Keep the Week-Two Blues at Bay!
Five word-count boosting tips from NaNo HQ.
If you’re behind on your word count, know that you’re in good company. Just about every one of us here at NaNo-HQ is thousands of words behind. Thousands! But we’re not going to let this stop us from writing like a bunch of crazed monkeys this week to catch up.
Here are some of the things we’re planning on doing to get our word counts up to snuff in Week Two:
1. Writing lists. If you haven’t had a chance to check out the “Lists, Lists, and Lists of Lists” worksheet in our Novelist Workbooks, click here. As you will find, adding lists to your novel is a great way to pad that word count. Imagine how many more words you’ll have after you list every item in your protagonist’s kitchen cupboard.
2. Writing letters. Write letters to your characters. Have them write letters back. Have your characters write letters to each other. These letters can be hand-written, emailed, or sent via text message. Whatever the letter, just make sure you include it in your novel. Every word counts!
3. Writing flashbacks. Or flash-forwards! Explore your characters' childhoods and/or their futures.
4. Treating ourselves to a night off. In all seriousness, taking a night off to space out in front of the TV or curl up with a good book is essential to making it through this month. Take some time to recharge your energy!
5. Writing more lists. And then, after you’ve done items 2 through 4, return to item 1. Writing that list of all the items under your antagonist’s bed might spark that plot breakthrough you’ve been waiting for.
Taking the night off to go to yoga,
Tavia Stewart-Streit
