Want to Write a Book in a Month? Here’s How:
Since 1999, November has been dubbed National Novel Writing Month to encourage writers of all stripes and skill levels to challenge themselves by writing 50,000 words in 30 days.
It sounds like a tall order, but countless authors over the years have used this gambit to draft manuscripts that have gone on to establish writing careers.
Whether November is a viable month for you or not, we’ve put together a primer on how to succeed at drafting a novel in a single month — from brainstorming prep to writing routines that will galvanize your success.
1. Brainstorm Your Outline
Regardless of whether you’re a pantser or planner at heart, to hit 50,000 words in 30 days, you’ll need to have a crisp idea of what you want to write. This should include what genre you’re writing, who you’re writing the book for, what your subject or theme is, how your characters (or narrative voice) sound, and the general beats you’ll need to hit.
For nonfiction, this may mean a list of chapters with point form notes of what you intend to cover in each. In fiction, this may be following a story arc structure (like the Three Act structure, the Hero’s Journey, Story Circle, etc.) or using a summary of the main plot points.
Even if you like to write to discover how things will unfold, a loose throughline will help keep you motivated. Remember, you can always change your tone or switch POV or even tense if you find the current one you planned on isn’t working for what you need to tell. Drafting a book in a month is about getting the idea onto (digital) paper, not about perfecting a finished manuscript.
2. Establish Your Goals
The easiest way to break down 50,000 words into a month is to write 1667 words per day. Stay on track by setting aside time before work or after school, or maybe break it up by doing half each way on your daily commute. But maybe there will be days during the month that you know you won’t be able to write: like during the wedding you’re attending or if something unexpected comes up. It might make more sense for you to weight the amount of words you need to write based on the days of the week. Maybe on your days off, you’ll be able to write a higher proportion, and then only write 500 words per workday.
Keep these goals flexible. It’s all too easy to start beating yourself up when you’re a week into the month and behind your goal. In fact, 50,000 words may not even be your personal goal. Maybe you’re drafting a novella that will only reach 30,000 words. Feel free to adjust what your daily and monthly goals look like so that you feel motivated, not defeated.
There are tools that can help you keep track of word count goals, like Dabble Writer, Scrivener, or the NaNoWriMo website. You can also just use a set number of pages per day (a standard Word Doc holds roughly 350–400 words per page), using your word processor’s Word Count or Page Numbers tool.
3. Write Around Blanks
While writing, the dreaded Blank Page has conquered countless writers throughout human history. To keep your momentum, don’t be afraid of leaving yourself shorthand notes. A few tricks I use include triple brackets, for example [[[June? check date]]], and bullet points to tell myself what needs to happen, like:
Adrian probably won’t be truthful about this, and Lucy will be too afraid to ask for clarification
This enables them to misunderstand each other throughout this scene
Bernice arrives late, so she’ll interrupt their conversation and deliver a bombshell about Tom
This means the secret won’t be revealed this chapter; come back to it in a later chapter once the problem with Tom is resolved.
This enables me to keep writing, even if the scene hasn’t been properly fleshed out. Sometimes just switching gears from writing to telling yourself the story like this can get you over whatever was stumping you. You might go back in and start drafting the scene that has now crystallized.
If not, don’t get hung up. Do a warm-up exercise, like a 6-word story or a 100-word flash fiction piece to get the words flowing. Skip ahead to the next scene (or chapter) that you do have a clear idea for. You can always backtrack to fill in the blanks as needed.
4. Work Ahead
You don’t have to write in a linear fashion. You can always reorganize your chapters later, or cut things that you end up not needing. The main thing to be aware of is whether you are motivated by having an exciting scene waiting for you. If writing all the juiciest bits first leaves you bored at the prospect of going back and filling in the connective tissue, maybe those “boring scenes” are not what your story needs.
If you’re the kind of person who writes exploratively, you may feel you “can’t know” what happens if you skip parts. If this is the case, feel free to write alternate possibilities. These may give you ideas for how the story progresses as well as filling in your word count. You may not use all of them in your book, but they’ll help you develop your narrative approach and answer questions about what the book is not that help you write what it is with more confidence.
It’s also super helpful to write ahead at the end of each writing session. When you finish a paragraph, page, or chapter, challenge yourself by writing the first line of the next section before you stop for the day. This helps your subconscious percolate on ideas so that when you next sit down to write, you already have ideas on the direction your drafting can go.
5. Follow Your Joy
While you need to be disciplined about getting your butt in the chair, you don’t need to be strict about how you write. Drafting allows you to explore. Write flashback scenes that explain to you, the author, why a person is the way they are. Write a conversation that you want two characters to have — even if, for plot reasons, they absolutely cannot have that conversation. Write the fantasy comeuppance you wish you’d been able to give to a bully. Whatever inspires you to write — follow that joy.
While a lot of this exploratory writing won’t be useable in your final draft, you might be surprised by the insights you glean. This loose, joyful writing is often where we find the authorial voice that is our distinctly human thumbprint. You might come up with gems that will work perfectly in a later scene. You might uncover motivations that help you write a certain character better. You might come to better understand the tone, theme, or message of your book.
And when the joy evaporates and you find yourself drudging through researching bus routes or distracting yourself with your social media feeds, that might be a sign that you need to change direction in your writing . . . or that you need to take a break!
6. Cross the Finish Line
The soggy middle is usually where writers lose steam. This is where returning to your outline, seeking joy, or chatting with a supportive friend can help re-motivate you. Once you get past that middle point and can see the finish line, it gets much more invigorating to know how close you are to achieving your goals.
Challenge yourself to keep writing even when the words are trickling slowly. Reread previous passages to pick up a thread you’ve lost the feeling for. Don’t allow yourself to delete content, even when you’re not happy with it. Get yourself your favourite beverage or turn on an inspiring writing playlist to trick your brain into writing mode. Set rewards to coax you on to your goal.
Once the clock runs out and you cross that finish line, it’s time to celebrate. No matter how many words you got down, that number is considerably more than the zero you started with. If you didn’t finish your draft and you’re feeling excited, you can certainly keep writing. More likely, you’ll want a break. Stuffing your manuscript into a proverbial drawer for a while is a good practice. It enables you to get perspective on the story you are trying to tell. You may find yourself thinking about sections you left undone that you want to revise, or subjects you might need to research further to fill in blanks, or even alternate ideas for how the book might start (or end), now that you’ve written deeper into your outline . . . but that’s a challenge for Future You to tackle.
Of course, not every genre can be written in 50,000 words; this may mean a month of work gets you only half a novel — or maybe it gets you multiple children’s books! You may discover this sprinting style of writing may be antithetical to how you approach storytelling, and that’s okay. The important part is that you got words written. Now you have something to work with, whether that means rewriting your draft in a fresh document with all the blanks filled in or diving into editing to polish up the rough spots.
Most importantly, this exercise enables you to dedicate a set amount of time to your writing craft. Allow it to nurture appreciation of the creative power you possess. Hopefully, it helps you tackle future writing and revising with greater confidence — at any time of year.
Astra Crompton (she/they) is an eclectic writer, editor, and illustrator with over twenty-five years of publishing experience. Her work has been published in anthologies, table-top RPG books, magazines, and in several novels. They have also successfully completed NaNoWriMo six times and counting. Astra is currently the Editing & Illustrations Coordinator at FriesenPress, where they manage, coordinate, and vet FriesenPress’s industry-leading editing and illustrations teams.