NaNoWriMo 2013 Prep

So it’s been roughly four years since my last attempt at NaNoWriMo. Mainly because those four years have been spent playing Mum instead. My last attempt in 2009 was a complete fizzle – I spent more time soothing a crying child and catching up on sleepless nights than nurturing a wordcount. This year however I’m claiming November as “me-time” and committing to getting NaNo done!

My prep so far:

– Told my family to block out November as “me-time” for Mum.

– Updated my account info on nanowrimo.org. My nickname’s LastDance on there. Feel free to add me as a writing buddy!

– Got my writers ideas notebook ready. It’s just a little notebook that fits in my handbag. Only a couple of pages of ideas so far, but fast adding to it.

– Picked up a copy of Chris Baty’s No Plot, No Problem for my kindle – for only $1.99! Now that’s a bargain.

– Downloaded Scrivener and gave it a whirl. I know it’s not necessary for NaNo, but it does look really cool and if I like it and hit the 50K word count I can purchase it for 50% off. They have a really great trial offer going specifically for NaNoWriMo participants – instead of the usual 30 day trial it will keep running until December 7th.

– Got some Rory’s Story Cubes to play with. These things are brilliant – never be stuck for a plot idea again! Aimed at the kids, they’re still good idea joggers for adults. I purchased the Android app – it’s like having a set of virtual story dice in your phone. You just shake the phone to roll the dice, complete with sound effects. My son loves them πŸ™‚ Β The app only costs around $2 and comes with two sets of 9 dice. An extra $2 or so gets you another set of 9 dice – so for around $4 you can have all three main sets of dice. Can’t wait to play with this one more.

– Attended a planning day for my NaNoWriMo Region and the Kick Off Party. Meeting other Wrimo’s is definitely the way to go – it adds instant motivation and assures you that anything you’re worrying about to do with NaNo, others are too. Even better – someone has probably got just the right advice or a ready made solution to whatever your worry or problem was about πŸ™‚

So, are you doing NaNoWriMo this year? Do you have any tips for preparation?