Hey NaperWrimo!!

We're about halfway through October, and also halfway through our preparatoryworkshops for this year. Super big thanks to Jennifer Smith andAllie Pleiter for running our first two, andfuture thanks to Daniel McCullough and J. Leigh Bailey for leading our next two!

So, how are your own preps going? Unless you're a pantser- totally okay if you've done no prep work in that case.

Personally, I have my outline done and am trying to finish up a few research subjects. Anyone have expertisein European freelancer visas?

I'm working with a writing accountability group where I had questions to respond to specifically about planning for Nano! That really got me in gear. I despise plotting, but I find that any alternative form of pre-planning is super helpful for me. I write all of this out by hand in a notebook and use that while I'm drafting. Character notes, VERY BASIC plot points, etc.

Looking forward to this week's prep session at the library! I hope to see some of you there.

Most of my stories start from a single vision: A scene or series of events I find compelling. I then work out ways to make that vision possible. What characters do I need? How do I get them all in the same spot? What background needs to be in place for the scene to be necessary? What technology is required? Why is it important to the story universe? In answering these types of questions, and more, my story takes shape.

I've got an outline going, which as I mentioned in the intro thread isn't my usual modus operandi--I tend to be a pantser, but I also tend to run out of steam for longer works that way, so I'm trying a different tack this year. My outline's a bit unusual, though; my novel revolves around a road trip, so rather than focusing on outlining plot points, I've mapped out (literally and metaphorically) all the places the main characters will visit during the course of that road trip. I do have a rough guide for some basic plot points as well, and some conversations between the main characters that I know happen at some point during the story, but a lot of my focus has been figuring out how the characters get from place to place and what they fill their time with when not driving.

That's a great idea! I wrote a road trip novel a few years ago and also mapped it out on a map. That definitely helps with plotting.

Is it too late to prep? I am mostly a pantser, and was kind of on the fence about doing NaNo this year since I have so much going on, but decided to keep going with some inspiration I had earlier this year.

My prep so far is a series of photos I took while out camping. So now I am re-organizing them and trying to come up with some main characters and backgrounds. Not sure I will get too much outlining done though.

Todd Bogenrief wrote:Is it too late to prep? I am mostly a pantser, and was kind of on the fence about doing NaNo this year since I have so much going on, but decided to keep going with some inspiration I had earlier this year. My prep so far is a series of photos I took while out camping. So now I am re-organizing them and trying to come up with some main characters and backgrounds. Not sure I will get too much outlining done though.

Definitely not too late to prep (my first NaNo, I learned about NaNo just three days before the event). I like your visual method of story planning--sounds very cool. If you digitize your photos, you can copy/paste them into nodes of an XMind mindmap (for easy dragging and dropping and linking in of other information). You might also consider using the virtual index cards for scrivener or wavemaker (the latter is free).

Todd Bogenrief wrote:Is it too late to prep? I am mostly a pantser, and was kind of on the fence about doing NaNo this year since I have so much going on, but decided to keep going with some inspiration I had earlier this year. My prep so far is a series of photos I took while out camping. So now I am re-organizing them and trying to come up with some main characters and backgrounds. Not sure I will get too much outlining done though.

Not sure whether this means you're working on a camping themed novel but that's my plan for this year! You're a step ahead of me if you have reference photos though :)

Visual aids are great for prep. And I've used them in the past--drew up a map of a small frontier town showing buildings and railroad tracks. This year, I've drawn out a floor plan of my 'haunted' manor that dates back to the Roaring 20s. Of course it has a speakeasy! (The Arcada Theater in St Charles has a speakeasy behind a 'bookcase door.') My secret door is in the manor's library and opens to a stairwell and underground passageway that leads to the speakeasy.

The manor also has an elevator that plays an important role in the plot (a murder is committed there) so the floor plan helps me keep track of where everything is in relation to halls, rooms, and each of the floors (three upper levels and a lower level.) Did research on the history of the Otis elevator--very interesting!.