Your Novel Won't Write Itself
on NaNoWriMo, tackling writing problems, and not abandoning *that* writing project just yet. This is a 7-minute read.
Hello and Salam alaykum dear friends 👋🏾,
How are you and how’s writing going for you? It’s been a while, and life has been life-ing BUT I finally joined the NaNoWriMo train, and I’m here to tell you is never too late to start working on your writing project.
My goal for NaNo isn’t to finish a novel in a month, but to build writing consistency. I currently aim to write for an hour a day (sometimes longer), with the help of two dear friends as accountability partners, and I hope to carry on writing regularly beyond November because my novel won’t write itself, and it’s better to have mediocre writing which can be edited than nothing at all.
When I started thinking about what to work on for NaNo, I thought up a new project idea and convinced myself it was what I needed to work on, even though my young adult (YA) novel needed re-plotting + re-drafting. However, I don’t usually start a new writing project without spending some time getting to know the characters, the world, or simply allowing the idea to stew in my head for a while. So, I knew I was digging myself a deep hole with this decision.
Eventually, I decided to sit with myself and analyse the reason behind my NaNo goal. I came to terms with the fact that I was running away from the fear of tackling the re-plotting issue for my YA. Although starting a new project seems more fun and “easier”, the problem with running away from my YA is I might end up facing the same problems with the new project, and even if I didn’t, I still have to come back to this book and deal with it. So, why not now?
With this in mind, I resolved to face the fear and tackle whatever the problems I had.
Towards the end of last week, I crossed a huge milestone with the plot, but when it came to writing, I struggled to get words on the page. At first, I thought I was forcing the story. Perhaps, I needed some time away from it or maybe I just didn’t find it enjoyable, and wasn’t this yet another sign to abandon the project and move on to another?
But instead of falling for the easy way out, I jumped on a call with one of my cousins (also one of my biggest cheerleaders). During our conversation, my excitement as I narrated the story to her made me realise I definitely wanted to write this book. I was invested in my character’s journey and her story was important to me.
One of the themes the novel covers is grief, and my cousin, who’s a Psychologist, proceeded to ask if grief was an emotion I was comfortable sitting in without feeling the need to run away from it, as that might impact my ability to write my protagonist’s story. We talked through my experiences with grief, and decided it wasn’t a likely candidate for my “writer’s block”.
Following this, she asked me about my writing environment + process, and this was when it clicked. My writing routine until this moment had been one-hour blocks daily, which wasn’t a new approach. But as I reflected on my writing methods since 2016, I identified a pattern. When I’m in first draft stage, my writing sessions need to be at least two/three hours long because it takes time to get into the story and find momentum, and momentum barely ever comes within an hour. However, when working on subsequent drafts or when editing, I work well with one-hour sessions.
Armed with this knowledge, I went back to my calendar and adjusted my schedule. I don’t have the time capacity to commit 3-4 hours daily to writing, so I tried to find at least 2-3 days in the week where I could have focused time to work on my book. It might mean sacrificing a couple of weekends, but it’s only for a matter of time.
As writers, there can be several reasons why we’re unable to get the words out, and we should strive to figure it out before setting a project aside. Sometimes I find that an action as simple as changing environment, taking a walk or taking a few days off, helps me get back into writing mode.
What do you when you struggle to write? What’s your approach when a project doesn’t seem to be working out?
📣 We’re on Discord!
I’m trying out discord for Qalb Writers Collective. It’ll serve as an online community where we can share ideas, ask questions, hold each other accountable and perhaps do writing sprints. If this sounds like something you’ll be interested in:
✍🏾 Writing Prompt
Open a random chapter in the last novel you read, copy out the first paragraph, and continue the story from there. If you haven’t read in a while, here’s the first paragraph of a chapter from a book I’m reading:
“I fall asleep for a short time, wake up, fall asleep again, wake up over and over. I don’t want to miss the moment she appears. But I do miss it – I look up and she’s already sitting at the desk, just like last night. The clock next to my bed shows a little past three.”
— Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami
📚 On my reading list
I’ve read quite a few books in the past weeks, some as part of my university reading list and others for pleasure. My favourite thing about the uni list is that I wouldn’t typically pick up quite a lot of the books on there, so there’s a lot to learn + so much room to expand my knowledge around writing.
Here are a few which have stood out to me:
The Office of Historical Corrections by Danielle Evans: This is the author’s second short story collection, and I picked up her first collection as soon as I finished this one! Evans writes so well, and I’ve been contemplating re-reading some of the stories in the collection, but I’m holding off until I get through at least 50% of my uni list. Although I write long form fiction, short stories have a very special place in my heart. The length is just perfect, and when they’re really good, I find them super helpful for getting out of a reading slump.
As Long As The Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh: Zoulfa Katouh can write! I really enjoyed reading this heart-breaking but also hopeful young adult novel. Katouh draws beautiful imagery throughout the book, and her characterisation is solid. In her interview with Amaliah, she mentioned that one of the agents she’d queried commented that “it’s clear English is not your first language because your sentences are rigid…” Not only is the agent out of order, but if you read this book, you will know it’s far from the truth.
Letters To A Young Novelist by Mario Llosa Vargas: A valuable book filled with great advice and several examples to illustrate the author’s points. The writing could’ve been a bit more accessible, but I wonder if this is partly due to its being a translation.
Several People Are Typing by Calvin Kasulke: So, this is a weird novel which follows a man whose consciousness is uploaded into his company’s Slack channel. He asks for help but his colleagues think he’s trying to exploit the new work-from-home policy. But when he runs the risk of being trapped in Slack forever, he has to convince his colleagues to help him get out. Although the beginning of the book takes some getting used to, because the entire novel is told via slack conversations, it picks up pace quite quickly in the middle. I enjoyed reading it and wanted to find out whether AI would triumph over man or not just yet…
What are you currently reading or what have you enjoyed lately?
And that’s it, folks! If you enjoyed reading this and found it beneficial, why not spread the word?
Wishing you a blessed and splendid weekend! :)
Till next time,
Suad x