Chris Baty's 10 Awesome RULES for NaNoWriMo

1. There are no can'ts in the world of monthlong novel writing. You can do it, and you can do it with panache. Tens of thousands of people complete monthlong novels every year, many of whom are afflicted by full-time jobs, grumpy significant others, and demanding children. No matter your schedule or level of writing expertise, you can tackle this challenge and triumph. Begin the game knowing that you will go the distance, and you're already halfway there.
2. You don't have to write a good novel. Ol' Papa [Ernest] Hemingway, not known for mincing words, said "The first draft of anything is shit," and he's right. No matter how long you give yourself to write a first draft, it's going to need work later. Everyone's first drafts do, and, happily, the revision process is its own engaging adventure. With this in mind,
3. All words are good words. This is a very different kind of writing from the one we learned in school. In the realm of the 30-day novel you must write recklessly and fearlessly, try weird things and follow questionable tangents just to see where they lead. Be quick and audacious, and view the month as an experiment in pure output, one in which you focus on building without tearing down. Apart from a few sentences here and there, you should try to delete nothing—all of it may prove useful at some point, and every preposition and modifier moves you one tick closer to meeting the 50,000-word goal.
4. Rewards, treats, and self-praise are mandatory. Professional writers get money for putting themselves through this ordeal. In lieu of wages, you are required to deluge yourself with nonstop pampering. Indulge your whims for take-out Thai, Swiss chocolates, inspirational novels, CDs, and expensive spa treatments. When you make a big push and meet your word-count goal, reward yourself with something you've always wanted but never felt you truly deserved. You're writing a novel in a month, for pete's sake. You deserve it.
5. The novel you write must be a completely new venture. Meaning you are not allowed to spend the month tacking on 50,000 words to a story you've already started. As counterintuitive as it seems, extending an old novel by 50,000 words is much more difficult than writing a new one from scratch. You just have too much invested in its outcome, and you will agonize over each sentence. That said, you're welcome to research and plan your new novel to your heart's content before starting. Character sketches, plot points, and outlines are all A-OK. Just no previously written prose.
6. Shameless acts of word padding (characters reciting The Canterbury Tales in their sleep, avoidance of contractions, protracted singing of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat", etc.) are acceptable and encouraged. Employment of such devices, however, must be declared to any fellow novelists at the time of their use.
7. You are allowed to borrow liberally from your life and the lives of those around you and still call it fiction. Professional novelists do it all the time, even if they don't always admit it. In fact, writing a heavily autobiographical novel is a great idea, especially if this is your first book. Just remember to change the names before you let your mother read it.
8. Sharing lengthy excerpts from your work in progress is forbidden until the month's close. The impulse to share your novel with those around you is going to be irresistible at times, especially when characters become more willful and plot breakthroughs come fast and furious. But sharing is rarely as satisfying as you would hope, and it often ends up dampening your enthusiasm when your audience doesn't react as you'd hoped. Wait and dazzle your loved ones when the entire draft is finished.
9. No sharing novel-writing duties. The responsibility and satisfaction of writing a 50,000-word novel is yours and yours alone.
10. Novelists are not allowed to dishes during the month, theirs or anyone else's. Cleaning of bathrooms and acts of mopping are similarly forbidden. The same goes for returning phone calls you don't want to return, and running errands for friends and family members. It's simply too risk for your hands. Sorry.