Assembling Your NaNoWriMo Prep Kit

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is a special time of year for many people. Writing a novel in one month is an intense challenge, but it will be a lot of fun if you prepare yourself. As I am about to dive into my fourth year of the challenge, I thought I’d share a few things I assemble in my kit to do NaNoWriMo right. Take a look below and share what’s in your kit in the comments!

Writing Sidekicks

Steven Ray Morris / Via stevenraymorris.com

Sensible people will be writing their novels in anything from Microsoft Word, Text Edit, or Scrivener, but what about when you’re away from your computer and you get ideas for a scrap of dialogue or the inklings of future plot points? I’m sure you’ve outlined your novel before diving into NaNoWriMo (right?), but having a moleskine or another notebook will be handy for keeping all your ideas in one place before using them towards your word count.

Shutting Out The World For Your World

Steven Ray Morris / Via stevenraymorris.com

Maybe you can write without music (weirddd), but for the rest of us we are going to have playlists queued up to keep us focused (I make mixes just for the novel I’m writing beforehand too!). So whether you’re trying to drown out the sound of your roommate or everyone at the local cafe, a decent pair of headphones will be your best bud (sorry) for times when you just need to write without interruption.

Writer's Fuel Part 1

Steven Ray Morris / Via stevenraymorris.com

Tea and writing are perfect partners. Right now my pantry is stacked with Earl Grey, Green, Chai, Chamomile, Peppermint, hell even that generic tea that could just be yardwork for all I know. The act of making tea: putting the kettle on, steeping the tea, putting in honey AND milk (yeah that’s right), and waiting for it to not burn my mouth, gets me into the headspace to put one word after the other.

Writer’s Fuel Part 2

Steven Ray Morris / Via stevenraymorris.com

Okay, let’s be real. There are going to be a lot of late nights and early mornings. NaNoWriMo is something we do in our own time, and for many of us this means it’s relegated to the earliest or latest corners of the day. Coffee is our savior here when tea just won’t cut it, and trust me, it won’t cut it when you’re two weeks in and falling behind. Coffee will be there for your weakest hours and give you strength you need to keep moving forward.

An Author’s Uniform

Steven Ray Morris / Via stevenraymorris.com

NaNoWriMo has come to epitomize the fall season for me. Yes, I live in Los Angeles, but by November it’s no longer a desert hellscape and I can finally don my favorite sweaters that have been gathering dust all year. Sweaters are the no-nonsense yet fun way to express your inner author, letting people know that you’ve been up all night in the throes of writing passionately. With a comfy sweater on and a cup of tea in your hand you'll feel like a superhero, able to tackle the 50,000 words during this challenge without breaking a sweat.