The kids are going to back to school and you want to finish your novel. But how?

We’ve all been there. You’ve taken a chunk of time off of writing your novel this summer to spend time with the kids and now you have no idea what’s happening in your novel or who the characters are or if it’s any good at all. Maybe you’re dreading opening your novel so much that you have a gut-ache every time you think of doing it, like you just ate some really bad fish.

I know the feeling.

Nobody would blame you for delaying a little longer. Maybe until National Novel Writing Month in November?

No!

Instead, start writing immediately on the first day the kids return to school. It’s a good beginning for us writers, just like it is for them, and you can still finish your novel during NaNoWriMo.

But don’t return to the work in a soul-sucking, creative-confidence-killing way. Don’t open your document and re-read your imperfect prose (yes, your book will be imperfect because you’re not finished!) and then feel all terrible about yourself. And for goodness sake, don’t start the miserable editing process before you are done with that first draft.

Nope. There is another, better way.

Here are a few ideas for what you can do before you start writing. These will create better long term results: in other words, you’ll actually finish your draft.

1. Journal in the voice of your main character. Then journal in the voices of the other characters. This gets me thinking about my story without facing my sloppy first draft writing.

2. Write an elevator pitch for your story. One sentence. Give the title, the main character’s situation, the inciting incident, the resulting desire or goal and the stakes if they don’t get it. Rewrite until you’re very clear about your story. This will help you as you forge on.

3. Take notes on your book. But don’t actually read your book: instead, skim-read for information. Take notes on the main thing that happens in each chapter. How does it move the story forward? Write down character and setting names so that you don’t forget them as you finish your draft.

4. Figure out what the main character wants. This is what they’re chasing. What do the other characters want? If their desires don’t conflict with your main character’s desire, change this for at least one character. Conflict is good. Now, what action will your character take to get what they want? This is where you can start writing…just explore what they want. Give us thoughts and action as they pursue this desire.

5. Give them an obstacle! The obstacle should stand in the way of what they want. It’s really that simple. Now, this will keep you writing for a while. Write as fast as you can and don’t judge your writing. A 15 minute sprint is fine.

6. If you’re still stuck, create an opposite. Think about creating an opposite in your setting or in the mood. If the last chapter was a quiet bedroom scene, your next scene is a crowded subway platform scene. If your character just experienced a betrayal, maybe now they can bond with someone. Opposites can create forward momentum in your story and they’re one of the most powerful tools to use any time you’re stuck.

Okay, parent writers, are you ready? Let’s do this thing. 15 minutes speed writing every day. We all have 15 minutes. No more excuses.

Ready. Set. Go.