surviving nanowrimo, or there and back again: a wrimo's tale

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After my Thirty Days and Nights of Literary Abandon post I was thrilled to discover that a few of my fellow bloggers are also partaking in the annual writing challenge that is NaNoWriMo - and that many of you who may not be participating still find the endeavor rather interesting. Being in the throws of NaNo frenzy as I am, I thought I'd compose a little survival guide for those of you who are participating. Is this presumptuous for such a young Wrimo with only one year under her belt? Probably. But it was one winning year, and I learned an awful lot! So we can call this There And Back Again: A Wrimo's Tale. Here are some things I've discovered, tricks I've acquired and links that might prove useful to other writers.

• Listen to music. - Finding the music that best suits your story is quite important, I think. (Also, investing in a pair of noise-canceling headphones is one of the best decisions you could make.) Sites like Pandora offer customizable radio stations that are perfect for finding your story's ideal soundtrack. Film scores are also very handy; last year I wrote my story entirely to the score from Lars and the Real Girl. It perfectly suited the melancholy tone of my novel. This year I've been listening to classical music compilations, everything from Mozart to Baroque. For me, music is the best way to transport myself into the world of my story.
  
• Don't stop writing. - Numerous times I've caught myself doing that thing where you lean back from the computer, put your hands behind your head and stare mindlessly at your screen. Don't. You'll waste precious words and valuable time. NaNoWriMo isn't about creating a book primed for the Best Sellers list, it's about reaching a goal - good, bad or ugly. Editing can be done later; NaNo takes you over the threshold to novel writing, which is incredibly liberating.
  
• Stop writing. - Yes, really. I think it's important to knock out those first couple of thousand words in as collective an amount of time as you can, but in my experience, once you feel properly involved in your novel's setting it's also important to have a bit of strategically placed distance. You need to give yourself time to miss your characters. Being obsessed with and getting invested in what you're writing is the best feeling. If I really love my story I'll be doing some menial thing like eating dinner with the most insatiable need to get back to my fictional world. That drive is obviously instrumental in making the word count go quickly.
  
• Seek inspiration. Setting a desktop wallpaper that reminds you of your story, pinning up some of your favorite quotes or your general plot storyline somewhere in your house - keeping your story where you can see it even when you're not writing will keep you interested. Especially if you have a lot of other things that occupy your mind, being constantly reminded and inspired by your story is wonderful motivation.
  
• Don't spend time re-reading. If you feel your interest slipping away from your story I think re-reading what you've already written can help you find your groove again, but otherwise re-reading will lead to editing. And editing is a time-eater.
  
• Get motivated. The NaNoWriMo web site offers plenty of motivational tools for when you're stuck or simply need inspiration. Their Pep Talks by published authors are great help. This year's contributing authors include such greats as Lemony Snicket and Mercedes Lackey, but you can also browse their Pep Talk Archives for past contributions like this one by Neil Gaiman. Checking out the blogs of other Wrimos is also helpful - Britta of Forelsket has been posting daily motivational bits for the aspiring novelista.
  

I hope this list has been in some way useful to any of you Wrimos out there. Also, you can feel free to add me as a Writing Buddy on the site if you've joined up. Happy writing!