Year-long NaNo discussion

Okay! So, here it is.
I'm assuming that this is just the place where we're supposed to post about our progress, be reminded we're supposed to be making some, and also maybe weep and gnash our teeth when we fail to progress?

Well, in the spirit of organization, here's my plan for the year!

I've found that while daily/weekly word goals Just DON'T Work for me; that Monthly goals DO. So, since successfully completing NaNo '13 I inacted a plan to have monthly goals all year long.
50kjust about kills me each NaNo, and my best writing is NOT done under extreme stress... ;-) so I've set the bar at 20k.
If I completed 20k x 12 I'd write 240k in a year.

Since I want to keep doing NaNo, that's 50k for that month, and so I figured I could give myself Dec. off.
This plan would result in a min. of 250 thousand words annually.

But after actually going through it, I found I didn't need, nor even WANT all of Dec. to recover from NaNo... I only needed the first week or so. In fact, I could still complete a 20k in the end of Dec. by taking a short break at first, then working off the framework that was still hanging during NaNo. By going back and "patching & smoothing" the 20k progress was completely do-able.
This plan put me at 270k annually.

But then I also want to participate in April & July Camps, and it feels a little pale to simply do my usual monthly goals for those. So I upped my usual goals to 30k each, leaving an extra 10k from each camp to cover over for the Nov. missed 20k while NaNo is wanting 50k.

This gives me the original 20k x 12 months= 240k
and then I get to add November's + 50k on top
and it ends up guaranteeing a yearly total of =290 thousand words.

And since my creativity actually expands over the top of the bar sometimes, that puts me within the very real range of 300k a year.

Which is enough for basically 6 books, if they were 50k ones (which mine aren't)
Or nearly 3 books, at 100K (which mine are more like.)


So, there's my writer's math!!! :-)

Hey Mary!
I write mostly fantasy (low magic or non-magic) and dabble a bit in sci-fi. I also have a few historical WIPs hanging around, but I'm not sure when they'll be at all ready to see the light of day. ;-)

Yes, I am and have published 5 books so far (as well as hosted/edited the Space Kitties anthologies, now on it's 2nd year. 3rd year submission period starts in June, so check it out! :-) )

Oh, all the book info can be foudn from my author page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...

And if you'd like to check out one of my books, let me know! I'm especially looking to build more reviews on Jeweler's Apprentice... it's my first, and I didn't know what I was doing with it's release. It all worked out, but I know so much more now then I did then! :-)

Or, if you know of anyone who likes to write short stories, in a humorous, sci-fi genre, send them the Space Kitties link, and tell them to think about it! :-) The goal of those anthologies is to give writers a place to showcase their talent, and also gain some exposure by being included in a group with other great little tales of the cosmos! :-) It's a fun project, and gets a lot of enthusiasm pretty much everywhere it goes... :-)

Sounds great, Mary! :-)
Our theme this year is going to be "The Ones They Left Behind" and we're looking for stories about defying the odds, or turning unexpected abandonment into a victory! :-)

Here is the song that sort of got stuck in my head and insisted on being the theme;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMAUL...

...and this one is kind of similar!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLWEl...

That's awesome, Elizabeth!!!! I usually struggle hitting 10k each month, but I think I might try to work on upping that - I really just need to work to become more productive and waste less time. :) I'm curious, do you usually outline before writing, or do you pants it? :D

Definitely a panster here!! ;-) I am a "mood writer" in that the scene and the weather and the emotions and the actions all grow out of each other and are indelibly entwined most of the time.

I have been getting better at "surprising the plot" out of the bushes where it likes to hide, and taking quick sketches to now where it's headed next... which some people might all "plotter" but I can't really give that name to it.
Still, it is helpful when you can kind of draw a map to the story journey, and it always focuses your scenes more effectively when you know which way to "point the telescope" so to speak, to watch them unfold. ;-)


I actually did a post explaining my trick for that... check it out, it could add a tool to your arsenal! :-) In the war against writer's block, you can never have too many ticks up your sleeve!
http://ekaiserwritesablog.blogspot.co...

Your plan is really cool!

Thanks!!! ;-) You can take a look around on my blog and find a few other posts I've done in a similar vein! :-)

Okay, I've been really behind on keeping this updated!!!
I have been writing though, which anyone who wants to check up on me can see by visiting My Write Club page... it's quite and easy updating plus fun and rewarding graph make it the #1 thing that gets kept relatively up to date!!! ;-)
It's a great website, and I highly recommend it for encouraging production. :-)

https://www.mywriteclub.com/beta/Home