TECH: Nanowrimo Historical Dredging?

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

Original posting 8 Nov 2011

Aha! Over here at http://writercises.livejournal.com/ there are a pile of old Nanowrimo notes. And to save you time, let me summarize the first 8 or so...

TECH: Nanowrimo Notes #1: Get Those Words UP!
http://writercises.livejournal.com/140129.html

Reminded us to fill in the setting, senses, flashbacks, all the little players, and your characters reactions and feelings to help push those word counts up, up, up! After all, you might as well enjoy the purple words describing the sunset over the sandy dunes, the sight/sound/taste/smell/feeling of all five senses, all the little memories, what oddities the waitstaff, elevator operator, bank clerk, and everyone else may entertain us with, and of course, how the characters feel about all this stuff. Just fill it in to enrich the reader -- and add some words!

TECH: Nanowrimo Notes #2: Stacking Scenes
http://writercises.livejournal.com/140680.html

This one talked about various ways to stack and interlace scenes! After all, assuming you have more than one scene, you might want to push the main character away from achieving their goal, add new and odd twists, mix in unrelated difficulties, braid those subplots, set up a deadline or ticking clock, reduce the possibilities for the main character, or even reveal hidden problems, right? Hey, consider using any of those as the next pot boiler for your tale, okay?

TECH: Nanowrimo Notes #3: Writing Out Of Order
http://writercises.livejournal.com/140933.html

Ho, ho, ho. Unlike the previous one, this suggested that you might want to just write things out of order, perhaps jumping ahead to the ending, or at least to the high points that you want to fill in, then later go back and add the stretches in the middle. Kind of like having your dessert before you start the main dish, or something like that? Don't feel constrained to write one, two, three. If some part is a stumbler, go ahead and jump right past it to the sections that you know, then come back later.

TECH: Nanowrimo Notes #4: Try another viewpoint?
http://writercises.livejournal.com/141064.html

Ah, yes. 3rd person limited, right? But you could also do it first person, omniscient, try the dog's viewpoint... all sorts of possibilities. Heck, maybe the antagonist would be interesting for this scene? Give the devil his due? Anyway, especially during nanowrimo, writing the same scene from several possible viewpoints just to see how it works is just fine -- and gives you a few more words for the pile, too!

TECH: Nanowrimo Notes #5: Extra Versions?
http://writercises.livejournal.com/141507.html

What an odd idea! Instead of just writing the decisions and twists and plot steps that fit, how about trying some of the options? What if the blonde decided that she really didn't like the looks of the basement stairs, and refused to go down there where the werewolf waited? What would happen? Or what if the bank did foreclose on Little Orphan Annie? Whatever, try mixing up the decisions and writing up the "alternative histories" of your plot! That soup that fell in the lap of the hero and introduced him to the Cinderella waitress? What if he really, really loved that tuxedo? You get the picture, right?

TECH: Nanowrimo Notes #6: Remember the little stuff!
http://writercises.livejournal.com/141633.html

All the little bits and pieces of ordinary life! Let your heroine actually take a shower, brush her teeth, do all the morning ritual. Or maybe it's just eating a whole meal, complete with fries and a milkshake? Instead of doing the normal "camera cut" life without any little stuff, consider filling in the little stuff.

TECH: Nanowrimo Notes #7: Learning to look
http://writercises.livejournal.com/142259.html

The lessons of art! Yes, there is a researcher who has found that simply turning a picture upside down helps people draw it more accurately -- because it breaks the expectations and makes them really look at it. So, consider turning your characters, plot, setting, and problem on edge, at least, if not completely upside down, and show them to the reader without cliche and preconception. What do they really look like?

TECH: Nanowrimo Notes #8: It's Not Cheating Anymore
http://writercises.livejournal.com/142578.html

Ready? This one suggested that you go ahead and write notes to yourself in the story. For example, as you are writing along, you might notice that there is some background that you need to expand sometime. A common approach might be to make a mental note, but I think it is better to write it down somewhere! Perhaps write it down in another file. Or go ahead and write it into the main file. An embedded note is easy to clean up later, and makes sure you don't forget that great idea. Or scratch paper, your pet notebook, whatever. Just feel free to make notes! Unlike school, no one is going to think you are cheating -- but you will feel better knowing that the idea isn't going to get lost quite so easily.

'saright? There's a summary of the first 8 old nanowrimo notes!

Onward, nanowrimo writers!