Are you going to be joining in with the hundreds of thousands of fellow writers online this November for Nanowrimo, the popular writing contest/marathon?
Recently over at Fear of Writing, I wrote a guest post about my emotional preparation and also shared some practical suggestions I came up with to get ready for my first run at it this year.
Since that time, I’ve been collecting and benefiting from tons of great, actionable advice, notably from Charlotte Rains Dixon as I take her Get Your Novel Written Now online class this month.
Charlotte has highlighted the importance of character development early on in the writing process, asserting characters in conflict are what create a story. Of course I appreciate this emphasis, having always preferred character-driven fiction over plot-driven books. I knew I would need to do a lot of work getting to know my characters now, way before the clock strikes midnight on November 1st.
Not only do I need a clear idea in my mind of their physical and character attributes and personal histories, but their fears, wants and motivations in order to also come up with a tentative plot outline. I’m doing my best to avoid getting stuck and frustrated in the writing maze too often while hammering out the first draft in 30 days!
Here’s a list of great online fiction-writing resources I found to be really helpful. Hopefully they’ll be of value to you too, dear fellow writers, whether you are diving in and joining the frenzied writing marathon next month or not, just continuing to work on your writing at a pace and schedule that suits you best.
Way cool! Character-building questionnaires and online tests galore.
Wow, this is an exhaustive list boasting no less than 102 links! I thought it was definitely valuable and needed to be included here even though it is obviously more than just one resource. It was compiled way back in 2007, so there are a handful of pages that no longer exist. Amazing collection here.
Writing a two-page outline for your novel and other nifty suggestions from a seasoned NaNo participant.
Ok, I know this isn’t a writing link per se, but I decided to include it in this list. You can compile a soundtrack for your characters, as well as have some “new to you” music to write by. I’m sure your muse will love it too. No annoying commercials to wait through either!
The Process of Writing a Novel
Good general tips on the construction of the novel.
Advice on writing a novel by Crawford Kilian
Detailed checklists and advice on the whole process of novel-writing.
Good suggestions from this post about using the Snowflake Method to write your novel.
Finding the right name for your characters
Here’s a great site that lists most popular baby names in the U.S. with their meaning by year, all the way back to 1880!
Are there any good online resources you’ve found while prepping to write a novel? If so, please share in the comments. Thanks!
Amazing feat, Carole! I love hearing how you are preparing for nanowriting your novel. You are very good at finding and collecting resources and sharing them in a non-overwhelming way. I’ve refered back to a couple of your previous posts listing resources when I’ve needed something you wrote about–all good. Very appreciative of the resources you’ve sent me via email as well. We have a love for research and sharing resources in common. Good luck in November! Pulling for you! Keep us posted!
Hi Terri! So glad to hear you’ve found the resources I share here on the blog useful, and that we do have that love of research in common. Thanks as always for your encouragement; I’ll definitely keep you all posted how this adventure in November goes
Carole – This post is like a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!
Laurie Buchanan recently posted..Jumping through Mental Hoops – Swoosh!
Hiya Laurie,
That’s exactly how I felt discovering them, so I wanted to spread the wealth a.s.a.p. Happy writing!