paper, the steaming pile of word leavings you’re stuck with at the end…well, let’s just say it’s not always quite ready for immediate release to the Newbery Committee. But learning how to accomplish things though trial and error is something that most Middle Grade readers are very, very familiar with.  For instance, while you’d think I would remember that while writing based on the number of times in my childhood I had to remake my bed due to the large, suspicious lump under the comforter, or the multitude of second-tries necessary to get my room clean to my mother’s Exacting Standards, it’s still a lesson that bears repeating even for me.

The point is, your NaNo novel is going to be a long way from perfect on November 30th, and you’re going to have to work at making it just right. Your characters, just like real kids, are likewise not going to be perfect. They’re going to make all kinds of mistakes, sometimes for reasons they don’t even understand (aka, the highly acclaimed “I don’t know why I did it” defense). The more often you’re reminded of that, the better the chance your MG characters stand to maybe become real to the kids you hope will one day experience you work.

Is NaNo easy? Having survived it twice now, I can say with certainty that it’s not. Is NaNo for everyone? Definitely not. Not anymore than purple socks and lime green shoes are for everyone.

But for some Middle Grade authors, purple and green go together just like peanut butter and chocolate.

And that just might make NaNoWriMo 2014 a good bet for you.

Pud’n

Outlining for Dummies. And when I say dummies, I mean me.

Okay, a show of hands of who participated in NaNoWriMo this year.

Good. Now a show of hands of who actually won NaNoWriMo this year?

If you're like so many others and started out with these grandiose plans of knocking out a 50,000 word novel in a month, but fell a little short (or halfway short... or didn't get past the title) don't worry. That's nothing to be ashamed of.

It happens to every writer.

Sometimes getting over a hurdle in your story is as easy as leaving it alone for a few days to play Assassin's Creed 4. Sometimes, though, the problem is that the story hasn't been thought about enough. Now, I'm not a huge outliner. I never have been. I know some writers who don't outline at all. They sit down and churn out a manuscript just off the top of their heads and it's awesome and bright and shiny and they don't have to change a thing because they're actually deities when it comes to writing and I'M SO PROUD OF THEM.

But I'm not one of those writers. So I have to outline a little bit. Which is what my post is about today. It's something I've written about on my own website, but I figured with NaNoWriMo having just ended and writers all over the world getting ready to start revising their manuscripts, this would be the perfect time to throw my version of an outline out into the world.

By the way, that was a long sentence. Thanks for sticking with me through that.

So here's my outlining process. It's a mish-mash of a bunch of other story structure formats that I've used in the past. Over the years, this has ended up as my personal favorite. Today I'll call it...

The Outline for Dummies. 

Mainly Me.

Hook- This isn't part of your story. This is just where you tell yourself the one-sentence plot. You'll understand why in a second.

Life as we know it- Imagine we're watching the movie version of your book. Where's this taking place? Who's the main character and why do we fall in love with him or her right off the bat. What makes the MC relatable? Why do we care about this particular person (or non-person)? During this piece of the story, we need to find out what the MC desperately 1) wants and 2) needs.

The big chance (around 10%)- Something happens to make the MC believe that he or she has found the solution to the problem. This is generally the solution the MC believes will fill the WANT, not the NEED.

Life as it is now- So now the MC's going down this different path. And there are moments where it seems to be working. The distance between the MC and the thing he or she wanted is slowly closing. This time, however, is no stranger to conflict. In fact, the closer the MC gets to that solution, the more problems it creates. So he or she decides:

Let's try this again (around 25%)- He or she decides to go a different route to get to that goal. It may include making new friends, organizing a team, learning from a mentor. Whatever it is, we'll see the MC doing some studying and training here that begins to help him or her realize the NEED. As the MC continues down this path, learning as he or she goes, we see him or her get hit with the second major roadblock where he or she is forced to ask:

Which life do I choose? (around 50%)- The MC is faced with a decision. He or she can turn back and continue on that journey that may or may not lead to getting what he or she WANTS. Or the MC can fully commit and dive into the lion's den and do what NEEDS to be done. Generally, by this point, the MC has begun to realize his or her need trumps the want or that they are actually one in the same. So now the MC lunges forward, using his or her training to continue down the path of awesomeness. This is where we'll see some pretty major conflict (external and internal) that eventually leads to the moment I like to call:

Up the creek (around 75%)- I was going to add without a paddle, but I figured you'd get the idea. This is the big "downer" moment in the story. It's when everything looks like it's all going to crap and there's no way out. A secret may get leaked, a nasty truth may be revealed, a comrade might be mortally wounded. Whatever it is, we need to see the MC down in the dumps here. Because at this point, we're rooting so hard for him or her, it's as if our cheers bring the poor little (or big) thing back up, out of the mud, onto two feet, and ready to continue on. This is the part in the movie where the music swells, weapons are drawn, wounds are patched up, because ladies and gentlemen:

It's on! (around 90%)- Our MC is back and ready to rock. New life's been breathed into his or her lungs, dragons have been slayed, robots dismantled, and the big boss is right there, ready to take the beating the MC's willing to dish out. And boy, does our MC dish like a pro.

Back to normal (ish)- Ahh--the war is over, the competition is finished, the argument has been... argued. Our MC has done the seemingly impossible and become a better person because of it. And you know what? The MC got what he or she needed. Maybe not necessarily what was wanted, but who said life is fair, right? Normal isn't the same for our MC because he or she has changed in some way (hopefully for the better). But lessons have been learned, new friends have been made, and the universe has been saved. Good times... good times.

And that's it! 

Yeah, I know it's not as easy as just sitting down and busting out 50k in an hour like those freaks of writing natures we are jealous of totally admire. But it works for me and it actually serves another purpose. That line you came up for your hook can be used as an attention-grabbing agent magnet in your query. And, even better, when it's time to write the dreaded synopsis, you can simply take the info you wrote for your outline, get rid of the plot point headings, and BAM! Your synopsis is finished. 

Now if you're one of the lucky individuals who finished NaNoWriMo and you're looking at your manuscript, wondering why none of it makes sense, try applying this formula to it (and I hate to say formula, because that implies that there is a formula to good writing) and see if you feel something needs to change. Revisions are a necessity and using your outline can help guide you through that process as well. 

And now that you're armed with an outline and the knowledge on how to use it, you can start preparing for next year's NaNoWriMo!

Or not.

Happy writing!