As this year’s NaNoWriMo comes to a close, the first thing all participants should do is congratulate themselves. I mean, really–it takes guts, grit and grind (both the routine and the coffee) to get a novel’s first draft complete in 30 days. But what now?
Writing Tip for Today: As your novel accelerates toward its climax and resolution, you’re still in CREATE mode. Here are some reminders about keeping the separate processes of creation and revision in their own corners:

• Put on the Revision Blinders. As you create, you unleash your unique brand of creative genius. You may get much better ideas about your story as you go toward its conclusion–in fact that’s pretty common. But try to resist the urge to go back and “FIX” things before you type “The End.” Nothing kills creativity like a dose of the grumpy internal editor coming to sit on your imagination. Lock up, lash to a chair or otherwise banish your editor self until you reach your story’s end.
• You’re Doing It Right. A writing mentor once told me this when I was feeling very depressed about my work. Tell yourself you can and will fix story structure problems, speechifying characters or other flaws. Remember there are only two kinds of writing: WRITING THAT WORKS, AND WRITING THAT NEEDS WORK. If you remind yourself that you’re doing it right, you are more likely to get into THE ZONE–that elusive and mysterious state where time loses meaning and you are completely immersed in the story.
• Get it Down, Fix it Up. Anne Lamott is famous for quoting this adage, and it’s a good one. How can you edit a blank page? If you aren’t willing to make mistakes, yes, even fail in a spectacular way, it might be a sign that your inner editor has too much control. There will be a time (very soon!) when you may long for the carefree days of messy creating, typing in the zone for hours on end. Just be sure to create in a white hot heat and then revise at leisure. By keeping these two processes separated, you’ll help the creative process and still be able to bring out the editor at the right time.

What’s the biggest problem your NaNoWriMo novel faces when you shift into the editing phase?