NaNoWriMo 2012

[Zeldafan2]

I've gotten to a little over 16,000, although since this is my first time trying this competition (and my first time writing a story the length that it has to be) it's come off very amatuerish so far.

[eightluvver888]

I've gotten to a little over 16,000, although since this is my first time trying this competition (and my first time writing a story the length that it has to be) it's come off very amatuerish so far.

Hey, if it didn't, you wouldn't be doing it right.

I hit 10k today and I intend to write even more tonight. Hopefully I can do more next weekend. Though I'll probably say that every week.

[Okami]

Hey, if you ask me, let the issues into the book, nothing better than a little real life tragedy to inspire a good word.

Thanks, but, uh...these aren't issues I would want to put into this book...it would make writing anything but therapeutic at this point.

That being said, somehow I made it to 30,000 today.

[Cianter]

I just finished my second book...I'm so shocked! 99,000 words exactly...wow!

[QtheQreater]

Broke through to 17k and calling it quits for now. I think I have officially earned a box of cheese crackers to further my efforts; I plan on buying one tomorrow.

[Okami]

[quote="QtheQreater (post: 1597134)"]Broke through to 17k and calling it quits for now. I think I have officially earned a box of cheese crackers to further my efforts]

The whole box in one sitting, right?

[QtheQreater]

The whole box in one sitting, right?

Judging from past experience with snacking while writing reports for work? I wish I could say no...

[GeneD]

I almost totally forgot to write today. I was sitting in front of my computer with that feeling that there was something I should be doing but couldn't remember what. Then it hit me, NaNoWriMo! It was weird.

Anyway, I used up most of my buffer on Saturday because I get to a concert, but I'm still keeping up okay each day otherwise.

[Lynna]

I'm not behind in my word count, but now my biggest fear is that I'll finish my word count before my story D: I mean, I'm halfway through, but it's still not entirely clear what the plot is

[mechana2015]

Thats perfectly fine Lynna, most published novels are in the 80-100K word range anyhow, so a little expansion is acceptable. 50K is a goal, not necessarily a finish line.

[uc pseudonym]

I'd encourage people not to follow the "write a novel in a month" goal in general. If you're a planner, 50k is half your novel completed. If you're more free form, that should be enough to give you a clear idea of your book and characters. Those are good enough goals. Writing an actual novel in a month requires you to be very fast or have a lot of free time.

I'm doing well this year and I feel good about what I've written. Probably wasn't necessary to drop gaming and some internet things. I especially wish I hadn't reduced my reading time. Since I don't have much trouble with motivation, in the future I think I'll take a more relaxed approach to writing. This is probably my last NaNoWriMo.

[GeneD]

A lot of the NaNo naysayers argue form the point of view that nanowrimo just produces a ton of terrible manuscripts that flood the publishing industry on Dec 1st. I've always really seen it the way you mention though, I get that it's actually a 50 000 word first draft that we are writing in 30 days, but unfortunately "write a first draft in a month" just doesn't have the same ring to it. Hopefully most people understand that too. Of course you might take a third option and end up with a 50k word pile of rubbish that needs to die in a fire. So unfortunately, yeah, a few stinkers slip under the radar and might get published, but there are a lot of stinkers that get published the normal way too.

UC, at least you have half the month left to take up gaming/internet/reading still, although I don't know what kind of preparation those might've needed before hand.

I had my first day of non-quota yesterday although I did manage to write at least a little. I don't know if it's significant that it's the middle mark though because I'm becoming more and more pessimistic about my writing. Out of sheer stubbornness I won't give up just yet... And I have an RL friend who's doing it too and she will kill me if I quit.

[Banana Lobster]

I hate to say it, but I've really fallen behind. Xl I'm catching up though, by writing as much as I can before starting the school day. It's going pretty well, considering how far back I've fallen. Anyhow, I'll let you guys know when I've caught up. But until then, good luck with your own stuff!

[QtheQreater]

Eh, so many setbacks: being sick, caring for a sick toddler, painting the dadgum apartment for our renter to move in. I'm glad I still like my novel, though I have found that character dialogue isn't my thing. Guess that will be my list of portions to revisit after this month is over.

I, for one, like the fact that having a month to get to the end of a story arc encourages me to actually write something substantial instead of just wish I had. I do have motivational problems as far as time priorities are concerned; if I wasn't dedicating this month to writing, all of my time would fill with all those other necessary things I need to get done around here. I just don't have the kind of time normally to work on something like this without getting discouraged.

That said, I'm also competitive. GeneD, I'm coming after your wordcount.

I don't know if it's significant that it's the middle mark though because I'm becoming more and more pessimistic about my writing.

Pessimistic about what, really? Your style, ability, or story thus far?

[uc pseudonym]

I'm probably not going to win any friends by saying this, but I'm done. I'm going to take a few days off and then start editing.

[Atria35]

I'm done.

I mean that I'm out of the running - I have not written a single word for this. There's just been too much going on, especially with taking care of my grandma (she fell and broke a few ribs, plus internal bleeding). I'll shoot for the stars at a later month when things aren't so hectic.

[QtheQreater]

I'm probably not going to win any friends by saying this, but I'm done. I'm going to take a few days off and then start editing.

You're supposed to announce this sort of thing with a little more hubris, aren't you?

Nice. Do you write regularly? What is the novel about?

[GeneD]

Eh, so many setbacks: being sick, caring for a sick toddler, painting the dadgum apartment for our renter to move in. I'm glad I still like my novel, though I have found that character dialogue isn't my thing. Guess that will be my list of portions to revisit after this month is over.

I, for one, like the fact that having a month to get to the end of a story arc encourages me to actually write something substantial instead of just wish I had. I do have motivational problems as far as time priorities are concerned]Run, run, run as fast as you can! You’ll never catch me, I’m the gingerbread man! XP Seriously though nice going for writing through all that.

Pessimistic about what, really? Your style, ability, or story thus far?

All three, I think. But I've been trying some out of order scenes and that's helped a bit, at least today it did.

Congrats UC.

EDIT: Has anyone been checking out the 30 Covers, 30 Days project on the OLL blog? Maybe it's just me, but I think this year's so far isn't as great as 2011's, but there are some nice covers.

[eightluvver888]

Well, I'm still behind by a few thousand words, but still determined to beat this thing. I have stopped using contractions altogether, which helps a little I guess.

[FllMtl Novelist]

I have stopped using contractions altogether, which helps a little I guess.

Oh my gosh I would die.


Anyway I am IMPRESSIVELY behind, but I'm hopingprayingcrossingmyfingers I'll be able to catch up over Thanksgiving break. ;_;

[uc pseudonym]

Do you write regularly?

Yes. I've been doing this for a while and I've found many ways to keep myself working productively. I'm not really a "write a little every day" person - I tend to spend a month or so thinking about a project in great detail and then writing it in one relatively focused stretch.

What is the novel about?

For this project I decided to forget about marketing and just write something I'd enjoy, so I don't have a great pitch or anything. This is actually the first time I've had to describe it...

A woman's husband dies and she sets about bringing him back. Because necromancy is common-place in her world and she's an accomplished necrosurgeon, that's the easy part. The real problem is that she isn't going to be able to do her research in peace, because the undead mafia may have been involved in her husband's death, the city's Coroners are looking for a scapegoat, and someone has unearthed an ancient machine called a soul engine.

[QtheQreater]

I've had a lot of trouble finishing writing projects in the past, so other people's approaches interest me. I guess hitting it hard and forcing the whole thing out is a good way to keep boredom out of the process. Do you just keep all that detailed thinking in your head, or do you take notes?

Sounds morbid (but fun!). Exploring any of the moral/social issues of that society?

Well, I'm still behind by a few thousand words, but still determined to beat this thing. I have stopped using contractions altogether, which helps a little I guess.

My first thought was that such a drastic step would be painful, and then I remembered all of the "no contractions allowed" academic papers I used to write. Hey, at least it's good practice for college courses, even if the benefit word-wise might be negligible. How often do you actually use contractions?

[uc pseudonym]

I've had a lot of trouble finishing writing projects in the past, so other people's approaches interest me. I guess hitting it hard and forcing the whole thing out is a good way to keep boredom out of the process. Do you just keep all that detailed thinking in your head, or do you take notes?

Some of both. Most of the character/world stuff is in my head, but I always lay out the plot in extensive notes. Planning it that way helps me realize if plotlines are dropped, the timeline doesn't make sense, or there are momentum problems. I'd actually have a much harder time doing a project over a long period.

Now that I'm done, I'm typing out all my worldbuilding ideas in a wiki as preparation for theoretical later books. Which is something that everyone here should not be doing, since they have real writing to do.

Sounds morbid (but fun!). Exploring any of the moral/social issues of that society?

Definitely. The society has different views of corpses, death, and life, but the biggest issues are actually the moral ones. It's distant history as if this story, but in the past a tyrant succeeded in the classic goal of taking over the world. Naturally, it didn't take long for his empire to fall apart, but this event made a substantial difference in the world's thoughts about morality.

[eightluvver888]

20k in a week? I got this...

[Zeldafan2]

20k in a week? I got this...

I'm in a similar position. I've got 15,000 more words to write. I'm really going to get a lot of writing in these last days.

[Lynna]

I have less than 10k left. I want to finish early, though, in case something happens in the last days...
Of course, I'm going to have to make the plot reveal more of itself now. I've basically written 40k words of characters carrying the fragments of the story.

[GeneD]

I did some catch up this weekend and got back on schedule, which is great. I don't know if I will be able to write enough to finish before the 30th though, but will see I guess.

[mechana2015]

wrote 3900 words today almost exactly...
and I'm getting to the faster paced parts so I'm feeling pretty strong for the last week.

[QtheQreater]

Trying to catch up after spending an incredibly relaxing Thanksgiving at a lakeside house with a million dollar view. 5000 words today. I think my eyeballs are going to fall out of my head.

[Winry]

I've got about 14k left to go, but I still have 3 hours left to write tonight and have a good bit of plot to go off for now, so I'm still hopeful for a win!