Making the Most of Your First Draft

Every year, we’re lucky to have great sponsors for our nonprofit events. Dabble, a 2021 NaNoWriMo sponsor, is an easy-to-use writing tool that lets you organize, plot, and create amazing stories. Today, they’ve teamed up with author and editor Chet Sandberg to bring you some advice for getting the most out of your first draft:

Every year, thousands of first time novelists reach the end of November with +/-50k words and savor the victory of finally finishing something. Perhaps you’ll be one of them!

You take a day, or maybe you take a week, to bathe in the adulation of your fellows, many of whom also completed their manuscripts, along with many who didn’t. Then, you freeze. What’s the next step?

This post is dedicated to helping you get a first draft that, no matter how loosey-goosey or clinical your writing approach, serves as a basis for a great final manuscript.

Turning points: give your scenes movement.