How Is That NaNoWriMo Going? Don't forget to edit

We are now 9 days into the NaNoWriMo so it is time to remind authors, it is not just about cranking out word count, it is also about creating a GOOD story. I have two questions for you, "Have you been editing? and Have you been thinking about your story?"

The problem with blitz writing like this is that authors are simply barfing words on the page and not thinking about what those words are saying. The other issue is that the authors are not taking the time to go back through and edit that writing as they go.

I fully understand what these authors will say. "I am going to go back and fix those problems after I get the story written. While this sounds like a great idea, the amount of work that author is going to face is not worth the effort. Sure the words are there, but now you are faced with characters in conflicts that don't make sense, plot twists that you created on the 9th and then completely changed directions on the 16th of the month. Transitions that don't make sense. The list goes on and on.

Making global changes in a story is infinitely harder than simply going through and fixing things as you write. Just remember that everything in your story is connected together. You will see a chain reaction with the changes you make. Tweaking something in chapter 8 requires adjusting the story in chapters 1-7 to accommodate that tweak. And the things that happen after that will also experience a domino effect. But also remember that is just one change and not a series of changes. When you adjust one element of a plot it will require the other elements to also adjust.

You are only 9 days in, but I would STRONGLY encourage taking the next couple of days, after you barf those words on the page, to go back and read what you have written. I can promise you, when December 1 rolls around, you will be much happier with the results.