Nano Log: Writing Communities

One of the most important things that’s helped me along not only this month but through all of my writing journey is the amazing support network that I’ve found among fellow writers. Whether these writers are from Nano events or from Twitter or other writing groups, having them by my side has helped me to grow so much as a writer and a person. Collaboration is one of the most powerful and important tools that we have as humans.

We can collaborate through actual shared projects (such as writing a novel together or creating a written roleplay), we can edit each others’ work, and we can offer general assistance or advice, like letting a friend bounce character ideas off of you.

It’s also great to have writing communities there for support. From the writers in my communities, I’ve learned about writing as a craft and as a business. Not only have I gotten a lot of practical creative advice from them, but it’s from members of these communities that I’ve learned most of what I know about independent editing and self-publishing.

They’ve also been there to offer support in the form of encouragement. It’s not hard to get discouraged when looking at the garbage of a first draft or when drowning in an abundance of plot bunnies. But I’ve always had other writers to pick me up and keep me going.

Not only has surrounding myself with other writers given me opportunity for collaboration, but it’s also helped me to grow and develop, both as a person and as an artist. These other writers have showed me how to move past periods of self-doubt and keep creating.

Whether I need someone to give me feedback on a novel draft or answer worldbuilding questions or offer a friendly dose of encouragement, I’ve always been able to rely on my writing friends. And, of course, writers are just a lot of fun to have around. We’re pretty wacky people, constantly straddling the line between artistry and insanity. Without the other writers I constantly interact with, I don’t think my writing would be nearly as good as it is. I take so much inspiration from other writers during the creative process.

Having these amazing other writers in my life has meant so much to me. I’m blessed to have each of them in my community.

Nano Log: Strike a Match with Music

Whether your goal as a writer is to teach, to inspire, or to entertain, there’s a good chance—especially if you’re writing fiction—that you’re trying to ignite a fire within your reader. You want to intellectually and emotionally move each person who reads your work.

But creating this fire requires an initial spark of inspiration. Finding this can be one of the hardest parts of writing, whatever kind of project you’re working on.

Too many people wait for inspiration to strike them like a bolt of lightning. The problem with this is that it’s unreliable, unpredictable, and unsustainable. You’re unlikely to be struck, you’re less likely to be struck often, and if you are struck, the results aren’t always what you’d hoped for. Try managing the fire that results from that mess.

Inspiration, contrary to popular myth, is something that writers have to create for themselves. If we waited for these sparks to happen on their own, we’d rarely have anything to write. So instead of standing in the rain with a lightning rod, we go back inside and search the drawers for a matchbox.

For a lot of us, that matchbox is actually music. Listening to music as we write is one way that we can use to light a fire and keep it going. It doesn’t guarantee us the next great American novel, because pretty much nothing does. It does, however, make it easier to write when we take the power away from the unpredictable elements and start the fire ourselves.

This one tool, it turns out, is different for many writers who use is.

We choose our music differently. Some of us prefer songs without words or written in languages we don’t understand. This makes it easier to concentrate on the words that we’re writing and keeps us from being distracted by the desire to sing along to a catchy song. This is what I’ll usually do, depending on what I’m working on.

Sometimes we like to pick songs based on genre or personal preference. Whether we tend to listen to country or electronic or pop, that’s what we choose when they’re writing.

Other writers will choose their music based on song lyrics. They pick things with lines that connect somehow to their plot or characters. Since discovering musician Dalton Rapattoni, I’ve found that a couple of his songs really speak to the main character of my current work-in-progress.

How do you choose your music? Do you find lyrics distracting or inspiring? Do you stick with whatever genres you usually listen to?

We organize our music differently. Some of us will categorize music by mood, meaning that we have a different list to choose from for whatever emotion we’re trying to convey. This can be characters’ moods or the overall mood of a scene. Something with a racing beat, for example, for a chase scene or something dark and sad for the character battling depression.

We can also organize our music by character or project. You could create a playlist meant to represent a character or even an entire project.

So how do you prefer to sort your writing music? Do you have playlists of sad music, happy music, etc.? Or do you have lists that relate to characters or stories? I personally do both.

We use our music differently. Some authors prefer to manually switch from song to song as they write. If you know what you want to listen to and when you want to listen, this method may be right for you. Working off of a playlist isn’t for everyone.

Some like to listen to a specific song or playlist on repeat. I think I’d go crazy doing this, but if there’s a single piece or collection of music that creates the spark for you, then listening to it constantly may be the best way to keep your fire lit.

Some writers, including me, prefer to create a “smart” playlist. Using music apps like Pandora (my personal preference) you can put together a list of songs and then sit back as the algorithms suggest others that may appeal to you. Pandora learns pretty quickly what I like to listen to on each of my stations and saves me the time of having to manually collect songs. And I also stumble across perfect songs for my lists, often songs that I hadn’t known before.

How do you listen? Do you put together a list, listen to one song at a time, or let a program select songs for you?

Chasing lighting isn’t the most reliable way to get your fire going strong. But by strategically including music in your writing process, you can strike a match whenever you want and create a flame that you can control.

If you like to listen to music as you write, do you use any of the methods that I’ve mentioned for collecting, organizing, and using your writing music? Or do you have your own system that I didn’t touch on? Let me know in the comments below!

Nano Log: Creating and Developing Characters

The character creation process is, for me, a tricky thing. Because there’s no such thing as a “usual” when it comes to the people who populate my stories or my methods of developing them. Some I have to psychoanalyze before they start to open up to me; others show up, introduce themselves to me, and tell me exactly what they’ll be doing in the story they want me to write. There’s plenty of room for variation in the process.

We’re a third of the way through Camp Nano, and one of my biggest priorities in the past ten days has been adding words to my draft as quickly as possible. But I’ve also been taking all the time I can afford to develop my characters.

Though character creation and development can come in many forms depending on the writer, the type of project, or even the character themselves, there are a few key practices that I follow.

I let my characters form naturally.

When a character idea first comes to me, it can be incredibly vivid or frustratingly blurry. What remains constant is that I get a general “feel” for the kind of person that they are. That character “core” is almost always the first thing that materializes in my mind.

Inspiration can come from anywhere. For me, a character idea can be inspired by something random that I see going about my life, like a stranger that I see on the bus or a cool knickknack I come across at a thrift store. Or a character can suddenly appear to fill an empty spot in my story. For example, if I need a sometime-antagonist that can double as a part-time role model, sometimes someone will just show up who happens to fit those qualifications.

Once a character idea is in my head, I usually leave it alone to incubate for a while. I try not to act too quickly so I don’t lose those core characteristics. Character ideas are elusive when they’re first forming. And if I can’t hold onto them until they’re more concrete, they change on me.

I write down details as they come to me.

Right now, I have a template that I’ve been working off of. I like to use this as a character development exercise and also as a reference sheet that I can look back at during the rest of the writing process. I’ve created the form by collecting and adapting character development material from a variety of different sources. I’ll link to a blank version of this form here.

There are a few of things to remember with this form. The first is that each writer’s process is different. The items on my form may or may not fit your needs. And if that’s the case, feel free to play with it to make it into the tool that best suits your style and your project. That’s how I created this resource in the first place.

The second is that I’ve purposely left certain fields up to interpretation. When I’ve shared this with writers I’ve collaborated with, I’ve had a lot of questions about what’s supposed to go in certain fields. The answer is simple: write whatever makes sense to you. If you’re going to be using it as a reference, it only makes sense to use structure and language that will make your job easier.

Finally, this resources is very extensive but not exhaustive. What you put into this form will not be all there is to your character, but feel free to add fields or categories if you want addition info. Similarly, don’t feel pressured to fill out every detail the form asks for. One writer friend complained to me that there was just too much to fill out. If it’s too much for you or for your character, then just skip over what you don’t want or need.

I track changes with my characters as they occur.

I’ll often continue to develop my characters through personality tests or interview questions. There are a lot of good character development threads on the NaNoWriMo website. Whether I’m giving a character the Myers-Briggs test or the Pottermore Hogwarts house quiz, I learn a lot about them with the questions I ask.

I also like to develop my characters by roleplaying them a little. I might, for example, write a scene where a character has to choose which Divergent faction to join or a scene where two characters from different stories meet and push each other’s buttons a little. I’m also a fan of written roleplaying, so I’ll sometimes throw in characters from works-in-progress to see how they do under completely different circumstances than their own.

Finally, I add to my characters as the plot deems necessary. Sometimes the story will need something very specific to happen and there’s only one person for the job. When that happens, it will usually fit with a character that I already have.

I like to just build on my characters’ core traits as I go. Characters can change within their own arcs or through the writing process. Sometimes storytelling will reveal something about my character that I never knew before. Maybe he’s a closet nerd. Maybe she’s secretly in love with her best friend. When I learn interesting little things like this as I go, I’ll add it to that character’s form.

This might even mean overriding something that I’d thought before. That’s fine, especially if the new information fits the character better or makes the plot more interesting. Don’t resist change. Former Pixar writer Emma Coats says, “Discount the 1st thing that comes to mind. And the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th – get the obvious out of the way. Surprise yourself.”

Whether because of story planning or character arcs, you’ll want to write these changes down so you can remember them.

I trust my characters to reveal themselves to me in due time.

Don’t be afraid to leave blanks on the form! Just because there’s a field doesn’t mean you need to use it. When I write, I only fill half to three-quarters of the fields I’ve provided for myself. Sometimes I put random information in as a placeholder just to test it out.

But don’t force anything that doesn’t fit. If I test run something and it isn’t working, I remove or replace it and continue to develop my character form there.

If you approach character development with the mindset that each person in your book needs to develop organically, both in-universe and out-of-universe, you’ll be setting yourself up to create more believable and relatable characters.

I create and develop my characters by letting ideas form naturally, writing down as many details as I can about each character, keeping track of changes in my characters, and trusting each of them to reveal themselves to me in their own time.

Nano Log: This Month's Challenge

Once I’d written my first novel, I was hooked. The crazy roller coaster of emotions connected to the project was dizzying, but I’d never been as proud of myself as I was when I looked at my full wordcount meter days before the deadline. For the past several years, I’ve participated in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo or just Nano) and have written a few novels in a month each.

I’ve been writing ever since I learned to read, but attempting my first full-length book opened up an entirely new world to me. Participating in Nano each November and in Camp Nano, a spin-off event that takes place in April and July, has taught me a lot about how to put a story together. The editing work I’ve done since then has taught me how to nicely polish a story once it’s been put together.

Nano and Camp Nano helped me to create new characters and worlds, to discover new things about my own writing style and habits, and to become a part of an incredibly supportive and creative online community of writers. Through NaNoWriMo, I’ve improved my writing, increased my confidence, and connected with fantastic writers.

And that’s why I’m going to experiment a little. I’m going to try something this month that I’ve never tried before. I’m going to write, instead of a book, a short story collection.

I look forward to challenging myself this month. My fastest writing sprints have taught me that I’m capable of writing 1,000 to 1,500 words per half-hour, and I’ll be pushing myself to get into that range with each writing session. My goal is (1) to write 30,000 words by the end of the month and (2) to have clear outlines for my main plot and subplots and a strong understanding of how they all tie together.

To help me reach these goals, I’ve allotted 1-hour blocks of time each day to dedicate solely to working on my camp project. In addition to drafting, I also like to take time after I’ve worked on increasing my wordcount to put together notes for my next writing session. If I have a few scenes outlined (whether it’s with an actual outline or just a few sentences detailing what I want to happen) it’s a lot easier to get started the next time I write.

When I have time, I also like to get around to non-writing activities that affect my writing, like interacting with other writers, reading camp care packages (mini-peptalks full of writing advice), or participating in events like virtual write-ins.

I also plan to create and publish a blog post each week for the duration of the month, rather than the one per month I usually post. I’ll just put aside a little time a few days a week to work on blog posts. Hopefully, that’ll be enough to get me a post for each week of Camp Nano, because posting on my blog is one way that I stay connected with my community and chronicle my journey.

The tools that I’m using to follow my strategy and achieve this month’s goals are Scrivener, a couple kinds of writing exercises, and interaction with the Nano community.

My exercises include a poetry book and these part-of-speech prompts that I put together specifically to use this month.

I bought the book of poetry writing warm-ups at a thrift store about a year ago, and it’s been pretty helpful to me in getting my creativity flowing when I don’t know what to write about. I pick and choose which ones I want to do and then give myself five to ten minutes for each exercise.

I also have the part-of-speech exercise I put together. I wrote, on color-coordinated paper, 30 each of random nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs, tossed them into a little box, and mixed them up. Each day I’ll draw one paper of each color and incorporate each into at least one scene that I write that day.

Yesterday’s combination (stained patio learning hesitantly) didn’t seem to make much sense when I first read it aloud. But it actually inspired a completely unplanned scene that taught me more about my characters!

I’m looking forward to tackling this challenge during April. With a solid plan and the tools to fall back on, I know that I can reach my goal.

What are your writing goals for this month, whether or not you’re participating in Camp Nano? How do you plan to reach your goals and what tools have you prepared to get you there?

Writing Tip: Learning as You Go

“No work is ever wasted. If it’s not working, let go and move on –it’ll come back around to be useful later.” –Former Pixar Story Artist, Emma Coats

My 2014 NaNoWriMo novel was a wreck. Though I did reach the 50,000 word goal, the project fell apart at the end of November. You can track that disaster,  which starts with this post (the pre-Nano portion of my Nano Log), if you’re interested. And, in case you don’t know what Nano is, you can check out the website here. It’s a fantastic program for writers of all kinds that comes with a supportive and inspirational community.

Despite its early end, the project was a great exercise in character development for me, and I really had a lot of fun writing it. I also learned a lot about my personal writing style. And whether or not I continue work on that particular novel, I can already see the positive impact that it’s had on every project since then, whether directly or indirectly.

I think the biggest writing lesson that I’ve learned through failure—other than the importance of backing up my work, which I had to learn the hard way—is that I excel at preparation.

I don’t, however, excel at improvising (or, as the writing community often calls it, pantsing—as in, flying by the seat of your pants).

That November, I’d decided to experiment by trying this method. I knew plenty of writers who wrote this way, and it seemed worth it to give it a try. When I started writing, I had a hazy idea about what I wanted to happen in the story. My characters were paper-thin collections of facts. To push myself along in the process, I’d collected random writing prompts from the internet, hoping that they’d keep words coming as I wrote my draft.

As someone who likes to plan ahead, I often prewrite for about as long as I draft or revise. Generally, I can be found outlining or graphing plots and subplots or creating detailed analysis profiles for characters or designing fictional worlds.

Because I’d decided to pants, I did none of these things. The plot followed my internet prompts and whatever ideas popped into my head. And it took a while for my characters to go from two-dimensional ideas to believable people. I just jumped into the whole thing and did whatever came naturally.

Some of it was good, some of it was bad. And I managed to grow a lot as an author because of that. My good points got better, and my weaker points improved with the practice.

By the end of the month, I had an entertaining plot, engaging scenes, and relatable characters.

By the end of the month, I’d also discovered a problem during my research. I’d based my entire novel on an incorrect assumption. The premise that was the backbone of my book was flawed and I couldn’t use it.

So I had to shelf that project for now. I may find a way to repair and finish it, or I may not. Either way, it was an enjoyable learning experience.

When it comes to writing, I’ve seen that effort is never wasted. I don’t trash any of my ideas; I recycle them. I’ve seen themes, characters, and plot ideas return reincarnated, better than they were before and more fitting in my newer work. Whatever I don’t use the way I’d originally intended, I learn from.

Don’t be afraid to experiment as you write. Learn from your mistakes. Build future stories on the foundation of all the lessons you’ve learned. As a result, everything you write post-error will automatically start out stronger.

For anyone who’s interested in checking out some of my 2014 work-in-progress, Flying Change, I posted several excerpts throughout my Nano journey. You can read those stating with this post here.

What lessons have you learned through your writing, whether you went the easy route or the hard one? Let me know in the comments below or link me to a blog post of your own!

Creative Chat: Writing Obsessions

My current writing obsessions are symbolism and intertextuality. That is, the use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities in art (especially in literature) and the ongoing interaction between multiple works of art (especially literature).

When I say “current writing obsessions,” I mean those things that I’ve been itching to write, the things that drive me increasingly toward insanity as I struggle to get them onto the page the way they work in my head. They’re those things that I’ve been devoting my time to studying because I need to be able to execute them the way they’re executed in the works I admire. I’m sure you all know the feeling.

Your current writing obsession is something that you notice everywhere from books to television to other forms of art. Whether you’re looking for it or not, you start to see it more and more in the things you watch, read, and listen to. Ultimately, regardless of what it is, it’s something you’re obsessed about as a writer.

I’ve been reading about the use of symbolism and intertextuality in literature, and that’s opened up this door for me. I really like the idea of storytelling going deeper than the surface, whether it’s through the use of symbols or through the dialogue between new stories and an established ones.

Creating strong symbolism and intertextuality in your writing will keep readers coming back. And each time they do, they may learn something more about your book, themselves, or the world. They’ll be able to work their way inward, with each layer becoming bigger and better than the one before it. Developing these layers in your work could be the difference between writing a nice story that people read and smile about and creating a lasting piece of art that readers will hold on to and cherish for years to come.

I want my writing to be intellectually and emotionally engaging; I want to create stories that keep readers coming back for more the way I’ve gone back to books I’ve connected with. I enjoy engaging with authors, through their work, to discover meanings that lie beneath the surface, and I want my readers to be able to engage with me in a similar experience.

I’m studying and experimenting with symbolism and intertextuality because I think that learning and perfecting their use will greatly improve the quality of the writing I produce. Learning from the greats about the tricks of the trade that they use will, at the very least, expand my knowledge of the literary world and allow me to better enjoy my reading. At best, they’ll exponentially amplify elements of my original stories so that they can be better enjoyed by my readers.

I plan to use the knowledge I gain to create content that readers will be able to analyze and enjoy. I want to connect with my audience in a deep and meaningful way. I want to touch them and teach them like I’ve been touched and taught by other authors.

So, what are your current writing obsessions? What have you become passionate about, and how are you incorporating it into your writing? Leave a comment below or link me to your own blog or vlog post!

Writing Tip: Refilling the Well

Happy New Year! It’s January 2016, and the year is overflowing with opportunities. We’re hunting for jobs, joining gyms, and learning new languages. Everyone seems to have a long list of New Year’s Resolutions, and everyone is ready to capitalize on the unlimited potential that a new year inevitably brings.

I have my own list of things that I want to accomplish in 2016, and, so far, I’ve been doing pretty well. My progress on most of my goals is exactly where it should be for the end of the first month.

Unfortunately, my writing goals are the exception to this rule. Particularly my goal to write 1,000 words per day. I think I’ve stuck to that once or twice in all of January.

It’s not that I’m not trying, because I am. But, aside from the challenge of making time to write each day, I often feel powerless to turn a blinking caret into literature the way Rumpelstiltskin turned straw into gold.

Each of us has a well of inspiration that we draw from. And the water levels in these wells are usually well-maintained by those very special springs unique to the mind of a creative writer, the springs that turn everyday people and events into fiction fodder.

Yet sometimes the springs fail us. Sometimes, when we come to draw water, we find a vast, echoing emptiness.

What’s a writer to do when their well’s run dry?

I think that the answer depends on what’s causing your writers’ block.

Your writing couldn’t possibly be good enough. At least, that’s what you tell yourself at times. And, during those times, you revise your work to death, uprooting the good along with the bad.

Sometimes you’re bogged down by a single routine, a single mindset, or a single writing method. Trapped in tunnel vision, you become incapable of seeing things creatively and you kill new ideas before they’ve even taken shape.

Or sometimes the problem is simply a lack of inspiration. The laws of physics tell us that energy can’t be destroyed or created. It just changes form. And the same goes for your creative energy. You can’t create something out of nothing. Of course, you can’t just sit around waiting for your muse to show up—muses are notoriously fickle—but you also can’t expect fantastic output when there hasn’t been any input. Creating anything worth your time will become exponentially harder if you’ve failed to nourish your imagination.

So, now that you’ve identified the cause of your empty well, what do you do about it? Curing writers’ block is like curing hiccups—all your friends may swear by a remedy that just doesn’t work for you, and it can be difficult to find what does. Based on what I’ve learned from experience and from other writers, there’s no one-size-fits-all advice, especially in the world of creative writing. But here are several methods that have often gotten me through creative dry spells.

Believe in yourself. I’m aware of how cliché that sounds, but confidence in yourself and your work is crucial to producing quality content. One thing that boosts my confidence is going back through old pieces that I’ve written that I’m proud of, especially ones that other people have enjoyed as well. This reminds me of the things that I’ve done right, which I’m fully capable of doing again.

It also helps to remember that each of us has doubts. We’ll all have moments when we don’t believe in our own abilities.

Vary your routine. Take a different route to work, eat lunch with someone other than your usual crew, or take a class on something you know absolutely nothing about. Breaking from your everyday traditions can free your mind and get you thinking creatively again.

Vary your thought process. Approach the familiar as though seeing it for the first time. Try to observe your world through someone else’s eyes. I use my fictional characters’. You’ll be surprised by how a small shift of perspective will transform the mundane into a wealth of inspiration.

Vary your writing process. If you’ve outlined each of your recent projects, do a couple of writing exercises that require spur-of-the-moment creation. Or, if you’ve been revising on a computer, print your next draft and mark up the hard copy before typing the corrections.

Store up input. Consistently churning out original content without taking any in, you’ll eventually run out of ideas. So read books, watch movies, and listen to music. Absorbing the stories around us keeps ideas forming and flowing.

Writers’ block is practically a rite of passage for us; it just comes with the territory. Luckily, restoring your well can be as simple as reminding yourself how amazing you are, breaking free of routines you’ve been stuck in, or spending an afternoon curled up with a cup of tea and a library book.

Book Review: A Walk To Remember by Nicholas Sparks

Book Title: A Walk To Remember

Author: Nicholas Sparks

Britni’s Blog Score: 10 miracles out of 10

Britni’s Blog Rating: Recommended for teenage readers.

I thought that it was only fitting that I review a romance for Valentine’s Day. A Walk To Remember by Nicholas Sparks is one of the more recent classics and also one of the best romances that I’ve read.

The Plot. Landon Carter looks back to forty years ago, to the time when he fell in love with the last girl in the world he thought he’d ever fall for—Jamie Sullivan, the minister’s daughter.

The Cast. Seventeen-year-old Landon is a senior at Beaufort High. He’s seen as a good student by his teachers and a fairly responsible kid by his mother, but he doesn’t have any real aspirations for himself. Landon puts in the minimum amount of energy in life, doing only what he has to do to get through, and he cares too much about what is high school friends think about him.

Jamie is quite the opposite of him. The daughter of the preacher, she wears unflattering clothes with no makeup, she carries a Bible with her school books, and she doesn’t take part in the social drama of high school. She’s an outcast with no friends and she’s made fun of by her schoolmates, including Landon at first.

When Jamie and Landon begin spending time together, she changes him. She sees more in him than he sees in himself. Her faith in him, coupled with the fact that she holds him to a higher standard than anyone else in his life does, pushes him to become a better person. He finds himself secretly adding money to her fundraising efforts and caring about people that he felt immature apathy towards.

The Message. Sparks shows in this well-crafted romance the difference that one person can make to another. Landon never saw himself becoming such a caring young man. He never thought he’d be setting high standards and goals for himself. But the role that Jamie plays in his life helps him to become better in so many ways. Love can change a person in miraculous ways.

My Recommendation. This is a very clean romance story. There’s no sex in it and almost no swearing, so I think that it’s suitable for younger readers as well as older ones. This was the first Nicholas Sparks book that I’d read; I must have been about seven or eight the first time I read it.

My Notes. This book is one of my favorites not only for the characters, but for the emotions that leap off of the page to touch your heart. When I was reading this book, I felt all kinds of emotional ups and downs with each turn of the page and each new revelation.

In Conclusion. A Walk To Remember was a beautifully written romance novel that puts a twist on typical expectations. Written from the male perspective and playing with the stereotype of a good girl falling for a bad boy, this book is one of my favorites.

And what better time to read this novel than during the Valentine’s season?

Movie Review: Here Comes the Boom

Movie Title: Here Comes the Boom
Distributor: Sony Pictures
Director: Frank Coraci
Writers: Allan Loeb, Kevin James
Cast: Kevin James, Henry Winkler, Salma Hayek, Bas Rutten, Charice
Britni's Blog Score: 9 MMA fighters out of 10
Britni's Blog Rating: Recommended for families

When I saw the trailer for Here Comes the Boom, I expected to be amused and entertained as I watched the film. What I didn't realize was how strong the story was going to be, though, and how many powerful messages would be hidden between scenes of physical comedy. I'd underestimated just how moving this movie would be.

The Plot. High school teacher Scott Voss (James) isn't great at his job. He's not even good at his job. And he hasn't been for a very long time. Worse yet, he hardly cares that he's so bad at his job. The man who was named teacher of the year a decade ago now shows up late to class and then refuses to answer the questions of any students who actually care about their education. When one Malia (Charice) tries to get a straight answer on information contained in her textbook, Scott shuts her down. He tells her that the chances of her using anything she learns in his class are probably zero, anyway.

But Scott's co-worker Marty Streb (Winkler) does care. He cares about his under-funded music class and he teaches it with a passion that's contagious. But when the school is forced to scale back their budget, cutting the music program and putting Marty out of a job, Scott stands up and says something, knowing that he can't let his friend, who's about to have a new addition to his family, lose his job.

But when a citizenship class taught by Scott, private music lessons given by Marty, and bake sales held by school nurse Bella (Hayek) aren't getting them anywhere near the fifty grand needed to keep the program open, Scott hatches an insane plan. He's gonna fight in the MMA--and he's gonna lose.

The Characters. Each of the characters in this movie carries his or her own charm. They're all quirky and funny and they contribute so much to the viewing pleasure of this movie.

The Message. As Voss teaches a biology class, he talks about microbiology and stagnant cells, paraphrasing Sir Isaac Newton's laws. The way he puts it, "A cell that is not in motion is not a productive member of the system." And the other cells will then copy that stagnant cell. Before you know what's happening, the system starts to die.

Well, this is what's happened to the system of Voss's school. Teachers who don't care have just been pushing students along through school like they're herding cattle. But all that decays, says Voss, can be restored.

He teaches his students that even a system that seems to be dead will be healed when the cells start to work together again. And then he sets out to prove this principle by doing everything in his power to save the school's music program. He shows that one person can make a difference by being the change that he wants to see in the school system. And through self-sacrifice, he does indeed heal the system.

The movie is also very pro-arts. The movie supports the need for these extra-curriculars in education with the repeated quote "Without music, life would be a mistake."

The Team. The stars of this movie are hilarious and moving. We get to watch Scott and Marty as they train to lose the MMA championship. We get to see Bella tackle Scott on what he calls "the weirdest date ever". We get to see Niko (Rutten) and his quirky friends have an all-out food fight. Every one of this movies leads are so full of humor and heart that they bring their characters to life for us to laugh at and learn from.

James did an excellent job in writing this movie, and his co-stars shined as they helped him portray in on-screen.

My Recommendation. Here Comes the Boom was such a fun movie to watch and it's perfectly suited to families. It's message is inspiring and shows us all that we can make a difference.

I suggest that parents of young children allow this movie at their own discretion. As its plot hinges around the UFC and MMA in general, there's a lot of on-screen violence. Scott is pummeled beyond his senses during fights, and we see some of his post-fight injuries, including a dislocated shoulder that Bella has to pull back into place. Scott's training sessions can be a bit brutal at times, too.

My Notes. I personally loved this movie. It was funny, inspiring, and entertaining. I love the positive messages affirmed in it, and I enjoyed the sense of humor carried throughout.

In Conclusion. This movie was brilliantly written so that there was never a dull moment. The talented cast, writers, and production team created a movie featuring a hilarious journey and an inspiring message told through the vehicle of altogether lovable characters. The feats performed are incredible and the adventure was memorable, and there were plenty of laughs along the way. Inspirational and funny, this comedy definitely brings the boom.

Writing Tip: Unearthing Your Novel's Potential

You've been digging holes for hours, days, months. You've done all of the research that you could, you've put in the time and effort. Your years of hard work have finally got you something tangible. It's your finished draft. It could be a trilobite short story. Or it could be that you've got the literary equivalent of a tyrannosaurus rex on your hands. Whatever you've written, it's like you've won the lottery it's so good.

Well, except for those two characters that you never connected to any action in the plot.  Oh, yeah, and what was with the way you just stopped in chapter seven? You never resolved anything! You changed the subject and piled on chapter after chapter building on that shaky foundation. Plus, we still don't know what happened to the great uncle's yorkie. Well, now's the time for revision. Not literally now. At least finish reading this post first. Then you can get to work fixing that precious, yet disastrous, rough draft.

And I've got a revision process that will give your dead dino an extreme makeover. I'm no literary scholar, I just have a working method. No, I'm not a paleontologist, either. I got all I know about dinosaurs from Michael Crichton. My revision excavation philosophy is to work my way down through the layers from the largest chunks of text to the smallest. From the skull to the phalanges, if you will. If you'll just humor me for a few minutes, I think we could unearth something incredible together.

You know that you've got something amazing just waiting to be released. But where the heck do you start? Step one of your novel excavation includes dividing your book into manageable pieces, labeling each division, and rearranging your scenes.

It's widely suggested that you don't revise your novel immediately after drafting it. Everything's still too fresh in your mind and you're probably still too emotionally connected to the things in your story to adequately judge your own work. I like to send drafts to fellow writers for Beta reviews while I shift my focus. When I return to my novel, I'm mentally prepared to dive into the work ahead of me.

First, label each chapter and scene; describe what's happening in each scene and who the major players are. When you're done, start cutting anything that's not necessary. Filler scenes (Sheryl and Grandma's five pages of copyright-prohibited karaoke) and filler characters (that man Sheryl describes in detail and never thinks about again) have got to go. If it doesn't benefit your story, it bogs it down.

It's important to give your readers everything in the proper order. Avoid info dumps at the beginning of your novel. Spreading them out across the coming chapters is much more efficient and will make for a better read. Build up to epic battle scenes or scandalous reveals. Rather than coming to them early into the story, just hint at them and delay the payoff. The longer readers have to wait, the more suspense builds. Reorder your story to create the most entertaining and coherent pattern.

Wow, this is it. You've made it to the beautiful treasure that you've been anticipating. Wait a minute. But this is just a pile of dirty bones and rocks. Don't worry. You can fix it. Each scene needs to have its own conflict, a peak, and an opening hook. Your scene's conflict can be anything keeping a character from their goals. Everything doesn't need to be resolved by the end of each scene, of course, but each scene requires a clear beginning, middle, and end. The peak, or the scene's climax, will often come near the end. Everything else should point toward that peak.

You need to draw readers into each scene. Open with a hook, just as you would open your novel with a frantic run through the woods or the dissolve of a marriage. Your audience will only stick around if you grab their attention.

This mess is starting to look like an actual dinosaur! Now it's time to drop your shovel and get a brush so you can zero in on the details. Delete the fluff. You don't need all of those extra sentences you wrote when you were desperate to fill the page. Reorder sentences within your paragraphs, placing the most important ones at the beginnings and ends. According to the primacy/recency principle, people most remember the first and last items in a set. And you want those stellar sentences to stand out.

That was a lot of work, but you're still not done. Now you're swapping that brush for a dental pick, because you need to clean the cracks in the skull and the spaces between those foot bones. By this point you're probably exhausted, but you're hopefully really excited, too. You're so close to seeing your project complete. When you're rewording, be concise. It's better to say something in 1,000 strong words than 5,000 boring or redundant ones. Cut out excessive modifiers; make your verbs and nouns more powerful instead. Lean toward active instead of passive voice. Proofread sentences for errors and rework them for style. You want to get your message to pack a punch.

Don't make the mistake of thinking that just because your story is revised, it's complete. Read, revise, repeat.You polish those bones! It will often take quite a few drafts to get your novel ready for publication. When you think that you've refined your novel to its peak, there's likely still room for improvement. Send it off to a set of Beta readers. They can give you a perspective other than your own and they won't be as hesitant in killing your darlings. Continue this cycle until you've attained the highest point of novel perfection.

The revision process can be a lot like the excavation of a prehistoric treasure. When you put the time and effort into releasing the potential that your novel holds, it can become invaluable. It takes a lot of hard work to write and revise a book, but it's worth it when you hold the finished product in your hands and feel an overwhelming sense of accomplishment.

Book Review: Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

Book Title: Number the Stars
Author: Lois Lowry
Britni's Blog Score: 9 brave children out of 10
Britni's Blog Rating: Recommended for all ages

I've decided to review Lois Lowry's classic book Number the Stars. I read this book as required reading years ago, probably back in junior high. And I remember being glued to it, turning page after page to see what was going to happen next. I recently purchased an ebook copy and reread it. It was exactly as I remember.

The plot itself is simple, but it's the enormous weight that each plot point carries that makes this book special to me. Since first reading this book I've carried vivid memories of the dramatic scenes and bold actions and the strong emotions they made me feel. I had to experience those emotions and watch those scenes unfold all over again, so I did.

The Plot. Ten-year-old Annemarie Johansen and her best friend Ellen Rosen live in 1943 Denmark. The Nazi soldiers that stand on many street corners have been there for so long that they've become less noticeable than the street signs. Until the night that a member of the Danish Resistance breaks curfew to bring them the news. The news that Nazis are closing Jewish-owned shops and hunting down members of the Rosen's synagogue. Ellen is left with the Johansens, who pretend for her own safety that she's their daughter, while her parents flee the city. Annemarie and her family set out on a mission to save the Rosens by participating in the underground railroad of the Danish Resistance to smuggle the Jews to Sweden, where they'll be safe from the war. Annemarie must learn the true meaning of bravery in order to save the lives of those she loves.

The Cast. Annemarie, though young, is brave and selfless. Understanding that her cause is greater than she is, she's willing to risk her life to save the people she cares about. That courage would be admirable in anyone, but it's even more impressive and convicting when being displayed in a ten-year-old girl.  The ongoing war and the dangers to her friends force Annemarie to grow up quickly, as we see in her perceptive nature, intelligence, and courage.

Annemarie is surrounded by adults young and old who've dedicated themselves to protecting the Jews and defying the Nazis. Mama, Papa, Uncle Henrik, and Peter all sacrifice themselves for the freedom of the Jews.

The Message. Beyond the lessons taught through these fictional characters is the historical lesson. Set in Denmark during World War II, Number the Stars gives us a realistic glimpse into what it was like for many families at that time. Lowry does an excellent job of illustrating a historical reality that was based on the real life experiences of Holocaust survivors.

My Recommendation. In my opinion, this book is suitable for everyone. Even though its style and POV make it easily digestible to young children, it's also something that will have an impact on older readers. I'm nineteen and I bought the book so I could read it again after years of just remembering it from my school reading list.

I recommend that young children of about ten and under either read with a parent/teacher or read on their own and discuss it. It may be difficult for them to understand without some adult guidance or outside resources.

My Notes. Telling the story of the Holocaust from the perspective of a young girl gives the story a POV that I found particularly interesting the first time around. Her observations are simple and child-like, which multiplies the wisdom of her statements.

In Conclusion. One of the reasons that I couldn't put the book down either time that I read it was the courage that was displayed by ordinary people. The adults in Annemarie's life help to rescue victims of persecution by personally taking those victims to safety. And Annemarie herself must risk her life in order to save her best friends family, as well as her own. These characters, much like the real unsung heroes of World War II, show us that you don't have to be anything extraordinary in order to do extraordinary things. Time after time, these characters selflessly defend their friends, family, and country. And I find that inspiring.

Even more inspiring is that, though this novel and its cast are fictional, it tells the true story of so many families during World War II who were torn apart and sent to concentration camps or who sacrificed their own lives to protect those who were being persecuted.

Though, before rereading it recently, I'd barely touched the book in years, the memories of events of the story were seared into my mind. That's why I came back to read it again. I wanted to relive those moments with Annemarie and the other characters.

Theater Review: Moses at Sight & Sound Theatres

Show Title: Moses
Venue: Sight & Sound Theatres
Britni's Blog Score: 10 miracles out of 10
Britni's Blog Rating: Recommended for everyone

I've just been back to Sight & Sound Theatres to see one of their latest shows, Moses. Sight & Sound, whose mission statement, to paraphrase, is to present the gospel of Jesus Christ through dramatization of the Scriptures, was rated the second most popular attraction in Strasburg by tripadvisor.com, with 97% possitive feedback.

I knew that I wouldn't be disappointed, because I have previous experience with this theater, and I've walked away impressed each time.

This event began for me with the lovely preshow that was put on for us in the lobby. The presentation was made up of four old-fashioned carolers singing a medley of Christmas tunes accompanied by Christmas music. And the finale included indoor snowfall. I mean, an actual indoor snowfall. Not just little pieces of Styrofoam or paper, but real snow.

The Plot. As the title suggests, this story was based off of the life of the Biblical figure of Moses. And I can say that, though taking some creative license, Sight & Sound offers a Biblical representation of the story.

Based on the story presented in the Biblical book of Exodus, the production follows Moses as he's born a Hebrew slave, adopted by an Egyptian princess, and called on by God to free his people.

The Characters. The characters in the production were given strong representation and were really fleshed out. When we read about them in the Bible, the focus is mainly on the great things that God does through them. Though this is definitely shown in Moses, the Sight & Sound writers have built off of the basic templates to create characters who seem more human than words on the page of an ancient text.

In this show, Moses is much more than the bearded man who talks to God on a mountain and tells the people what to do. Here he's depicted as a stuttering, fearful, and anger-ridden orphan who wants to resist God's purpose on his life. We see Moses and all of his insecurities and flaws, something that many retellings leave out or gloss over. And it makes his character more relatable and therefore easier to learn from.

The Players. The cast of the show was definitely talented. From acting to dancing to singing, everyone in this show was top-tier.

The Message. There are Biblical lessons to be learned from this production, including the importance of listening to God and the fact that how we each react to Him is dependent on the conditions of our hearts. But the entire plot is drawn up to point viewers to an even greater Leader than Moses and to showcase the sacrifice that He made for us.

My Recommendation. I recommend this show, and this theater, to everyone reading this blog. Not only is it a great outing for families, but its shows are a fantastic experience for anyone, regardless of age or religion. Even if you roll your eyes at the thought of a Christian show, the music and the effects are enough to wow the toughest critics.

My Notes. I thought that the show was entertaining, educational, and edifying. Moses is based on the Biblical book of Exodus and, as a woman who was raised Christian, I've read the story many times over. But I've never had it told quite like this. There wasn't a dull moment during this play. The plot moved quickly and was full of jokes, action scenes, and musical numbers to entertain the oldest and youngest members of the audience.

This theater is specially designed to pull you into the world of the story being told. The only effects that left me slightly disappointed were those used to create the burning bush. All considered, they probably did the best with what they had, but I wonder if they couldn't have made it look more like a bush on fire and less like a lit Christmas tree. Everything else blew me away. Everything from the brilliantly designed sets (so large, I've read, that they need to be moved by technology similar to that in GPS devices) on the wrap-around stage to the stars than twinkle overhead to the surround sound effects during the parting of the Red Sea was beautiful. They even used live animals throughout the entire thing!

In Conclusion. You should go see Moses. Or anything else that's playing at Sight & Sound. I've never been disappointed by one of their shows, and I have faith that the pattern of telling powerful stories in an enchanting way will continue.

During Moses, I was engaged, delighted, impressed, and taught. Sight & Sounds truly offers the perfect family experience.

I'm also looking forward to potentially seeing Joseph, which I've already seen once before. Though every show is fantastic, Joseph has remained my personal favorite since I saw it in the Lancaster County theater. It's been visiting with the sister theater in Branson, MO and will be returning to Pennsylvania in 2015.

Book Review: Skid by Doug Solter

Book Title: Skid

Author: Doug Solter

Britni's Blog Score: 8 racecars out of 10

Britni's Blog Rating: Recommended for teenage readers.

I recently reread what has become one of my favorite books, Skid by Doug Solter. This book was so much fun to read and it's also been a big inspiration to my own writing, as well. Therefore, I decided to write a review so I could share this book with other people.

The Plot. Seventeen-year-old Samantha Sutton is a racecar driver. Though she may not fit in with the other girls at her school or have a boyfriend or be totally into beauty, she shines when she's behind the wheel. When she's presented with the opportunity to become a test driver for a Formula 1 racing team, she jumps in with both feet, sending her reeling into a new world of expensive food, unexpected fame, and opportunities that she's only ever imagined--and that her father had imagined for her. Samantha is put to the test against family drama, racing gods, complicated romance, and her own dark secret. Will she be able to bring balance to her life and reach her ultimate goals?

The Cast.  I love how relatable and likable Solter has made his leading lady. Even though she's going through extraordinary circumstances, she's still just a teenage girl, and she's still like all of us young women who have a dream to chase. Even though she has her fair amount of flaws and failures, she fights her way through them, emerging strong and confident.

I liked the romance between her and love interest Manny, a sweet guy who cares for and respects Samantha in a way that she's never had. The family relationships in this book do take a backseat to a lot of the other action, but those too are full of tension and emotion.

There are no cardboard cutout people here. I was impressed with how Solter gave so much life to everyone on the pages. Each person in this book is an individual, which says a lot about Solter's writing ability. Manny's ex Hannah, Sarah Wolert, and Samantha's father. None of these people are ever seen in the flesh, and yet their stories are interesting, memorable. Emilio, in particular is a character I enjoyed reading. He's a formidable opponent with as much dedication as Samantha. Only he has no problem playing dirty when there's a trophy and a title at stake. He makes an intriguing antagonist for Samantha to go up against in the climax.

The Message. Doug Solter's book contains an empowering message that isn't just for young girls and women. Samantha, though facing odds stacked against her, faces challenge after challenge with daring and dedication. She doesn't let her mother's lack of approval keep her from moving to Germany, she doesn't let the racing world's sexist attitude keep her from racing, and she doesn't let her worst fear or her strongest opponent keep her from gunning for the championship.

We can all learn a little something from Samantha and her willingness to put it all on the line to reach her dreams. 

My Recommendation. The only reason that I recommend this book for teenagers and not for younger kids is because Skid touches on several mature and/or controversial topics such as homosexuality, drugs, and rape. I will say that none of these is presented in a particularly objectionable or offensive way (rape--or sex of any kind--is never seen), but some teen's parents may want to be careful. 

My Notes. The detailed imagery in Solter's book is amazing. The world of Skid came alive for me. As Samantha explored the globe in the name of racing, I traveled with her and took in the sights. Locations as well as people became characters. Racetracks are described in so much detail that I could see Samantha roaring through them, taking turn after turn, weaving her way between other drivers. I know nothing about Formula 1 or Nascar or cars in general, but Solter's use of racing jargon drew me into the story and made everything even more vivid. I was completely wrapped up in every moment, whether Samantha was on the track or off.

In Conclusion. This story is enrapturing, well written, and so very real. The views of the city are almost as breathtaking as the whiplash-inducing scenes told from within the racecar. Samantha Sutton is just an everyday teenage girl with an incredible opportunity and the courage to fight for her dreams. She's willing to put everything on the line and face impossible odds to achieve victory.

I loved how Solter brought each character to life for me. The cast is full of memorable characters, both good and bad. 

I loved this book and I highly recommend it. Since I bought it off of Amazon last October, I've already read it twice and I'll go back and read it again. This story of passion and determination will never get old. I'm looking forward to reading the second book, Rivals, which is available now. If what I've read is true, there will also be a third book to the Skid series. I'll add it to my reading list as soon as it comes out.

Nano Wrap-up 2014

This month, I've been taking a little bit of a break so I can wind down from NaNoWriMo. To be honest, most of this break has really been me working on some other projects that I haven't been able to get around to, so there's not too much rest involved there. But now that things have had time to cool down, I'll wrap things up with a retrospective look at Nano.

There were upswings and downswings and all kinds of emotions going on this November. The month wasn't without its challenges and obstacles. I lost momentum, and struggled with doubts, on and off. Several times, I wound up with a daily wordcount of 0. I had a day when I wasted time watching sitcoms and didn't write a single word. But this year's NaNoWriMo has taught me a lot. It wasn't without its writerly woes, but it's helped me to grow as a writer and to meet other writers.

The Journey. Well, the first morning I wrote 13 scenes right out of the gate and amassed about 6,000 words, getting off to a good start. My second day was a bit slower but my energy and creativity had a helpful little spike on day 3.

By day 5, I was 3k ahead of my projected twenty thousand words. I was still riding that first awesome wave and I was really excited about how things were going. This was an incredible stage of discovery for me. I'd killed off a character and added depth to the main character's love interest. I could feel Creative Liftoff brushing against my fingertips.

At the end of the first week, I was falling behind. I had big plans to catch up and get ahead the coming weekend. Even though I had a busy schedule, I was determined to fight my way back into the green.

Then week two began. On day 8, I made it past my doubt. I had an epiphany and wrote over five thousand words that day. Things took a turn for the better again as I looked forward to developing my characters, world, and plotlines.

November 9th was a 6,716-word day. Mainly it was because I'd been sprinting online with other Wrimos. Not only did it help me boost my numbers quickly, but it was a lot of fun. Seeing little snippets of what other people were writing also gave me a couple of good ideas.

On day 10, I ran into some trouble. I couldn't see myself reaching my goal of 150k for the month, and I was wondering why I'd ever even taken on the challenge. I'd run out of steam and I was having so much trouble moving my wordcount forward. Due to the loss in momentum, I struggled to come up with anything new to write.

Though my characters were great and were already revealing themselves to me, I'd somehow lost contact with them. I was stuck writing whatever stupid material would fill the blank page. I was really lost and I just needed someone to encourage me and tell me that I could keep going. Thankfully the Wrimo community is super supportive.

It wasn't easy to battle my way through day 11, either. I was creatively drained, 10k behind, and completely overwhelmed. Doubt was really settling in now. On day 16, I wrote a scene that I have very mixed feelings about. You can read it here. I think once you'll take a look, you'll know what I'm talking about.

The next rough patch was quickly smoothed over with a bout of freewriting. I'd had a lull in my inspiration and hadn't been able to pound out too many words in this particular writing session. So I decided to just freewrite.

On a side note, the freewriting post quickly became the most popular on my blog. It's over three times more read and shared than the second most popular post. I just wrote some nonsense about inner dialogue, plot bunnies, and stream of consciousness. That's not to say that freewriting doesn't free up your mind and get your creative juices flowing. It definitely does. I just don't know why the topic was so much more interesting to people. I'd love to know what was so different about this post that made everyone come back to it so I can do it again!

Most of my wordcount came from the freewriting itself, since I wrote 2.3k in those 45 minutes. There was a lot of word vomit, because my mind was wandering all over the place. But the exercise led me to list all of the major problems I was having with the plot, the research questions that I needed answers to, and the loose ends that I needed to tie up or eliminated.

I wrote no words on the day that I began the research I'd been putting off because I was mainly concerned with upping my wordcount during most of the month. A good portion of my day was spent searching for those answers, using the list that I'd freewritten several days before.

The major obstacle to show up last month was the computer issue. If you've been reading my blog from the beginning, then you know that my laptop stopped working just before Nano began, forcing me to move on to Plan B. So I untangled the mass of cords coming out of my 2001 Windows XP and hooked everything up and ran whatever programs I had to to make sure things would run as smoothly as possible. Things were going surprisingly well on this "dinosaur" computer, as long as I made sure to run the care programs one every day or two. I was working on Scrivener (which automatically backs up your work) on a flash drive, so I knew that I wasn't going to lose all of my progress. At the end of week three Dinosaur decided that it didn't want to behave anymore. Luckily, I got my laptop back a couple of days after that and, after I updated all of my files and ran the system care programs, the show was back on the road.

I also got sick last month. It wasn't end-of-the-world-zombie-apocalypse sick, though my throat got so sore that it hurt to swallow and my head ached so badly that I got dizzy when I tried to walk around. It wasn't a major health issue or anything, but it did make it hard for me to get any work done. Because of the dizziness, I spent the good part of the day sitting in one spot and watching Netflix.

I've obviously had quite the adventure this month. It's been a roller coaster. Week one began with me being ahead and confident, but it ended with me falling behind. At the beginning of week two, I'd passed up my doubts and I was back in business. Until a third of the way through, when I lost my nerve, my momentum, and my inspiration. Things spiked back up around the two-thirds mark, only to come plummeting down toward the end of the final week. You can read posts from the last and second to last days if you're interested. The entire story crumbled on me. Unfortunately, my story fell apart at the end of the month. I'm not upset anymore, because I can see that a lot of good came from this draft. However, I'm still mourning the loss of Flying Change.

So the bad days consisted of a dead laptop, a slow desktop, missed wordcount goals, lost momentum, wasted time, and failed premises. The good days were more abundant, though, and there was a lot more good this month than bad. I proved to myself first day in that I can blow my own expectations out of the water. I learned a lot about character development. I discovered that small revisions (going in and filling in the meat on the bones) can help to boost my wordcount by a lot. I found other writers online who I'd love to keep talking to after NaNoWriMo; I found blogs that I know I'll keep reading. I wrote more that I've ever written in a month, proving to myself that I'm getting closer to that elusive 150k. My speed picked up part of the way through the month, allowing me to write more each day than I've ever done before. I had an amazing comeback day and wrote my highest daily wordcount of November (and probably ever). And, finally, this blog has taught me a lot about accountability and consistency and has allowed me to document and share my experience in a way that I've never done before.

I'm sure that a lot of you have had more interesting experiences, though, and I'd be happy to hear about them if you want to share.

The Lessons. I learned quite a bit about writing in November. Even though it's nothing profound, I thought that I could share a few lessons. I'm not being pretentious or anything, but I think that writers who haven't had my specific experiences could benefit from hearing about them.

I've learned about how helpful sprints can really be. They force you to block out any potential distractions over a set amount of time. I sprinted some of the time on Twitter and some of the time by myself. What I found works best for me is to attempt #1k30min every time. I usually fall just a little short, though I did come up with over 2k once or twice.

I've learned that sometimes you have to think small. I had a day last month when I was just overwhelmed with what I was writing and I had no idea how to move forward. Unable to write that night, I asked other writers for their advice. And +Rosie Reast replied with this comment here, which I'd like to pass on to all of you.

Other times when you're stuck, it helps to write the little things. If your character has just returned to his village after battling the dragon and you don't know where to move the story, think small. Have this hero go back to doing his laundry, or have his mother cook him breakfast and drill him for details of his adventure, or have him play with the cat or the dog. These little scenes can help to move things along again and break up the intense action, giving readers time to relax before the next big battle.

Finally, save small ideas. I like to write my ideas down wherever I can. If I see a sweet foreign couple who just inspire characters based on themselves, I'll make a note on the back of a receipt or text the idea to myself.

I've learned something about time management. Yeah, I'm not the best person to ask for time management advice, but I somehow become better at it during Nano. So I have a couple of tips based on my own experience this November: write in chunks and know when to pull yourself away. This way, you'll get plenty of relaxation time while also getting in plenty of work on your novel. If you don't give yourself a break now and again, how can you be expected to be productive?

I've learned about some good resources this Nano, in addition to the resources I'd already been using. The biggest ones for me have been @NaNoWordSprints on Twitter and Scrivener, the latter of which I've been using for about a year now. Twitter, on the other hand, isn't something I've done much of before. So I discovered the sprints account recently and was hooked. Plus, when there's no sprint leader around, Wrimos like to form their own groups and write together via the hashtag #NaNoWordSprints.

I've also learned that writing my story out of order with no previous planning isn't something that works too well for me. I created characters that I loved, but very few plot-driven scenes.

The Plan. So, what do I plan to do now that NaNoWriMo is over? Well, my storyline didn't work and Flying Change fell apart on me, so I'll be taking a break from it. When I do get back to it, I'll be redistributing its parts. I've created a "rollover" file in Scrivener so that I can manage what I want to keep. Right now I have a few story ideas tucked away in these folders, as well as my main characters, who I hope will turn up somewhere else in the future.

I'll still keep my revision promise; I'll just be revisiting last year's Nano project instead of using the one from last month. This novel will need some Beta readers, so I'll be going about looking for interested writers while dealing with my own large list of things I have to read for people.

The Challenge. I dare you to freewrite. Take fifteen minutes and just write whatever comes to mind. After you've done that, review what you've just written. Is there anything of value? Anything that sparks another story idea or solves a problem in your current work in progress? I hope you find it useful. Freewriting is always useful to me.

I'll also challenge you, if you're interested and if you have work of your own that requires revision, to join us in our pledge to have our novels revised by January 31st 2015. You can add yourself to my Twitter list here.

The End.  Even though things didn't go like I'd expected or wanted this November, I'm actually really happy with how things turned out. I learned things that helped me to make it through the month. Sprinting improved my wordcount, "thinking small" helped to move me out of writers' block and increase my progress, managing my time kept my month (slightly) balanced, and the programs and websites that I've used this month were all very helpful to my process. A personal lesson came when I realized that I'd been writing plot bunnies; I discovered that planning probably works better for me.

I'd like to pay all of these lessons forward to anyone who hasn't experienced the same ones that I have. Let me know if any of my advice was helpful to you. Novel or no novel, NaNoWriMo has once again helped me to grow as a writer. I really hope that my advice can help all of you in some way too.

Should I create a resources page for the other resources that I've used? There are a few good sites that I know of and will share if anyone's interested.

Tell me what you've learned this November. It can be something about you or your novel, or something a bit more general. And if you have any great tips or resources, feel free to share them!

--Britni M