"It's always seemed kind of silly and pointless to churn out 50,000 words of unedited crap and then think you can turn it into a viable novel afterwards."
Well, they don't mean for you to start on November 1st and generate a novel out of nothing. I mean, you CAN... but.. I've been getting emails all though september and october coaching me how to prepare for november--story ideas, characters, world building, plot construction, etc. They want you to come in, prepared to write, then... write.
As for editing... that's kind of different for everyone. but it does tend to be longer and more time consuming than the writing part. but no one really expects you to finish on december 1st and hit 'publish' the next day.
In January is the first of what they call "now what?" months. Where they start focusing on editing, and polishing whatever you created in November, in the hopes of generating a much smoother writing experience.
Nanowrimo isn't about... being done in a month. It's more like... doing something with a support group. You can run a marathon anytime. This is running a marathon with other people, with the audience watching and cheering, y'know? It's being able to look around and say "we're all going through the same struggle right now!" (people in my local area actually organize "lets all go to the library/coffee shop/quite but social location and write together!")
SO many people also get caught up in editing and trying to make what the wrote yesterday as good as what they'd buy in a store, that they "forget" to write the next chapter."
Everyone does things a little different though. I have a friend who refuses to edit a single word til she's done writing. Then she pulls out the hard hat and does heavy construction. I have another friend who starts each writing session by editing what she wrote yesterday. I have another friend who has a dozen books cooking at once: she writes a little on everything as impulse strikes her, and eventually, one story catches on fire and then she finishes that one.
Whatever works, y'know? but Nano tends to help a lot of people by generating a deadline, and a series of goals as well as gentle social pressure to keep writing :)
ANYWAY, good luck!! with Nano, Alexandra, and publisishers, oof.
no subject
Well, they don't mean for you to start on November 1st and generate a novel out of nothing. I mean, you CAN... but.. I've been getting emails all though september and october coaching me how to prepare for november--story ideas, characters, world building, plot construction, etc. They want you to come in, prepared to write, then... write.
As for editing... that's kind of different for everyone. but it does tend to be longer and more time consuming than the writing part. but no one really expects you to finish on december 1st and hit 'publish' the next day.
In January is the first of what they call "now what?" months. Where they start focusing on editing, and polishing whatever you created in November, in the hopes of generating a much smoother writing experience.
Nanowrimo isn't about... being done in a month. It's more like... doing something with a support group. You can run a marathon anytime. This is running a marathon with other people, with the audience watching and cheering, y'know? It's being able to look around and say "we're all going through the same struggle right now!" (people in my local area actually organize "lets all go to the library/coffee shop/quite but social location and write together!")
SO many people also get caught up in editing and trying to make what the wrote yesterday as good as what they'd buy in a store, that they "forget" to write the next chapter."
Everyone does things a little different though. I have a friend who refuses to edit a single word til she's done writing. Then she pulls out the hard hat and does heavy construction. I have another friend who starts each writing session by editing what she wrote yesterday. I have another friend who has a dozen books cooking at once: she writes a little on everything as impulse strikes her, and eventually, one story catches on fire and then she finishes that one.
Whatever works, y'know? but Nano tends to help a lot of people by generating a deadline, and a series of goals as well as gentle social pressure to keep writing :)
ANYWAY, good luck!! with Nano, Alexandra, and publisishers, oof.