Adrenaline

by Morgan Barnhart

As writers, there are few times when we get to feel the adrenaline kick in. Let's face it, sitting in front of the computer screen/note pad isn't life threatening. Unless the computer decides to short circuit or your pencil breaks and the lead flies into your eye, or heaven forbid you get a paper cut, those things hurt!

My point is, when a deadline is approaching, I become my strongest. Of course it's better to play it safe and just write as many words a day as needed or get it done early so you don't have to worry about it later, but where's the fun in that?

For example, it's the end of November and my NaNo is only at about 10,000 words. That's pretty pathetic considering I only have eight days left to get to 50,000 words. I've won NaNo in many different ways, but the way that has been most effective, year after year, has been when I'm down to the last few days of the month and I need to kick out 30,000 words. A bag full of sugar to my left, coffee to my right and iTunes geared up; I'm ready to kick some novel butt.

Nothing can top that kind of rush.

While some may argue that writing under that kind of "stress" causes your writing to falter since you just write down whatever is on your mind whether it has to do with the story or not, I beg to differ. Writing under that kind of pressure releases new ideas in which you never would have thought of under a calm mind set.

This technique may not work for everyone considering everyone handles pressure in different ways. You also have to be disciplined enough to actually push yourself to that limit and get the writing done no matter the cost.

So let's get that adrenaline pumping!

Keep Track of Your Characters

by Carrie Bailey

How hard is it to keep track of characters in your NaNoWriMo novel when your fingers are flying over the keypad and word count is the only rule?  Difficult, but not impossible.  You can use a Quick Table to help.  No matter what word software you write with, there are simple tables available.  “Insert” a table into your word document periodically when you add new characters.  Highlight an entire row or column to add more or delete them.

Answer the important questions like who, what, when, where, and why for each character as you go.  Then as you are writing you can go back and add new attributes. These simple tables help you recall where items and even characters are located.

Here’s an example of one for my Nanowrimo novel:

Who	Where	When	What	Why
Indigo	Outside Melbourne	Chapter One	Suede Jacket, age 13	Main Character
Farmer Eldrich	Eldrich Farm	Chapter One	Hunchback	Owns Indigo’s contract
The General	Town Square	End of Chapter One	Fat, horse, light green robes	Buys Indigo’s contract for his service
Piper	The Manor	Chapter Two	Sandy hair, freckles	The General’s charge
The Cook	The Manor	Chapter Two	Scar, former solider	Loyal servant

Once you have these tables in place, you'll save time re-reading and never drop a character or forget about a potential plot device.  Your writing will never suffer from inconsistencies.  More than that, with the information visible and organized, you can pound out a few hundred words confident that you haven't missed a beat.

Have I actually used this table?  No, no, this is what organized people do.  I waste hours re-reading and avoid mentioning specific characters and their possessions for pages, because I can't quite recall when or where I wrote about it.  Or, I write another lengthy word document full of lists and random descriptions rather than tables.  You know the kind, the short and dull novel about the novel...yes, I do that.

However, it is a nice table and were I the organized type of person I dream to become, I would use it.  Plus, it only took a minute or two rather than the hours that slip away when I write the novel's companion. 

Tips to Name Your Characters

by C. Patrick Schulze

One of the most common questions I hear on my blog involves the naming of a writer’s characters. With that in mind, I’d like to pass along some tips for naming your novel’s characters.


As your character's names are as important as any other of those oh-so-many words over which we authors fret so here are some tips to keep you on track.

1. First and foremost, serendipity is your friend. If it works, well then, it works.
Trust your intuition.


2. If you’re clever, you can name them for what they represent.
“Butch” the butcher? Maybe, but be smart about it and check suggestion number ten.


3. Find a book of names and consider the symbolism within the name.
Though I hope I never meet the nun named Chastity.


4. One syllable, two at most for men. On occasion, females can get away with more.
Come on now, nobody wants to keep reading the name Bilbonicofillia.


5. Consider the name a snapshot of your character.
Don’t name your killer Sally Jones. Think, Sal “The Blade” Jones.


6. Their name should roll off the tongue.
See number 3.


7. Remember there were no surnames prior to the 12th Century. Even then, people were named for their place of birth or profession. For example, my last name is, “Schulze”, meaning sheriff or lawman in medieval Germany.


8. Insure their name is appropriate for the time period in which the story takes place.

There are ample websites to help you here. In my case, I write historical fiction set in the mid 19th century, so I walk Civil War cemeteries searching for names. I combine the first name from one marker and the last from another. Works every time. By the way, here’s a site that’ll help. www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames.

9. Use only one exotic name per novel.
They get real weird real fast.

10. Stay away from cute.
Really, how many Bambi’s have you actually met?

11. Stay away from similar letters and spellings.
Imagine Tom and Thom sword fighting – Tom swung! Thom ducked!

12. Avoid Alliteration. At least use it sparingly.
Thomas Tompkins won’t encourage readers to buzz your book.
(Yes, Bilbo Baggins is an exception.)

13. Don’t name fictional characters after famous people or characters.
Tom and Jerry will simply give your readers the wrong hook.

14. Stay away from names that end in “s.”
Erasmus’s sour samples… See my point? See number six.

15. Keep a file of names you run across that strike you.
You’ll thank me for that one someday.

I am certain there are a thousand other tips out there, but this should get you started.
I wish you all good names and I hope all your books are best-sellers.

Patrick

Living in Richmond, VA, C. Patrick Schulze is married to the charming Kathryn and is the father of two lovely daughters. He is grandfather to six.


A retired business coach, C. Patrick Schulze began writing quite late in life. In his mid forty’s, he first put pen to paper and to date has written for Williamsburg Living Magazine and has completed three manuscripts. His latest, “Born to be Brothers,” will be ready for querying in early 2010. He is the author of two blogs, TheBusinessOfWriting.wordpress.com and CPatrickSchulze.blogspot.com. You can also find him at Twitter.com/C.PatrickSchulze.

NaNoWriMo: Lessons from 10k words

by Carrie Bailey

When you commit yourself to a goal, any goal, you will face some opposition though the form it takes may come as a surprise.  The solutions must be as creative as the endeavor itself if the person is to be successful.  My objective: I will write a 50k word novel for NaNoWriMo by the end of the month.      

My opposition came in the form of an angry roommate with a valid complaint and some serious boundary issues.  After a short battle over respectful communication styles and a day spent nursing my wounds in the company of friends, I lost my momentum for my novel.

Personal conflicts can always be overcome through respect and cooperation, but they can drain your energy and cause you to lose focus.  Now, I don’t hate my roommate and I won’t start World War III in my kitchen, but I won’t submit to tyranny either.

My solution:  write through it.  I skipped to a section in the novel where an uptight academic played the role of the villain.  I channeled my frustration into this character.  In the end, I had 1000 more words and a good laugh at myself.

The fictional version of my nemesis was precisely what it should be, fictional.  And the source of my inspiration was in reality a stressed out guy bombarding me with apology notes.

Nay-Sayers

by Morgan Barnhart

NaNo has been a very important part of my life over the past four years. It is such an accomplishment to write 50,000 words in 30 days. There have been several people who are nay-sayers about NaNo, they don't understand WHY writers would need to do NaNo and what the point is. In fact, here are the two most asked questions and my answers:

Q: "What is the point of NaNo?"
A: "It's to prove to ourselves as writers that writing 50,000 words in 30 days isn't such a big feat after all."

Q: "So...what do you win when you get to 50,000 words?"
A: "The satisfaction that you wrote 50,000 words in 30 days."

And their response to both of the above answers: "I don't get it. You don't have to prove to yourself that you can write, you just write! And uh, if you don't get any prize for winning then what's the point?"

How sad their life must be without challenges to better what they love to do in life. The better question is, why does NaNo only happen once a year?

There are other off-shoots of NaNo across the web, including a year long word count goal where you write somewhere around 360,000 words in a year. Though with that one, you can write a couple novels, you don't have to stick to the same novel.

The nay-sayers will never understand because they don't understand the thrill you get once you're finished with your novel. The surge of energy, excitement and sense of accomplishment. 50,000 words in a month is almost unheard of by any normal author! Come on, people, don't you see the challenge?!

Forget the nay-sayers and enjoy the challenge of NaNo! Write those 50,000 words, jump for joy when you finish and shove your novel in those nay-sayers faces! Hah!

Writing Buddies

by Carrie Bailey

Today is the third day of NaNoWriMo or National Novel Writing Month. The challenge: write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. The writers: well, they must be crazy, right? This is my first year of participation. I have a few buddies signed up and I’ve started pounding away at the keyboard.

Thanks to a bout with the flu that has kept me bedridden for two days, I’ve written 7,000 completely unedited words. Although I wouldn’t say my Dayquil inspired ramblings are my best work yet, I have learned something in these early days.

Companionship is the writer’s secret weapon. Whether through the people I know from work or through social media, I’m a better writer for hearing their advice. There’s a stereotype of a writer as a recluse. It’s easy to believe it when you consider that writing requires hours spent alone. Yet, the writing is a venture in communication.

Whoever you write for or write with, you grow from those connections. I find that NaNoWriMo has done something to motivate me like nothing else could. I must write this month. I must finish a novel or I’ll suffer an unthinkable fate.

I don’t know exactly what that fate is, but I’m sure it’s there and I’m motivated to avoid it. I’ve committed myself to sharing my work at the end of the month. That commitment and the buddies I’ve signed up to support and encourage keep me writing.

So, come hell or high water, I’ll be holding a novel in my sore keystroke damaged fingers before the next moon cycle. What a thought! Thanks writing buddies!