How to write a book in 30 days (or less)
You could do anything in thirty days. You could run 30 marathons or 780 miles. You could (probably) sail across the Atlantic, from east to west. Thirty days seems like it holds so much possibility in the abstract. This year, I spent the last four weeks concertedly writing a book. —— Every year, as November […]
How to find (real) writing buddies
Writing is very lonely. Like, sure, I talk to various voices all day long and let them lead me through a story. But physically, and actually, I am most often alone. Writing wouldn’t work if we weren’t alone with those voices. Most of the time, writing has to be a lonely task. That said, there’s […]
How to Write Dialogue That Seems Real (NANOWRIMO-STYLE)
During my first Nanowrimo (National Novel Writing Month), over ten years ago now, I was determined to write a novel in 30 days. And that was all cool. Writing every day was a challenge, but I quickly realized that authentic dialogue was the toughest hurdle of all when it came to writing something worthwhile. Dialogue […]
Why I Love Writing With Notion
I’ve been through about a thousand tools trying to find the perfect book-writing machine that suits my style, and I know one thing for sure: I am a finicky customer. Microsoft Word never suited me — the formatting alone drove me mad. While some really enjoy YWriter, I really could jive with it, to be […]
How to write 1,667 words a day
If you’ve ever dreamt of penning your own novel but found yourself lost in the whirlwind of life’s responsibilities, you might not have heard of Nanowrimo or National Novel Writing Month. Every November, writers from all corners of the world unite with a singular purpose: to draft 50,000 words of a novel in just 30 […]
Writing Outside: Where To Get Started
Writing outside can be hard. Indoors is often where it is at for writers. There’s unlimited tea and, if you live with me, unlimited pop-tarts too (I know you didn’t ask but there are no less than 48 pop-tarts in my flat right now FYI). There’s never too far of a walk to get to […]
What Happens After Nanowrimo?
Writing every day in November as part of National Novel Writing Month (Nanowrimo) eventually becomes routine. You realise that you can actually do this, and do it well, and so you do. Normally, mid way through November I start thinking about after November. You might not be there yet but you’ll get there soon. So […]
Nanowrimo 2017
Nanowrimo in the heat is v different from what I’m used to. Gone are the days of curling up in three, maybe four, blankets balancing a piping hot mug of tea on my lap along with a laptop and desperately trying to forget how cold I am as I type words towards my daily goal 🌨 […]
How To Write When You Have No Free Time
I wrote something similar to this not so long ago but because it’s Nanowrimo — national noveling month — this felt especially important to talk about today. I know a little about this subject, working two jobs, an internship and querying my first novel this year along with climbing regularly as a hobby and doing […]
A quick pep talk for writers (and maybe for me)
One of my favourite sayings comes from an old tale. ‘This too shall pass’ You see this plastered on a lot of pictures online these days — for some reason with a lot of pictures of beaches — and you could be forgive for thinking this is a super positive matra. ‘Hey, this too shall […]
Helpful Resources for Nano: Top ten
If you’re anything like me (a pantser!) you’ll have galavanted into Nanowrimo with little or no thought to planning things out. That’s cool. That’s the way we work. Thing is, around about now, I suddenly realise I need tools to help me do the things I want to do and oh! if only I’d actually […]
How To Write a Novel in 30 Days 2016 Edition
I do this every year, November after November I write this post, but with each year the topic on my mind changes and I think it’s worth doing. As many of you may know we’re currently knee deep into November, a month known to some as Nanowrimo during which they write 50,000 or more words […]
How To Use The Nanowrimo Forums
We’ve all been there, standing on the precipice of hitting send on our message, finger hovering as the cursor blink blink blinks back at us and we wonder whether this is a bad idea — maybe the worst idea we ever had. If you haven’t been there, or perhaps this is your first Nanowrimo, welcome […]
Nanowrimo
It’s Nanowrimo in a matter of hours — that time of the year where people across the globe band together and all try to write at least 50,000 words in a month. I’m excited and nervous because this year is so different for me. I try to write a lot in my ordinary life outside […]