Here's to the planning!
I'm sure many people have had their novel planned out for months and even more have no clue what they are doing. I'm just now doing a little fine tuning to my very broad idea for this novel and have a couple of tips.
First off: DON'T PLAN EVERYTHING. If you plan everything-beginning, middle and end you will not have the "true" NaNo experience. It is all about the randomness and creativity that comes along with unplanned journeys and characters that develop a mind of their own. Having a strict plan will probably take most of the joy out of this project so keep it simple. For instance this is all I have so far for my novel and I think I'm ready to begin writing:
-Main Character (Ava) who has Bipolar disorder and is diagnosed during the course of the novel
-Ava is married to a man named Scott who has trouble accepting his wife's illness
-It will be in journal form at least some of the time and first person for the entirety of the book
That is it. That is all I've got and I get to sit back (figuratively...technically I will be furiously typing as my back and fingers cramp up) and write,
Secondly, Do the fun stuff now! Come up with your characters names. Full names and what they look like. Imagine what their houses look like and their surroundings but don't fall in love with it, who knows what will change? Take your time thinking about these because you HAVE to fall in love with your characters to succeed. Whether you truly love them or just love to hate them you have to be attached so start early. The more fun you have with your characters the more excited you'll be when it comes November 1st and you have to really bring them to life!
First off: DON'T PLAN EVERYTHING. If you plan everything-beginning, middle and end you will not have the "true" NaNo experience. It is all about the randomness and creativity that comes along with unplanned journeys and characters that develop a mind of their own. Having a strict plan will probably take most of the joy out of this project so keep it simple. For instance this is all I have so far for my novel and I think I'm ready to begin writing:
-Main Character (Ava) who has Bipolar disorder and is diagnosed during the course of the novel
-Ava is married to a man named Scott who has trouble accepting his wife's illness
-It will be in journal form at least some of the time and first person for the entirety of the book
That is it. That is all I've got and I get to sit back (figuratively...technically I will be furiously typing as my back and fingers cramp up) and write,
Secondly, Do the fun stuff now! Come up with your characters names. Full names and what they look like. Imagine what their houses look like and their surroundings but don't fall in love with it, who knows what will change? Take your time thinking about these because you HAVE to fall in love with your characters to succeed. Whether you truly love them or just love to hate them you have to be attached so start early. The more fun you have with your characters the more excited you'll be when it comes November 1st and you have to really bring them to life!
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