How I Wrote 50,000 Words in a Month (and What I Learned)

I did it. I won. I reached my Nanowrimo goal. I wrote 50,000 words of potential rubbish in November. 50,550 to be precise. Now, I am that many words closer to having a completed first draft of an entire story and, I must admit, it feels great… But I’m not quite at my final goal yet.

Though I managed to find the time and inclination to power through a lot more words than I usually would, the novel that I’m working on still is not complete. I don’t say that to discredit my own progress, or the progress of others who are also yet to complete the novel they started, but to highlight that the work does not stop there. What I really hope to do is finish my novel, and writing a chunk of it in November was only a part of the process. Writing challenges are usually more about possibility and experience than finality, so what I plan to do is carry some of the discipline I gained into my ultimate goal.

In the mean time, I think it’s worth sharing with you how I managed to complete Nanowrimo and also what I learned from it.

How I Wrote 50,000 words

Whilst the main aim of tackling Nanowrimo is to finish that novel in thirty days, it can seem very daunting, especially in the first few days. But it does not have to be terrifying, and it’s completely possible if you take it easy, but stay focused. Here are the 3 ways I made sure I hit that word count goal:

1. Aimed for 1,700 words a day

After some quick maths at the start of the month to divide 50,000 by 30, I decided to round my target to 1,700. If possible, being ahead is always better than being on target or behind so that you have a safety net if you do start to drop a few words.

2. Changed that aim to ‘as many words as possible’

By day 3, I was already behind. Life sometimes gets in the way and as it happens, 1,700 is a lot of words, especially when you already have another 1,700 words to write the next day. So, on the days when I had time, rather than pat myself on the back for hitting my target, I would keep going. I did, however, end up having to write around 3,000 words on the last day of November to make sure I hit 50,000 words.

3. Made the most of my free time

I don’t think I’ve ever struggled so hard with Nanowrimo (I say that having taken on the challenge twice). The theme of this year was Catching Up. Some days I was taking what felt like hours to produce 100 words. Others, I was using Word on my phone to write while boiling the kettle, sitting in the car, and lying in bed to make up for any lost time. Anywhere and everywhere, if I had a spare moment, I would write, and it paid off.

What I Learned

• Writing is hard – I’ve always known this but aiming for a specific word count as opposed to trying to just finish a scene is difficult. Do you write something bad that could have been better if you sat to think about it just to keep your flow going? Yes. Even if it makes you uncomfortable. You can always go back and fix it later, but you can’t really get your time back. First drafts are like a base coat of paint. If you want it to look better, it’s almost imperative you do a second coat.
• Plans are important – If I had been without a plan when time was of the essence, I would not have made it to 50,000 words. I did not have to think about what would happen next in my story because a quick read of my plan would do the thinking for me, and I would only deviate if I felt I needed to. The option of following the plan was always there, and without it, the pressure to think of what would happen next was almost non-existent. Only the pressure of getting things right remained.
• You should hold yourself accountable – It would have been easy at any point when I was falling behind to admit defeat. In the last four days, I had 10,000 words to write. Based on my plan, I was really quite behind. But by making sure I used all the time I had left wisely, I managed to get there, even when I did not believe I could, because I had promised myself I would.
• But not too accountable – Don’t panic if you miss days, even if it does feel a little bit like the end of the world. Some days you will have more time to write than others. Such is life. Even if producing that amount of writing is just for a month, you always need balance in life, and if you’re too busy doing other things (even nothing) to write, that’s perfectly fine.

So, that’s how I completed Nanowrimo this year and what I learned from it. As a challenge, I really like Nanowrimo, especially because it gives me an excuse to spend time with a bunch of characters I enjoy writing. I’ll most likely do it again next year, and who knows, maybe I’ll even be able to start a story rather than trying to finish one.

Have you ever taken part in Nanowrimo?