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| The Power of Nanowrimo + Survey! ☕️ 💗
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November 19, 2021
Oakland, CA
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| | | This newsletter is a reprint with edits of an article I previously wrote. Read on or Read it here. I still feel the same way, thought it was timely, so am sharing it again. |
| | | IN THIS ARTICLE
** What good things come to you when you actually write? **
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| | Welcome new subscribers from the Writer's Fun Zone blog! And welcome longtime blog and newsletter readers. I so appreciate all of you.
In today's current economy, I sometimes feel like a thing, you know, a commodity, to be pushed around, quantified, as if I have no heart.
But I am not a commodity. Neither are you. I’m an invaluable multi-layered complex human being, like you are.
And like you, I create a product for public consumption (genre novels), that I price and market and promote, and edit to be appealing to my readers.
Our books have several purposes: to create an experience that attracts the reader, keeps them in the story, and takes them away from their everyday life.
Even though I create a product, I am not a product, or a machine.
It can feel as if we're expected to be a machine though, in this process to write a novel.
Yet there is no straight line to a finished book.
It’s complicated, creating a book that readers will love and consume.
And extremely creative.
What’s my point?
My point is ... that it’s complicated.
But all is not lost. We can find a way through the mess.
Even though there isn’t a direct line from start to finish — there’s always lots of bumps in the road, detours, getting lost (there’s more to this metaphor!) — you can break down writing a book into its smallest steps and get writing (or editing or marketing) done.
I know this because I have done it 16 times. (I've written 16 stories, get it?)
The Power of Nanowrimo
This is one of the reasons I like Nanowrimo so much. They encourage you to think in daily word counts, one day at a time. Nanowrimo is National Novel Writing Month, where people aim to write 50,000 words in the month of November. A free non-profit guides you every step of the way.
That's 1,666.67 words a day, or about 6.5 manuscript pages, measured at 250 words per page.
That’s still a lot of words, AND, you don’t have to write that much.
Because you can be a Nano rebel!
I know I will be this year, and have always been a Nano rebel. (I gotta be me!)
Even with my experience, I can comfortably usually write 40,000 words in a month. Any more than that and I need to be not doing anything else to make it happen. But that’s me. Your experience may be different! But you won't know until you try it, I mean, do it.
My husband, Ezra Barany, also a novelist and co-teacher at Barany School of Fiction, has met and exceeded the 50,000-word count in the five-plus past years, and that's worked for him. This year he's a rebel too. He's writing 50K, but adding it to an existing story.
We each rebel in our way!
As I mentioned above, I’m a Nano rebel again this year and won’t even be writing a novel.
We have students and clients who are editing and planning. Nano rebels rock!
There's power in doing it your way. There is only one you. So shine!
If you’re looking for a reason to dive into your book, or you just want to use this global focused program to work on your book in some manner, I encourage you to take advantage of Nanowrimo's energy this month.
If you’re looking for events in your community where people get together and do “write-ins,” check out the Nanowrimo site: https://nanowrimo.org/.
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| | Coming Next -- for Dedicated Novelists!
Coming soon, I’ll be offering some Early Bird sign-up bonuses to the Group Coaching Program if you sign up for this program before the end of the year.
One of the bonuses will be a 1-1 coaching session and first-chapter-review with me.
The Group Coaching Program is a 12-month program for dedicated novelists who have already written a manuscript or equivalent who want ongoing group support (2 group calls monthly that come with spot coaching and analysis of your manuscript) and additional opportunities for in-depth 1-1 support with me, including developmental editing. More news about that soon. |
| | | SURVEY! (Last but not least!) We’re always growing here at Barany School of Fiction, and Writer's Fun Zone, and I’d like to get to know you better. To that end, I’d love it if you could fill out a short survey for me here.
A little gift awaits you on the thank you page. :)
Here's to your creativity! Happy writing! |
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Have a happy and creative week!
All my best,
Beth
PPS. You have the power! What will you do with it? I'm genuinely curious. Post in the comments your reply or email me directly. |
| EVENT: NEXT WEEK
Lunch & Learn: Three Story Method essentials with J. Thorn, novelist and writing teacher, author of Three Story Method
Monday, Nov. 22 (2pm PT/5pm ET), J. will be sharing an exclusive live training to help you get started writing better scenes.
I’ll send you more details about that soon, but if you want to save your spot, you can sign up here.
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| | | Need support with writing your novel?
Then check out a self-coaching guide to writing your book The Writer's Adventure Guide course. Self-paced, there's an option for 1-1 live support from me too.
"[This program] motivated me to get back to writing regularly and proceed on a novel idea that's been on my mind for the past two years!" - Carolyn Robinson Author
This 12-lesson course gives you tips and tools for keeping an eye on your inner landscape so you can achieve your goal of writing a book.
Not sure if the course is right for you? Then check out the free
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| | But wait.... there's more...
I'm passionate about crafting courses that writers can use to move forward in writing their books.
I want to empower you to write your novel because our stories are important and can make an impact on readers that we can't even imagine.
Since both of these things are true, I have a bundled offer for you: the Novel Writing and Editing Bundle: "Plan, Write, and Edit Your Genre Novel."
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| | Recent Posts on Writer's Fun Zone blog |
| | | I've opened a tip jar at Buy Me A Coffee, if you are so moved. And thanks!
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| | | | | You have been reading the Creativity Sparks Newsletter!
Now in its 15th year, this newsletter is a service of my coaching and consulting business, helping genre fiction writers write, market, and publish their books through courses, coaching & consulting, NLP sessions, a 12-month group program, and books to the delight of their readers.
You may share this content intact and with no changes with this attribution:
c. 2006-2021 Beth Barany, Creativity Coach for Writers, www.BethBarany.com
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| ABOUT BETH BARANY
Beth Barany is creativity coach for writers, a teacher, workshop facilitator, and speaker, who helps fiction writers experience clarity, so that they can write and polish their novels, and proudly publish them to the delight of their readers.
Beth speaks to groups locally, online, and internationally. For more details and how to book, go here.
Owner of the Barany School of Fiction, an online training hub, Beth takes great interest in how humans learn, create, and grow, and includes all her students’ life experiences, including the ancestors, into the moment.
Want a course to help you prepare to write your novel? Discover the comprehensive Plan Your Novel course here, Beth offers alongside her co-teachers.
She's also an award-winning novelist and writes magical tales of romance, adventure, and mystery to empower women and girls to be the heroes in their own lives.
beth@bethbarany.com
Barany School of Fiction
Writer's Fun Zone blog
Photo Credit: by c. 2018 Ezra Barany
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| | | Here be the legalese: In connection with the operation of this newsletter and business, Creativity Sparks includes affiliate links, including links to Amazon.com (“Affiliate Links”). Barany Consulting earns a commission from the Affiliate Links which commission is based on the number of sales that are made as a result of users of the Newsletter clicking over to the Affiliate Link and purchasing from the Affiliate Link a product and/or service. Thus endth the legalese. |
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