Oh No, It's Almost Nano!
What's scarier: Halloween or NaNoWriMo?
Halloween has the massive amounts of plastic dross that ends up fossilized in landfills, sure (plus ghosts or whatever), but NaNoWriMo? That's some really scary stuff. It gives me the chills. The cold-sweat-panic-attack variety. I’m one of those writers who works themselves up into a lather over extremely ambitious self-imposed deadlines. But does that stop me from doing NaNo every year? Certainly not! It reminds me of a line from a Gillian Welch song: “Of all of ways I could hurt myself, you are my favorite one.”
Is this the definition of insanity, doing the same thing and expecting different results? No, dear, it isn't. I'm perfectly aware I am starting November with conviction, wide-eyed and inspired to hit my word counts every day. It's the definition of ~masochism~.
I love NaNoWriMo. I love the community, the hope, the fun of just giving it a go. I've never actually completed the challenge, but that certainly won't stop me from trying again this year. If you're looking for motivation and inspiration, maybe join in too. Here are some of our favorite writing books to get you going.
Rachel - As a romance author, I’m going to be predictable and say that my favorite craft book is Romancing the Beat - Story Structure for Romance Novels by Gwen Hayes. The book is short, funny and incredibly enlightening into the romance genre. Romance readers are voracious, but they also have expectations about the structure of their books. Hayes breaks down the romance novel into four phases with five beats per phase, and I found it incredibly helpful in outlining my novel. I knew what was going to happen at each beat and that helped me find my way through the writing process without getting too lost along the way. Of course, different writers will get these beats in different ways, but there’s nothing like the scorn of a romance reader who reads a book billed as a romance and does not get what they expect. Hayes will help you avoid that. (We can debate the need for the third act break-up for hours at another time; Hayes addresses this a bit in her book as well!)
Abby- My favorite type of books about craft are those that acknowledge that there is no 'one' type of writer, or that one kind of writing is 'better' than another.
Stephen King's "On Writing" is one such example, where he even writes in the first chapter, "This is not an autobiography. It Is, rather, a kind of curriculum vitae- my attempt to show how one writer was formed." This slim (by King's standards) text is a wonderful mix of personal anecdote, experienced advice, and grim humor that any writer will understand. My own copy is riddled with highlighted lines and annotated margins. King isn't trying to teach anyone how to write like him; instead he is imparting advice that can help anyone, from a seasoned veteran to a bright-eyed beginner. Even the staunchest of King's critics will admit that he's one of the most commercially successful writers of our lifetime and therefore, has wisdom to impart. And even if you can't withstand his grueling writing schedule (very few of us could, which is why he's in a league all his own) "On Writing" is also a great read in it of itself, giving us a glimpse into King's mind and process that any fan can enjoy.
Another favorite of mine would have to be "The Writer's Library : The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager. This is a collection of interviews Pearl and Schwager conducted with 23 authors, from Donna Tartt to Jennifer Egan to Louise Erdrich, all discussing the books that shaped them and their lives. While it's not a book about writing in the traditional sense, it gives a peek into these talented minds and the motivation and inspiration that led them to write some of our favorite books that inspire us. Similarly to King's "On Writing," it's less based on one singular method to success and instead allows for space to experiment and learn from different methods, from the writers' own mouths (or in Donna's case via email because she's just as secretive as ever). Even if you aren't immediately familiar with an author's work, you'll still find yourself falling into their interview if simply to learn the way that they write how they're inspired, which will differ drastically from that in the interviews that precede it.
And if reading about writing sounds like too much of an endeavor, be sure to check out our writer’s decks! Some of our favorites are the Writing Down to the Bones Deck by Natalie Goldberg, which contains 60 cards with different writing topics to inspire your daily writing practice. We also love the simply named Writer’s Deck, where each card provides a prompt to get those creative juices flowing if you find yourself stuck on a certain chapter of your novel.
We hope these bits of inspiration can keep you afloat during Nano! If you want some more help, though, make sure to check out our upcoming writing class with Kris King on November 14th. This is the third of our monthly writing workshops and the theme for this class is “Grounding in Gratitude,” which sounds perfect with not only Thanksgiving coming up but also having spent half the month at that point grinding out a novel draft. The class is at 6:30 pm and it’s free for all with a suggested $20 donation to Book Love, Old Town Books’ charitable giving program that delivers new books to area kids in need.
Ready? Set. Write! And don’t forget, if you need a cute new notebook, we’ve got those too.
