Nanowrimo: Yesno?

What do you mean, National Novel Writing Month starts this Friday?!

I knew it was coming up, because of the e-mails and because Alexandra Sokoloff has been posting her excellent Nanowrimo prep-work articles all month (start here), and because I did notice that it’s October—the kids have made it hyperactively clear that Halloween is imminent—and I do know that November follows October . . . but I guess I didn’t realize it would be following so quickly this year.

I’ve done some prep-work—Alex is inspiring that way, and heaven knows it couldn’t hurt, regardless—but I’m not sure I’m going to sign up this year.  Time is even tighter than usual for several reasons and I’m already in the middle of a fun writing project.  I’m not sure if I want to rush it through, but stopping for a month to pick up something else sounds like an even worse idea.

Maybe I’ll do an unofficial, unregistered half-Nano . . . 830ish words a day sounds a lot more doable.

However, for all of you who are committed to or considering taking the pledge to write 50,000 words in 30 days—or for those of you who are committed to writing something this month, or even those who plan to take it easy and get through your reading pile, or at least catch up on Agents of Shield or Game of Thrones or Doctor Who or whatever’s clogging up your DVR*—here’s a handy-dandy chart to help you work out a superquick outline of elements for your story, and/or analyze the heck out of whatever you’re reading or watching.

If you don’t end up poring over every single square for an hour or two . . .

(Click the image to get to an image you can enlarge. I hope)

 Seriously–anyone interested in that half-Nano thing?

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*Or for those of you who landed here because you’re studying Alistair MacLeod’s “In the Fall“—as several of you apparently are—and either think this blog is a legit source or were told to find five dubious Internet sources.  Either way, thanks for the extra stats!