What’s next for Writing Quests (2025)
Writing Quests began as a reaction to the void left in many regions when their Municipal Liaisons decided to separate from NaNoWriMo after disagreements with the direction that NaNoWriMo’s management was taking. We decided to contribute our experience and knowledge to create the resources that might benefit our regions by providing a framework for a writing challenge.
The work has proven to be complex and challenging; we’ve had to adjust our expectations and plans along the way. Still, we’ve achieved a decent base:
We’ve set up Writing Quests as the underlying framework and resources. This includes the Creative Commons licensing and a Contributor’s Agreement to enable use of the licensing. Writing Quests flexibly supports writing, editing, and a combination of writing & editing.
We created Novel Quest as a concrete instance of the type of Quest that Writing Quests users can create. It served as a way to help us sharpen our focus to provide what was needed.
We have built writingquests.org and novelquest.org websites to serve what we’ve created.
We have the first draft of the Write Recipe, a guidebook for Quest Guides with practical advice about organizing the Quest for their participants.
We have two progress trackers: a google sheets-based tracker and the beta of our web-based Questy next-generation progress tracker.
So what is next for us?
We are planning a retrospective on our 2024 efforts, to look at the lessons learned and to see what of what we did worked and what didn’t.
We will spend some time brainstorming next steps. These will likely include:
Additional features for the next release of Questy.
Support for a richer set of themed badges.
Development of the community progress tracking graphs (an evolution of NaNo Faces), including interfaces to draw progress tracking data from both Questy and our google-sheets-based tracker.
Simplifying and improving the user experience around Novel Quest.
There are other areas we are considering developing better support for, including resources for schools and teachers who are looking to host their own Quests.
We’ve appreciated the interest and support from the volunteers and the wider community and look forward to a brighter year in 2025.
Doing a Post-Draft Evaluation
By Gertrude Daly
Congratulations on making it through Novel Quest! Whether you hit your writing goal or just managed to get words on the page, you've achieved something remarkable.
Now, the big question: What’s next?
If you’re anything like me, you probably wrote a lot in November—but it’s a bit of a mess. That’s okay! The next step in the process is to do a “post-draft evaluation.” That’s a fancy way of saying you should read through your manuscript from start to finish. This will help you get a sense of your story as a whole.
At this stage, try not to get too bogged down with fixing things. Your goal right now is to see what you got, not perfect it. However, making small copy edits here and there is perfectly fine.
While re-reading your draft we suggest you:
Insert comments
Use comments to make notes for yourself, like plot holes, character inconsistencies, things to add to other sections, etc. Anytime you have a little thought pop in your head, write it down.
You can do that via the comment button, or insert it in brackets with your font set to another color.
Highlight things that don’t work
You might have come across scenes that no longer work, or where you explain things multiple times as you worked out an idea. Don’t delete them just yet, there may be some good details you can use elsewhere. Highlight that section in a color. When you are going back and edit that part of the story, you can evaluate if you have any good nuggets of ideas.
Add headings
If you know how to use “Heading” styles and the navigation pane, it can be good to insert headings. A heading for each chapter or scene will allow you easily to move around to specific sections of your story.
Why This Process Matters:
A post-draft evaluation is a crucial step between writing and editing. It allows you to see your story from a broader perspective, spot the areas that need improvement, and lay the groundwork for your revisions.
A Beginner’s Guide to Story Walls
By Katie Lazicki
You’ve got a story idea. You’ve put in the work getting that story onto the page, and suddenly that perfect, golden idea doesn’t look so shiny anymore. It’s got a plot hole, or the main character is lacking motivation, or you’re unsure about the setting. Something has derailed your progress. How do you get back on track?
Enter the Story Wall.
What is a Story Wall?
A Story Wall is a collaborative tool used when a writer is struggling with their story. It allows a writer to get feedback from trusted voices without requiring critiques of a whole draft. It also encourages the writer to crystallize the most important elements of their story and consider perspectives they may have overlooked.
How to begin?
First, find people to participate. Too many voices can result in conflicting advice, while too few may not provide the answers you need. If you’re new to Story Walls, aim for about 2-5 trusted peers.
Consider the story you want feedback on. Aim to provide a concise summary of the story in 15-20 minutes. This may require you to eliminate subplots and supporting characters as you focus on the core of your story.
Next, identify the questions you want answered. Your peers want to help, so let them know what aspects you’re struggling with upfront. After laying out what advice you need, share the key elements of your story.
Allow space for questions. This should be a back-and-forth discussion, not a one-sided presentation. You may find you’d missed details in your original summary requiring clarification, but you also may find you’ve overlooked elements you hadn’t even realized were missing. Outside perspectives can help identify these simple missteps before they’ve even made it onto the page.
Take note of the comments you receive and thank everyone for their time. Even if their advice doesn’t work for you, you may find a different way to address the root of the problem they’ve identified.
You may have a clear path ahead after completing a Story Wall, but don’t be discouraged if you need time to reflect. Despite whatever advice you received, you still get the final say in how your story will go.
How to volunteer/contribute
We have three different ways to get involved:
Quest Guides- The people who host the Writing Quests are called Quest Guides. They help creatives through the process of setting goals, prepping for the quests, and providing encouragement during the event. Click on Get Involved> The Framework to get started.
Participants- Anyone can participate, even if you are not a writer. Visit our website to find a participating group near you.
Volunteers- Writing Quests is an all-volunteer organization. If you want to volunteer, please email info@writingquests.org and let us know your experience and if applicable, what you want to help with.
Announcements coming in January!
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