Introduction
Ever had a "huh?" moment in the midst of a good book? Picture this: the main character encounters a dense thicket. This is no problem for our hero, who whips a sword from his scabbard and slices through the underbrush. But wait a moment... didn’t he just lose his sword over the cliff in that action-packed battle? More... Up until that moment, you were captivated - you were completely engrossed in the story. But this discrepancy just yanked you right out of the narration and plopped you back in your living room.
The longer a work, the more important planning ahead becomes. Because of the length of time required to write longer works, it's easy to forget what happened in Chapter 3 two weeks (or months) later while you're writing Chapter 17. Even if you catch the error in the edit phase, the problem might permeate the entire piece. Take for instance the previous sword example. The hero now needs to find another way through the thicket, or else the author needs to remove the thicket from the plot entirely. But what if the thicket is central to the plot, such as it is in the story of Sleeping Beauty? In that case, the hero needs to either find another sword, or not lose his sword in the first place. Fixing errors such as these in the edit phase is frustrating, because every correction can ripple, yielding new and unforeseen problems.
Prevention is the best method for avoiding mistakes in your story plot. Outlining in advance prevents the errors in the first place. Draft a rough outline before you begin writing the piece. When starting a new writing project, you may not know everything that’s going to happen in your story, and that’s okay. Your initial outline can be limited to your beginning, your climax, and your ending. Once you have that in writing, you can begin to flesh out the middle, outlining how your characters will get from the beginning to the climax, and finally, to the end.
Some writers feel that outlining stifles creativity. While opinions vary, two things remain true: (1) plot errors take a lot of work to fix after the fact, and (2) overlooked plot errors run the risk of pulling readers out of your story. Whatever your thoughts on outlining and the creative process, consider the headaches that planning ahead will save you. You may find that it’s worth it.
Watch for BONUS ASSIGMENTS in the 2012 Challenge Calendar.
Overachievers could earn extra prizes!
October NaNo Prep Challenge: 2012 Calendar
This list of daily challenges accompanies "October NaNoWriMo Prep Challenge"  [13+]. If a challenge does not apply to your novel project (for example, if your story takes place in a single setting, and therefore you can't describe three separate settings), post "Challenge not applicable" in the forum for that day. You will still be eligible for the grand prizes.
BRAINSTORMING TOOLS
WRITING PROMPTS
THE CALENDAR: (click each assignment for detailed instructions)
 Monday, Oct. 01 - PREMISE
The general premise of your novel. Summarize the following: Who is your protagonist (or protagonists)? What will happen to him/her/it/them? Why? How will it turn out? What does that tell us? Is there a moral to the story?
Tuesday, Oct. 02 - OUTLINE #1
The first draft of your outline, including a basic overview of main events (beginning, climax, end.) Check out the section on "Outlining" in this free downloadable ebook .
Wednesday, Oct. 03 - MARKETING EXERCISE
Describe your target audience. Include a demographic profile including gender, race, age, disabilities, mobility, home ownership, employment status, education, income level, marital status, location and other commonly evaluated data. Explain in detail what aspects of your novel will appeal to this particular audience, and why.
Thursday, Oct. 04 - DRAMATIS PERSONAE
Draft a list of your charcters and write a brief profile on each one (first and last name, age, occupation or relation to main character(s) and rough physical description.) Keep your list handy for future updates throughout the Prep.
Friday, Oct. 05 - PROTAGONIST PROFILE
Complete a character profile of your protagoinst. The point of this exercise is for you to get to know your character inside and out before you write your novel. If you don't know your character, how can you expect it of your readers? Flesh out your character in detail, either with by listing his/her attributes or writing a description from the perspective of someone very close to your protagonist.
Saturday, Oct. 06 - CONTEST ROUND: PROTAGONIST BACKGROUND STORY
Write a story about your protagonist that takes place outside of your novel. Make your readers relate to him or her in such a way that we would be devastated if he or she were to experience conflict (which, ultimately, sometime in November, he/she will.) The object of the contest is to make your judges root for your protagonist! Simply put: the character we like best wins. If your protagonist is an assassin or someone similarly "unlikeable," never fear! I love Vlad Taltos, the professional assassin . You can make us love your character, too. *Submit your BITEM or ENTRY link by 1200 noon WDC time on Sunday, Oct. 07 to compete. If you miss this deadline or choose not to compete, you may still post your assignment completion for the grand prize, per the standard Challenge guidelines.
Sunday, Oct. 07 - OFF/FREEBIE or BONUS ASSIGNMENT
Take a break or catch up. BONUS: Create your own assignment. Post your completed assignment in the forum and tell us what you did.
Monday, Oct. 08 - CULTURAL SETTING
Describe the cultural, political and/or religious setting in your novel. What kind of government rules your world? What laws or rules of society are in place? Who enforces them? How successful is enforcement of laws and rules?
Tuesday, Oct. 09 - OUTLINE REVISION #2
The second draft of your outline. Solidify your beginning, middle and end (subject to change, of course), and start thinking about how your main characters get from the beginning to the climax. Consider using the Snowflake Method of plot development.
Wednesday, Oct. 10 - SETTING #1 DRAWING
Get out your pencil (or Excel or Visio or Autocad if you're the nerdy type) and draw a physical sketch of any setting in your novel, which we will call Setting#1. This can be a map of a town, woods or valley, a layout of a room with furniture and walls, a floor plan of the castle, or any other physical setting. It doesn't matter if your art skills are lacking. Just get a feel for where obstacles and objects are in relation to one another.
Thursday, Oct. 11 - SETTING #1 DESCRIPTION
Describe Setting#1 (with words.) Use all five senses, and make your reader experience the setting as if he or she were there.
Friday, Oct. 12 - ANTAGONIST PROFILE
Complete a character profile of your antagonist. If your antagonist is a situation rather than a person, write about what it is and how it will create conflict for your protagonist. Further clarification: "ANTAGONIST (Re: A LOT of confusing things)"
Saturday, Oct. 13 - CONTEST ROUND: ANTAGONIST BACKGROUND STORY
Write a story about your antagonist that takes place outside of your novel. Make your reader empathize with the motivations of the antagonist. If your antagonist is a situation rather than a person, write a background story about that. *Submit your BITEM or ENTRY link by 1200 noon WDC time on Sunday, Oct. 14 to compete. If you miss this deadline or choose not to compete, you may still post your assignment completion for the grand prize per the standard Challenge guidelines.
Sunday, Oct. 14 - OFF/FREEBIE or BONUS ASSIGNMENT
Take a break or catch up. BONUS: Create your own assignment. Post your completed assignment in the forum and tell us what you did.
Monday, Oct. 15 - PLOT BACKGROUND STORY
Write a story that sets up your plot. EXAMPLE: The Lord of the Rings story revolves around the One Ring, its significance, and how it's destroyed. But how did Frodo get the One Ring in the first place? We learn that in The Hobbit. You obviously can't write a full-scale novel in 15 minutes, but you could write the scene where Bilbo encounters Gollum and stumbles across the ring. That would be a background story that sets up the plot in Lord of the Rings.
Tuesday, Oct. 16 - OUTLINE REVISION #3
The third draft of your outline. Fill in some of the gaps and start developing subplots.
Wednesday, Oct. 17 - MINOR #1 PROFILE
Write a character profile about a supporting or minor character, whom we shall call Minor #1. If you have a second protagonist or antagonist, use this assignment to profile that character.
Thursday, Oct. 18 - MINOR #1 BACKGROUND STORY
Write a background story about Minor #1 (or your second protagonist or antagonist.)
Friday, Oct. 19 - SETTING #2 DRAWING
Complete a physical drawing of a second setting.
Saturday, Oct. 20 - CONTEST ROUND: SETTING #2 DESCRIPTION
Describe Setting #2 with words. Use all five senses and make your reader experience the setting as if he or she were there.*Submit your BITEM or ENTRY link by 1200 noon WDC time on Sunday, Oct. 21 to compete. If you miss this deadline or choose not to compete, you may still post your assignment completion for the grand prize per the standard Challenge guidelines.
Sunday, Oct. 21 - OFF/FREEBIE or BONUS ASSIGNMENT
Take a break or catch up. BONUS: Create your own assignment. Post your completed assignment in the forum and tell us what you did.
Monday, Oct. 22 - OBJECT DESCRIPTION
Describe, in detail, an object that is critical to your story.
Tuesday, Oct. 23 - OUTLINE REVISION #4
The fourth draft of your outline. Fill in more of the gaps and flesh out your subplots. Consider adding a timeline.
Wednesday, Oct. 24 - MINOR #2 PROFILE
Write a character profile about supporting or minor character #2.
Thursday, Oct. 25 - MINOR #2 BACKGROUND STORY
Write a background story about supporting or minor character #2.
Friday, Oct. 26 - PROCRATINATION LIST
Write a list of all the things you tend to do to procrastinate and establish a schedule for the month of November outlining when you are and are not allowed to procrastinate. Schedule time to write and put your schedule in writing.
Saturday, Oct. 27 - CONTEST ROUND: COMMITMENT LETTER
Write a commitment letter to yourself promising to do your best during the month of November and vowing to not allow distractions or procrastination to keep you from your goal. Explain in the letter why you are awesome, how you plan to complete NaNo 2011, and what you will do to celebrate when you win. *Submit your BITEM or ENTRY link by 1200 noon WDC time on Sunday, Oct. 28 to compete. If you miss this deadline or choose not to compete, you may still post your assignment completion for the grand prize per the standard Challenge guidelines.
Sunday, Oct. 28 - OFF/FREEBIE or BONUS ASSIGNMENT
Take a break or catch up. BONUS: Create your own assignment. Post your completed assignment in the forum and tell us what you did.
Monday, Oct. 29 - OUTLINE REVISION #5
The fifth revision of your outline. Flesh out the logistics of how your protagonist gets from the beginning of the story to the climax of the story. Add more timeline details and consider plotting out scenes by chapter.
Tuesday, Oct. 30 - SETTINGS LIST
Using your outline as a guide, list other settings in your novel. Sketch OR draft a brief description of each.
Wednesday, Oct. 31 - PROTAGONIST INTERVIEW
You are a journalist. The story of your novel is complete. Interview your protagonist and ask the following questions:
1. How did the events of your story change you?
2. How is life for you now?
Thursday Nov. 1 - NANOWRIMO BEGINS
Start writing your novel!
The calendar accompanies:
© Copyright 2011 Brandiwyn ♪ (UN: tuozzo at Writing.Com).
All rights reserved.
Brandiwyn ♪ has granted Writing.Com, its affiliates and syndicates non-exclusive rights to display this work.
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