Surviving Nanowrimo - 30 tips for 30 days Are you on Twitter? We share these tips daily during Nanowrimo on our twitter account, so follow us there to receive these as a drip feed! Nanowrimo Tip No. 1 = NEVER LOOK BACK Nanowrimo Tip No.2: What is the protagonist's goal in each scene? Nanowrimo Tip No.3: Do you give your protagonist time to react to the conflicts and disasters they experience? Nanowrimo Tip No.4: You need to write an average of 2000 words per day, and that gives you a few days off. Manageable goals. Nanowrimo Tip No.5: Give yourself rewards for reaching targets, such as 5,000 or 15,000 words. Nanowrimo Tip No.6: Give yourself a day off after 10 days - you will come back the next day much more refreshed and effective. Nanowrimo Tip No.7 Don't worry about grammar, punctuation, avoiding cliches or anything like that. That can all be fixed later. Nanowrimo Tip No.8 Get your writing done early as possible rather than leaving it until the end of the day when you're tired. Nanowrimo Tip No.9: Can you get up 30 minutes early to get a few hundred words done before the day? It's only for one month... Nanowrimo Tip No.10 Don't waste time thinking of the perfect name, just use anything, with the intent to change it later Nanowrimo Tip No.11: Let the house go to ruin - housework can wait - it's only one month! Nanowrimo Tip No.12 Got writer's block? Try freewriting - nonsense braindumping to break you out of it Nanowrimo Tip No.13 Stuck? Try thinking about a scene from the POV of a different character Nanowrimo Tip No.14 Getting bogged down? Take a walk - exercise gets the blood in your brain flowing. Nanowrimo Tip No.15 Remember you're just shovelling sand into a box so later you can make sandcastles! Nanowrimo Tip No.16 As Ernest Hemingway (probably) said: 'The first draft of anything is shit' - so don't dwell, get it under your belt! Nanowrimo Tip No.17 Don't read back what you're written - there's no time for Pete's sake - just keep writing! Nanowrimo Tip No.18 You'll be hitting the wall around now - stay strong, keep thinking on the light at the end of the tunnel Nanowrimo Tip No.19 Remember the mantra: Just one more sentence, just one more sentence... Nanowrimo Tip No. 20. Plot and characters running rampant? Let them! You can rein it all in on the 2nd draft. Nanowrimo Tip No.21 If you're getting stuck for ideas, why not try exploring the backstory of a supporting character? Nanowrimo Tip No. 22 First drafts are for discovery, so let your imagination loose of its harness! Nanowrimo Tip No. 23 2,000 words a day. That is the mantra of the nanoer. Nanowrimo Tip No. 24 Now is not the time for editing, so don't worry about typos or cliches. In fact, wallow in them (for now) Nanowrimo Tip No. 25 2k a day, 2k a day. Just keep repeating after me: 2k a day, 2k a day (That's easier to say than type) Nanowrimo Tip No. 26 No TV. No Facebook. No Netflix. No Twitter (no, wait...) You can survive without for a just a few days! Nanowrimo Tip No.27 Just... one... more... sentence... Nanowrimo Tip No.28 You might need to pull and all-nighter if you're a bit behind - don't give up now! Nanowrimo Tip No.29 Running out of ideas? Change to a different POV character and write an existing scene from their point of view… Nanowrimo Tip No.30 Final day! Hopefully you'll just be staggering to the finish line now - if so CONGRATULATIONS! You might also like: Plan Your Nanowrimo Novel in 30 days How to kick ass at Nanowrimo – 9 rules for success Life after Nanowrimo