#NaNoPrep: Preparing to write 50K in 30 Days

I hereby commit to writing 50,000 words of a novel this November. You know it's official because I used the word "hereby" ;)

You too? Add me to our buddy list http://nanowrimo.org/participants/jolinsdell

So now I'm all signed up, it's time to do some preparation. In past years I took the Panster approach to the challenge, and just had a vague idea and went with it. It was hard work but I still managed to be a winner (actually finished a day early. YAY me! :)).

This year I want to try a more organised approach. This October I'll therefore be doing NaNo Prep so I have an outline to work to, and character sheets (at least for my main characters).

This year I'll be writing another thriller. I had ideas for some romance novels too but the thriller took over and choose me. A good sign that it's the one to work on for this challenge.

I figured it would be good to do some general research at this point to find some tips for writing the thriller genre, and creating villains. Here's some of the articles I've been reading today:

On novel outlines

http://www.creative-writing-now.com/novel-outline.html

http://www.advancedfictionwriting.com/articles/snowflake-method/

https://litreactor.com/columns/8-ways-to-outline-a-novel

On writing thrillers

http://www.thecreativepenn.com/2014/01/17/writing-crime/

http://www.writersdigest.com/online-editor/the-5-cs-of-writing-a-great-thriller-novel

http://www.creative-writing-now.com/how-to-write-a-thriller.html

http://www.writersworkshop.co.uk/blog/tips-for-writing-crime-fiction-and-thrillers/

On creating villains

http://listverse.com/2012/04/06/top-10-sympathetic-super-villains/

https://thewritepractice.com/how-to-create-better-villains/

http://www.wikihow.com/Create-a-Credible-Villain-in-Fiction

http://www.writersdigest.com/writing-articles/by-writing-goal/improve-my-writing/3-techniques-for-crafting-your-villain

http://www.writing-world.com/fiction/villains.shtml

I've now outlined a very rough plot (which I will be working on more as the day goes on), and have my main characters.... none of which have names yet though. If you'd like to help with naming them please leave a comment on this Facebook post:

Off to a good start with #NaNoPrep this morning. This thriller is starting to take shape. I now have my rough plot, a...

Posted by Jo Linsdell on Thursday, 1 October 2015

Are you planning on doing NaNoWriMo this year? What genre will you be writing? Are you a Plotter or a Panster? What are you doing to prepare for the challenge?