Inneresting 27
issue 27
November 7, 2020
For the past 21 years, writers have taken the NaNoWriMo challenge to complete a novel in the month of November. (Fun fact: John’s Arlo Finch series started as a NaNoWriMo project.)
NaNoWriMo can be a great motivator. But let’s be honest: a lot is going on right now. If you’re like many writers who started NaNoWriMo in earnest on the 1st, you might be finding it a little hard to focus.
Let’s take a step back, make some space, and see if there’s something that could help get you back on track – and learn some lessons to help you the other 11 months of the year.
Put the emphasis on the “Writing” part
Your NaNoWriMo might be messy, but that’s okay. Imogen Elvis wants you to remember that bad writing doesn’t make you a bad writer.
Holly Lyn Walrath charts a course she took through NaNoWriMo, including all the distractions that tried to completely derail her in order to remind you that trying is a victory on its own.
And if you’re doing your best but need a good motivational quote for your corkboard/whiteboard/3-by-5 card on your desk, check out this list from Nicole Dusseljee.
Take chances and avoiding perfectionism
While Gary Rogowski’s Handmade primarily focuses on his journey toward becoming a skilled woodworker, it’s full of plenty of reminders for anyone with artistic and creative goals.
If you’re putting a lot of pressure on your NaNoWriMo (or whatever your Work In Progress is) to be The Thing that takes you to that next level, this passage from his book might help take a little of the pressure off:
The most important thing I can do in order to build things, the most important quality I need as a furniture maker, is not precision, not planning or determination. The most important thing I need is forgiveness. I have to be able to let myself make mistakes. I want to avoid mistakes, but when they occur, as they will, I have to take it easy on myself. Perfectionism kills and strangles me and prevents me from taking any chances, from being curious, from enjoying what accomplishments I have made at the bench.
Excellence is my standard now. I work to make not my best piece ever each time. I work to make each piece excellent.
Remember it’s natural to get distracted
Even when you’re not inundated with Breaking News Updates like this week, sometimes the mind tends to wander.
Cal Newport has a reminder that sometimes it’s okay to step back from worrying about checking things off your to-do list instead of fighting uphill against the distractions.
It might also be helpful to take a step back and gather yourself. Patrick Rhone wrote a brief guide to mindfulness meditation that could help.
And Austin Kleon has a story about Virginia Woolf’s husband Leonardand how he chose to work on something lasting instead of allowing himself to be consumed by anger when he heard Hitler would be making a speech on the radio.
Highland How-To: Tools To Keep Up With Your Word Count
If you’re pushing on, making progress with your word count or page count, Highland 2 has plenty of tools to help you build on that momentum.
The Statistics Sidebar can show you at a glance how many words and pages you’ve written so far, and lets you set repeating goals for Total Pages, New Pages, Total Words, and New Words.
And don’t forget about Write Sprints! Whether it’s an hour or ten minutes, Highland 2’s built-in timer reminds you to keep those words coming. Every sprint session is captured, showing you a list of how long you wrote and how many words you added during that time.
To find out more about Highland 2, check out our Knowledge Base.
Other Cool Things
Maybe you need some cozy, animal-based content right now? How about this video of a man who has befriended possibly all the raccoons in a three mile radius of his home? Warning: This video is longer than you expect, and deeply wholesome. Five Heart Eyes emojis out of Five.
Anand Giridharadas with some reactions from November 4th about the things we knew about the state of American democracy before the result of the election could be locked in.
With winter coming, and the probability of a return of lockdowns in many parts of the world, it may be a good time to look back on Olivia Laing’s op-ed “How to Be Lonely.”
And that’s what’s inneresting this week!
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Come across something you think other readers will find inneresting? Reach out to Chris on Twitter @ccsont or email us at ask@johnaugust.com.
UPCOMING EVENTS
YALL Write
Nov. 13th, 12 PM Pacific Time
Panel: "Fantastic Fantasy and Astonishing Adventure"
Moderated by Soman Chainani with John August, Sayantani DasGupta, Kwame Mbalia and Claribel A. Ortega
Register here to join the Zoom webinar.
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Inneresting is edited by Chris Csont, with contributions from the entire Quote-Unquote team. Subscribe here.
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