USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Sunday Crazy Push?

Collectonian — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 19:13:36 +0000

I'm currently up at Barnes and Noble, but I'm only sticking around long enough to eat a sandwich. Then I'm heading to Muldoon's to do a crazy push to try to get to at least 35,000 words. I expect to stay there most of the day (hopefully till around 6 or so)...anyone want to join me for some communal writing and maybe some word wars if we get enough folks?
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2006 - The Guardian - 24805 words
2007 - The Guardian - under 10000 words (try 2)
2008 - Broken Wing - 49251 words
2009 - Aisuru, To Love - TBD

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Write-In This Lovely Saturday Afternoon

CreativeFlux — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 17:34:37 +0000

Is anyone interested in meeting up at Barnes and Noble again for another round of word wars?
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USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Just Over Halfway - Write Ins?

Collectonian — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:59:37 +0000

Hopefully we're all at least the half way point right...right? Okay, me neither! So whose up for doing a write in this Friday night or sometime this weekend to help keep us on track and get the energy going? We could even do a long one on Saturday or Sunday, like we might have if we had an ML, where folks can drift in and out as available during a 3-4 hour span or so.

Thoughts?
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2006 - The Guardian - 24805 words
2007 - The Guardian - under 10000 words (try 2)
2008 - Broken Wing - 49251 words
2009 - Aisuru, To Love - TBD

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

I did it, you can too! encouraging words & suggestions

arthur_rider — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:47:29 +0000

Yes! 50K novel done! Hang in there, you can do it too! Here are some things that helped me go over the top:
1) dream/nightmare-describing a dream takes words. using all the senses takes words.
This could be a prophesy or a warning. this can add to your plot, move the plot.
2) flashback-similar to the dream that adds words and moves a plot along.foreshadowing! adds words.
use all the senses! What was seen, heard, felt, was there a smell? did something get tasted?
3) add a new character-it may only be a minor character, but it adds words. And who knows?
It may become a major character. One of mine did. I never expected it, it just happened and it built on the plot.
4)plot twist-a fire, a storm, anything that provides a plot twist adds words.
It may take you a while to get back on the main track if that is where you really want to go.
How will the character deal with the plot twist? A spy is discovered. the good guy does something bad.
Will the good guy get forgiven? Will there be a punishment? what will happen? Will the character finally get back on track?
5) dialogue-I've seen this happen. character A tells character B to shut up. So what? add the dialogue. The words.
The thoughts behind the words. The character's emotions at the moment. The conversation may take a few seconds,
but the hidden side that the reader will want to see, the motivations, the feelings, all add words.
I learned about this during a challenge to write a romance novel. A lot of words go into a person telling someone else "HI!"
6) the climax and conclusion-we get into a hurry to describe the climax, and yet adding more words can build the tension.
The suspense. The big event. Then tieing up the loose ends to bring a conclusion,we rush. Did the character change?
In what way? It may not be a happy ending, but something happened.
A speech teacher once said, "tell them what you're going to say, say it, then tell them what you said."
This can also fit into writing.
7) sometimes the challenges Nanowrimo brings up can help your storyline, add to the plot, and adds words.
One more thing that helped me.
8) have a plot line with a rough draft outline. I used an outline to give me a direction. Some writers add a character generator, & that helps too. The writer's voice drives the character and dialogue which drives the plot, all adding words.
I hope this will help you.
GOOD LUCK!
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USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Word Count Scoreboard

twinsuns — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 16:36:38 +0000

Hey, we're number 302 on the word count scoreboard! *grins* It's out of 400-something regions, so maybe it would be fun to set a goal of being in the top half by the end of November!
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2008: Allayed Allegiance, ~52000 words
2009: Jóna, WIP

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Ah, the Rain...and Other Inspirational...Things

Vaprrenon — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:58:43 +0000

I usually get all bouncy and creative when it rains, ESPECIALLY during thunderstorms. Anyone else the same way? B/CS rain is a pain to walk/swim through when trying to get places, but sometimes it really helps you get excited about creating something. What gets you geared up to write, starts those creative juices a-flowin', or perks up your mood?
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I need a title for my story. On second thought...I probably need a plot first. Oops.

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

2nd Saturday Write In

Collectonian — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 05:30:12 +0000

Our write in tonight was pretty productive, I think. Tomorrow we're looking at having another one, probably at Muldoon's so we can get some outlets. Whose in and any time preferences?
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2006 - The Guardian - 24805 words
2007 - The Guardian - under 10000 words (try 2)
2008 - Broken Wing - 49251 words
2009 - Aisuru, To Love - TBD

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Friday night write in?

BahamutChild — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 23:27:23 +0000

Anyone interested in meeting at Hastings to motivate each other on a Friday night?
How's 8pm (to about 10 or whenever) sound?
I assume there is only one Hastings in CS? (just got here)
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USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Middle of the night writings.

bardkris — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 13:05:49 +0000

Hey, guys. Some of us are struck with inspiration in the middle of the night (or maybe just insomnia), but still want to get out of the house and have crappy coffee while we write. As the night manager of a few of hotels here in town, I can tell you that most of them have no problem with people quietly tapping away on laptops in their lobbies. Some hotels are more lax than others, but for the most part, they're not going to mind, especially in the middle of the night.

The one that I'm over that's best suited to this is the Hawthorn Suites on University. Between 11p and 7a, I can guarantee that as long as you're not being incredibly obnoxious, you will be welcome. Chances are that no one's going to mind before then either. The coffee there is from a machine and while it's not Starbucks, it's hot and free. Just make sure to be respectful of the guests and employees. You're there on their sufferance.

Kris
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USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Newbie, Newbie!

rachelfoster — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:08:35 +0000

Well I have been part of NanoWriMO since 2003, but only being able to get my courage up enough to write a paragraph here and there...this year, after many things happening in my life, I am here and already on page 10. So I am not going anywhere, I am a native Californian who moved a year and half ago to Houston. I am in Humble, but I am so willing to drive for motivation. Anyone know of Write-In's in my neighborhood or as close as I can get? I joined the region because I believe this to be the closest to my area. Help! Motivation needed and wanted. :) :)
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USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Saturday Write-In?

Collectonian — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 16:05:03 +0000

Anyone want to get together today? Could hit Muldoon's or Barnes and Noble, which worked well last night. Could even take over Fuddruckers as they do have free WiFi and yummy burgers ;-)
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2006 - The Guardian - 24805 words
2007 - The Guardian - under 10000 words (try 2)
2008 - Broken Wing - 49251 words
2009 - Aisuru, To Love - TBD

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

On-Campus Writing

Vaprrenon — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:54:26 +0000

Not that I'll be on the A&M campus today, but I was curious if anyone prefers to write on-campus, where their favorite spots might be, and if anyone would be interested in NaNo get-togethers or something...maybe grab some food somewhere after a week of classes or something and just sit around to relax, talk, and--obviously--write here and there. I would think that Thursdays and/or Fridays would be the best days, but weekends would work great too if people were motivated to get out of their dorms/apartments/houses/whatevers. Despite the MSC being closed (enter sad, sad face here), there are still plenty of places on-campus to just sit back and do whatever with friends for stuff like this.

Wow I ramble.
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I need a title for my story. On second thought...I probably need a plot first. Oops.

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

New to this Region

adamhide — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 21:10:01 +0000

Hello!
I am new to the College Station/Bryan region after just moving here a few months ago. I was in the East Valley, AZ (Tempe) region the past few years. I have yet to complete a novel. Last year I had to move to a new house on October 30th, so obviously I didn't get anything written, and in 2007 I fell short. This year I have no reason not to make the goal and plan on making it. I have absolutly no plot and no idea, just going to start writing (I have plenty of outlines for other novels, but laziness has gotten the best of me, and every year I say NaNoWriMo will jump start me, and this year I expect the same). Good luck to everyone!

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USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

NaNo Tools

Collectonian — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 20:29:24 +0000

One of my LJ buddies who also does NaNo recently pointed out this very nifty online tool, Write Or Die, to help NaNo participants (or even just writers in general). Basically, you tell it how many words you want to write in what time frame, and how it should prod you along, then it gives you a screen to write in and keeps track of the time and words. If you stop writing, it gives you color queues (and I believe sound queues - my laptop has no sound capabilities right now to know for sure). You can pause only once during that time :-) Once you're done, you can copy/paste your work elsewhere.

This year he also apparently released a desktop version available for a $10 donation that can even take over your whole computer screen to keep you from procrastinating about your writing! The desktop one also does some statistical stuff and lets you save to file. He also has a nice looking progress bar for using on blogs and websites (free).

I gave the online one a whirl last night, as I was in serious procrastination mode, and I managed to bang out 1294 words in 67 minutes. It wasn't quite my goal of 1500, since I stopped and did research a few times, but on the whole it really helped me focus more and just write instead of flaking out. I'm debating buying the desktop one so it can also stop me from pausing and going "oh, let me look this up".

Anyway, thought I'd share about this tool with everyone and see if anyone else had any other NaNo tools/tricks they might want to share for helping beat procrastination and for staying (mostly) on target?
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2006 - The Guardian - 24805 words
2007 - The Guardian - under 10000 words (try 2)
2008 - Broken Wing - 49251 words
2009 - Aisuru, To Love - TBD

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Spontaneous Write-In Possibility -- 11/4/09

twinsuns — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 01:41:07 +0000

Howdy!

It's about 7:35 pm and I'm about to head over to Muldoon's Coffee House (in the Kholes and Chic-Fil-A area off of Texas and Harvey) if anyone is interested in having a mini write-in. I'll probably be there for a few hours if you can't make it out now. (By the way, do they let you use their wireless network connection there?)

I'm going to put a red sticker on the back of my Dell that says something along the lines of "Hello wrimos!" to help you find me.

Happy writing, everyone!

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2008: Allayed Allegiance, ~52000 words
2009: Jóna, WIP

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Organize a write-in...

MDarcy — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 22:19:30 +0000

Beyond the kickoff it would be nice to have some regular write ins.

Anyone up to organizing them.
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USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Novel Name

aplentl — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:52:33 +0000

Has anyone already named the novel they are writing?

If so, what is it? Do you think that by naming your novel already it will encourage you more to complete it?

What is everyone's thoughts on the whole "novel naming" process?

I am just curious because usually when I write short stories or essays I leave the title to be the last part I complete, but since this project is bigger than that I almost want to be able to call it by a name, so that I can have something to relate back to, and thus see if that will keep me going all the way to the end.

Any replies would be much appreciated! :)
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The first draft of anything is shit. - Ernest Hemingway

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Sunday Writing?

Collectonian — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 16:16:05 +0000

I'm up at Muldoon's Coffee House, the new place in Culpepper, working on my late kick start, if anyone wants to pop by! I'll probably be up here a few hours.
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2006 - The Guardian - 24805 words
2007 - The Guardian - under 10000 words (try 2)
2008 - Broken Wing - 49251 words
2009 - Aisuru, To Love - TBD

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Aggies

Greg.Lockwood — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 01:06:58 +0000

Well, since we are in the Bryan/College Station group, and A&M is the main reason people would live here, who all attends TAMU? I am a 5th year senior majoring in Geography with a minor in GIS, and you can find me on NG on most weekends. Anyone else?

Whoop!
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USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

TC on Texas at Midnight

MDarcy — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 02:34:57 +0000

Anyone interested in meeting up and knocking out your first 1667.
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USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Pre-Prep? The Book? How do you start?

Collectonian — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 03:48:00 +0000

just over 24 hours to go! What pre-prep, if any do you do leading up to NaNo? Do you just give your novel a name and have a vague idea what you want? Do you write up a synopsis and maybe a few quick notes? Do you do full blown character charts, outlines, and ? Or do you jump from the gate at midnight with nothing planned at all? How do you start NaNo?

Has anyone picked up Chris Baty's No Plot? No Problem!: A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days, or any of the other novel writing in 30 day books? Find them useful, worthless, etc?
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2006 - The Guardian - 24805 words
2007 - The Guardian - under 10000 words (try 2)
2008 - Broken Wing - 49251 words
2009 - Aisuru, To Love - TBD

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Casting actors as characters

aplentl — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 17:20:02 +0000

Howdy everyone!

T-minus 12 hours till it begins! I don't know about you, but I'm pretty stoked.

So I have realized that giving a face to my characters helps me get to know them even better. So I kind of sorted through various actors and actresses and picked the ones that have the look and mannerisms of the characters in my stories.
Here's my list:

Ellie: Kirsten Dunst
Kevin: Kevin McKidd
Ian: Gerard Butler
Emma: a younger Abigail Breslin
Sean: James McAvoy
Aimee: Emily Mortimer

The characters in my book are all Scottish with the exception of Ellie, which is why there's a lot of Scott's in this list.

Who would you cast as the main characters in your novel?
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The first draft of anything is shit. - Ernest Hemingway

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

Kickoff planning since we lack a ML...

MDarcy — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 22:18:39 +0000

Since we lack an ML we need to plan a kickoff night write in.

If memory serves last year we were able to reserve a room at Denny's (the whole ML drama kept me from bothering) with the requirement of a minimum order. I'd like to offer this as suggestion one.

Also, since I tried to be ML and was turned down (they prefer prior winner) I'm offering to organize (including contacting a place a reserving us space and so on) our kickoff night.
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USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

ML?

twinsuns — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 02:08:15 +0000

So, do we have a ML this year? I think he or she has to be chosen by Nov 1 for it to be "official"...
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2008: Allayed Allegiance, ~52000 words
2009: Jóna, WIP

USA :: Texas :: Bryan-College Station

2008 NaNo Works

Collectonian — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 04:28:31 +0000

Whether you won or lost, what happened with your novel from 2008? Is it collecting dust on your hard drive or in a corner somewhere? Did you delete/trash it (horrified shudder)? If it was unfinished, did you finish it off? Did you start to edit it? For the really ambitious, was it polished and sent off to an agent, publisher, or contest?
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2006 - The Guardian - 24805 words
2007 - The Guardian - under 10000 words (try 2)
2008 - Broken Wing - 49251 words
2009 - Aisuru, To Love - TBD