I chickened out on NaNoWriMo again, but I’m still getting something out of it. For the last three years I’ve thought about using NaNoWriMo to help break one writing block or another, but haven’t quite done it. This year, however, I determined to take advantage of some of those tips for NaNo participants.
I’m on the third novel in the Chenille series (with Ann Anastasio). Those of you who have written a sequel or two know the issues – the odd corners you wrote yourself into without realizing it, the red herrings and dead herrings that need to be cleaned, the wow finish that proves you’ve actually improved at your craft over the last 200,000 words. Worst of all – outlining.
Outlining reminds me too much of writing papers in college. How can I let the characters speak to me if I’ve already set down what they’re going to be doing? Like all living creatures, they will resist, and I’ll end up eating bags of carrots and drinking buckets of tea while waiting for them to get into a better mood.
This time, I thought, I’ll try cajoling them. Instead of writing an official-looking outline, complete with Roman numerals, I broke the novel into sections, with the major event of each section described, and notes on issues that need to be addressed as I go along. I review the outline-that-isn’t at the end of each session, and add notes-to-self based on where I need to go and what the characters are telling me at the end of the chapter in a section marked next scene.
So far, it seems to be working. Just don’t tell my characters I’m trying to be the boss.