Campus is buzzing with activity as Halloween draws closer. The excitement from Homecoming has morphed into enthusiasm for the spookiest holiday of the year.
For writers, however, Halloween signals the coming of a different event — National Novel Writing Month.
Lex Miller | Argonaut
The challenge is right around the corner, so for any writers with hopes to plan anything out before beginning the challenge, now is the time.
As the final hours of October draw near, writers will spend remaining time brainstorming their characters, plots and settings.
This will be my last series of prompts. Starting next issue, I will provide lists of reminders, which writers will, hopefully, find useful as they start their challenge.
Prompt series No. 4
- Describe in great detail your character’s least favorite place to be, in their words.
- Create a unique food for your story. Write a recipe, explain the context of the food, and find a place for it within your story.
- Write about a person your character once thought highly of… and what they think of that person after they hurt your character.
- What does your character think is their most valuable source of information? Why?
- Describe the climate in the area where your character lives. Can this tie into your plot?
- Write about a minor squabble between your character and their best friend. How do they handle it? How will they handle more serious confrontations and conflict?
- Pretend your character is sitting in a random public place. Who sticks out to them from the crowd? Describe this person and why your character notices them.
Inspiration and Updates from an Aspiring Author
This past weekend, I got incredibly sick. I wasn’t able to focus on my story as much as I wanted due to this. Therefore, I don’t have too many updates.
Before she gets lost in the woods, my character spends most of her time in class, hidden in a corner of the library. She has a best friend, but otherwise, barely talks to people.
Her favorite spot is a nook under a window on the library’s third floor. It is hidden between two bookcases, so people rarely find it.
I have yet to flesh out any chapter ideas for my novel. This is what my focus will be this week. I will plan out a few main conflict points and write premises for each chapter to prevent writer’s block in November.
During NaNoWriMo, I plan to attend weekly writer meetings downtown. This way, I will be held accountable by this column and by the people I meet with. I hope that this will keep me more on track.
Previously, I fell off the rails after about a week of NaNoWriMo. This year, regardless of whether I meet my word count goal, I hope to write every day of November.