Another November has come and gone, and with it the 2014 NaNoWriMo challenge to write your book in a month. Hopefully you met your goal and completed a first draft that you can re-visit, tear down, and build up again. Don’t let your enthusiasm fade. Here are three gifts you can give yourself in the next months to prepare your book for the publishing path most appropriate for it.
First, gift yourself the gift of a few deep breaths. Take a break from the writing and revision processes. Clear your head. Clear the air. Fill it with something else. Let the holidays take over for a month or more and give your manuscript a breather to steep or ferment. There is great freedom in putting the object of your NaNoWriMo obsession aside for a few weeks. You get to clear the anxiety out of your head. Reboot your system. Breathe a bit. You’ll regain a little objectivity and be ready to tackle revisions with renewed vigor!
Second, give yourself the gift of knowledge. Check out your options for next steps and consider what will best meet your goals for your project. If you need a refresher on what your publishing options are, check out Redbrush’s publishing guide, "The Compass" (http://www.redbrush.com/resources/guide.html). You can read about your choices for what to do with your new manuscript, identify your goals and audiences for your book, and take inventory of whether your book will be able to reach those goals and readers.
Finally, give yourself the gift of a plan. In the New Year, psyche up again and choose what to do with your manuscript. Jump into the rewrites and remodeling phases. Give yourself soft deadlines to help you hit milestones along the way. Identify the help you need and options for completing those steps. Redbrush’s "Compass" provides a helpful checklist to guide you.
Whether you hit your NaNoWriMo goal of 50,000 words, take some time to consider what to do in the months ahead. You could hold your published book in your hands well before the next NaNoWriMon rolls around. How cool would that be?
