Day 6 - November 6th
Go Wild
Weird fact: before Jerry Springer launched his brawling freak show on daytime TV, he was a serious progressive politician and highly respected mayor of Cincinnati. In his heyday, may Ohioans even saw him as a likely candidate for the U.S. presidency. As you begin worrying that you might be pushing the bounds of believability for some of your characters, remember Jerry and the countless other real-life stories you’ve heard that make the wildest fiction pale by comparison.
Don’t be afraid to leverage the power of unlikely coincidences and unbelievable occurrences. Nothing could be more true to life.
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50,073 / 50,000
Nov 5, 2007 - 23 19
Day 7 - November 7th
Skeletons in the closet
So many of the things we take as a given in everyday life were actually the result of a bitter struggle between two opposing forces. Take, for example, the custom of saying “Hello?” when answering the phone. It seems like a natural extension of a face-to-face conversation, right? If telephone inventor Alexander Graham bell had had his way, though, we’d all be saying “Ahoy, ahoy” when our cell phone rings. He thought that the nautical salutation was more fitting, and he was disgruntled that the plainer “hello: suggested by inventor Thomas Alva Edison caught on instead.
Today, use part of our writing session to explore a given about your protagonist’s life or personality, and reveal one of the surprising struggles that brought him or her to their current state.
50,073 / 50,000
Nov 7, 2007 - 04 34
Day 8 - November 8th
The Plot Thickens
Ah, the start of the second week. Where things get more, um...interesting. If Week One was all about character creation, Week Two is all about finding something to do with all the people milling around in your book. Yes, we're talking plot here, a word that sends a lot of writers needlessly running in fear. Just keep prodding your characters and a plot will set itself in motion this week. Know, though, that the decisions of Week Two will make this the most exhausting of all four weeks.
Also, know that the more you write, the more inspired you are going to feel. If you're feeling a little pokey now, it's because you're not writing enough. Push yourself to write every day, and make a point of adding something to your word count any time you're within striking distance of a keyboard.
50,073 / 50,000
Nov 8, 2007 - 22 34
Day 9 - November 9th (I'm sure it still is somewhere in the world!)
No Frogs In This Pond
Today, we take Zsa Zsa Gabor as our literary role model. Her enthusiasm for marriage was so great that she did it nine times. What do ZsaZsa's many nuptials have to do with your novel?
Today, as a number of possible plot directions start offering themselves to you, you may decide to wait coyly for The One to appear. Don't.
In the world of the monthlong novel, there are no frogs, only princes (or princesses). Take inspiration from the Hungarian actress, and hitch yourself to any likely plot suitor. You'll have a great time with any of them, and you can always grab a different one on the next go-round.