If you can, the best way to prepare for NaNo is to write out everything you do in a day, in as much detail as possible. I like to go for 15-minute chunks and pick a weekday. Honestly and nonjudgementally record every single thing you spend time on in a single day, and we’ll look together to see where you can fit the writing in during the stream. I usually use a piece of notebook paper, like this:

(The above entire segment of text and image are from 2022's Preptober stream.)

Alternatively (or in addition!), ask yourself: what are you working on this year? What do you hope to achieve, and to what extent is it linked inextricably with the 50,000 word goal? How have your experiences with these sorts of challenges changed in accordance with your circumstances, and what do you think you can expect this year? How do you think things might go awry?

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is an annual event where writers from all over the world work toward the same goal - writing 50,000 words - while offering and receiving support from other writers.  

Throughout the year, NaNoWriMo also provides resources and support for writers, as well as events like Camp NaNoWrimo. 

Okay, and who are you?

We’re Novlr, and we’ve got a long history with NaNoWriMo. Our co-founders, Kim and Thomas, and myself are all NaNoWriMo vets, and Novlr has sponsored NaNoWriMo since 2019 because we share their aims of supporting writers and uplifting the writing community. 

Novlr is a writing workspace designed to get you from the spark of an idea to a completed first draft without any distractions.  We’re completely free to use for up to five projects, and we are the first creative writing platform to be writer-owned.* 

We put writers at the centre of everything we do, and we work with our community to build the tools that writers need. We care about allowing every writer to focus on what’s most important — your words. And we are all about empowering  writers to achieve their writing goals, no matter what they look like. 

Why use Novlr this NaNoWriMo?

With Novlr, you can fully integrate your project with NaNoWriMo without having to manually keep track of your word counts. 

We keep track of all your words automatically, from words written, deleted, to total word count. Our integration sends that data directly to NaNoWriMo, keeping your project updated on the NaNoWriMo site as you write. 

We’ve also put goals front and centre in your writing workspace, which will keep you on track to reach your NaNoWriMo goals, as well as let you keep up your writing practice even after NaNoWriMo has finished.

Lastly, we’ve got advanced writing analytics that will help you learn all about your writing habits, like when you’re most productive, and help you get the most out of your writing time.

In addition to the platform itself, I’m also going to be writing with you all this year! 

Novlr will be hosting a NaNoWriMo kickoff event on November 1st at at 23:00 - 01:00 GMT / 18:00 - 20:00 CT. 

Throughout the month, I’ll also be running regular writing sprints in our Discord and sharing lots of posts with inspiration, encouragement, and resources, as well as chat through our projects.

Join me and my writing buddy, Molly, for lots of creativity 😍

No matter where you write your words, NaNoWriMo is the perfect time to build a writing community. I’ve made lifelong friends through my participation, and have got so many words written. Whether you use Novlr or not, participation is the key. And our community, and the NaNo community at large, are here to support you as you reach for the lofty goal of 50,000 words in 30 days.

I can’t wait to read all the amazing things you write!

*P.S. While our Standard plan is completely free, we do offer some extras for those who want the extra push. As sponsors of NaNoWriMo, we’re offering all participants this year 40% off Novlr Pro for 12 months, and winners, 60%! Just visit the offers page in your NaNoWriMo dashboard.