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Post by TheOogieBoogieMan on Oct 12, 2008 9:25:03 GMT -5
And Al brings us up to six participants. Awesome!
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dex
Ghostbuster
So what colour is the sky in your world?
Posts: 343
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Post by dex on Oct 12, 2008 13:47:38 GMT -5
rofl! Sorry no. But I'm sure he'll be around one day... Just kidding. Trent was a character on Daria and exhaustively described by "guitar & sleeping". |
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Post by PoolMan on Oct 16, 2008 17:09:40 GMT -5
I'm thinking about it. Loosely. My job is taking up a lot of what SHOULD be my off hours right now, so it's not looking good. BUT! That's not why I'm posting! I happened across this software companion for MS Word that apparently keeps chapters of novels as separate files (for ease of organization) and then amalgamates them all when you're done. Thought it might be useful for the NaNoWriNauts in the crowd. |
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Post by pfrsue on Oct 21, 2008 9:29:28 GMT -5
As we count down to the November kick-off, I have to tell you guys that I'm starting to feel pretty stoked about it. However, because of my health situation, I'm changing my strategy a bit. Well, when I say that, I mean that this year I'll actually have a strategy.
It's totally cheating to do any actual writing before November 1st, however I know some folks draw up outlines and work out the plot prior to the start. I've never done that before; preferring to start as a completely blank slate and just let 'er rip. This year, I'm realistically looking at a few lost days for chemo and various appointments, and (this really stinks,) I'm also starting to acquire something known as "chemo brain," in which the sufferer can get these weird ADD-type lapses in thought and memory. In my case, this includes apparently forgetting every grammar rule ever written. And how to spell. And occasionally backward sentence structure, like Yoda, I write. Intention to do this, I have not. Seriously, it really slows me down.
Soooo, this morning, I sat down and decided what my subject is going to be and I wrote down a list of chapter "prompts," just in case I have one of my "little moments" when I'm supposed to be NaNo-ing. (Now the trick is going to be not to lose the list before November! I've already lost a hat. I mean, I'd just bought it! Fourteen bucks! And I lost it! A whole hat! I liked that hat!)
Anyway, this made me wonder about the rest of you. Are you guys outlining or pre-plotting this year? Or are ya'll going to leap straight in on the 1st without knowing what the muse is going to yank out of your heads?
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Post by BlackCatWhiteCat on Oct 21, 2008 10:54:45 GMT -5
I had actually intended on asking if it was okay to make outlines and such. I mean, I'm nervous anyway because I don't believe I've ever written 50K words before. Much less on a time constraint. I got what I felt to be a good idea a couple of days ago. It just kinda hit me, so I wrote a few notes down. Mostly just the opening line of my story, a bit of a twist at the end, and that's about it. No more than about 3 sentences all together so far. And for all I know I might throw it all out the window once I get started. When I first read your post I thought it said "every rule of grammar I've written". I was wrong, but I don't think I was all that far-fetched.  |
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Post by pfrsue on Oct 21, 2008 11:23:02 GMT -5
Bah. Grammar is for them that needs it. I can't be bothered with suchlike.
To answer your question, technically you're not supposed to write a single word of the novel-to-be before the start time, but it's considered okay to do outline work. I assume that's what the people do who get their 50k done before the first week is over. (Yes, there really are people like that. I hate them all.)
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Post by Lissa on Oct 21, 2008 16:16:38 GMT -5
I've been more world-building, since I'm headed fantasy-ward. Nothing written for the novel, but just knowing the political climate, the basis of religion (still haven't decided on that), the way magic works, etc. More just laying down the rules. And I have character sheets (you know character sheets, Sue!  ) I'll probably promptly end up ignoring most of what I wrote on them, but at least I have some idea of whom I'm working with and how they know each other. |
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Post by TheOogieBoogieMan on Oct 23, 2008 13:50:11 GMT -5
The way things are going, I'll be approaching my story differently as well, although my plan doesn't involve outlines or character sheets (although it would probably help to use those).
See, I want my writing to be more than something I invest in wholeheartedly for thirty days and then forget about and let take up space on my computer. In the last week of September, I did something I was really proud of: I not only completed my first serious short story ever (there are several short stories on my computer that I started, but could never finish), but I submitted it to a magazine. I don't expect anything to come of it, but actually being able to go the distance was an accomplishment for me.
All of which is to say that I'll be structuring my "novel" as a series of short stories instead of a single linear storyline; I'm not a sophisticated enough writer to pull off a novel-length story (as I learned over the last two years of NaNo), but I have several decent-to-awesome ideas for short stories of a few thousand words each. The way I see it, all the stories will take place in the same world and revolve around the same characters, but they'll be segmented and written to be able to stand alone, so that I can send any one of the stories to a magazine and have it work without the context of the larger whole.
Hopefully doing that will make the month pass easier, and having read some of the Wild Cards series, I know that this sort of structure can be done well.
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Post by duckie on Oct 23, 2008 20:07:57 GMT -5
All of which is to say that I'll be structuring my "novel" as a series of short stories instead of a single linear storyline; I'm not a sophisticated enough writer to pull off a novel-length story (as I learned over the last two years of NaNo), but I have several decent-to-awesome ideas for short stories of a few thousand words each. The way I see it, all the stories will take place in the same world and revolve around the same characters, but they'll be segmented and written to be able to stand alone, so that I can send any one of the stories to a magazine and have it work without the context of the larger whole. I had been thinking about trying NaNoWriMo this year, but with all the traveling planned, there is just no way I would get close to 50k words. But, I did have an idea lined up, and it did deal with partitioning the novel into chapters that could be packaged up separately. To me, that seemed like a good way to prevent myself from being painted into a corner in Chapter 23. A little while ago, I read a book called Love is a Mix Tape. It inspired me to flush out some ideas into a rough outline, where each chapter of the book would describe a mix tape I've created over the years. Maybe a total rip-off idea, but I don't have any brushes with fame, so I'd never expect it to go to a publisher. Maybe it could pass as my memoirs once I went to the Great Beyond... look for it in the discount bin, in a few years! If nothing else, it would have helped to get the pencil going. Stick to a chapter a night, write about a single mix tape that evening. But, alas, there really isn't the time to do it this year... I even had a title picked out... Every Mix Tape Tells a Story (apologies to Rod Stewart) |
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Post by BlackCatWhiteCat on Oct 23, 2008 20:58:44 GMT -5
You know....I may completely steal your idea, Oogie and Duckie. I've never written a 50k novel before. In fact, I haven't done much in the way of beefy writing since I got out of college. I think the short story thing is a good way for me to cut my teeth on this whole novel thing, and simultaneously keep things a bit less daunting.
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Post by Ms. Jellybean on Oct 24, 2008 10:56:43 GMT -5
Well, I have jumped on board. I forgot my password for last year and decided to heck with it, I'll just create a new account. leanan_sidhe. Check that out. I don't know where I'll be going with this, to be honest. I fizzled out big-time last year within the first week because I was struck with what I like to call The Plague (yay dorm living) and then a whole other mess of stuff happened. This year, I'll be in Kansas freakin' City on November first but I am taking a notebook to handwrite at least the beginning. Oh, yes, and I'm writing stuff BY HAND before typing it up this time. I used to do that in middle school when I first started writing fanfic. I'd just fill up notebook after notebook with drabble and super-long stories. Time to go back to my roots. I'm pumped! I will conquer this year! |
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Post by BlackCatWhiteCat on Oct 24, 2008 19:34:00 GMT -5
Alright! Welcome aboard, Ms. Jellybean.
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Post by Al on Oct 24, 2008 19:51:49 GMT -5
Anyway, this made me wonder about the rest of you. Are you guys outlining or pre-plotting this year? Or are ya'll going to leap straight in on the 1st without knowing what the muse is going to yank out of your heads? My story (assuming it gets off the ground) is going to be one that I've had swimming in my head for several years. I've always been too chicken to put it on paper because there were too many gaps in the details, but basically I know how it will start and how it will end and what has to happen for the characters to get there. How they will actually do it is another can of worms altogether. I'm excited to find out, though! |
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dex
Ghostbuster
So what colour is the sky in your world?
Posts: 343
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Post by dex on Oct 26, 2008 14:33:39 GMT -5
Hi there, stumbled over this and thought it might get you psyched. Have fun! "Final stats for January 2002: 1 novel [...] 50,758 words 8 pounds gained Holy *bleep*ing *bleep* I'm glad this is over with." |
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Post by duckie on Oct 26, 2008 15:18:51 GMT -5
What the heck, count me in... hsh101
(I'll bring up the rear!)
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"If I'm going to be desensitized into a mindless stock animal, I may as well do it with a cushy ergonomic seat and magnificent THX-certified sound. -Kevin Murphy
) I'll probably promptly end up ignoring most of what I wrote on them, but at least I have some idea of whom I'm working with and how they know each other.
