Today is about finding your comps!
Comps (short for “competitive titles” or “comparison titles”) are often used in query letter or pitches to tell an agent or publisher where your book would go on the shelf. Is it next to Nora Roberts or Stephen King? Is it cozying up to Tana French’s Dublin Murder Squad mystery series or chilling with Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s delicious Mexican Gothic?
But that’s not why we’re going to think about comps today. We’re going to use them for inspiration.
Part of Nanowrimo for me is about stalling out. Getting stuck. Hitting writer’s block. It’s inevitable for me. There are different reasons for it, but one thing that happens to me is that I run out of steam and feel demotivated. That’s when I pull out the comps and read them for inspiration and fun.
Pick books that you love, that have something about them that you can draw on for your novel in November. It can be anything — the plot, the characters, maybe it’s the prose you’re drawn to. Keep a list of these books and turn to them when you’re feeling like writing your novel is too much of a slog. Read favorite parts, study what the writer did, see if you can use that to guide your own writing!
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