How To Win NaNo: A Writing Podcast

NaNoWriMo might be over for another season, but that doesn't mean you have to stop writing! In this week's episode, hosts Kristina and Liz discuss how to make writing a habit, how to not burn yourself out, and accountability in general.We also talk a bit about what's next for the podcast, so stay tuned for more!Follow us on Twitter: @howtowinnanoJoin our Discord server: https://discord.gg/u92vfhgAYmBecome a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/howtowinnano

First of all, YOU DID IT. Another NaNoWriMo has come and gone and whether you wrote 50,000 words or not, you've now got another draft to add to the pile of "now what" novels. These tend to stack up if you've being writing for awhile, and that's okay!In this episode, hosts Kristina and Liz discuss some options for how to next the next step on your writing project.Follow us on Twitter: @howtowinnanoJoin our Discord server: https://discord.gg/u92vfhgAYmBecome a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/howtowinnano

There are a whole bunch of reasons why a person might write more than 50,000 words for NaNoWriMo: maybe you're just a naturally fast writer, maybe you're trying to finish the book, or maybe you just need a bigger challenge! In this week's episode, hosts Kristina and Liz get into the nitty-gritty of being NaNo over-achievers.Follow us on Twitter: @howtowinnanoJoin our Discord server: https://discord.gg/u92vfhgAYmBecome a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/howtowinnano

Something you might find yourself asking is, "how important is theme when writing my story?" Should  theme come before you start writing, or is it something I can figure out along the way?Like most things with writing, there's no wrong way! In this episode, Kristina and Liz discuss different approaches to story theme and why it's sometimes something you might be already doing without even realizing it!Follow us on Twitter: @howtowinnanoJoin our Discord server: https://discord.gg/u92vfhgAYmBecome a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/howtowinnano

Have you outlined your book, but then once you start writing everything falls apart? How do you push through when feeling disorganized? What if the urge is strong to go back and edit?In this week's episode, hosts Kristina and Liz discuss a number of tips to help you through this frustrating experience.Follow us on Twitter: @howtowinnanoJoin our Discord server: https://discord.gg/u92vfhgAYmBecome a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/howtowinnano

Book covers definitely aren't the MOST important thing to be thinking about during NaNoWriMo, but since the NaNo site gives you a nice spot to upload one, it's something that's likely on your mind! In this week's episode, hosts Kristina and Liz share  some great tips on making your own!Follow us on Twitter: @howtowinnanoJoin our Discord server: https://discord.gg/u92vfhgAYmBecome a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/howtowinnano

Why this is going to be the best year of NaNoWriMo ever and how you're going to absolutely crush it. Or something like that. In this week's episode, hosts Kristina and Liz do their very best to get you pumped.Follow us on Twitter: @howtowinnanoJoin our Discord server: https://discord.gg/u92vfhgAYmBecome a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/howtowinnano

Have you ever thought about using tarot cards to help inspire your novel? Or just want to find out what's in store for your writing future? On this special Halloween episode, hosts Kristina and Liz do just that.Follow us on Twitter: @howtowinnanoJoin our Discord server: https://discord.gg/u92vfhgAYmBecome a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/howtowinnano

It's almost November, and maybe you're worried that your tank is ALREADY empty! Whether that be creatively, physically, of just straight burnout, the idea of finding any sort of creative reserves to draw from might be daunting.In this week's episode, hosts Kristina and Liz discuss a number of options for how to fill that tank and get the words written.Follow us on Twitter: @howtowinnanoJoin our Discord server: https://discord.gg/u92vfhgAYmBecome a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/howtowinnano

Are you writing a fantasy novel? Do you need to name way too many characters? Not sure where to start?In this week's episode, hosts Kristina and Liz give a few tips on how to tackle this very specific writing problem.Follow us on Twitter: @howtowinnanoJoin our Discord server: https://discord.gg/u92vfhgAYmBecome a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/howtowinnano

Picking which project to work on is the first challenging step in NaNoWrimo...especially for veteran wrimos! Do you always start a brand new project? Do you pick up something you've worked on before? In this episode, hosts Kristina and Liz weigh the pros and cons of each idea.Thank you to @froznmangos for inspiring this topic.Follow us on Twitter: @howtowinnanoJoin our Discord server: https://discord.gg/u92vfhgAYmBecome a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/howtowinnano

Can you believe it's already NaNoWriMo season again? In this economy?!Your hosts Kristina and Liz are back for SEASON 3 of How To Win NaNo, in which we get you ready to crush that daily word count and hopefully come out the other end with a novel you're proud to have written.It's so good to be back!

Or you didn't, and that's okay too! As we wrap up a particularly strange year of NaNoWriMo, your hosts Kristina and Liz leave you with some final thoughts on what this year was like, and what to do next.

What if you're behind? What if all of your friends are ahead of you? What if you *gasp* finish early? In this episode, we discuss all things related to the home-stretch.

We're halfway! How are you feeling? Need a pick me up? Then you've come to the right place.

How to write your novel this November when you're just plain tired of being on your computer.

Feelin' blue about the pandemic? Missing all your IRL NaNo buddies? Here are some tips for connecting with people even when you have to do it remotely!

It's November 1st! Feeling overwhelmed? US TOO! HAPPY NANO!

Thinking about doing short stories, a memoir, a rewrite, or some other kind of non-traditional idea for NaNoWriMo this year? In this episode, Liz and Kristina discuss strategies, and how this is a totally okay thing to do.

In this week's episode, we talk about ways to find inspiration, ways to reward yourself for hitting certain world milestones, and just plain pushing through when things get tough. It's going to be a wild NaNoWriMo, folks, but we've got your back.

Has 2020 already taken its toll on you? Need some advice on how to get yourself to write in a pandemic? We're here for you.

2020 didn't turn out to be quite the year we expected it to be, but our second season of How To Win NaNo has finally arrived! Things might look different this year, but NaNoWriMo is still on its way. We're here to be your #1 source for surviving National Novel Writing Month in a pandemic.

Love the podcast and sad to see it over? YOU'RE IN LUCK. Here's a rundown of what to expect in 2020 for our little writing community.

Is there life after NaNoWriMo? Of course there is! We're here to help you deal. Have a plethora of free time now and you're not sure what to fill it with? Not sure what to do next on your writing project? We got you.

NaNoWriMo ending can be jarring for a number of reasons! In this episode we talk about the things we've learned this year, regional epilogue parties, and how much we think about NaNoWriMo the rest of the year.

There are 3 days left in NaNoWriMo. Let's talk about how it feels, how those last 10,000 words feel, and what we'll miss about NaNo once it's over.

Need to buckle down and get some words written? We've got you! Put this episode on when you've got a free 30 mins and want to focus on writing. Music by Marc Straight.

The hardest part of NaNoWriMo -- week 3, or the 30k slump. Why it's the worst, but we're all in this together.

We discuss a bit of the darker side of NaNoWriMo: bad writing days, how to recover when falling behind, and why you should keep going anyway.

Marc Straight wrote the music behind our word sprint bonus episodes and he's also a fellow NaNoWriMo participant! Join us for a quick bonus episode where we interview Marc about all things writing, music and NaNo.

Need to buckle down and get some words written? We've got you! Put this episode on when you've got a free 30 mins and want to focus on writing. Music by Marc Straight.

Rewards and punishments can be strong motivators during NaNoWriMo. In this episode, we talk about how to set the right ones for yourself and then get completely derailed and talk a LOT about pie.

A quick bonus episode to help get you through Day #1! We discuss naming your document, the new official website and how it feels to finally START.

Grant Faulkner is the Executive Director of NaNoWriMo! This week he joins us for a discussion on how to pick your novel idea — and stick to it.

Everything you need to know about NaNoWriMo as a beginner, or some excellent tips and refreshers for veterans!

This episode is all about naming your characters! We discuss how to choose names, what happens if you decide to change any names, and how to avoid making naming mistakes.

What are your biggest writing distractions? How do you cope with distraction? And does "writer's block" actually exist?

What type of outlining is useful for writing a novel in a month? Is there such a thing as overplanning? How can you tailor your outline in a way that keeps you excited to work on your novel?

In this episode, we dive into some of our favorite writing tools and take a look at some lovely messages from listeners!

In this week's episode, we delve into genre and setting — and how the two are connected.

In this episode we talk about how we come up with ideas for characters, what makes a character interesting, and how to make those characters feel like living, breathing beings you can form empathy for.

Get to know Kristina and Liz, the hosts of How To Win NaNo! In this episode, we delve into our writer origin stories, including how we got started writing, what we like reading, and ways we've been involved in NaNoWriMo in the past beyond just writing our novels.

The secret to NaNoWriMo is in building strong habits. It takes 21 days to build a habit, so we're here to help you get this stuff down BEFORE November starts!

Where do story ideas come from? How do you choose what to write? How do you keep track of your ideas? Join us this week as we discuss tips for generating novel ideas.

Liz and Kristina dive into what it means to be successful at NaNoWriMo, and why this tool for getting your book written works for so many people.

A brief intro to what NaNoWriMo is and why we do it every year.

How To Win NaNo is a writing podcast aimed to get YOU ready to tackle NaNoWriMo this November. Episodes will go live every Wednesday starting in April, but until then: please enjoy this trailer!Kristina Horner and Liz Leo are best friends and 13/12 year NaNoWriMo champions respectively. They've known each other since middle school, and stayed friends all these years thanks to their shared love of writing.Join them each week as they share their tips, tricks and things they've learned over a decade of consecutive NaNoWriMo wins.