by Lauren Dane

The best writing tip I can possibly ever give, the best I’ve ever received, is pretty simple:  Put your butt in that chair and get those hands on a keyboard (or pen and paper, whatever)

This is hard. You might realize it’s harder than you ever imagined. Don’t quit. Quitting only hurts you and your writing. Don’t do it. PUSH THROUGH and keep on keeping on.

Everyone will have a different process, but if you don’t make your writing important and make it a priority, no one else will either. You have to put in the time. There are no tricks. No magic beans. You want to be a writer? Sometimes that means you give up an hour of sleep to fit your words in before everyone wakes up or after they go to sleep. Or that you skip watching television to write.  Anyone can talk about being a writer, you have to write to be one.

If you haven’t already, tell the world you’re Nano-ing and in need of encouragement. The more people who know you’re out to write 50k words this month, the less likely you are to give up.

Use the #NaNoWriMo hashtag on Twitter. Post your wordcount on any site you’re on. Do anything to keep you feeling like you HAVE to win.

With a week and a half left to go, you should be getting there. But if you’re falling behind, that’s okay. This is your chance to fix it! Plan on catching up with your word count this weekend. If you’re American, this is your last chance to catch up before family descends on you for Thanksgiving next weekend. If you’re not (and I’m not), then just plow through because you can.

This is not the time to give up. This is the time to get stubborn.

NaNoWriMo offers a bunch of different ways to connect with other NaNo-ers. There are forums, where you can talk with people writing in your neighbourhood, in your genre, in your age group…you name it. There are local meetups, where you can write to your heart’s content surrounded by others doing the same thing to cheer each other on. You can make friends and exchange facebook/IM information to do competitive sprints with people across the world.

Don’t feel like you have to shut yourself into a closet for the whole month. Use the opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals. Who knows - you may meet these people down the road when you’re all published authors! (And you’ll have a network to bug for editing/critiquing come December)

Grab a couple of your Nano-ing friends, and head to a local coffee shop. Stock up on caffeine, and get ready to do Competitive Sprinting!

Step one: Choose a sprint length (10-20 minute sprints are ideal)

Step two: Set the clock and get writing!

Step three: Whoever wrote the most words earns a point.

Step four: At the end of an hour (or two) whoever has the least amount of points purchases the person with the most points their next drink. Warning: you may want to choose a non-caffeinated option this time!

by Stephanie Dray / Stephanie Draven

In one sense, I’m the worst possible person to be giving advice about how to write NaNoWriMo-style because I’m one of the slowest writers I know. I have a brutal internal editor who won’t shut up long enough to let me hear my next thought. I regularly get sidetracked while I’m writing, and I’ve lost just about every word war I’ve ever been in.

That said, I published four different novels in the past twelve months with two different NY publishers and that wouldn’t have been possible if I hadn’t embraced National Novel Writing Month.

Now, when drafting any novel, I suit up for a 50k death march into the writing desert. I do this whether or not it’s November. So I know a thing or two about it and, having completed NaNoWriMo a few times, I now have the hubris to think I can dispense a little advice.

So, here are my tips.

1. You Must Find A Way To Silence The Internal Editor.
I know how hard this is. It’s like muzzling a rabid Jack Russel terrier. But you have to do it. Make bargains with your internal editor that you’ll fix the words later. Lie, if you have to. In short, consider your internal editor to be a tyrant against whom you must rebel. This is especially difficult for me when I’ve just written a metaphor that my internal editor thinks is the lamest metaphor ever written in the history of the written word. To placate my internal editor, I might highlight the offending words or add a comment into the margins, but it behooves me—and you—to keep writing.

2. Research Later.
Just today, I started off by writing a story about a character getting off a boat by way of a gangplank. Immediately, my thoughts ran like this, “What exactly is a gangplank? When were they invented? Is this the way the Romans would have come ashore from a warship? I should really look this up in that book I own about ancient ships…” No. No, I shouldn’t look that up. And neither should you. Not until the editing phase. Unless your entire story hinges on a gangplank, just leave it alone. Put a note in the margin if you have to, to remind you to research it later, but for now, shove all research questions to the side and keep writing.

3. Shut Off Your Email and Twitter.
You think you’re a good multi-tasker. Let me tell you, you’re not.

4. Take a Break at the Midpoint.
Some people like to plow through all 2,700 words in one sitting. If you can do that, great! But if you find yourself struggling, give yourself permission to take a brief intermission when you hit the halfway point. Stretch your legs. Get a drink. Watch a mindless soap opera. Play with your cat. Whatever helps you relax a little bit.

5. Back Up Your Work.
Although it’s supposed to be fun—a time to let your muse run wild—writing a novel is an investment of your time. Protect your investments. Use Dropbox, or write it in Google Docs with an auto-save or put it on a thumb drive each night like a ritual. But whatever you do, make sure you don’t lose the magic…or the story.

Writing spurts will keep your word count up when you’re feeling easily distracted. Spend ten to fifteen minutes writing distraction-free, and then reward yourself with five to ten minutes of Internet searching, reading, or whatever other hobby is calling your attention. Writing spurts go by really quickly and get your word count to where it needs to be without making you feel listless and unmotivated.

The promise of rewards make it easier to push through the month. Promise yourself little things for making your word count each week, like a pedicure or a date night at your favourite restaurant. Think of a big prize to reward yourself with at the end, whether it’s a Netbook, night at a hotel, or a spa day. Lastly, decide on a prize for yourself when you finish the revisions in 2012.

Here are some questions to ask your characters to get to know them better…

1. What is your middle name?

2. Do you like children?

3. Are you afraid of the dark?

4. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

5. What would your dream job be?

6. What is your dream husband/wife like?

7. How would you design your dream home?

8. What do you like to read?

9. Do you enjoy TV/movies? Which ones?

10. If you had to live on only one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?