NaNoWriMo Day 12

We're two days into Week Two and I'm doing well - not really feeling the Week Two Blues. I just reach 40K earlier today and although my novel's length is a planned 80K, it's exciting to see that 50K isn't far off.

For those of you who don't know, Week Two of NaNoWriMo is famous for being the most discouraging week of the month. Most people are between 15-30K, fighting to get pass that very rough stretch. The story is still new but the enthusiasm is waning and you're starting to realize how much work writing really is. If you're a first timer, you're probably wondering if you love your novel enough to keep writing.

My advice? Keep going. Just keep chugging. Don't feel like writing? Force yourself to. No, your writing will not suck if you make yourself sit at the computer however long it takes to get your words in. The woes of Week Two don't just disappear when Week Three roles around. In my experience, they don't go away until you're at about 30K, which puts you about half way through Week Three.

My second suggestion? Trust your novel. I've asked myself more than once what will happen if I let this or that big thing happen. I can't let it go too soon! Which is right to a point but you have to let the big things happen. You have to let your character feel bad, good, and bad again. It's called conflict. Readers like it. Keeps things interesting. Ask yourself what could sensibly happen to your MC (or someone they love) that would help you complete your objective.

So if you can only think of one thing to write of next. Dive in. Write it. It'll present new ideas and possibilities during or after. It'll come. Deviate from that outline if you must. Add to it. All can be fixed later when you have the entire story laid out before you.