NaNoWriMo Tips: Thanksgiving Edition

So far, I've kept up with the daily word count goal for NaNoWriMo. Sometimes I even find myself a day or two ahead! But now Thanksgiving looms and while I'm looking forward to spending time with my family, that also means no time to write.

My solution? Write like crazy before Thursday. That way if I don't find time to write, at least I'm not terribly far behind. A great way to do this is write-ins. Check with your NaNoWriMo region to see if there are any events going on near you. Just last night I attended one and the accountability and word sprints pushed me to write 4,000 words!

If there are no events near you or you can't attend any, here are some writing sprints you can do yourself. Just set a timer and start writing. Don't stop to edit yourself! The goal is to crank out as many words as possible. See if you can make it to the word goal or even past it in the time given. If not, that's alright, these are supposed to stretch you. Make sure you take a short break in between sprints to reorganize your thoughts and remember, you can always go back later and edit!

• 10 minutes - 500 words
• 15 minutes - 825 words
• 20 minutes - 988 words
• 30 minutes - 1100 words

If you can find time to write during the holidays, that's great! Couple it with a few sprints and that's even better. Here are some tips to keep writing when on vacation:

• May not sound fun, but getting up early or staying up late just to write for fifteen minutes is better than not writing at all.
• Passenger on a long car ride? Use the time to write. Make it fun and involve your family by doing word sprints and having them time you. Report back to them to see if you've "beaten" it. 
• If it's too much trouble to carry your laptop around, bring a notebook. Whenever you have a free moment, just write a couple sentences or a paragraph. It will add up.

If you want to keep writing during the holidays, I hope this helped. But don't forget that there's no shame in simply taking a break to enjoy your vacation. Sometimes a break from writing can do a lot of good by replenishing that creative reserve. You also don't want to miss out on special time with your family.

Have a happy Thanksgiving!