At the close of Nano, I received this interesting email from a prep talk speaker about how to finish off the novel writing month strong. Hopefully for those of you who are writing or in the midst of editing, this is useful!
Knock Out Your Doubts and Finish Your Novel
"Someone call an exterminator, because I’ve got an infestation of self-doubt. You might be feeling the same way at this moment––but have no fear. There is a way. You can do this.
This is the part of the month where your imagination tanks may start to run dry, your plot maps dive off a cliff, and the reality that there’s less than half the month left starts to sink in. You might look at your calendar and grimace at the thought of putting in extra writing hours to make up for any days you’ve lost. You might have encountered those little, nagging, self-critical thoughts that refuse to go away no matter how many words you put on the page, like a buzzing bee attracted to the flowering of your creative mind.
Whenever I hit a wall, face trouble, or feel like pulling my hair out, I try to break my frazzled mind out of its spiral and return to a place of calm. I try to meditate on all that I’ve done to reach where I am in my story––and how if I did it before, I can do it again. I remind myself of what makes me love (or hate) my characters––and what they love (or hate) about me. Their stories still need to be told, and I know that, if I’ve made it this far already, there’s something worth saying in the words I write.
I am confident that you can do the same. Wherever you are in your novel––whether at 25,000 words or 2,500––you have the courage and creative willpower to overcome any obstacle. You have the passion and strength to bring your novel to life in a way that no one else can––because you are a Wrimo, and you have what it takes to break through every obstacle in your way.
In the end, it won’t matter how many words you wrote or how long it took to write them; what will matter is that you wrote them, because only you can write your story.
Tearing down creative walls one brick at a time," Nick Fierro Programs Intern
Knock Out Your Doubts and Finish Your Novel
"Someone call an exterminator, because I’ve got an infestation of self-doubt. You might be feeling the same way at this moment––but have no fear. There is a way. You can do this.
This is the part of the month where your imagination tanks may start to run dry, your plot maps dive off a cliff, and the reality that there’s less than half the month left starts to sink in. You might look at your calendar and grimace at the thought of putting in extra writing hours to make up for any days you’ve lost. You might have encountered those little, nagging, self-critical thoughts that refuse to go away no matter how many words you put on the page, like a buzzing bee attracted to the flowering of your creative mind.
Whenever I hit a wall, face trouble, or feel like pulling my hair out, I try to break my frazzled mind out of its spiral and return to a place of calm. I try to meditate on all that I’ve done to reach where I am in my story––and how if I did it before, I can do it again. I remind myself of what makes me love (or hate) my characters––and what they love (or hate) about me. Their stories still need to be told, and I know that, if I’ve made it this far already, there’s something worth saying in the words I write.
I am confident that you can do the same. Wherever you are in your novel––whether at 25,000 words or 2,500––you have the courage and creative willpower to overcome any obstacle. You have the passion and strength to bring your novel to life in a way that no one else can––because you are a Wrimo, and you have what it takes to break through every obstacle in your way.
In the end, it won’t matter how many words you wrote or how long it took to write them; what will matter is that you wrote them, because only you can write your story.
Tearing down creative walls one brick at a time,"
Nick Fierro
Programs Intern