NaNoWrIMo 2013Well here we are folks, in the midst of the last week of NaNoWriMo that will be free of cooked birds and cracked family members. Before the festivities launch their full-fledged assault on our word counts and try desperately to keep us from finishing our novels, it’s best to have a counterattack ready. What are your strategies for achieving victory in spite of the holiday lurking at the end of the month? Here are some of my plans and tips for getting through to the finish line – share yours below!

1. Finish your novel before Thanksgiving stuff starts. 

Crazy Level: 5   Achievability: 3

If you are way behind in your word count, this may not be the best option for you. But for everyone else, Thanksgiving Day is so late this year that in order to finish on the Wednesday before, you would need to be only 5,000 words ahead! If you start now, this is totally doable!

2. Write in the car, on the train, in the plane, while snowshoeing toward home.

Crazy Level: 1  Achievability: 5

If you aren’t going to be able to get ahead, at least you can stay on par with your word count by using all of that time you’ll be spending traveling to see your family for your novel’s benefit. Airport terminals and passenger seats can be great writing spaces! (Of course, this is only really helpful if you aren’t the one driving!)

3. Set aside little bits of time for writing during the holidays. 

Crazy Level: 3  Achieveability: 3

This can be a really tough one, but in order to be a NaNoWriMo winner, it is vitally important to stay connected to your story by writing every day. Skipping days will put you so far behind so fast that you won’t know how to catch up! Some of the best ways to be successful with this are to get up a half an hour before the rest of the family, or stay up half an hour later, and use that time to keep your word count on target.

Don’t forget to share your own tips below! We’re gonna need ’em…

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