Dear O'Abby: How does anyone do NaNo?

Dear O'Abby,

I've tried.  I've really tried.  This is my third time doing NaNo and it's going to be my third time losing.  It's day 13 and I've only managed to write just over 15K.   I started strong (although I feel like the first 8K I wrote only really got to me to the point where my story is supposed to start), but now I'm stuck.  I have no idea how to get my characters from the point they are now, to where they need to be in the next chapter.

How does anyone actually manage to write 50K in a month?  And does anyone write anything good?  I feel like quitting while I'm ahead and coming back to this story when there isn't so much pressure.  Do you have any advice?

Yours, 

NaNoWriWon't

Dear NaNoWriWon't,

NaNo isn't for everyone, so if it doesn't suit you, there's no shame in quitting.  It hasn't been a waste of your time because you have words there that you didn't have before.  And if you're feeling under pressure and it's making you stressed or unhappy, please stop.  

Some writers thrive on pressure and find the competitive nature of NaNo suits them.  But many others don't find it helpful and don't do it as a result.  Some writers like to edit and tinker and get things right as they go and NaNo is not going to suit writers like that because to reach that word count you need to forget what's behind you and just keep moving forward.

If this is all coming from a feeling of being stuck, my suggestion is to skip the bit you're stuck on and move to the next part of the story where you know what's going to happen.  You can fill in the blank spot later.  I always find that skipping to a part of the story that I'm excited to write helps even if it's way ahead in the book.  So write that action scene or kissing scene you really want to write and keep going.  Writing in order is highly overrated in my opinion...

As for writing anything good, well, NaNo isn't about good.  It's about exploding that story onto the page and  I don't know if anyone's vomit drafts are any good.  I know mine aren't!  I literally just finished editing my 2020 NaNo book to a point where I was willing to send it to readers for feedback.  And now that I have it, I know I still have more work to do on it.

If something here resonates and makes you want to get your butt back in your chair, then good.  If you're still feeling overwhelmed by the whole thing, then stop.  If you're not enjoying the process, it's not worth it.  At the end of the day, you're the writer and you know how you like to work.  Winning NaNo is not worth your sanity!

X O'Abby