Getting Distracted Again....

[zxora.livejournal.com]

Okay, so I started NaNo as a n00b at at one o'clock yesterday morning (day one) by writing in a notebook on my bed, and now I've finally started typing it out. I've come to the conclusion that I like typing it out a million times better...it's not in my handwriting, so I don't feel self-conscious (even though I'm never going to show this thing to anyone anyway), and I won't have to worry about typing out what I wrote by hand before. Does anyone else feel this way? (Also, I can disobey the rule to ignore my inner editor and add words here and there!)
Also, while daydreaming today, I came up with a title for my novel! It's NoWiNoTi (pronounced "noe wee noe tye" in my head), and it stands for Novel With No Title! Hahaha, yeah. I swear I've seen it before, though, so it might not be totally original...have I? Hmmm. Hopefully it'll be temporary...;-).
Okay, I'm done with LiveJournal for now...darn it, it's writing time!
Best of luck to everyone, and don't stop writing!

~*Kelsey*~

Getting Distracted Again....

[zxora.livejournal.com]

Okay, so I started NaNo as a n00b at at one o'clock yesterday morning (day one) by writing in a notebook on my bed, and now I've finally started typing it out. I've come to the conclusion that I like typing it out a million times better...it's not in my handwriting, so I don't feel self-conscious (even though I'm never going to show this thing to anyone anyway), and I won't have to worry about typing out what I wrote by hand before. Does anyone else feel this way? (Also, I can disobey the rule to ignore my inner editor and add words here and there!)
Also, while daydreaming today, I came up with a title for my novel! It's NoWiNoTi (pronounced "noe wee noe tye" in my head), and it stands for Novel With No Title! Hahaha, yeah. I swear I've seen it before, though, so it might not be totally original...have I? Hmmm. Hopefully it'll be temporary...;-).
Okay, I'm done with LiveJournal for now...darn it, it's writing time!
Best of luck to everyone, and don't stop writing!

~*Kelsey*~

Heeeelp!

[stubby-appears.livejournal.com]

This is for all of the people who feel like their NaNoNovels have already comitted suicide in some sort of terrible, kamakaze-type way. I'm sure I'm not the only one who's got this going on. It's not just the plot. It's everything. No characters, no muse, no style, no anything. At least last year I chugged along for a while on nothing, but I've been wringing out the 800 words I have this time.

I have attempted to start another novel to see if it would explode in my brain, and I sorta like it, but it didn't flow at all either. A prose&poetry tale of a girl going mad. My original idea was a young man in the Chinese government who sends insider info on the country's inner workings to America through fortune cookies who accidently sends top-secret info to a random restaurant somewhere in the U.S. And then my really stupid back-up is people who's Halloween costumes suddenly become real.

Anyone who is successful and awesome, please post help for me and the rest of the losers (or, rather, noveling challenged). Definitely all of it is needed. Thanks....

Personal Daily Goals?

[debc.livejournal.com]

I was just chatting with some friends who are all writing for NaNowriMo this year and got to wondering... what are your own personal daily goals?

I'm trying (hoping beyond hopes) to get at least 2,000 words a day, because if I do, I will finish by November 25th, which is the date my husband returns home from Somewhere Overseas. That way, I won't feel guilty about spending much needed and well-deserved time with him instead of slaving my butt off on a novel.

My friend who only really has free time on the weekends gave herself a goal of 10,000 words for today and somehow or other made it by 11 pm. (I am still in awe of this, yeah.)

So I was curious what other people had set as their own personal goals? Or is everyone just hoping for the 1667?

Personal Daily Goals?

[debc.livejournal.com]

I was just chatting with some friends who are all writing for NaNowriMo this year and got to wondering... what are your own personal daily goals?

I'm trying (hoping beyond hopes) to get at least 2,000 words a day, because if I do, I will finish by November 25th, which is the date my husband returns home from Somewhere Overseas. That way, I won't feel guilty about spending much needed and well-deserved time with him instead of slaving my butt off on a novel.

My friend who only really has free time on the weekends gave herself a goal of 10,000 words for today and somehow or other made it by 11 pm. (I am still in awe of this, yeah.)

So I was curious what other people had set as their own personal goals? Or is everyone just hoping for the 1667?

Daily Introduction Post - November 2nd

[alison-sky.livejournal.com]

POST YOUR INTRODUCTIONS TO THE COMMUNITY HERE!

daily intro threads end on November 5th. Say hello now or forever hold your peace...


also - if this is your first time here, take a moment to look at the following:

2008 Community Rules - read them if you haven't.

2008 NaNo LJ'er Regional Friending Thread!

2008 Pimp and Post Thread - talk about your projects here!

Weekly Plot Help Threads - help your fellow community members with their plots!

Daily Introduction Post - November 2nd

[alison-sky.livejournal.com]

POST YOUR INTRODUCTIONS TO THE COMMUNITY HERE!

daily intro threads end on November 5th. Say hello now or forever hold your peace...


also - if this is your first time here, take a moment to look at the following:

2008 Community Rules - read them if you haven't.

2008 NaNo LJ'er Regional Friending Thread!

2008 Pimp and Post Thread - talk about your projects here!

Weekly Plot Help Threads - help your fellow community members with their plots!

Daily Excerpt Post - November 2nd

[alison-sky.livejournal.com]

This is where you can take a snippet from your writing from today that you want to share with the other members of the community. And feel free to comment on other people's snippets.

We're all about love and support here, and this is a great place to give it.


Comment limit is 4000 words. Please do not post multiple comments to show your entire NaNo.

Daily Excerpt Post - November 2nd

[alison-sky.livejournal.com]

This is where you can take a snippet from your writing from today that you want to share with the other members of the community. And feel free to comment on other people's snippets.

We're all about love and support here, and this is a great place to give it.


Comment limit is 4000 words. Please do not post multiple comments to show your entire NaNo.

Daily Word Count - November 2nd

[alison-sky.livejournal.com]

And it begins! This is the spot daily where you can post a comment with your word count for your daily writing. Use it to keep track of your progress against the rest of the community!

Text and word meters are both allowed, and motivate each other on!

Daily Word Count - November 2nd

[alison-sky.livejournal.com]

And it begins! This is the spot daily where you can post a comment with your word count for your daily writing. Use it to keep track of your progress against the rest of the community!

Text and word meters are both allowed, and motivate each other on!

NaNo Pep Card -- Day 2

[age.livejournal.com]

By the end of this month, you will all have a supreme love for Chris Baty. The things he comes up with are amazingly insightful and hilariously funny, and with these pep cards you will witness a good cross-section of both. Enjoy!

Writing a novel is like working with clay. You first create a rough shape, then massage that shape into something beautiful, such as an ashtray or a fearsome army of worms. Unlike potters, though, who can simply buy clay at the art supply store, novelists have to pull off the supernatural feat of creating their clay with their minds. It's an amazing accomplishment, really, and it's also why postponing judgement of your work until the end of your first draft is so important. What you started producing yesterday is noveling clay - valuable, essential, and invariably lumpy. Its beauty will grow as you work it.

Day 2 flashcard from the No Plot? No Problem! writing kit, the genius brainchild of Chris Baty.

NaNo Pep Card -- Day 2

[age.livejournal.com]

By the end of this month, you will all have a supreme love for Chris Baty. The things he comes up with are amazingly insightful and hilariously funny, and with these pep cards you will witness a good cross-section of both. Enjoy!

Writing a novel is like working with clay. You first create a rough shape, then massage that shape into something beautiful, such as an ashtray or a fearsome army of worms. Unlike potters, though, who can simply buy clay at the art supply store, novelists have to pull off the supernatural feat of creating their clay with their minds. It's an amazing accomplishment, really, and it's also why postponing judgement of your work until the end of your first draft is so important. What you started producing yesterday is noveling clay - valuable, essential, and invariably lumpy. Its beauty will grow as you work it.

Day 2 flashcard from the No Plot? No Problem! writing kit, the genius brainchild of Chris Baty.

The music is the key...

[matrixleap.livejournal.com]

So, for all you writers out there plugging away this month, what type of music do you listen to while writing your novel?

Are you the type that the music is specific to the genre you are writing in, or, do you just put your iPod / whathaveyou on random?


Give a shout out to what you are listening to!


So far, the music has been leaning towards (for me)...

"The 5th Element" soundtrack
"Blade Runner" soundtrack
"2001" soundtrack
And a mix of "VNV Nation", "Velvet Acid Christ", "Depeche Mode", and "NIN"


NaNo user = "Matrixleap" in Portland, Oregon.

The music is the key...

[matrixleap.livejournal.com]

So, for all you writers out there plugging away this month, what type of music do you listen to while writing your novel?

Are you the type that the music is specific to the genre you are writing in, or, do you just put your iPod / whathaveyou on random?


Give a shout out to what you are listening to!


So far, the music has been leaning towards (for me)...

"The 5th Element" soundtrack
"Blade Runner" soundtrack
"2001" soundtrack
And a mix of "VNV Nation", "Velvet Acid Christ", "Depeche Mode", and "NIN"


NaNo user = "Matrixleap" in Portland, Oregon.

11/2 - Nanosprints: The Evening Edition

[callita623.livejournal.com]

AIM ROOM: nanosprints
TIME:9pm EDT/8pm CDT/7pm MDT/6pm PDT UNTIL 12am EDT/11pm CDT/10pm MDT/9pm PDT
WHAT: NaNo sprints! Write as many words as you can during the allotted time, and see how many words other people can manage.

Come and sprint in 10 minute bursts, at the :10, :30 & :50. There will be a 10 minute break between each sprint. That works out to be 30 minutes of sprinting for every hour. If you've read this post, please don't ask when the next sprint will be or how long it will run. I will give a two minute warning before each sprint.

I know the schedule might not work for everyone. If that's true for you, explore other options.

Fun fact: it is actually possible to write without sprinting.

Feel free to come in ahead of time and chat to fellow NaNo'ers.

Any questions, AIM me at 'callita623'.

You can invite yourself! All you need to do is open your Buddy list. Click 'chat', then clear the list. Put your name there instead and in the place of room name, put nanosprints. Easy!

Rules are same as always:

- Discuss your novel. Ask people for ideas if you're stuck.
- DON'T discuss religion, politics, lifestyle choices.
- Don't tear each other down. Not on plot choice OR word count.

please remember that while the sprints are taking place there will be no talking as it distracts from the 'stop' time. some have their chats set to blink and the blinks take away from knowing when to stop. if you are asked to stop talking, please do so immediately.

Never, ever be the first to talk in the Sprint room. There MAY be a Sprint going on.


if you live outside the U.S. and are unsure what time this is for you (or inside the U.S. and don't really have a grasp of time zones), please refer to this handy website.
FYI, i'm still looking for another sprint mod who can run sprints later in the evening for those who live out on the west coast. Everyone seems all bummed when i say "last sprint" but no one has stepped up to the plate. We're looking for someone who maybe has a nano win under theirl belt (proving you can make it to the end), and someone who can be reliable to do their sprinting shift. i'm hoping someone can switch off with me and one day i'll do sprints and the next they do them. hopefully we can find someone by Wednesday because i'm unavailable Wed. night. if you would like to be considered please send me an LJ message. don't reply in these comments. (you know.. this kind of proves that you can follow simple instructions.. also important. ;-)

11/2 - Nanosprints: The Evening Edition

[callita623.livejournal.com]

AIM ROOM: nanosprints
TIME:9pm EDT/8pm CDT/7pm MDT/6pm PDT UNTIL 12am EDT/11pm CDT/10pm MDT/9pm PDT
WHAT: NaNo sprints! Write as many words as you can during the allotted time, and see how many words other people can manage.

Come and sprint in 10 minute bursts, at the :10, :30 & :50. There will be a 10 minute break between each sprint. That works out to be 30 minutes of sprinting for every hour. If you've read this post, please don't ask when the next sprint will be or how long it will run. I will give a two minute warning before each sprint.

I know the schedule might not work for everyone. If that's true for you, explore other options.

Fun fact: it is actually possible to write without sprinting.

Feel free to come in ahead of time and chat to fellow NaNo'ers.

Any questions, AIM me at 'callita623'.

You can invite yourself! All you need to do is open your Buddy list. Click 'chat', then clear the list. Put your name there instead and in the place of room name, put nanosprints. Easy!

Rules are same as always:

- Discuss your novel. Ask people for ideas if you're stuck.
- DON'T discuss religion, politics, lifestyle choices.
- Don't tear each other down. Not on plot choice OR word count.

please remember that while the sprints are taking place there will be no talking as it distracts from the 'stop' time. some have their chats set to blink and the blinks take away from knowing when to stop. if you are asked to stop talking, please do so immediately.

Never, ever be the first to talk in the Sprint room. There MAY be a Sprint going on.


if you live outside the U.S. and are unsure what time this is for you (or inside the U.S. and don't really have a grasp of time zones), please refer to this handy website.
FYI, i'm still looking for another sprint mod who can run sprints later in the evening for those who live out on the west coast. Everyone seems all bummed when i say "last sprint" but no one has stepped up to the plate. We're looking for someone who maybe has a nano win under theirl belt (proving you can make it to the end), and someone who can be reliable to do their sprinting shift. i'm hoping someone can switch off with me and one day i'll do sprints and the next they do them. hopefully we can find someone by Wednesday because i'm unavailable Wed. night. if you would like to be considered please send me an LJ message. don't reply in these comments. (you know.. this kind of proves that you can follow simple instructions.. also important. ;-)

accents

[trenchcoatedson.livejournal.com]

Is any one else writing a story with an accented character and has decided to actually write the accents in? And having trouble with it? Or has any one had this problem in the past- whether for NaNoWriMo or just any story?

I mean, not the accent itself, but the fact it's nothing like how you normally write or talk.

Currently I'm writing a story about a man from the Ozarks, and I wanted the story to seem as if he was writing it himself... like an autobiography or something. So I decided to implement his accents. Now, I'm actually from down South (Arkansas, the same place he is) so I can write a Southern accent perfectly fine.

But... what's driving me crazy is it's NOTHING like how I talk at all. It's driving me insane, and it's making me have trouble writing. It just seems awkward and WEIRD. I keep wanting to go through and beta this man's writing and edit the hell out of it. I've only written 1,107 words so far. Sad.

I could start over and write it normally, but... I just am not seeing the novel that way, nor am I seeing the character speaking properly. He has Asperger's Syndrome (undiagnosed), and he wants to write just how he talks, or else he feels like it's not actually him writing it.

So I don't know if I should just keep writing until I finally get used to it or start working on a new novel... Someone give me a pep talk or something, or personal advice. D:

accents

[trenchcoatedson.livejournal.com]

Is any one else writing a story with an accented character and has decided to actually write the accents in? And having trouble with it? Or has any one had this problem in the past- whether for NaNoWriMo or just any story?

I mean, not the accent itself, but the fact it's nothing like how you normally write or talk.

Currently I'm writing a story about a man from the Ozarks, and I wanted the story to seem as if he was writing it himself... like an autobiography or something. So I decided to implement his accents. Now, I'm actually from down South (Arkansas, the same place he is) so I can write a Southern accent perfectly fine.

But... what's driving me crazy is it's NOTHING like how I talk at all. It's driving me insane, and it's making me have trouble writing. It just seems awkward and WEIRD. I keep wanting to go through and beta this man's writing and edit the hell out of it. I've only written 1,107 words so far. Sad.

I could start over and write it normally, but... I just am not seeing the novel that way, nor am I seeing the character speaking properly. He has Asperger's Syndrome (undiagnosed), and he wants to write just how he talks, or else he feels like it's not actually him writing it.

So I don't know if I should just keep writing until I finally get used to it or start working on a new novel... Someone give me a pep talk or something, or personal advice. D:

To count or not to count?

[azriona.livejournal.com]

Okay, so I completely wrote like mad yesterday and clocked in just under 4K. And then this morning, my brain decided to go on hiatus and refused to write more than 800 words, and they were horribly painful words too. Not in reading - in reading they sound fine. But writing was like pulling teeth.

My husband and I went for lunch, and talked, and I figured out why those 800 were impossible - I was writing in the wrong direction. I backed up and I'm writing the same situation from a different angle, and it's moving much better and the words are flowing like wine and all is fantastic.

Here's the question. I KNOW I'm not going to use those 800 words. They are completely unsalvageable, and I'm okay with that. But should I count them against the 50K or not? Thoughts?

Edited to add: Thanks much for all the suggestions so far, folks - don't worry - I never delete gigantic chunks of text like this - I'll save it in a separate file marked "outtakes". I've decided for now not to count the 800 words in my final number, because while I agree I did write them and they totally should count and I have no issues with anyone else counting their words in a similar situation - I also know me. I'm twenty kinds of verbose. It's not going to come down to a question of 800 words if I hit 50K by 30 November! *grin*

To count or not to count?

[azriona.livejournal.com]

Okay, so I completely wrote like mad yesterday and clocked in just under 4K. And then this morning, my brain decided to go on hiatus and refused to write more than 800 words, and they were horribly painful words too. Not in reading - in reading they sound fine. But writing was like pulling teeth.

My husband and I went for lunch, and talked, and I figured out why those 800 were impossible - I was writing in the wrong direction. I backed up and I'm writing the same situation from a different angle, and it's moving much better and the words are flowing like wine and all is fantastic.

Here's the question. I KNOW I'm not going to use those 800 words. They are completely unsalvageable, and I'm okay with that. But should I count them against the 50K or not? Thoughts?

Edited to add: Thanks much for all the suggestions so far, folks - don't worry - I never delete gigantic chunks of text like this - I'll save it in a separate file marked "outtakes". I've decided for now not to count the 800 words in my final number, because while I agree I did write them and they totally should count and I have no issues with anyone else counting their words in a similar situation - I also know me. I'm twenty kinds of verbose. It's not going to come down to a question of 800 words if I hit 50K by 30 November! *grin*

What would you do?

[russtycat.livejournal.com]

I've been having no problem writing. I'm about 5,000 words in and things have been flowing fine. But then today after I read back what I wrote yesterday I got to thinking that maybe I'm writing the wrong story.

My original plot was about this guy June Hart, a quiet single guy who owns a book store in a small quiet town. He's an orphan who was raised by nuns and has learned to make a family out of his friends who also live in the small town with him, but he's never fallen in love with anyone. Long story short the town is bordered by a forest where he likes to go hike. Eventually he stumbles upon a mysterious girl who is injured. He helps get her fixed up and later on finds out that she is a fairy who is a caretaker of the forest. Someone is killing off the trees in the forest and the fairies who live there are also falling ill. June and Kristian Blackwood, the fairy fight with her family to help save the forest from death and destruction and eventually fall in love.

So then today when I'm going over yesterdays chapter which I'm pretty happy with I realize that June and his assistant Janne have a rather great dynamic. They work well together and joke back and forth. Janne showed up to work for him a few days a week five years ago for the summer and never left. June is 30 and Janne is 25, so in the beginning he always thought of her as a little sister. He's grown to think of her as one of his best friends. She's funny, witty, and loves to goof around with June. As I was reading it just sort of hit me that June has a thing for Janne! So I asked him if he did. He did the typical June thing, blushed bright red, got all flustered, and said he had to go clean something and walked off. I think my MC doth protest too much and he has the major hots for his friend.

I so didn't want to write a typical romance novel. But I'm so enamored of June. He's a very special guy and I really want to tell the story he wants me too. I'd hate to deny him finding love with Janne if that is what he wants. And he made a good point that there could be a whole series of stories in the small town about the different shop owners and friends of his. So far in just the first few chapters we've met two other towns people who seem like interesting people.

So should I stick to the original plan or make my MC happy and write the poor love sick boy the romance he seems to want? I'd probably have to scrap a few thousand words, but I'm okay with that if its what the story needs. I wrote enough yesterday that I'm already covered for today, so I'm not loosing anytime.

Thanks,

Russty the restless writer in California. ;)

What would you do?

[russtycat.livejournal.com]

I've been having no problem writing. I'm about 5,000 words in and things have been flowing fine. But then today after I read back what I wrote yesterday I got to thinking that maybe I'm writing the wrong story.

My original plot was about this guy June Hart, a quiet single guy who owns a book store in a small quiet town. He's an orphan who was raised by nuns and has learned to make a family out of his friends who also live in the small town with him, but he's never fallen in love with anyone. Long story short the town is bordered by a forest where he likes to go hike. Eventually he stumbles upon a mysterious girl who is injured. He helps get her fixed up and later on finds out that she is a fairy who is a caretaker of the forest. Someone is killing off the trees in the forest and the fairies who live there are also falling ill. June and Kristian Blackwood, the fairy fight with her family to help save the forest from death and destruction and eventually fall in love.

So then today when I'm going over yesterdays chapter which I'm pretty happy with I realize that June and his assistant Janne have a rather great dynamic. They work well together and joke back and forth. Janne showed up to work for him a few days a week five years ago for the summer and never left. June is 30 and Janne is 25, so in the beginning he always thought of her as a little sister. He's grown to think of her as one of his best friends. She's funny, witty, and loves to goof around with June. As I was reading it just sort of hit me that June has a thing for Janne! So I asked him if he did. He did the typical June thing, blushed bright red, got all flustered, and said he had to go clean something and walked off. I think my MC doth protest too much and he has the major hots for his friend.

I so didn't want to write a typical romance novel. But I'm so enamored of June. He's a very special guy and I really want to tell the story he wants me too. I'd hate to deny him finding love with Janne if that is what he wants. And he made a good point that there could be a whole series of stories in the small town about the different shop owners and friends of his. So far in just the first few chapters we've met two other towns people who seem like interesting people.

So should I stick to the original plan or make my MC happy and write the poor love sick boy the romance he seems to want? I'd probably have to scrap a few thousand words, but I'm okay with that if its what the story needs. I wrote enough yesterday that I'm already covered for today, so I'm not loosing anytime.

Thanks,

Russty the restless writer in California. ;)

enquiring minds want to know.

[ruth-the-sleuth.livejournal.com]

1. What time of day do you do your best writing? Early in the morning, before everyone else gets up, or after midnight with a pot of coffee beside you? Sometime in the middle of the day? For hours at a time or with the few minutes you can grab here and there?

2. Where do you write? In the park? In a coffee shop? All alone in the basement? In the ball pit at playland? On a boat? (Or do you write at work, when you think no one can see what you're doing, simply thinking that at least you're not on IM like you are 11 months out of 12? For shame, for shame.) (Of course I do not know anything about this from personal experience.)

3. What's your favorite brain food?

4. How do you plan to celebrate reaching 50K?

enquiring minds want to know.

[ruth-the-sleuth.livejournal.com]

1. What time of day do you do your best writing? Early in the morning, before everyone else gets up, or after midnight with a pot of coffee beside you? Sometime in the middle of the day? For hours at a time or with the few minutes you can grab here and there?

2. Where do you write? In the park? In a coffee shop? All alone in the basement? In the ball pit at playland? On a boat? (Or do you write at work, when you think no one can see what you're doing, simply thinking that at least you're not on IM like you are 11 months out of 12? For shame, for shame.) (Of course I do not know anything about this from personal experience.)

3. What's your favorite brain food?

4. How do you plan to celebrate reaching 50K?

Trembling like a leaf...

[with-new-eyes.livejournal.com]

... So, this is the first time I've taken NaNoWriMo seriously and I'm pretty freaked out. My biggest fear before Nov. 1st was that I would not even get off the ground without something planned out. NOW, I've done a fairly decent job so far (with nothing to start me off but a random line in my head) but I have new fears. I'm mostly afraid that I will crash and burn, turning my fairly decent novel into crappy crap. I'm writing about cooking (mostly Greek food) and I have a couple Greek characters... I don't know anything about Greeks and next to nothing about restaurant cooking. What if I kill my novel? AAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaahhhhhh! I'm freakin out a bit...
Any thoughts on this phenomenon?

Trembling like a leaf...

[with-new-eyes.livejournal.com]

... So, this is the first time I've taken NaNoWriMo seriously and I'm pretty freaked out. My biggest fear before Nov. 1st was that I would not even get off the ground without something planned out. NOW, I've done a fairly decent job so far (with nothing to start me off but a random line in my head) but I have new fears. I'm mostly afraid that I will crash and burn, turning my fairly decent novel into crappy crap. I'm writing about cooking (mostly Greek food) and I have a couple Greek characters... I don't know anything about Greeks and next to nothing about restaurant cooking. What if I kill my novel? AAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaahhhhhh! I'm freakin out a bit...
Any thoughts on this phenomenon?

oooo, also...

[with-new-eyes.livejournal.com]

So, my partner and I are doing together and she came up with a brilliant idea that I would like to bounce off you all.

She types her novel with her eyes closed (for the most part). Ok, maybe alot more people do this and I'm not aware of it BUT this struck me as GENIUSSSS! I mean, what better way to visualize what you are writing and also not worry about grammar and spelling? Like I said, complete and utter genius...

Thoughts? Does anyone else do this?

oooo, also...

[with-new-eyes.livejournal.com]

So, my partner and I are doing together and she came up with a brilliant idea that I would like to bounce off you all.

She types her novel with her eyes closed (for the most part). Ok, maybe alot more people do this and I'm not aware of it BUT this struck me as GENIUSSSS! I mean, what better way to visualize what you are writing and also not worry about grammar and spelling? Like I said, complete and utter genius...

Thoughts? Does anyone else do this?

The potential death of my novel, already.

[shinywen.livejournal.com]

I'm so upset. I hope you won't mind me venting.

Oooh... how do I explain it succinctly. My financial aid is 3 weeks late and we are dead in the water, and I need some books for my novel that neither the local nor University library has, so I call my parents and ask them if I can order them off Amazon. They will not let me use their credit card. Then they want to know what books I need, and I explain NaNo to them, and they say, "Well, if you have enough time for something like this SURELY you have enough time for a part-time job." I can't possibly explain the major difference between 20 hours a week of soul-sucking and how that would impact my Master's thesis, vs. 3 hours a day of doing something I love and is intellectually stimulating. All they want to talk about is MONEY. Then they reiterate, like I DON'T KNOW this somehow, that "well honey, you know that's not free money, right? That's a loan, that you have to pay back." And I blow up a little. of COURSE it's a loan, and YES it sucks, I'm $20000 in debt now and that's only for my first year! How the how else did you want me to do it? And they say, "Maybe you should put school on hold until you're more financially secure."

Oh YEESSSS, because working for $12 an hour filing somewhere will get me that $20,000 to pay in cash, upfront, in NO time.

WHY are the so down on the grad school thing, and WHY can't they share my joy in the NaNo thing? They have completely smashed my morale and joy in all this, all I've been able to do today is cry and sleep. I'm so angry at them.

Starting a story... and finishing it

[obatr.livejournal.com]

I have a problem when I start stories. I get bored of them pretty fast and don't want to finish them. That is what is happening with my NaNoWriMo story. The plot is starting to get boring and I don't want to start a whole new story. What should I do?!

POV dilemma

[elialys.livejournal.com]

Okay. I'm about to hit 5K. And the more I write, the more I dislike the POV I chose. I'm writing in the 1st person perspective, and it's painfully becoming unbearable. I've written 1st person POV stories before, but I usually have a good grasp on the character when I do that. Here, I feel like I'm writing a shallow person, blaaah!

So, I was wondering if some of you had already switched from 1st to 3rd person POV after 10 pages (or more)? Because it's really, really, REALLY tempting right now -___- I know it will be more work during the editing, but I think that for the sake of my poor story, it would be for the best :-/

POV dilemma

[elialys.livejournal.com]

Okay. I'm about to hit 5K. And the more I write, the more I dislike the POV I chose. I'm writing in the 1st person perspective, and it's painfully becoming unbearable. I've written 1st person POV stories before, but I usually have a good grasp on the character when I do that. Here, I feel like I'm writing a shallow person, blaaah!

So, I was wondering if some of you had already switched from 1st to 3rd person POV after 10 pages (or more)? Because it's really, really, REALLY tempting right now -___- I know it will be more work during the editing, but I think that for the sake of my poor story, it would be for the best :-/

15x Comic Strip - Nanowrimo, writing a novel in 30 days

[proof.livejournal.com]

15x Comic Strip - Nanowrimo, writing a novel in 30 days

[proof.livejournal.com]

OK, I'm getting tired of deleting...

[alison-sky.livejournal.com]

So I'm going to rehash the house rules, and as always these posts are not under a, lj-cut so I'm sorry for the inconvenience:


Rule #1... NO TALKING ABOUT THE NANO WEBSITE. If you have a desperate need to know what's going on there but don't want to actually go there to find out, this is not the place. Someone mentioned in a comment that there is a twitter: http://twitter.com/nanowrimo so feel free to use that, as well as the other 43526897 LJ Nano communities.

Rule #2... INTRODUCTIONS ARE DONE IN THE DAILY INTRO POSTS - This rule goes on until November 5th, when at that time the vast majority should have introduced themselves. This also means that posts that go on for length about yourself and your project should be contained to your own journal once these posts end on the 5th.

Rule #3... R-E-S-P-E-C-T - Especially the mods and our rules. ;)

Rule #4... NO SPAM. If you went to post to the community, it needs to be a contribution. Or a question. Icons. Things to help people along. Something you found online that has been helping keep you motivated. Posting about your project with nothing more than self promotion will be seen as spam and deleted, with a comment to use the pimping thread for that.

RULE #5... POSTING OF INDIVIDUAL WORD COUNTS IS NOT PERMITTED. As with the handy dandy Intro posts, there will be daily Word Count threads. You can reply in there with your meters, your text counts, your frustrations with your falling behind and only have 35 words written on November 16th, etc.

EXCEPTION TO RULE #5 - When you DO hit your 50K, you are allowed to post your victory in your own individual post. Why, you ask? Because I believe that everyone deserves their 15 minutes of glory, and you've had to put up with consolidated posts for 2 months, so SOMETHING has to be for individual shining.

If you aren't happy with this, then you might want to filter the group from November 26ish until December 1st. That tends to be what I do. And I'm the mod :)

RULE #6... ABOUT EXCERPTS: you will want to share the little nugget of joy called your NaNo, and that is perfectly fine. You have multiple ways to do this without an individual post.

a. Daily Excerpt thread. (replies are limited to 4000 words, and please do not do multiple replies to try and post your entire nano)

b. the 2008 LJ NaNo Pimp thread. You can advertise your writing LJ journal for people to friend it and read. (You're also allowed to do this in your intro on the intro thread.)

c. Plot Help thread. Though obviously this is more the place to get help, you're also going to end up talking about your project here. Just in a "help me" kinda way.

RULE #7... ABOUT NANOSPRINTS: In tradition, we have an AIM chat room in which we run NaNosprints during November. This year's chat room moderator is [info]callita623. She will have her own set of rules that should be posted in the next day or two. Her rules are to be followed just as if they were my own.

In addition to this - Folks, there is a handy thread put up every Monday called the PLOT HELP thread. If you need help with tricky plot points in your NaNo, THIS is the place to post your requests. It is linked from the daily intro posts, and on November 5th the link moves to the daily excerpt posts.

Why do i do this? So that way your plot help request doesn't get lost in the community! Seriously! If it's in one spot, for a WEEk people will be going into the thread and reading through, commenting with ideas for you. (and folks? if you need to procrastinate, THIS is the place to go and help others!) If you post it individually, people will either scan over it, or after a few hours it'll be far down the community and no one will even see it.

This is for YOUR benefit, so please use it.

And wow, it's 2 days in and I'm totally in awe of some of the word counts and the excerpts I've been reading. You guys are doing a fabulous job, even if you feel that you're already behind. Remember, you are amazing just to take on this challenge. Take a deep breath, get some discounted Halloween chocolate, and keep up the great work!

OK, I'm getting tired of deleting...

[alison-sky.livejournal.com]

So I'm going to rehash the house rules, and as always these posts are not under a, lj-cut so I'm sorry for the inconvenience:


Rule #1... NO TALKING ABOUT THE NANO WEBSITE. If you have a desperate need to know what's going on there but don't want to actually go there to find out, this is not the place. Someone mentioned in a comment that there is a twitter: http://twitter.com/nanowrimo so feel free to use that, as well as the other 43526897 LJ Nano communities.

Rule #2... INTRODUCTIONS ARE DONE IN THE DAILY INTRO POSTS - This rule goes on until November 5th, when at that time the vast majority should have introduced themselves. This also means that posts that go on for length about yourself and your project should be contained to your own journal once these posts end on the 5th.

Rule #3... R-E-S-P-E-C-T - Especially the mods and our rules. ;)

Rule #4... NO SPAM. If you went to post to the community, it needs to be a contribution. Or a question. Icons. Things to help people along. Something you found online that has been helping keep you motivated. Posting about your project with nothing more than self promotion will be seen as spam and deleted, with a comment to use the pimping thread for that.

RULE #5... POSTING OF INDIVIDUAL WORD COUNTS IS NOT PERMITTED. As with the handy dandy Intro posts, there will be daily Word Count threads. You can reply in there with your meters, your text counts, your frustrations with your falling behind and only have 35 words written on November 16th, etc.

EXCEPTION TO RULE #5 - When you DO hit your 50K, you are allowed to post your victory in your own individual post. Why, you ask? Because I believe that everyone deserves their 15 minutes of glory, and you've had to put up with consolidated posts for 2 months, so SOMETHING has to be for individual shining.

If you aren't happy with this, then you might want to filter the group from November 26ish until December 1st. That tends to be what I do. And I'm the mod :)

RULE #6... ABOUT EXCERPTS: you will want to share the little nugget of joy called your NaNo, and that is perfectly fine. You have multiple ways to do this without an individual post.

a. Daily Excerpt thread. (replies are limited to 4000 words, and please do not do multiple replies to try and post your entire nano)

b. the 2008 LJ NaNo Pimp thread. You can advertise your writing LJ journal for people to friend it and read. (You're also allowed to do this in your intro on the intro thread.)

c. Plot Help thread. Though obviously this is more the place to get help, you're also going to end up talking about your project here. Just in a "help me" kinda way.

RULE #7... ABOUT NANOSPRINTS: In tradition, we have an AIM chat room in which we run NaNosprints during November. This year's chat room moderator is [info]callita623. She will have her own set of rules that should be posted in the next day or two. Her rules are to be followed just as if they were my own.

In addition to this - Folks, there is a handy thread put up every Monday called the PLOT HELP thread. If you need help with tricky plot points in your NaNo, THIS is the place to post your requests. It is linked from the daily intro posts, and on November 5th the link moves to the daily excerpt posts.

Why do i do this? So that way your plot help request doesn't get lost in the community! Seriously! If it's in one spot, for a WEEk people will be going into the thread and reading through, commenting with ideas for you. (and folks? if you need to procrastinate, THIS is the place to go and help others!) If you post it individually, people will either scan over it, or after a few hours it'll be far down the community and no one will even see it.

This is for YOUR benefit, so please use it.

And wow, it's 2 days in and I'm totally in awe of some of the word counts and the excerpts I've been reading. You guys are doing a fabulous job, even if you feel that you're already behind. Remember, you are amazing just to take on this challenge. Take a deep breath, get some discounted Halloween chocolate, and keep up the great work!

NaNo genre icons

[nederlandergirl.livejournal.com]

[9] NaNoWriMo genre icons (there isn't one for every genre yet-- sorry!
Teasers:

Find them here, at graphicocity.

NaNo genre icons

[nederlandergirl.livejournal.com]

[9] NaNoWriMo genre icons (there isn't one for every genre yet-- sorry!
Teasers:

Find them here, at graphicocity.

Icons and Banners!

[angelicshadow.livejournal.com]

It's officially National Novel Writing Month! And with that I bring a batch of a few writing related icons as well as three NaNo banners for this year. :) Credit is optional on anything I make.

16 writing themed icons
3 NaNoWriMo banners

If you like them, please think about joining my community lovelyarts! :)

( working towards that daily word count... )

Icons and Banners!

[angelicshadow.livejournal.com]

It's officially National Novel Writing Month! And with that I bring a batch of a few writing related icons as well as three NaNo banners for this year. :) Credit is optional on anything I make.

16 writing themed icons
3 NaNoWriMo banners

If you like them, please think about joining my community lovelyarts! :)

( working towards that daily word count... )

(no subject)

[ink-kee.livejournal.com]

Is anyone else getting into the bad habit of checking their word count every few sentences? :P

(no subject)

[ink-kee.livejournal.com]

Is anyone else getting into the bad habit of checking their word count every few sentences? :P

I maded you a wallpaper.

[imaginepageant.livejournal.com]

I wanted something simple for my desktop that could keep me on track with my word count, so I made this. Use at your leisure!

CLICK ME FOR BIGNESS

I maded you a wallpaper.

[imaginepageant.livejournal.com]

I wanted something simple for my desktop that could keep me on track with my word count, so I made this. Use at your leisure!

CLICK ME FOR BIGNESS

Programs and file formatting

[imaginepageant.livejournal.com]

Just wondering what program everyone is using. I downloaded yWriter last month and though it's still a bit overwhelming, I'm forcing myself to use it for organizing, and I think it'll come in really handy when I'm halfway through my novel and can't remember what this guy's last name is or what color hair that woman has. But, I'm doing my actual writing in Word 07. I tried Q10, and may use it again for timing word wars, but the lack of ability to format the text is a real downer.

Also, how are you handling file formatting? Meaning, are you writing in a single document, from start to finish? Are you saving a new file for each chapter? Scene? Day's work? Here's what I'm doing: I start a new file for each day's progress, and add it to a master file at the end of a writing session. I also add each day's progress scene by scene to yWriter, as well as any new characters that have popped up.

Programs and file formatting

[imaginepageant.livejournal.com]

Just wondering what program everyone is using. I downloaded yWriter last month and though it's still a bit overwhelming, I'm forcing myself to use it for organizing, and I think it'll come in really handy when I'm halfway through my novel and can't remember what this guy's last name is or what color hair that woman has. But, I'm doing my actual writing in Word 07. I tried Q10, and may use it again for timing word wars, but the lack of ability to format the text is a real downer.

Also, how are you handling file formatting? Meaning, are you writing in a single document, from start to finish? Are you saving a new file for each chapter? Scene? Day's work? Here's what I'm doing: I start a new file for each day's progress, and add it to a master file at the end of a writing session. I also add each day's progress scene by scene to yWriter, as well as any new characters that have popped up.