How I did it: There's an event in November called the NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month, which basically means you get thirty days to write a novel of 50 000 words. The community is so incredibly supportive, and helps you get you attention back to where it's supposed to be whenever your mind starts wandering - or they help you procrastinate like you've never procrastinated before, whichever you choose. It may sound like a daunting task, but with determination and a will to succeed, this goes by in a breeze. It may not be good quality material. But it's good enough for me.

Lessons & tips: Don't edit as you go along! Finish the story, get all your ideas down on paper - there's plenty of time to go back and change things later - editing as you go takes away a lot of spontaneity, and the spontaneity may just be exactly what you need to finish this. And remember - ALL first drafts suck.

Resources: nanowrimo.org

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Jan 25, 2009, 11:43AM PST | 3 comments | 3 cheers