Reward Yourself During NaNoWriMo
I’ve found a way to keep myself motivated throughout the month.
NaNoWriMo is a writing challenge that was created in 1999. It’s super popular among the writing community. There are people who don’t participate because it doesn’t work for them but they certainly know what it is.
I’m sure everyone has heard of NaNoWriMo — National Novel Writing Month — where you write 50,000 words of a brand new novel during the month of November within its 30 days.
Of course, there are people who do not start a brand new novel. Some people are “NaNo Rebels” and they’ll add 50,000 words to an existing novel. Or maybe they’ll edit. Or maybe they’ll write short stories.
Whatever tickles your fancy, NaNoWriMo is a way to bring writers and creators together from all over the world. This gives them the tools and the space they need to accomplish that dream of writing a novel.
Reward yourself
Rewards are great no matter what you’re doing. If it’s work, school, something creative, whatever. Reward yourself. If you’re working toward something and you make progress, give yourself a pat on the back and reward yourself. You’re doing a good thing and you’re doing a great job.
Since NaNo needs you to write 50,000 words in one month, that’s about 1,667 words per day. People may set their own daily goals so they stay ahead throughout the month. For me? My goal is to write at least 2,000 words a day. That little extra gives me the boost I need in case there’s a day I get little writing done.
A lot of people will reward themselves with Halloween candy. If they reach their daily word goal, they’ll eat a piece of chocolate.
This is a cool way of doing it (since we’re all trying to eat healthier, right?) but it’s never worked for me. I don’t like chocolate or any type of candy, really. At least, not enough to have a little bit each day.
How else can you reward yourself?
I finally found something that works for me. I’ve been participating in NaNoWriMo since 2009 and, even though I’ve always reached 50,000 words by the end of the month, I’ve never found a way to reward myself throughout the process.
I’ve bought myself a new video game at the end of the month if I reach 50,000 words, but there was never anything small enough to keep myself going each day.
Pokemon cards
This is my guilty pleasure. I absolutely love collecting Pokemon cards.
I decided I wanted to buy 30 booster packs. If I reach my word count each day, I can open one pack. Of course, booster packs are about $5 apiece so, if this is something you’d like to try, you’re looking to spend about $150. I never buy anything for myself though, so I decided to splurge this once.
Unfortunately, Pokemon Center was totally sold out of Pokemon cards and I didn’t feel comfortable buying from Amazon. (Some of the reviews said their packs came opened and resealed with cards missing.)
I went to my local Barnes & Noble and, luckily for me, the Pokemon cards were freshly stocked.
I bought the mini tins, each with a different Pokemon on it. If you buy all five, the tins form a single picture. These tins had two booster packs inside each of them so I bought the five mini tins giving me ten boost packs total.
I didn’t want to splurge right then and there and buy 30 packs right off the bat. I’ll go back next week and buy another week’s supply of them.
It’s harder than it seems to only open one pack at a time. Honestly, if I skip a day I’m probably going to still open the pack when the month is over anyway. But it’s still fun regardless.
Other ways to reward yourself
Sure, you can eat a piece of Halloween candy after reaching your daily word count. Or if there’s another snack you prefer but don’t eat often, reward yourself with that.
What other guilty pleasures do you have that you don’t do often? Whether it’s food or Pokemon cards, create an Advent calendar-like set up for yourself.
Alternatively, you can find something big you want for the end of the month. If you reach 50,000 words, buy yourself something nice or go out and do something you’ve been wanting to for a while.
Of course, it’s difficult this year with Coronavirus, but you can get creative with it.
Good luck and have fun!
Are you participating in NaNoWriMo? Let me know in the comments!
I’m an author offering content writing and book publicity services for writers at all stages during their creative journey. My goal is to make the process go smoother so you have the time to do what you do best: create.
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