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Hit the Ground Writing

Preparation for NaNoWriMo November 2013

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Hello and Welcome

• NaNoWriMo Preparation

• Todd Hogan

• The Writing Journey

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Other Sessions

• October 5: Nichols Community Room, Naperville

• Katherine Lato

• “Characters Are Story”

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Other Sessions

• October 12, 2013: 95th Street Library, Room A, Naperville

• Roger Lubeck

• “Story Structure”

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Other Sessions

• October 19, 2013: Nichols Community Room, Naperville

• Frank Dahlman

• “Keeping Your Readers Engaged”

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Other Sessions

• October 26: Naperville Municipal Center, Pot Luck Kick-off Party for NaNoWriMo

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30 Days :: 50k WordsNational Novel Writing Month

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Biting Off More...

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Tim Yao

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NaNoWriMo Experience

• 1st Time

• Challenge

• Decision

• Goals

• Action

• Success

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Why?

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• Art is concerned with bringing something into existence which may or may not exist. Art is concerned with production, not with action.

• Aristotle

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• “I wish I had written more. I wish I had been more prolific. I wish I had less fear of writing, more self-confidence, less terror of it.”

• Cynthia Ozick

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Exercise

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• Guilt is the thing that really drives me. Everyday that I’m not writing I hear a mother’s voice in my head: “Why aren’t you writing that book?”

• Harlen Coben

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What a Writer Does• Gets Ideas

• Plans

• Writes

• Reviews

• Improves

• Donates

• Publishes

• Promotes

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What a Writer Does• Gets Ideas

• Plans

• Writes

• Reviews

• Improves

• Donates

• Publishes

• Promotes

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Getting Ideas

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Getting Started

• Pencil

• Paper

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Tools• Pens, Markers, Pencils (many

colors)

• Binders, Notebooks, Notecards, Artist’s Paper, Columnar Paper

• Paper Clips, Rubber Bands, Post-it Notes (all sizes)

• Computers, Notepads, Printers, Internet Connection

• Kitchen timer, stopwatch, clock

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Tools

• Software

• Word-Processing

• Word, Pages, Google Docs

• Writing Bundle

• Scrivener

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• “Being busy does not always mean real work. The object of all work is production or accomplishment and to either of these ends there must be forethought, system, planning, intelligence, and honest purpose, as well as perspiration.

• Seeming to do is not doing.”

• Thomas A. Edison

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Tools

• What You Don’t Need

• Eraser

• Delete Key

• Internal Editor

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• “People who find their lives meaningful usually have a goal that is challenging enough to take up all their energies, a goal that can give significance to their lives.”

• Mihaly Csikszenthmihalyi

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The Goal

• 50,000 Words in 30 Days

• 1,666 words /day

• Plus 1 extra word

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Writing

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50,000 Words

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Goal

• 50,000 Words in 30 Days

• 1,666 words /day

• Plus 1 extra word

• A First Draft of a Novel

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Strategy to Reach Goal

• Instead of 1,666 words / Day

• 2,000 words / Day

• Result

• 60,000 words, or

• 50,000 words plus 5 days off

• Allows for Slippage

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Getting Ideas

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The Right Mood

• Space / Place / Desk

• Candles (Atmosphere)

• Music / Playlists

• Good Luck Charms

• The Time

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• I write for a couple of hours every day, even if I only get a couple of sentences. I put in that time. You do that every day, and inspiration will come along. I don’t allow myself not to keep trying. It’s not fun, but if you wait until you want to write, you’ll never do it.

• Dave Barry

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The Right Mood

• Time to Write

• When

• How Long

• Different Times for Different Days

• Managing Time

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Time Management

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Finding Time• Space-Time

Continuum

• Closet

• Finite

• Only Holds So Much Stuff

• Understand It

• Use it Wisely

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Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat Sun

5:00

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9:001

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WorkWork BearsBearsGameGame

ExerciseExercise

ChurchChurch

VisitVisitMomMom

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Understand Time• 50,000 words / 30 Days

• 1666 words / day

• 2000 words / day

• 1000 words / hour for 2 hours a day

• 250 words / 15 minutes

• 250 words / 15 minutes for 8 periods

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Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat Sun

5:00

6:00

7:00

8:00

9:00

10:00

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12:00

1:00

2:00

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• “Writers are people who desperately need habits to fill up their days.”

• Ann Patchett

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Getting Ideas

• Where Do Stories Live?

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Where Do Stories Live?

• Your Imagination

• Your Dreams

• Your Memories

• The River of Your Subconsciousness

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Subconsciousness

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Tapping the River

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Golden Nuggets

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Hurdles to Overcome

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Self-DoubtI ’m Too...

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TimeNot Enough Time to

Write

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Goal Too Great

More to Say Than Just 50,000 Words

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Urge to Edit

Making it Better Now

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LostWhere Is This Going?

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Writer’s Block

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Blocked• Timer

• Meditation

• Listen to What Your Muse is Telling You

• Take a Walk

• Write-Ins

• Photographs

• Compose a Soundtrack for your Novel

• Magazine Pictures

• Draw / Paint / Color

• Write Backwards

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Draw

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Blocked

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Blocked

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November 28

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• “Know that it is good to work. Work with love and think of liking it when you do it. It is easy and interesting. It is a privilege. There is nothing hard about it but your anxious vanity and fear of failure.”

• Brenda Ueland

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• “Even talent is rarely distinguishable, over the long run, from perseverance and lots of hard work.”

• David Bayles and Ted Orland, Art & Fear

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Exercise

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Maintaining Enthusiasm

• Dream, like Love, Is Both a Noun and an Action Word.

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October Prep

• Map Your Time

• Assemble Your Tools

• Brainstorm / Cultivate / Incubate Ideas

• Re-read Favorite Authors & Stories

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Structure

• Hook

• 25% 1st Plot Point

• 50% Midpoint

• 75% 2nd Plot Point

• Climax

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October Prep• Map Your Time

• Assemble Your Tools

• Brainstorm / Cultivate / Incubate Ideas

• Re-read Favorite Authors & Stories

• Read Writing Book for Inspiration or Technique

• Flesh Out Backstories

• Playlists 63

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• “It was as if the novel was already written, floating in the air, on a network of electrons. I could hear it talking to itself. I sensed that if I would sit and listen, it would come through, all ready.”

• A. S. Byatt, of Possession

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You’re Not Alone

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Wrap-Up

• Next Prep Sessions

• NaNoWriMo.org

• NaperWriMo

• Writing Journey

• Kick-off Pot Luck Lunch

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• Success is a Finished Book, a stack of pages each of which is filled with words. If you reach that point, you have won a victory over yourself not less impressive than sailing single-handed around the world.

• Tom Clancy

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Questions