With NaNoWriMo upon us, many of you are thinking seriously about your daily word count. Here are some tips to maximize that total.

• Get an early start – If you wait until the end of the day, you’ll be racing your clock to get those words down, and that can pile more stress on an already stressed writer. Set your clock half an hour early and sit down to put some words onto your pages.
• Carve out some time – keep a notebook and pen with you at all times. Waiting for that latte? Get a few words down. Does that roast take half an hour to cook? Write! You can transcribe to the computer on your day off. Just get those words onto the paper.
• Be a little Type-A – schedule your writing time. Yes, I mean actually make out a daily schedule and put “writing” on your calendar! If it’s written down, you’re less likely to blow it off or find other things to do with that time.
• Ask and ye shall receive – let your friends and family know that you’re trying to finish that book. Ask them to respect your schedule and give you the time you need.
• Silence your internal editor – this should go without saying during NaNoWriMo, but it’s good advice any time at all. When you’re trying to get the words out, ignore that Doubting Thomas voice in your head that says it’s all crap, that it has to be perfect, that you’ll never finish. Just keep plugging away. Edit later!

And here’s a Bonus Tip: everything that comes into your head is fair game for a NaNoWriMo word count! If you’re plugging along, and suddenly realize that you need to know more about rattlesnake milking for your character’s new hobby, then write down “I need to know more about rattlesnake milking – do some research here!” Bold that section and come back to it later, when you’re not busy writing.

“Today is the first page of a 365-page book — write a good one.”

Didn’t get a source for that quote, but I saw it floating around the internet yesterday and thought it quite appropriate for us writers. It’s a new year: time for new beginnings, fresh starts, and clean slates.

Writing is a solitary craft. You tend to lose track of things like dates. It’s a good idea to come up for air once in a while, though, and reconnect with the world. New Year’s is a good time to do this. It’s the traditional sweeping out of the old, and a great opportunity to re-think your manuscript.

Instead of the more usual resolutions — weight loss and exercise goals, saving money or donating more to charity — I challenge you to create goals for yourself as a writer. Oh, all right, you can do that in addition to your other resolutions if you wish!

Here are some ideas for your writerly goals:

• Set a daily word or page count and keep to that goal
• Resist the editing urge – set a specific time to edit and stick to that (at the end of a chapter, for example, but no sooner)
• Track your progress – make a colorful chart or graph showing how far you’ve come
• Slow and steady wins the race – instead of beating yourself up for not writing as fast as your favorite author, pat yourself on the back whenever you finish a page or a chapter
• Work on your brand – if you haven’t done so already, set up that social media page and get your name out there
• Set up your website, too, and start blogging
• Read – spend some quality time analyzing how your favorite authors do it, or just getting some inspiration from enjoying a good story

And my favorite New Year’s goal? Write down every positive thing that happens to you over the next year, and tuck that scrap of paper into a jar or box. Next New Year’s — or anytime you happen to feel down — open up that package of happiness and refresh yourself.

What are your resolutions for the new year?