Hocus Pocus, it’s NaNoWriMo!

It’s Halloween, bitches! Time to watch all my favourite Halloween themed movies and eat pumpkin shaped candies!

Like this one. You thought I was kidding, didn’t you?

Usually I’d dress up in costume and go to some party with my friends, but sadly this year we’re all in different cities, so nada 😦 So I think I’ll actually spend the night on the couch eating candies and watching my favourite scary/spooky/classic/Halloween themed movies:

– The Craft

–  Edward Scissorhands

– Donnie Darko

– Sleepy Hollow

– The Rocky Horror Picture Show

– The Crow

– Hocus Pocus

And of course, Practical Magic, which is one of my favourite movies ever

Put the lime in the coconut, drink ‘em both up!

(If you’re wondering why an awesome classic such as The Nightmare Before Christmas didn’t make the list, it’s because to me it’s, well, a Christmas movie. I’ve watched it every Christmas since I was 6 🙂 )

YES, I’m 12 years old this time of the year, I’m aware.

Now, let’s talk about “srs biz”:

NaNoWriMo starts tomorrow! I’m partecipating for the first time, and I’m very excited. And really, really determined to get shit done.

I’m definitely a plotter, not a pantser, although when I sit down and put my fingers on the keybord I often end up changing a lot of stuff and I’m more than happy to follow my characters where they choose to lead me. For example, two of them were supposed to be dead by now, but they’re still alive and kicking ‘cause apparently I still need them. Clever bastards. You’re safe. For now.

But yeah, when it comes to work I’m an extremely organized person and I need to know what the destination is and where the major stations are, before jumping on a train.

So, meet THE PLOTTING WALL:

It’s a door actually, it was the only available space in my room haha

As you can see, Black Hood is divided into 27 chapters, each chapter into scenes. Is it definitive? Absolutely not. I may end up writing more chapters, more scenes, or less chapters and less scenes, who knows. I may end up changing major plot points. But I need this for now. I need a structure I can follow and that keeps me focused and motivated. That’s why I also wrote down the acts (I follow the 3-Act Structure, typical of screenplays, as Marilyn Atlas suggested me) of the second and third book, Black Hood Rising and Under The Hood. I need to know where I’m going, and if I have a new idea I can add it, if I see there’s a plot hole I can fix it. It’s my novel’s skeleton. And maybe its circulatory system too, yeah.

Since I might have a slight form of OCD and I need to have absolute order around me and control over everything I work on, I’ve also drawn a map of the place where the novel is set and a timeline of the events that led to the situation it starts with:

and I keep adding post-it notes to remind myself of important things, like these:

There are also several flying papers with a list of the characters, their history and personality, random scenes and random dialogues that I’m going to need later.

As I said, THE PLOTTING WALL is not definitive, but seeing it everyday and working on it just makes me feel better.

And of course, MY PLAYLIST is ready too. The right music can do wonders for inspiration.

If you’re still in the NaNoPrep phase, I suggest using The Snowflake Method to plan your story and have a more defined idea of what you’re going to write. It helped me a lot.

So, have fun and don’t let doubt and insecurity stop you from writing your story! I can’t wait for tomorrow, I have Mulan training scene level of determination.

GOOD LUCK EVERYBODY!