As it happens, it’s not a very lengthy quest, since as far as I can tell, there’s only one candidate: the aptly named Deadline. Deadline is a simple, free application that only does deadlines; you enter the task and the date it’s due, and Deadline sends you a reminder on that day and another as many minutes, hours, or days before as you select in your settings.

Entering tasks is simple: Deadline uses a natural text parsing system so you can enter things like “Interview with Dustin Wax due Jan. 18th at 5pm” and it will figure it out. Once entered, Deadline adds the entry to the list and adds email notifications to the queue. When it’s done, you just click the “Done” button and the task is removed from the list.

I have Deadline set to send me reminders three days before anything is due, which is an ok compromise time for me but not perfect – I’d rather have the ability to set different notification times for each item individually, and in some cases, to set more than one. For example, for a 650-word piece with minimal research, three days is fine; in fact, two or even one day would be fine.

On the other hand, for a major academic presentation I’m giving in April, I’d rather have weekly notifications so I can make sure I’m on track to finish in time and plan the various steps as I go. Getting a notification three days before the conference won’t be of any use – if it’s not done by then, it’s not going to get done! (Sure, I could use project planning software to set milestones and schedule each step, and I will – but I also want the security of something putting the deadline in my face on a somewhat regular basis.)

Still, it’s a handy little app, and I hope the developers will add a few features to it as time goes by. I appreciate the simplicity, so I hope they don’t go overboard, but given that they’ve incorporated the ability to customize the look and feel of the site (with built-in themes or custom colors and backgrounds) I would think they could manage to allow some customization of the actual functioning of the app without overloading it with complexity.

Deadline — Free

Why do you do NaNoWriMo? What benefits have you gotten from your participation?

I  signed up for NaNoWriMo to because I’m the eternal procrastinator but I tend to respond well to watching pretty graphs grow and feeling that other people could be watching me. Although I didn’t participate in the forums a lot last year, I read what a lot of other people were talking about and felt like I was part of something much bigger than just me and my computer in a small room in Perth.
The biggest benefit was learning that I *can* write a lot, when I have to. Since then I’ve been able to push myself a bit more because I know that back in November I wrote 50,000 words in less than a month.

How did you keep yourself inspired and motivated during NaNoWriMo?

A month is a short enough time (for me) that I could keep myself motivated mostly by wanting to be able to see the bars on my daily word count graph get higher. Obviously this wouldn’t work long term, but for a month it’s possible, and that kept me motivated. Also, I told quite a few people that I was taking part (and blogged about) so I didn’t want to have to admit defeat.

As for being inspired, that was surprisingly easy but if I got a bit uninspired I would browse the forums and see what kinds of titles other people had for their novels and how many words they’d written.

What sort of planning, if any, are you doing this year before you start writing?

I’m doing much more planning this year. Last year I didn’t plan at all, really, and while I still managed to get plenty written, the rewriting is an ongoing nightmare and I’ve had to throw a lot out. So this year I am getting much more detailed with chapter outlines etc — but only for the first 3/4 of the novel, the ending is still a mystery to me. That’s largely because I can’t quite figure out what the characters will really do, and because I think that’s a good way to write — let them decide for me. I think if I knew the entire story first I might not be interested enough to write it.

What are some of the tools you use to keep yourself organized and on-track during NaNoWriMo? How do you use them?

Nothing too fancy, but the graph included in your NaNoWriMo profile page was a godsend. Loved it. I did also (geekily) use an Excel spreadsheet to keep track of how many words I needed to finish each day to stay on target (depending on how many I’d already written — this number often varied).

How do you manage your time during NaNoWriMo to make time for writing?

Badly. And I became a social hermit, spending several weekends locked in front of the computer.

What advice do you have for other writers doing NaNoWriMo for the first time?

Try to plan a structure for your novel even if you feel resistant to this idea.
Write extra (more than the daily target) for the first week or two so that the second week or two are easier.

Always stop writing in the middle of something you’re enjoying so it’s easy to start again.

Don’t worry if some of what you write is drivel, it is quantity not quality at this point.

Why do you do NaNoWriMo?

I did NaNoWriMo last year on a whim. A couple of friends on a forum I frequent were doing it, so I decided to give it a try too. I had not been writing much as of late, and I thought it might be the kick in the pants I needed. It worked out so well that I decided to do it again this year.

What benefits have you gotten from your participation?

I was right, it was the kick in the pants I needed. I already had a story idea, and NaNo both got me started, and kept me going.

How did you keep yourself inspired and motivated during NaNoWriMo?

I had the luxury of having well developed characters from previous stories I had written. I already had a seed of a story in mind. So, once I decided I was going to do it I sat down and developed a detailed outline and a detailed setting, complete with maps. With those in hand, the story almost wrote itself.

What sort of planning, if any, are you doing this year before you start writing?

I am doing another mystery this year, but not with the same detective or area. Last year’s story was with a private detective in South Carolina, a guy I had written a lot about. This year I’m using a Police Detective in St. Louis. So I have to do a lot of research in just how the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department works, and how it interacts with the Major Case Squad. I am working up my outline now, so I hope to be ready to go at the starting gun. I’m from St. Louis, so at least this time I won’t have to do a lot of geographic research.

What are some of the tools you use to keep yourself organized and on-track during NaNoWriMo? How do you use them?

I don’t know that I use a lot of tools, other than the outline, maps, and the Internet. Of course, I have my favorite bookmarks.

How do you manage your time during NaNoWriMo to make time for writing?

I generally write at night, after dinner. If I’m in the flow, I just lose track of time until I realize it’s time for bed. I have a day job, so I can’t ignore that. When I’m writing, my family generally leaves me to it, so I have very few distractions.

What advice do you have for other writers doing NaNoWriMo for the first time?

Start out with a plot, not just a vague idea of a story. In other words, know where you are going and why you (your characters) are going there. Some people don’t like outlines, but if you can work with one, develop a detailed outline before the start date. But don’t be afraid to deviate from the outline. Sometimes good stuff just happens.

Why do you do NaNoWriMo?

I’m addicted now. I don’t write as much as I’d like to during the rest of the year because I do have other important obligations.  This is the highlight of the year for the writer in me, the month when storytelling gets first priority. I do it strictly for fun and for me and it fills the well that lets me balance everything for the rest of the year.  Or at least till the next writer’s conference. 

What benefits have you gotten from your participation?

I finally understand why it’s so important to have a complete draft before getting to the revision and editing. I have also learned flexibility: the process that worked so brilliantly the first year has never worked as well again.  Each story has it’s own rhythm and its own needs. 

One year I outlined about six major scenes ahead of time and then used the month to link them together.  The following year I worked from portrait pictures I found online, in-depth character sketches and used current events news coverage to keep me going.  Last year I had a hard time coming up with a good story line at all – I only had the picture of my main character in my head.  I forced myself to start anyway and let all the discovery happen as I wrote.  For a control freak like me, that was more gut wrenching than jumping out of a plane.  I think.  It worked far better than I thought possible.  I find it much easier now to relax and go with the flow.

How did you keep yourself inspired and motivated during NaNoWriMo?

Quotes, music, walks, candles, coffee, naps and, most important, online writing buddies.  I also love leaving off in the middle of something so I’m primed to start back up at the earliest possible opportunity.

What sort of planning, if any, are you doing this year before you start writing?

Just yesterday I decided that this year I would expand a short story that has potential to be something bigger.  I’ll do more in-depth character sketches and probably some brief storyboards for an opening scene, perhaps a closing scene, and about three major turning points–a technique loosely based on The Weekend Novelist by Robert J. Ray (the old edition; I haven’t read the recently released updated version).   

What are some of the tools you use to keep yourself organized and on-track during NaNoWriMo? How do you use them?

I like the NaNo report card and calendars that are downloadable from forum links on the site. The report card gives me a visual: I like seeing progress. But it can get discouraging when there isn’t any, so I’m not always good at keeping them updated daily.

Last year I numbered every scene I wrote and then did a scene-by-scene track on an Excel spreadsheet: who, where, when, what happened, and “remember this” as column headers, then numbered a row for each scene. Part way through I added a “check or change” column to jot notes where I thought there might be problems so I wouldn’t feel tempted to go back and do any editing right then.

The spreadsheet helped tremendously because I didn’t write in order.  I wrote scenes that grabbed me when they grabbed me, whether the story was ready for them at that point or not.  Then when I got stuck, I’d figure out where I needed to add transitional material and could generally get myself going again by brainstorming myself or with my writing buddies.  Also a glance at the spread sheet at the end of a writing session let me subconsciously work out what might be needed to bridge gaps as I went about whatever else I had to do.

How do you manage your time during NaNoWriMo to make time for writing?

My motto:  Early in the day, early in the week, early in the month.  I do my best not to procrastinate, because I never know what will pop up.  When I have time I use it.  I am a homeschooling mom, but now my last student is on auto-pilot as far as school goes and requires very little of my time, so my days are more flexible than most.

Planning ahead in September and October helps a bunch too.  We run a small property-management business from home, so I get filing, bookkeeping, etc. up to date by Oct 31st, schedule bill payments online for November, and clear out as much of my other obligations as possible. My family seems to stay happy if they’re fed.  So I plan plenty of quick, easy, crock-pot and/or freezer meals. My son is a good cook, and he’ll pitch in to help me when I need it. And I write like crazy during football games or whenever the house is empty.  On days when the interruptions get to be too much (usually phone calls) I escape to the library for a while; that’s always cheaper than escaping to Starbucks or Panera Bread.

What advice do you have for other writers doing NaNoWriMo for the first time?

Just write.  Don’t edit.  At first I had to really work at this, because my internal editor didn’t like being ignored.  But it got easier, and most importantly, it became fun.  The freedom allowed me to experiment and discover like I’d never done before.  That’s what got me hooked. 

I start every year telling myself it doesn’t matter if the writing makes sense.  It doesn’t matter if there are gaps.  If I hit a wall and don’t know what comes next, who cares.  Write the end.  Or write the next scene I want to write.  There are no rules at this stage of the game. 

An extra bonus that comes in the months following, I come to love my internal editor.  We have fun tweaking and making the story stronger.  When you have an entire manuscript to work with, rewriting and reworking the story is so much easier. No matter how bad you think your manuscript is at the end of November, you’ll know more about writing then than you did when you went in.   It is so true that with writing, the learning is in the doing.

Sonja finds the camaraderie of NaNoWriMo a powerful motivator for writing, and can be found on the NaNoWriMo forums as “streetmouse”. You can read her advice for NaNoWriMo participants on her blog, White Picket Fences. For more information about Sonja, check out her website.

Why do you do NaNoWriMo? What benefits have you gotten from your participation?

My first year doing NaNoWriMo, I just wanted to see if I could write a novel. At all… in a month or in however long it took. As it turned out, I managed to win my first year, and that gave me the confidence to try to become a novelist. Now I do NaNoWriMo to keep proving to myself that I can finish novels. I don’t think novels get easier to write, I think you just have to know you’ve done it before and can do it again. I’ve finished two novels because of NaNoWriMo and gotten a confidence boost every year, knowing I can bang out a lot of words really fast.

How did you keep yourself inspired and motivated during NaNoWriMo?

I participate a lot in the forums, and especially in the chat room. I love getting egged on and I love to egg on my friends. I do a lot of word wars and a lot of complaining about novel writing being HAAAARD. The social aspects keep me going. And, I won’t lie, the competition helps too.

What sort of planning, if any, are you doing this year before you start writing?

I’ve got an outline and (shh!) the first little bit of a story done this year, so I’m ahead of the game. I always do outlines before I start writing. I am definitely NOT a seat-of-the-pants writer.

What are some of the tools you use to keep yourself organized and on-track during NaNoWriMo? How do you use them?

I love love love NaNoWriMo’s new tracking tools that let you compulsively check your wordcount and percentage and targets and all that good statistical stuff. I actually keep my own spreadsheet on non-NaNo months so I can do the same thing. It’s the competition thing again: I want to be ahead of the curve! My outline also keeps me going, especially when I sit down to write a scene. If I have an outline, at least I have some vague idea of what to write.

How do you manage your time during NaNoWriMo to make time for writing?

I write in the spare moments I can get, like lunch. I used to write for an hour every day on the bus. Sadly, I drive to work now, so that’s a no-go. I’ve been known to sneak in a few sentences at work, but I find that cutting out evening TV time is the best method for me. I sit next to my husband on the couch, pop in my headphones, and tap away while he watches his favorite shows or surfs the web.

What advice do you have for other writers doing NaNoWriMo for the first time?

Participate! Play with all the toys, use all the stuff on the website, buy the t-shirt, OWN it! The more you invest, the more you’ll get out.

Our first volunteer is Catherine Hicks, a graphic artist and web developer. Catherine has participated in NaNoWriMo three times so far, and “won” – that is, completed 50,000 words – all three times. She has self-published two of her NaNoWriMo novels, and the third book, a non-fiction work, is currently on its way to becoming a school textbook. Catherine lives in the Bay Area with three “babies of the furry kind” (I can only assume she means werewolf babies) and is pursuing an Art Therapy certificate in graduate school. Find out more about here at her website.

Why do you do NaNoWriMo? What benefits have you gotten from your participation?

It allows me to have a goal and focus on my writing in a way I never have the time for during the 11 months out of the year. It gives me a great sense of community with other writers and a great feeling of accomplishment when the month is over.

How did you keep yourself inspired and motivated during NaNoWriMo?

I am fortunate to live in an area where there are many people working on novels for NaNoWriMo so we often meet in coffee shops and other places during the month. I also have networked with other people online for when I am not home, which seems to be often during NaNoWriMo due to my job.

What sort of planning, if any, are you doing this year before you start writing?

I have never gone into NaNoWriMo without a complete outline of whatever it is I am going to work on. You can’t get to somewhere new if you don’t have a roadmap, and before starting the story I definitely sit down and roadmap everything. I do character analysis charts and have a good feel for my characters and plot before I start.

What are some of the tools you use to keep yourself organized and on-track during NaNoWriMo? How do you use them?

I have a spreadsheet that I found online that tracks words written and how far along you are towards your goal. I also always buy a special notebook just for NaNoWriMo that I keep with me if inspiration on the story comes along and I’m not near my computer. I have also in the past carried around a tape recorder to get those ideas down in a format I can translate to computer later.

I also create a folder on my computer desktop. Since I’ve already outlined the story, I know how many chapters the entire thing is going to be, so I create blank pages for each chapter in the story so I can just open the file and go.

How do you manage your time during NaNoWriMo to make time for writing?

We have a group of people that meet in the coffee shop. I keep the journal I spoke about above by my bedside when I am at home as inspiration always seems to strike me as I am going to bed. Since I always write and journal before bed, that is normally the time I am able to make the most progress in writing my story.

What advice do you have for other writers doing NaNoWriMo for the first time?

Don’t freak out if you don’t finish. You will still more than likely have a great starting point for a novel. Just because the month ends and you didn’t reach the goal, keep writing and you’ll have something to be proud of. Not everyone can say that they’ve written a novel — and whether you get it done in one month or one year, its still a great accomplishment.

It also seems for some like a daunting task to write that much — I know seemed that for me the first time I did it. That is why I outline before the month begins. That way, I can look at each chapter as its own individual story. I know where it is going and I know where I want to end up, so breaking it down like that makes it feel less intimidating.