Happy November! Or, as I like to call it, “No”-vember: this is the month I have to say no to all other obligations because I’m writing FIFTY THOUSAND WORDS. It’s NaNoWriMo season.

Here’s my month so far in numbers:

• 16,797 words written
• 437 words deleted because I made the mistake of rereading my work
• 7 caffeinated drinks
• 3 caffeinated chocolate bars (My college cafe sells these and they’re addictive. My eyes are pretty round to begin with, but when I eat these my eyes get VERY wide. That’s probably not a good sign. I might bulk order them for myself anyways.)
• 6 hours of sleep a night PLUS a one hour nap (This is not a tenable situation.)
• 2 college essays written
• 2 college essays to write this week (What was I THINKING)
• 3 times I’ve wanted to throw the entire book away
• 2 times I imagined seeing my novel on the shelves
• 1 time I convinced myself that I could never be an author and started researching careers in costume design
• 1 time I remembered I couldn’t sew and went back to my manuscript
• $11.29 spent on stress-shopping at Goodwill. I bought sweaters, because I’m attending college in Massachusetts and it SNOWED last Friday. So that’s where I’m at.

But in all seriousness, I really love November – the month is completely self-aware that it’s miserable. October is the perfect month, especially here in New England: you’re never sweating, but it’s warm enough that you can throw on a denim jacket, step outside, and bask in the beauty of the trees turning colors. Every single day in October is one of those, “You should go outside and appreciate the weather!” kind of days.

There’s no pressure to appreciate anything in November, because it’s gray and snowing and the sun sets at 4:30. But that’s exactly what I appreciate about it! Because then you get long nights with glowing lights and writing, snacking on left-over halloween candy. November is the first month you get to feel cozy.

Right now, I feel immensely fulfilled. I love writing everyday. When I go to bed, I feel satisfied; I am doing my life’s work.

Writing a novel is weird, though, because for a month I’m a freshman in high school, a mother, and an astrophysicist. Writing requires you to wear a lot of hats. We’ve all read books and been like, “That doesn’t seem realistic,” because an author didn’t do their research about what it’s really like being a sword-maker in the 16th century.

So how do you do research for books?

1. Take Classes

I admit I’m in a great position to take advantage of this, considering I’m in college, but I stand by it regardless of what age you are: take classes in things that you might need to know for your book! Right now, I’m taking Survey of the Universe, a beginner’s astronomy class. I’m learning so much, and though I’m still faking my way through understanding physics for the sake of my book, I no longer have to pretend when I write about my main character’s love for the stars – I grew to love them too. Also, hopefully the science in my book is a little more accurate now.

2. Read Relevant Books

What’s this?? Me, a writer and reader, recommending that you read more books?? Did  you expect anything less? The library exists, and it’s full of knowledge. Go check-out a book about something you need to know, take some notes, and then get back to writing.

3. Sit Quietly in Public Spaces

I’m not kidding. Go to a cafe, buy a cheap coffee, open up your journal, and don’t put headphones in. Just listen. Listen to the cadence of dialogue. You might hear a compelling snippet of plot, or you might just learn how certain people speak. What does a kid actually sound like? What do teenage girls say when they’re talking to each other? Does a grandmother switch her tone depending on whether she’s talking to her daughter or her granddaughter? Learn how people speak. You can also repeat this exercise for different senses. What are people wearing? What does the cafe smell like? What exactly does a table feel like? Then make yourself put it all into words.

4. Reread Old Journals

When I’m reading about the young adult genre online, I see a lot of adults asking how they can write realistic teenagers. It’s true that there are elements of being a teen that change very quickly: what slang is in, which memes are viral, and which threat we’re most worried will destroy the Earth before we can legally drink. (Global warming usually takes the cake, but threat of nuclear war is a real contender!) For those issues, you can consult your local teen, though I wouldn’t recommend it: by time you write it, it’ll probably be outdated.

But I do have some good news for anyone who wants to write about children: you’ve already lived your research! You were once a child! And if you’re a writer now, there is a  strong chance you kept a journal as a kid. Give child-you a pat on the back (that is, if you can find a time-machine.) You’ve inadvertently done a chunk of your research already.

I often reread my journals to remind myself what I how I was feeling and what I was thinking about when I was fourteen. Reacquaint yourself with an age – read your journal. (And if you never kept journals, I’d suggest starting. Maybe one day you’ll want to write about the age you are now! Also, they lead to fun discoveries later. I just dedicated four pages of my current journal to debating whether or not it was morally ethical to ride horses. FOUR. And I did not reach a conclusion.)

5. Talk to Relevant People

If you have friends or family who might have insight to particular aspects of your novel, ask them questions! (Just be sure that they want to help, and try to not rely only on people you know to make sure your book is authentic – especially if they’re a member of a minority and you’re asking them questions specific to that experience. That can be overbearing. Google also exists, and there might be people on the internet who’ve already volunteered their time to answer your question.) My main character gets migraines, so I recruited my sister to learn more about what they actually feel like. You can also reach out to experts in different fields in you have a more specific or technical question.

So, those are five tactics that I use to research. I typically do research before I’m writing (to set myself up for success) and after writing (I fix facts in the editing process). I don’t do research when I’m actually writing because I have I don’t have time! Because I always draft during NaNoWriMo! Heavens knows why! I have 33,203 words left to write! In twenty days! Haha!

Thanks so much for reading. Are any of you doing NaNoWriMo? How do you do research for your books? Let me know in the comments! Until next time, you can find me on Pinterest , Etsy, and Instagram.

I have a confession: I haven’t been writing for the past two months.

I’m afraid that writing slid to the bottom of my priority list as I graduated high school, committed to Smith College (GO SMITHIES), and visited Washington D.C. as a Presidential Scholar in the Arts. To be completely honest, even when I do have a few moments to type, it doesn’t feel like I’m a “real” writer. Sometimes I get lost in advertisements for “writer retreats,” expensive programs in exotic locations that promise peace and quiet for your craft. If only I could go to Rome/New York City/Paris, attend workshops with fancy published authors, and completely seclude myself from the world! Then I’d get some writing done!

All of that, is, of course, delusional.

You’re a writer because you write. Something gets written because you put the work in. That’s something I had to relearn today, as I spent five hours rewriting the first chapter of my book.*

As part of Camp NanoWrimo, I’ve committed to working on my book five hours every day. You don’t need to spend $5,000 to learn more about your craft and get real, solid work done. If you have $5000 lying around, please go do it! Send me a postcard from Paris. I’ll only be a little jealous, I swear. But it’s also possible to create your own “writer’s retreat” at your own home!

*WHY YES, you did read that correctly. I’m completely rewriting my book. Again. Sometimes it feels like I’m not making real progress, since I’m constantly restarting. But I want this book to be the absolute best it can be, and it’s only after two and a half drafts that I think I know what the book is actually about. Let me know in the comments if you’d be interested in hearing more about my projects in writing update posts! The amount of work left to do in my novel is paralyzing when I think about it abstractly, but when I’m actually writing, I’m just excited by the possibility of what it could become.

1. Claim a Day & Defend it

President’s Day is my favorite day of the year. Most holidays are inherently social events; I always spend Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, etc. with family and friends. But my school gives us Monday off for President’s Day, and that’s my day alone. Find a day when you don’t have many responsibilities. A day when you’re off from school or work, or an evening that you haven’t promised to anyone. Decide THAT is going to be your writing day. And then defend it.

People will ask you for favors. Friends will want to hang out. Tell them you’ll see them the next day. As J.K. Rowling once said,

“Be ruthless about protecting writing days, i.e., do not cave in to endless requests to have “essential” and “long overdue” meetings on those days. The funny thing is that, although writing has been my actual job for several years now, I still seem to have to fight for time in which to do it. Some people do not seem to grasp that I still have to sit down in peace and write the books, apparently believing that they pop up like mushrooms without my connivance.

If you want writing to be your job, treat it like real work.

2. Block Out Your Time

I use my daily writer planner to schedule my time out hour by hour on writing days. I plan my writing days the same way I outline my novels: I create a firm series of events so I never have an excuse not to be doing something, but I give myself permission to stray if I feel inspired. For example, I may schedule my writing time to be from 9 to 12, but if I’m on a roll, I’ll ignore when my planner tells me to stop. Having a schedule helps me prioritize what I want to get out of each day. There’s something about putting a commitment down in writing that makes me more likely to do it

3. Make Time to Read

Would you try to build a car without a manual? Or, you know, ever actually seeing a car? That’s what writing without reading is like. Like trying to build a car without ever having ridden in one. Fancy writing classes and workshops are incredible, and if get the chance to participate in them, definitely go for it, but your best writing teacher is a book.

Reading a good book reminds you of how to structure a paragraph and weave your themes into your narrative. A bad book reminds you of what not to do. There’s no way to lose! If you can make time to write, you can make time to read. Support your fellow authors and better your own writing.

4. Find a Writing Community

I think one reason that writing events seem so appealing is because they offer a sense of community. Writing is, in its very nature, a solitary craft, and it can feel isolating. But there are plenty of free ways to connect with other writers! Research if there are any writing groups in your area. Sometimes libraries or literary nonprofits host these. If there’s not, you might consider forming your own. It could be helpful to have an outside perspective on your work. Book clubs, poetry readings, local literary magazines, online forums, and social media can also help connect authors and make the process a little less lonely.

5. Breaks and Motivation

Finally, don’t overwork yourself. If you need a break, take it. And if you need something to help you make the final push, allow me to offer up a list of my favorite motivators:

1. CHOCOLATE
2. Watching an episode of your favorite show (My personal fave is Project Runway.)
3. Online shopping (Especially on ModCloth)
4. Journaling
5. Taking a walk while listening to some good music. (Taylor Swift, King Princess, and Lorde are my summer soundtrack.)
6. Think of holding your published book in your hands
7. Think of someone else holding your published book in their hands. Think about how your writing might just be what they needed to hear. (This one works every time for me.)

Thanks so much for reading. Are any of you participating in Camp NaNo this year? How do you make time for writing? Any tips for productivity? Let me know in the comments! Until next time, you can find me on Pinterest , Etsy, and Instagram.

Little known fact about me: I am a massive Taylor Swift fan. I like her style and her music, but above all, I like her writing:

 I could build a castle/ Out of all the bricks they threw at me

You keep his shirt / He keeps his word

She’s a lyrical genius. And these lines are both from bonus tracks, aka songs she deemed not good enough to make it onto the actual album. Wild. So you can imagine my joy when I read Taylor’s recent article in Elle UK Magazine about writing pop songs. It turns out that Taylor Swift and I give out the same writing advice.

I’m a content editor for three different magazines, and the most common comment that I leave on papers is: “Can you be more specific?”

Writing can easily slip into general words and ideas. It’s so much easier to say

She loved driving with him 

versus

The floor of his car was littered with empty Poland Springs and chip bags, but when they were cruising along the Pacific, she was only looking at his hands. The way his left loosely gripped the leather steering wheel and the way his right was intertwined with hers. Even when he pulls up to the curb of her parent’s ranch to drop her off, she lingers, staring at the boy who smells exactly like the ocean.

I timed myself: it took me .5 seconds to write the first sentence and eight minutes to write the second. When you’re working on a longer project, that seems like a pretty lengthy time investment. But which sentence made you feel like you were in the car? Which sentence introduced you to characters?

Details anchor a reader in your writing. It gives them something concrete to hold onto as you bombard them with characters, action, and themes. Being specific applies to both poetry and fiction – and songwriting. It is the concept of making every word count. 

Don’t believe me? Take it from Taylor Swift. In her article, she writes,

“You’d think that as pop writers, we’re supposed to be writing songs that everyone can sing along to, so you’d assume they would have to be pretty lyrically generic… AND YET the ones I think cut through the most are actually the most detailed.

This glimpse into the artist’s story invites us to connect it to our own, and in the best case scenario, allows us the ability to assign that song to our memories.

It’s this alliance between a song and our memories of the times it helped us heal, or made us cry, dance, or escape that truly stands the test of time. Just like a great book.”

Yes, Tay Tay shouted out books at the end there. No, it didn’t make me excited. Okay. Maybe just a little. (She respects books, y’all!)

So, how do you learn how to be specific? What type of details should you include? Well, I have some advice and some Taylor Swift lyrics, so buckle up. It’s detail time.

4 Tips For Writing Details, With Some Help From Taylor Swift

1. Adjectives

I know, it seems obvious. Adjectives describe something, therefore making it more specific. But the right adjective can completely transform a sentence.

Take this example from Taylor’s song Clean:

you’re still all over me like a wine-stained dress I can’t wear anymore.

Can you even imagine that lyric without the word “wine-stained?” It completely elevates the image. (Not to mention that the song Clean relates recovering from heartbreak to recovering from substance abuse, so to mention “wine” is a smart move, using a simile to reinforce the overall song theme. Every. word. counts. Also, have I mentioned that I think Taylor Swift is a genius?)

There’s also this line from Swift’s Mine:

You made a rebel of a careless man’s careful daughter

I love this line because it sort of smushed an entire book plot into a country-pop chorus, and “careless” and “careful” are really pulling their weight here by explaining the dynamic between the father and daughter. I usually hesitate to use adjectives for character development (show us he’s angry, don’t tell us) but this is a great example of being specific and concise.

2. Put A Name To It

Taylor Swift’s first ever single started with a name: Tim McGraw. She continued this tradition by mentioning her crush (Hey, Drew!) in Teardrops on My Guitar and shouting out her friend Abigail in Fifteen. When Taylor drops a name, you know it’s serious. Sometimes a name resulted in a solid bop (any other Hey Stephen fans out there?) and sometimes, like in the case of Dear John, it created a media storm of people arguing about exactly who Taylor Swift was. A man-eater? Someone who loved playing the victim? An actual victim? Or a really, really good writer?

A name is so specific that the reader feels like they can trust the narrator. Sometimes writers use pronouns instead of names to try to make a character more ubiquitous, but this often ends up backfiring. The most universal thing we know is having an identity. When the reader has a name, its easier to develop empathy for a character.

3. Setting

Anyone who listens to Taylor Swift knows that 2AM is a magical time. So far, Taylor Swift has fallen in love, gotten into a blow-out fight, and ridden around in a truck at this time. (Or at least, the characters in her songs have.) A simple sense of time and place can make a scene seem much more concrete.

Here’s an example from the Taylor Swift song most likely to make me cry, Ronan:

What if I’m standing in your closet trying to talk to you?
What if I kept the hand me downs you won’t grow into?

This song is essentially a eulogy for a young boy named Ronan who died from cancer, told from his mother’s perspective. In these lyrics, adding a setting in the first line – the closet – makes the second even more impactful.

4. Truth

My favorite writing prompt to give is, “Write about a time you were vulnerable.” This often forces us to write down an emotional truth on the page, a truth we may be embarrassed by. Even if you’re writing fiction, telling the truth is important. Not the truth about your life, but the truth about the human experience. It means revealing that life isn’t always so glamorous, or that sometimes people aren’t mysterious and witty – they’re just disappointing.

In Out of the Woods, Taylor takes a break from her extended metaphor about being lost in the woods to talk about an accident in a vehicle:

Remember when you hit the brakes too soon? / Twenty stitches in a hospital room / When you started crying / Baby, I did too

What makes this line work for me is the twenty stitches. As someone who has gotten stitches, I can vouch for the fact that they have very little to do with the woods or heartbreak, and much more to do with being in a lot of pain. This detail reminds the listener that even though Taylor is in the woods, we are right here, listening to this song. Tay might be singing in metaphors, but the feelings are real. This is real. This is true.

Another example I like is from the song 2nd most likely to make me cry, Never Grow Up:

And don’t lose the way that you dance around in your pj’s getting ready for school

This feels honest to me. The fact that the kid still has to go to school, even though they’re being featured in a Taylor Swift song. The fact that I used to dance around in my pjs. The fact that the kid is still in their pjs, clearly not ready for school. These are all facts; this is all true.

Finally, there’s this gem from We Are Never Getting Back Together:

And you would hide away and find your peace of mind
With some indie record that’s much cooler than mine

There are a lot of villainous ex-boyfriends in Taylor Swift’s discography, which are all bops, but what I particularly love about this guy is that he’s not evil. He’s just some lame dude who’s snobby about music. This guy – annoying, disappointing, but ultimately harmless – I’ve met him before. He’s real. (Unfortunately.)

Bonus Lyrics

Here’s some extra T-Swift lines for your viewing pleasure. Get inspired.

“This is a big world, that was a small town there in my rear view mirror disappearing now.”

“No amount of vintage dresses gives you dignity”

“Our song is the slamming screen door, sneakin’ out late, tapping on your window.”

Thanks so much for reading. What’s your favorite Taylor Swift lyric? How do you include details in your writing? Let me know in the comments! Until next time, you can find me on Pinterest , Etsy, and Instagram.

If there’s one thing you should know about me, it’s that I’m a Ravenclaw. Or, if I were a dog breed, I’d be a Dachshund.  Or, my personality type is INFJ. Maybe the one thing you should actually know is that I live for online quizzes.

Let’s be honest. Writing? Hard. Opening up another tab and taking a Buzzfeed quiz titled “What International Street Food City Matches Your Personality?” Easy. (I was Palermo, Italy, by the way.)

But what if you could take quizzes and strengthen your writing at the same time? Since I am a master of productive procrastination, I’ve combined my two life passions* by using the MBTI test to develop my characters.

*Okay, I have more than two life passions. I also enjoy Project Runway, knitting, and cookies. I haven’t figured out how to use these in my writing. Yet. 

What is MBTI?

For those of you new to the online quiz world, welcome. You’ll never be able to get out now. Just kidding.

MBTI, or the Myer-Briggs Type Indicator, sorts people into sixteen different categories based off of how they see the world and how they make decisions. The official test takes around $50 to take, so if you’re interested in taking the test for yourself, I’d go for it, but since I’m using it to develop multiple characters, I use a free site called 16 Personalities. (All the images in this post are from that website.)

The test determines whether someone is:

• Extroverted (E) or Introverted (I)
• Sensing (S) or Intuition (N)
• Thinking (T) or Feeling (F)
• Judging (J) or Perceiving (P)

Then, those four letters are combined, and you have your “type.” For reference, here’s a chart of the sixteen possibilities:

So, is it accurate? In my experience, yes. When I took the exam for myself, I felt weirdly validated because of how much of the INFJ description seemed to match me. However, at its core, it’s still separating humans into different boxes based off of personality, and if you’ve read any dystopian novel ever, you’d know that’s just asking for trouble. Below, I have made you an incredibly detailed and scientific graph based off of surveys on how helpful MBTI actually is.

Okay so I actually just surveyed myself, but in my opinion, MBTI is helpful when used correctly. For example: Basing your entire social, dating, and work life on an internet quiz? Probably not that great of an idea. Using a personality test to learn more about your characters and figure out how they might respond in plot scenarios? Pretty cool! Here are five ways I use MBTI in my writing.

1. Make Decisions As Your Character

A common critique in writing groups that I hear is, “I’m not sure your character would actually do that.” Plot keeps a story moving, but you have to make sure that the decisions in the book are actually decisions your character would make. But how do you do that when you’re creating plot and character at the same time?

Taking the MBTI test as my character forces me to get inside their head and start making decisions as if I were them. Instead of thinking what my character might do, I think as my character.

How you answer and what you answer are both great ways to develop a character.

2. Get Tips On Character Relationships

After you take the quiz, 16 Personalities has articles on romantic relationships, friendships, and even parenting styles. This helps me create authentic family dynamics, and I feel like I’m getting to know my characters even better.

3. Gain Greater Insight Into Your Character’s Personality

Creating people out of thin air is hard. MBTI personality descriptions are great molds that you can base your characters off of. It helps you make realistic decisions for your character, too – maybe somebody who’s totally reserved and guarded with their feelings wouldn’t be the most likely to fall in love at first sight. 16 Personalities also offers an “insight of the day” that you can use to create character quirks and habits.

4. Make Sure Your Character Cast is Diverse

Just like you wouldn’t want everybody in your book to look or sound the same, you also don’t want them to all act the same. Make sure you have a wide variety of personalities, and you can also check to see if your different characters have foils. You can also verify that your characters don’t have the same personality as you…#guilty.

5. Compare Your Character to Celebrities or Other Characters in Fiction

I started doing research into query letters today, and I was surprised to see that many literary agents asked what books were similar to your own. During my writing process, I was always worried about being unique, but when it comes to marketing, having comparisons that have already sold well is helpful. Writing is an art, but publishing is a business.

One of my favorite things about MBTI types is that you get to see what celebrities and characters share your type. Most of this seems to be speculation, but speculation comes from their personalities – you might be able to draw comparisons between the people in your work to published books. That’s wicked cool. One site that sorts fictional characters by type is Funky MBTI.

Plus, if you know what celebs are similar to your characters, you can cast them in the movie version of your book. Sure, the movie may only be playing in your head, but maybe in your imagination they’ll actually say yes.

Thanks so much for reading.What’s your MBTI type? What’s your character’s? Any other INFJs out there? Let me know in the comments! Until next time, you can find me on Pinterest , Etsy, and Instagram.