National Novel Writing Month? Do You?

Here comes November! In writer's circles this is known as National Novel Writing Month where you pump out 50,000 words to make a book.  I've done it before and, although November can be a busy month as it starts the holiday season, it's possible.

The NANOWRIMO site lets you sign up and find fellow NANO-ers to write with and support each other. I've never used that site, but I see some regions where a lot of people signed up. They go to coffee houses and gather in groups to pump out their 50,000 words. Sounds like fun?

My daughter, a food blogger, likes to write in coffee houses. I'm not sure. I've always written better in a cave. A desk in the corner with the door shut. I find coffee houses noisy and distracting.

Then we have the virtual facebook NANOWRIMO which is part of the regular NANO but maybe less organized with  more easy online access. (Others have set up pages too. NANO world on facebook. )

I'm in the middle of a major edit for my latest WIP and really want to get it done. Would I be a NANO cheater if I just finished that work for NANO? It's a lot longer than 50,000 so it's still a lot of work. A fellow writer isn't sure that qualifies. Now I sit on the edge of writing something totally new or finishing the WIP and I'm not sure which way to go.

So, do you NANO? Are you ready for the challenge?

The Zen of Writing Spaces

Stephen King once said, "Write with the door closed, edit with the door open."

Hemingway-Key West

Closing that door is probably the best advice we'll every get. Closing out distractions is definitely the way to get more words on the page. So how do we create that perfect writing space?

First it has to have a door. Something to close and lock out the world. If we're going to go into our other worlds, we need that cone of silence, that way to make the room a place of escape.

Next up: a desk. Something large enough to share the laptop and notes. But not so big or grand as we sit around thinking about it. The desk should be comfortable and fit your style.

A chair that is cozy enough to sustain long periods of sitting and writing. We don't want to be thinking about our ass as we sit for hours plowing through that awesome chapter of the next best seller.

Stephen King's Writing Space

A bookcase is always helpful. Most writers have stacks of books for reference. And we need somewhere to cram all those versions of our WIP.

So, those are the necessities. In my dream room I'm gonna need:

•  Dog beds, because Gracie & Cupcake are always with me. 
• A bulletin board. I like to pin notes/timelines up so I can keep track and refresh my memory when writing. 
• A window. I need the feeling of space around me. Windows help if the room is smallish. 
• I need to place my back to the wall. Weird, I know, but I work best that way. 

 This was my writing room but a shift in family dynamics took it away. I made that funky desk myself and wrote very well (I hope) when I sat at it.  I'm now working on finding a new space.

What's in your Writer's Space?