The slump
In Nanowrimo, I always hit the slump. That part of the novel where I just do not know directly where I am going with it, or need research, or just fall out of the groove. And the word count goes down. I get frustrated. I just want to move it along the path that is in my head.
I can write 4k a day in the beginning. It then slows to 3k. And now hitting the slump 1000 or less. I do slow down as I go naturally because the deeper into the plot the more careful I am. But a slump is when you slow down a lot, to even nill, because you are not in the flow anymore. You know the plot and the characters but some indecision or something is holding you back from getting from A to B.
And this is perfectly normal in the writing process.
We need to mull sometimes. We need to ponder. And brainstorm. Contemplate possibilities. And word count isn’t as much of an issue on those days. It is other things.
Hell, non-Nano times we may just set it aside for a bit to get some good mulling time in. I have a WIP that I have set aside because I just stopped knowing where I was going with it. I need to think more on it.
But during Nano we have a target we want to achieve.
- We may have to brainstorm some ideas again. Or just play around with things
- We may want to take a bit of a wee break. Read or binge some Netflix.
- We may want to review what we have written to get us back in the groove
What I like to do is go through what I have written and review it which usually helps me brainstorm ideas I might have missed in the plotline as well as flesh out a bit of what I have written.
I know a lot of people say write first edit later. But it isn’t editing unless you find a typo. It is more just checking it out. Developing it a bit. And getting back into the groove of it. And that is what I am doing. Hit 40k today by putting some depth into my scenes.
Anyway, there is literally no reason why you cannot take a break as well. Doing things can spur a lot of creativity. And the next thing you know you are thinking about that novel constantly and ideas just bubble forth.
You do not have to pressure yourself to write. Or force yourself to. That can yield poor results. So just get your groove back and get at ‘er. Or check out my post on boosting creativity.
See other Nanowrimo posts:
The Wyrd 