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Generally I don't like to start even thinking about planning until the week leading up to November. This is largely because once a character has arrived in my head, they tend to take over - and I'll have sentences and bits of dialogue turning up in my head.

Now this is a bad thing, because to write these down would count as actual novel-writing rather than notes and planning, which is Against The Rules. So once they turn up I tell them to shush and try not to think about them too hard until October 31st.

I've had years when the idea or the characters arrived earlier and it was hard not to do anything until Nov 1. So I try to limit my thinking time to the last week coming up to November. And during this week I'll jot down ideas about characters, possible plot points, etc - but I'll look back at these notes in December and aside from characterisation, most of them will be so bizarre and different to what the novel ended up being.

I do tend to do "Dear character" stuff and similar in the NaNo forums and I'll get a solid idea of who the characters are from these letters and exercises so I tend to copy those into my notes as well. It's most important for me to find and build the characters, because they're the ones who do all the actual novel-building. No character, no novel - plot isn't really something I worry about.

My country is near the date line, so I'm one of the first to start writing, which is awesome fun biggrin My wordcount bar is one of the first to start ticking and I can be ahead of everyone! For a few hours, anyway xd

Omg meee tooooo. Well actually I need to stick on like 30k in wordcount rather than editing, which will not happen. crying So I'll probably end up working on it throughout November alongside my NaNovel.

That was my situation, needing a new ending. I still have quite a ways to go, though... I know it can be done in the time I have left, I just don't think it's going to be wink

I actually took my own advice last year and decided to start plotting in October. I'm a little slow because of school and other commitments, but I'm actually outlining pretty well in my little post here. So that changed. Normally I don't plan anything, aside from having an idea.

On October 31/November 1 (however you call midnight, being the day before or the next day) at midnight I start writing. Usually I write for an hour or two - since I unfortunately have school this November and remember what it was like last year. Then I sleep and pick up later in the day.

This year some things changed. In order to deal with the work load I'll have this November (it's finals month since I get off for the semester December 5) I've started outlining pretty early, as I said. I'm talking going from general ideas into specific scenes which will either become more specific later this month or I'll be making them more specific as I write them.

I'll also be writing during the minutes between classes (maybe even in lulls between classes) which I did last year, but might be more integral this year. And since I'm writing my NaNoWriMo this year for a friend I'll take the weekends to revise the previous week's work and continue writing. I'd like to not make him wait a month and then get snowballed by mass PM's ;p

Oh yeah, and I'm totally having a rootbeer float and some popcorn sprinkled with kettle corn seasoning the night I start writing this year :3

Yep. That's the way it goes. Although it does feel kinda strange saying "I can't get this 15-20k rewritten in a month, but join me next month, when I'll be writing 50k fresh!" xd Ah well, that's the madness of Nano.

I try and come up with a structured outline, but usually I don't even decide my story premise until it's SO close to NaNo.

I just barely thought of the idea of a prequel right now, for instance.

In the end, I guess I could say I end up saying "HOLY CRAP, it's Holloween! Where did the time go?!"