What year(s) did you participate in NaNoWriMo? 2011-2016 Tell us if you "won" or not, and what you learned from the experience Yes, every year. I love participating in Nano and it has really helped me to increase production and tighten up my novels. No more dithering around for months on end. Write up an outline, create a title and concept cover, and pound the keys! What specific advice do you have for someone attempting NaNoWriMo ? Give yourself permission to make writing a priority … [Read more...] about NaNoWriMo Tips from P.D. Workman (Nano handle: pdw)

What year(s) did you participate in NaNoWriMo? Nov., 2011 and again in June, 2012 for Camp NaNo Tell us if you won or not, and what you learned from the experience I participated in the November NaNoWriMo, won and loved it so much that I also did Camp NaNo in June. I made the 50,000 words that time, too. My third attempt will be this November. NaNo sparked my writing. Prior to NaNoWriMo I had only written articles for magazines, online sites and scholarly assignments at university. I did … [Read more...] about NaNoWriMo Tips from Sharon A. Mitchell

What year(s) did you participate in NaNoWriMo? 2011 Tell us if you won or not, and what you learned from the experience Yes, I won with a word count of 51,000+ and the title was Bound By Cotton. It was my first experience, so I did learn a LOT. First, if you plan to write a historical (as I did), or any other project - that requires research - do as much as possible before November 1st. Research eats up so much time! This will require an outline, which I did not make last year. Chapter by … [Read more...] about NaNoWriMo Tips from Robyn Leatherman

What year(s) did you participate in NaNoWriMo? 2011 Tell us if you won or not, and what you learned from the experience I won. I wrote just over 50,000 words during the month of November. I highly recommend doing this if you want to write any sort of book. It's a great motivator. My teen-aged daughter and I both did it. We challenged and encouraged each other! She was able to write two 50,000 word books! What I learned was that with a little discipline, it is absolutely possible to … [Read more...] about NaNoWriMo Tips from Christina Li

What year(s) did you participate in NaNoWriMo? 2010 and 2011 Tell us if you won or not, and what you learned from the experience I won both times. I learned that it is very difficult to discipline yourself to write 50,000 words in a month but very doable... The best tool is writeordie.com it makes you write. It is better to go into the competition with a solid outline, solid characters and a real idea of what you're going to do and how you're going to do it....even if you are … [Read more...] about NaNoWriMo Tips from Joan Meijer

What year(s) did you participate in NaNoWriMo? 2009, 2010, 2011 Tell us if you won or not, and what you learned from the experience Yes, I have won every single year that I've entered the contest. Interestingly, every year I'm over-confident going in, and write quite a lot on the first and second days. On day 10 I feel like I've used up my ideas. On day 15, I'm typically struggling and writing just to fill my daily word quota, all the while thinking, "Why did I undertake this?" or "This … [Read more...] about NaNoWriMo Tips from Ricardo das Neves

What year(s) did you participate in NaNoWriMo? 2011 Tell us if you won or not, and what you learned from the experience I successfully reached the 50,000 word mark--and then did a sort of half-NaNo to write another 26,000 words in December, to have a completed first draft by the end of the year. I'd say I had two big take-away lessons. One, I CAN keep writing if I set my mind to it. I'd frequently hit a point in the day's writing when I felt like I had written "enough," i.e., I'd used … [Read more...] about NaNoWriMo Tips from Cheryl Mahoney

What year(s) did you participate in NaNoWriMo? 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 Tell us if you won or not, and what you learned from the experience Won two years, just past 35k for two others. Careful planning for the commitment is key. What specific advice do you have for someone attempting NaNoWriMo ? Start early. Not writing, of course, but thinking about your characters, structure plot and theme. Use a mind map. Draw pictures. Sleep on it. My successful years I started to plan in June. My … [Read more...] about NaNoWriMo Tips from Eric Michalsen