Beautiful Books #1: Introducing my NaNo WIP!

Hey! So Nano is nearly than three days away and I’ve only just started outlining last weekend because Smart Me decided to change my whole plot in the middle of the month. Luckily I have a new plot that I’m more happy with so I thought I’d join in on Cait and Sky’s monthly writer linkup.

Questions

1. How did you come up with the idea for your novel, and how long have you had it?

So back in January, this one scene popped into my head when I was listening to a certain song and from that scene, I knew I wanted to write an urban fantasy adventure. All year long I’d been coming up with new ideas for it and this month, I realized it was going in the exact opposite direction than I wanted. It didn’t feel like an urban fantasy adventure to me anymore; it felt more like a sci-fi/fantasy which is nothing like I’d wanted. It took some effort to just drop everything I already had planned, but I did. And now with this brand new idea, it feels so much more to my heart. I’ve had it for roughly about two weeks now.

2. Why are you excited to write this novel?

Ya’ll know how obsessed I am with The Raven Cycle, right??? Well, my novel is very inspired by that series and I just want to recreate that feeling for others as I feel for that series. Also, I think I have a damn interesting idea if I say so myself, and I would love to see it come to life.

3. What is your novel about and what is the title?

Ok, so, I initially named it Peripeteia because it was so fitting for the previous idea. I don’t know if I’ll be keeping that though, since I’ve changed the plot because I’m not sure yet if it’s still accurate. I guess we’ll see after November.

I’m very bad at explaining what it’s about, ok, so bear with me. There’s this myth about a place in this city and my main character and her best friend carry on her parents’ search for it. It includes cool powers, great friendships, and other stuff that kind of seem spoiler-y. Oh god, I made that sound so boring, but I promise it’s not!!

4. Sum up your characters in one word each.

Elaina: …careful
Wilder: laidback
Luna: eccentric
Celine: hardass

I also have a few other characters that have just hopped in this past week and I still have to learn who they are.

5. Which character(s) do you think will be your favorite to write about? Tell us about them!

I think Luna will probably be my favorite because she’s so much more different than I am. She’s an all round extrovert where she loves people–she’s a huge people person and she’s probably too friendly for her own good. She can have a deep conversation with a complete stranger. She’s spontaneous; she’ll do things that you’re not expecting and I think she’s probably the most adventurous out of the group. She’s extremely independent–you’ll never see anyone telling her what to do/make decisions for her, etc. Typically, she’s the life of the party.

6. What is your protagonist’s goal and what stands in the way?

Her goal is to finish her parents’ search. It changes along the way. But what stands in the way of finishing her parents’ search is that she has no clue where to start.

7. Where is your novel set?

It’s set in a fictional city in modern times. I don’t have a name for it yet, but I have a pretty clear picture of what it looks like. My pinterest board is private right now, but maybe I’ll share it after Nano starts? 🙂

8. What is the most important relationship your character has?

For my MC, her most important relationship is with her grandfather and Wilder. She’s always felt closest to her grandfather and Wilder has been her only friend for years. She has no clue what she would do if she’d ever lost them.

9. How does your protagonist change by the end of the novel?

She’ll have a lot more confidence in herself in more ways than one. I still have to work on her character arc, so that’s all I’ve got right now, ok.

10. What themes are in your book? How do you want your readers to feel when the story is over?

Oh god, the themes….. hm….

1. Definitely friendship
2. Also to ignore assholes
3. There’s probably more that I can’t think of right now

I’ve pretty much already said what I want my story to do to the reader. I want them to feel how I felt after reading The Raven Cycle (AND THERE’S STILL MORE TO COME WHICH I KNOW WILL BE THE END OF ME).

Bonus! Tell us your 3 best pieces of advice for others trying to write a book in the next month.

• DON’T EDIT AS YOU GO — You’ll just slow yourself down and more than likely get discouraged when you can’t get that sentence perfect like you want it. STAHP. That’s for the next few… or million drafts! This is just your first draft, don’t sweat it. Nobody’s first draft is perfect. In fact, your whole draft will seem silly when you go back and read 50k words with multiple polished sentences here and there while the rest is first-draft-esque. No. Don’t do it! Remember: you’re only creating the backbone right now. You can work on the rest of the bones in the next draft, then the skin in the draft after that, and eventually you’ll get to all the details that make it unique.
• GRAB YOURSELF A NOTEBOOK — Seriously! It will help with not editing as you go. If you come up with an idea that would be perfect for that small part in chapter three than what you already have, WRITE IT DOWN instead of going back and fixing it. See a mistake that needs fixed? Write it down. Need a reference for post-Nano? This notebook will be your savior. Need a reference during Nano? Maybe you can’t remember what color hair that one character has or, “Was that character suppose to be in this place at that time?”
• DON’T STRESS YOURSELF — If you have homework or chores or a job, honestly, put that first. It won’t ruin your life if you don’t reach 50k by the end of November. Please don’t make this your priority above everything else you’ve got going on. If you’re feeling uninspired, don’t push yourself because then it just won’t be fun for you. Talk to a friend, watch a movie that might give you inspiration, read a book (that usually puts me in the mood to write), go out to eat with someone you enjoy spending time with. It’s always good to take a step back if you feel like you’re forcing the words. When you come back to it with fresh eyes, you might get new ideas and feel inspired again.
• GOOD LUCK!!!

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