Fighting the Word-Count Woes

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All through National Novel Writing Month, published authors will take the whistle, take over our official Twitter account for a week, and act as your NaNo Coach. This week’s NaNo Coach, Sandy Hall, author of A Little Something Different and Signs Point to Yes, has tips for writers at ever stage:

A prevailing theme in the NaNoCoach hashtag this week is word count and hitting that magical 50,000-word mark. Some people are worried about having too many words; the majority of people are worried about not having enough. Here are some tips for getting you on track, no matter what your word count looks like.

If you are over your word count:

There is nothing to worry about. There is no such thing as having too many words in a first draft. It gives you plenty of room to edit and make cuts.

If you are several hundred words behind:

  • Take some time to add chapter titles. 
  • Undo all of your contractions. 
  • Add a little more description here and there.  

Do whatever you need to do to hit 50K.

If you are several thousand words behind:

  • Go through your manuscript and find scenes you can deepen. 
  • Seek out conversations or chapters that end abruptly. 
  • Add more transitions. 
  • Look for places to make your world and your characters more realistic.

Resist the urge to edit! Keep adding to your word count!

10,000 words behind

You might need a subplot. Look at secondary characters that are ready to play a bigger role, or minor issues and situations that you mention in passing that could become more important. 

Things like romances, family secrets, problems at work or school, etc. can all make for good subplots. (These are super generic subplot ideas. But a quick Google for a list of subplots will get you on your way.)

If you’re at 25,000 words and your story feels over

Step one: Do not lose hope. 

Step two: Try turning your current climax into the midpoint of your plot.

Examine what you have and what you need to make the novel satisfying to readers. Have your characters had a darkest moment? Have you put them through enough trials? Have they had enough fun? Think about what you can add after the current climax to continue the story.

If you’re still coming up short, make sure every part of your manuscript has a beginning, middle, and end. Also known as a set-up, conflict, and resolution. You can do this for each act, each chapter, each scene, and even each character. The words can add up fast when you start thinking in these terms.

One last tip:

I know writers can be a little allergic to math, but I want you to think about the average number of words you can write in an hour. (If you don’t know, time yourself. It’s a good statistic to be aware of.) Then figure out how many hours you can realistically commit to writing between now and November 30th.   With any luck, you’ll find that you have plenty of time to finish.

If not, you will still have more words on December 1st than you started with a month ago. You haven’t lost anything.

No matter what, don’t throw in the towel. Try not to get discouraged. Just keep typing until your story is done.

Sandy Hall is a teen librarian from New Jersey where she was born and raised. She has a BA in Communication and a Master of Library and Information Science from Rutgers University. When she isn’t writing, or teen librarian-ing, she enjoys reading, marathoning TV shows, and long scrolls through Tumblr. She is the author of the young adult novels A Little Something Different and Signs Point to Yes.

Nov. 27 2015
#nanowrimo #amwriting #writing #inspiration #nano coaches #by nano guest #sandy hall
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  1. randothebunny reblogged this from nanowrimo
  2. eyesthroughwater reblogged this from nanowrimo
  3. swoonreads reblogged this from nanowrimo and added:
    It’s the last day of NaNoWriMo! Check out Sandy’s Pep Talk for some last day inspiration!
  4. i-smile-like-a-cheshire-cat reblogged this from nanowrimo
  5. inhernature reblogged this from nanowrimo
  6. lesbianrustcohle reblogged this from nanowrimo and added:
    One day left, Wrimos! I used the tips here to inspire an 18k day on Friday! You can do it!
  7. colastudy reblogged this from nanowrimo
  8. sswslitinmotion reblogged this from nanowrimo and added:
    Keep writing, as we enter the last weekend of NaNoWriMo! – ssw15
  9. bumble-b1008 reblogged this from nanowrimo and added:
    This is an great help if your story is lacking in words and you can’t figure out what to do to bring up your word count.
  10. secretlifeofamovieproducer reblogged this from nanowrimo
  11. yu-maozi reblogged this from nanowrimo
  12. vitre-art reblogged this from nanowrimo
  13. joe-bondi-beach-stories reblogged this from nanowrimo and added:
    I’ve already hit the mark for this year, but Sandy has great advice. ~ JBB
  14. cerulean-winds-saej-blog reblogged this from nanowrimo
  15. procrastinationchick reblogged this from nanowrimo
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