NaNoWriMo Tips – The official blog of Michelle Tuckett, word ninja.

Secrets of a Sane Writer

October 1, 2019

a humorous mini course written as if you’re a new member to a sorta-secret society of writers … More Secrets of a Sane Writer

Welcome to Your Punk Rock NaNoWriMo

November 1, 2017

Today is the first day of NaNoWriMo. Are you ready? Are you writing? Do you have an outline, an idea, a plan of any kind? No matter what you answer, mine is: Good. You’re already ready to start. I want to reassure you here and now that you have a story in you, you have … More Welcome to Your Punk Rock NaNoWriMo

Deep Breath in, Deep breath out. It’s NaNoWriMo

October 31, 2017

Don’t let NaNoWriMo throw you out of your routine for a whole month. Don’t let it get to you. Keep doing your daily routine and the things that refresh you. … More Deep Breath in, Deep breath out. It’s NaNoWriMo

NaNoWriMo & the 7 Point Plot Structure

October 19, 2017

I was doing some thinking for all of you about NaNo milestones using the 7 point plot structure. My idea is to give you dates and word counts that you need to hit on those dates. Of course this would be a rough guide more than a rule … More NaNoWriMo & the 7 Point Plot Structure

NaNoWriMo: The Inevitable Writing Stall

November 22, 2015

We’re in the final stretch of the NaNoWriMo marathon – day 23. Whether we started well or poorly, on time or late, with a well defined idea or not, we’ve been living in this reality of writing a novel in a month for 23 days now, and there is a mere 7 left. If we we’re … More NaNoWriMo: The Inevitable Writing Stall

Are You Actually Writing?

November 10, 2015

What with NaNoWriMo well under way, we must ask ourselves: Are we actually writing? Here is a handy list to double check if you are, in fact, writing. Things that are not actually writing: Looking for that tab you had open as reference material for a blog entry Outlining Complaining about not writing Practicing your … More Are You Actually Writing?

Reasons I Hate Outlines With A Firey Passion

November 3, 2015

With NaNoWriMo in full swing, the O-word is being flung about a lot, and I need to get this off my chest. I’m resurrecting an old post because it is every bit as true today as it was 3 years and 6 novels ago. I am not a fan of outlining. In fact, it takes … More Reasons I Hate Outlines With A Firey Passion

Writing Villains: The Hybrid

November 2, 2015

So far, I’ve talked about antagonists and monsters and the differences between them, but merely mentioning these two aspects of the villain spectrum leaves a hole in the middle – one that begs to be filled by some of the best villains in fiction. Disney’s old Maleficent, The Joker, Patrick Bateman, Lestat, pretty much any … More Writing Villains: The Hybrid

NaNoWriMo Prep: Creating A Plot in 4 Easy Steps

October 30, 2015

So you want to do NaNoWriMo, but you’re not really good at this plot thing. Maybe you’ve written short stories but not a novel, maybe you’ve always wanted to write a novel, but you don’t have any idea of how to make a plot. Maybe you’ve written or are writing your Good Novel Idea, and … More NaNoWriMo Prep: Creating A Plot in 4 Easy Steps

NaNoWriMo Prep: Creating Characters Worth Writing

October 27, 2015

The following is an excerpt from a post I wrote back in May, 2013: Developing Characters Part One: Getting to know you Our characters are people – people we’re giving free rent to in our heads, sometimes for years. And they ought to be worth that time to create, to find the right one for the … More NaNoWriMo Prep: Creating Characters Worth Writing