The Incredibly Easy Beginners Guide to Nanowrimo

You’ve signed up for NaNoWriMo, but now you’re stuck. You have to write up a complete novel, and no clue how to do this, right? Fifty Thousand words is a lot. Only 30 days to do this. Real writers just start typing and a book falls out, right?

Wrong. Only a few authors are actually pure pants’ers (writers who write “by the seat of the pants”). Most have SOME kind of planning involved. The amount of planning it takes for you to complete a novel can range from just writing an outline to extremely complicated character biographies and intense planning sessions. For me to write my miniseries actually required me to plan out military battles like a General.

How do you know how much planning you require? Whatever the barest minimum amount for you to start and complete your novel within the allotted time. My planning process usually requires filling out the story structure, then writing in a 5 word synopsis of every scene. That was the process I used for 2018’s NaNoWriMo novel, Blazing Glory.

There’s two ways you can do this.

There’s a “Camp Nanowrimo” template which you can use.

There’s my default Scrivener template you can use.

Get Started

Step one – download Scrivener demo.

Step 2 – download either template.

step 3 – copy the following and paste into another word processor

Title

1. Book
   1. Chapter
      1. Scene
      2. scene
      3. scene
      4. scene
      5. scene
      6. scene
      7. scene
   2. Chapter
      1. Scene
      2. scene
      3. scene
      4. scene
      5. scene
      6. scene
      7. scene
   3. Chapter
      1. Scene
      2. scene
      3. scene
      4. scene
      5. scene
      6. scene
      7. scene
   4. Chapter
      1. Scene
      2. scene
      3. scene
      4. scene
      5. scene
      6. scene
      7. scene
   5. Chapter
      1. Scene
      2. scene
      3. scene
      4. scene
      5. scene
      6. scene
      7. scene
   6. Chapter
      1. Scene
      2. scene
      3. scene
      4. scene
      5. scene
      6. scene
      7. scene
   7. Chapter
      1. Scene
      2. scene
      3. scene
      4. scene
      5. scene
      6. scene
      7. scene
2. Book
   1. Chapter
      1. Scene
      2. scene
      3. scene
      4. scene
      5. scene
      6. scene
      7. scene
3. Chapter
   1. Scene
   2. scene
   3. scene
   4. scene
   5. scene
   6. scene
   7. scene
4. Chapter
   1. Scene
   2. scene
   3. scene
   4. scene
   5. scene
   6. scene
   7. scene
5. Chapter
6. Scene
   1. scene
   2. scene
   3. scene
   4. scene
   5. scene
   6. scene
7. Chapter
   1. Scene
   2. scene
   1. scene
   2. scene
   3. scene
   4. scene
   5. scene
8. Chapter
   1. Scene
   2. scene
   3. scene
   4. scene
   5. scene
   6. scene
   7. scene
9. ChapterScene
10. scene
11. scene
12. scene
13. scene
14. scene
15. scene
16. Book
    1. Chapter
       1. Scene
       2. scene
       3. scene
       4. scene
       5. scene
       6. scene
       7. scene
    2. Chapter
       1. Scene
       2. scene
       3. scene
       4. scene
       5. scene
       6. scene
       7. scene
    3. Chapter
       1. Scene
       2. scene
       3. scene
       4. scene
       5. scene
       6. scene
       7. scene
    1. Chapter
       1. Scenescenescenescenescenescenescene
    2. Chapter
       1. Scene
       2. scene
       3. scene
       4. scene
       5. scene
       6. scene
       7. scene
    3. Chapter
       1. Scene
       2. scene
       3. scene
       4. scene
       5. scene
       6. scene
       7. scene
          1. Chapter
       1. Scene
       2. scene
       3. scene
       4. Scene
       5. scene
       6. scene
       7. scene

Now simply take EACH SCENE ENTRY and fill in a “less than five word” synopsis. Think of it as “Bill Confronts Ted” – you don’t need much more complicated than that – just so you know what you’re going to write.

Ready?

This is the instructions you’ll follow for Nano.

Install Scrivener’s demo on Nov. 1.

install either the camp nano template or mine.

If you get mine, it’s already set up. nothing more you need to do besides copy over your synopsis to every scene on the corkboard.

If you got the camp nano template, go to the manuscript corkboard.

CTRL+SHIFT+N 3 times. Label each one “book 1”, “Book 2”, “Book 3”.

Drag chapter one inside Book 1.

Go to book one’s corkboard.

CTRL+SHIFT+N 6 times.

select all (CTRL+A) and right click. “LABEL as “Chapter”.

You’ll have to go inside every chapter and CTRL+N 7 times.

CTRL+A. right click. Label “scene”.

Repeat the process for everything (see this is why I created my own template, so I don’t have to do this every time). Just a note – Act II or Book II (depending on how you think) is twice as long as the other acts. That’s 14 chapters of 7 scenes each. Usually you’ll write two, maybe three scenes per chapter. Some people write one scene per chapter. You do what you need to make this work.

As you write, delete extra scenes not needed within chapters.

Now, go to your other word processor and copy one at a time your synopsis for every scene. Go to your chapter corkboard’s and add that to the Title of every index card. Easy once you’ve done it once. Right now you’re reading what looks like complicated instructions, but once you get the hang of it, you’re good to go.

Now, write 1667 words. Pick a scene you’re trying to write.

Write that scene. You don’t have to be sequential in Scrivener!

Forget editing, forget spelling and typo’s.

Write that scene and forget the book. just write the scene. got enough words for the day? No? Write another scene. You’re just worried about Bill confronts Ted.

write the book.

Write every day. don’t let ANYTHING interfere with this if you’ve never finished a novel!

During the last week of November, think about how you’re going to reward yourself. Perhaps a bag of potato chips and french onion dip. Or a container of ice cream.

Because Nov. 30, you will have written a novel.

I’m not kidding. you just beat the odds.

You’re a writer.

Use the coupon you get to buy Scrivener for half price.