United States :: California :: Monterey

Anyone planning on being at the write-in tonight? Anyone need Friday inspiration?

yangnome — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 17:45:21 -0800

Just wondering if I'll be alone, or if there will be people there with me.

Also, does anyone need support making the push on Friday? Let me know so we can arrange something.

Al
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__________________________
Metaphors be with you
yangnome
Municipal Liaison
Monterey, CA

United States :: California :: Monterey

Setting your Home Region

yangnome — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 08:59:37 -0700

Hello all,

You may have seen this on the front page, but I'll reiterate it here. We are now able to select a home region amongst our affiliated regions. This is important, because it will count your wordcount towards our regional count. Last year, Monterey came in in the top 10 (I think we were #6), for wordcount per author--quite a feat. We also beat all of China in words written during the month. Throughout Nano, we are able to set up challenges with other regions, but to accurately reflect our prowess, we need you to affiliate and set us as your home region.

To do this, first click on My Nanowrimo. My regions page shoudl come up. If not, you can click on the menu on the left. The My regions page will list regions you are affiliated with. To select a home region I believe you will have to be affiliated with it first. to affiliate with a region, you click on the regions tab. Scroll through all the regions until you find UNited states :: California :: Monterey and select affiliate. Of course, you can affiliate with other regions as well (your word count will not count towards their totals). Next, click on the home region tab. Select United States::California::Monterey from the list. Now you should be set.
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__________________________
Metaphors be with you
yangnome
Municipal Liaison
Monterey, CA

United States :: California :: Monterey

TGIO Party Discussion

yangnome — Thu, 8 Nov 2007 08:52:33 -0800

Hello All,

We're only beginning week 2, but it is time to start discussing our Thank God it's Over Party.

Two years ago, we met at the Mucky Duck in teh early evening and shared stories around the fire pit there. Last year, we planned ot meet at teh Duck earlier in the day, but found out that the new owners cut their daytime hours. We quickly retreated to a cafe across the street, and shared our stories over lunch.

I figured I would throw the idea out there again and see what people are interested in doing. The TGIO party is a great opportunity to share a small piece of what you have done over the last month with others who shared your experience. The idea of passing around a small excerpt seems to have gone over well the last couple years, and because of this, a venue that is somewhat quiet makes for a good place.

If you have any ideas for location or preferences for a date and time, please let me know. Also, if you plan on attending the party, please let me know so I can get a good headcount and make arrangements.

Thanks.

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__________________________
Metaphors be with you
yangnome
Municipal Liaison
Monterey, CA

United States :: California :: Monterey

50k and loving it

xengab — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 22:53:50 -0800

During tonights write in I managed to finish NaNO.
So my fantasy story is finished ! YAY! I am so happy and I really enjoyed writing the story.
Not everything went as I planned it but I really enjoyed the ride.
I shall now turn my attention to my mystery story but do not think I will be finishing it this month but I will finish it sometime in december that is for sure.

So come on everyone, you can do it too.
If you dont the traveling shovel of Death might seek you out...
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My idea of hell is being trapped in a room with no books.
2006- When lies change Me
2007- The Rise of Emperor Mole
Xenacat
2007- Magic Meow Mystery

United States :: California :: Monterey

Experience

coffeemug — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 15:28:37 -0800

so I am too far behind that it would take a miracle to finish, I have decided to finish even if the month runs out. I have enjoied this experience I only wish that my month had not been so busy with overtime, school work, guests and travel. Honestly I think January makes a better month for novel writing, but I am looking forward to next year already. My only regret is not being able to make the write -ins.
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United States :: California :: Monterey

Good News Re: Write-ins

yangnome — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 20:12:56 -0700

I went in to Bad Ass coffee today and spoke with the owner. She thought it'd be a great idea to leave the store open on write-in nights. Our first gathering there will be on Thursday Nov 1 at 7pm. Following that, we'll meet on Wednesdays at 7. We'll also have afinal get together there on Nov 30th if need be.
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__________________________
Metaphors be with you
yangnome
Municipal Liaison
Monterey, CA

United States :: California :: Monterey

Breaking 25k

CrankyBeach — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 21:50:12 -0800

Okay, everyone, raise your hand if you've gotten over the 25,000 word mark.

:: raises hand ::
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- - -
2005 NaNo Winner - "Lynch Creek Campaign"
2006 NaNo Winner - "The Four-Night Stand"
2007 NaNo: Spewing prose, in desperate and vain search for a plot

United States :: California :: Monterey

[NaNoWriMo : Monterey, CA] Welcome to Week 3, or Cheesy Inspirational Message #3

yangnome — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 18:19:14 -0800

Hello Monterey Wrimos,

Welcome to the end of week2/beginning of week 3. I’ve got good news and bad news for you. We’ve made it half way through NaNo now, which means it is all down hill from here. That’s the good news. Now for the bad.

Historically, this is the worst portion of the novel writing process. You’ve started your story and up until now, your characters have probably been pretty interesting, if not cooperative. So far, there has been a general excitement in taking part in the novel writing process. You’ve seen your characters grow into real people, your world come alive on paper. Now, you are about to hit a brick wall.

Those characters you’ve fallen in love with will start to seem bland. You’ll be certain your story has holes that can never be stitched up. Worse yet, that 50k mark looks further and further away as you fight to make yourself sit down and write.

Cheer up though, it really isn’t that bad. We’ve made it to the hump part of nano where you need to buckle down and put words on paper. Between now and about 35,000 words, each word will likely feel like a chore to write. The good news is that on the other side of that hump, it is all down hill. I promise you if you dredge through this week that next week it will get easier. Your stories will start to come together, and fifteen days from now, you will have a new manuscript on your hard drive.

The main thing to focus on now is sitting down and forcing yourself to write. I promise you it will all come together. I promise you that we all can make it through this.

Now, to help you through this week, I have a bit of a suggestion. Take all of your anger and your frustrations out on your characters. Put obstacles in front of everything they want to achieve. In short, make their lives hell. Not only will this revenge brighten your spirits and make slogging through this a bit easier, but it will also make your story more interesting. Good stories are built around conflict, and conflict is created by strife and tribulation. Have your main character’s love interest abandon your MC. Kill off your MC’s mother. Have the MC’s car blow up on the way to deliver money to the kidnappers. It’ll all pay off a week from now.

For those who are feeling the strain of Nano, I encourage you to come out and join us for a write-in. We officially meet every Wednesday night at 7:30pm at Bad Ass Coffee in Seaside. If you can’t make the regular write-in, pot a note in the forums. More than likely there are wrimos who are looking for an excuse to get together with someone to write. Even if no one can make it out, we can provide plenty of encouragement and support.

Have a good week,

Al (yangnome)
ML Monterey, CA

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__________________________
Metaphors be with you
yangnome
Municipal Liaison
Monterey, CA

United States :: California :: Monterey

Introductions

yangnome — Tue, 2 Oct 2007 09:39:38 -0700

Hello and welcome to the nanowrimo 2007 Monterey forum. Please take a moment to introduce yourself so we know who you are. Let us know who you are, how many times you've done Nano, what you plan to write this year and something interesting about yourself. also, don't forget to check back to this forum for write-in times and other regional events.
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__________________________
Metaphors be with you
yangnome
Municipal Liaison
Monterey, CA

United States :: California :: Monterey

Week 2, or Cheesy Inspirational Message #2

yangnome — Thu, 8 Nov 2007 08:41:11 -0800

Hello Monterey WriMos,

How is NaNoWriMo treating you? By now, you are probably in one of two boats: you’ve either started writing your novel and you’ve grown to know your characters and things are moving along swimmingly, or you’ve put off writing the novel—you “forgot” to start, or it was too daunting a task, so you threw your hands up in the air and decided not to do it this year.

Let me talk to those in the later group first. If you haven’t started yet, it isn’t too late. I know that word count goal looks insurmountable, but really it isn’t. Once you start writing your story, your characters will suddenly come to lie and start writing the story for you. I really, really encourage you to pick up from where you gave up and give it a try this week. There is still plenty of time left to win this goal, and I know you have a novel somewhere inside you wanting to get out, or you never would have signed up in the first place.

To those who are tearing down the track with wild abandon, good for you. At the end of week one, I imagine that it feels like nothing can stand in your way between here and victory. While that is a possibility, I would like to take the time to caution you about the dreaded week two. The week may start off well for you, but your fast tracks are headed for a steep grade. At some point during week two, you will likely have some struggles—‘when is this thing going to end?’, ‘what the hell are my characters doing?’, ‘I wish I could just kill character X’.

My advice for this is keep plugging through it. The week two troubles are normal, but the struggles won’t last forever. The things your characters do to frustrate you and ruin your intended plot now might open up new doorways to a more interesting story. That character that you want to kill—kill him. I’ve got a shovel you can borrow to whack him upside the head. If it gets you writing again and helps you get through week 2, go with it. Whatever you do, don’t give up, or you won’t be able to see the recovery in weeks 3 and 4 when you really get on a downhill run.

If you have not yet made it out to one of our write-ins, I encourage you to do so, especially if you are feeling down in week two. There is nothing better than sitting around talking with other people who are going through the same struggles you are. Having a small group to bounce ideas off of also helps provide some inspiration. We meet every Wednesday night through November at Bad Ass Coffee in Seaside at 7:30pm.

If you can’t make the write-ins, but still need some encouragement or inspiration, drop by the Monterey forum. Even if you aren’t looking for encouragement or help, drop on by. I’ll be posting a thread shortly after sending this to start discussing the details of our TGIO party.

Go now. Write and feel inspired. I’ll see you all on the other side of week 2.

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__________________________
Metaphors be with you
yangnome
Municipal Liaison
Monterey, CA

United States :: California :: Monterey

Friday afternoon, November 9...

CrankyBeach — Fri, 9 Nov 2007 13:12:58 -0800

Just in case anyone is reading this... I am headed over to Bad Ass about 2 o'clock. I am going to plunk myself in a chair and make myself write until I hit my quota for the day. I cannot seem to get anything done at home. So if anyone is free to join me... I will be there.
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- - -
2005 NaNo Winner - "Lynch Creek Campaign"
2006 NaNo Winner - "The Four-Night Stand"
2007 NaNo: Spewing prose, in desperate and vain search for a plot

United States :: California :: Monterey

It is quiet in here

yangnome — Mon, 5 Nov 2007 15:35:05 -0800

Hello all,

Just thought I'd drop a note to see how the firt week of Nano is going for everyone? With the forums still a bit slow it is difficult to check up on everybody. Hope all is going well.

I had a rough first few days with little time to write. I've used today to pound out some words and get a bit ahead, though I'm still moving at a much slower pace than years past. Everyone else doing ok? Any interesting things pop out in your writing? I hope the forum is quiet because everyone is busy writing and not cause everyone gave up!
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__________________________
Metaphors be with you
yangnome
Municipal Liaison
Monterey, CA

United States :: California :: Monterey

The things we do, write-in's help

xengab — Thu, 8 Nov 2007 08:15:58 -0800

Ok for all you writers that are sitting home in the warmth getting some writing done, come visit us at the write-ins.
You dont have to stay for the whole time but a visit would be great. I for one know I get alot of writing done during that time.
Plus having others around to shoot down ideas can be helpful, I did a whole scene last night based on ideas given by everyone there. (Sorry no penguins got put in the story yet but soon).
I am also going to say that by Monday midnight I will have finished one of my stories. Sadly I wanted one done by the 10th but thats not going to work out so the 12th and the fantasy should be all wrapped up.
My mystery has been put aside for the moment and soon as I hit the 50k line with the fantasy I will be switching back to that.
Once again I was at a part of the story were I couldnt work out how to convey something from the main cat character to his owner but some things mentioned by our clever ML and a few others got me thinking and I got up this morning and stumbled out to my car and it hit me (well the cat did run into my leg as the idea shot into my head). SO I am ready to shuffle forward with that story too.

Love to meet some of the others in the group and hear what your doing in your novels.
Anyone doing any dares or issued any?
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My idea of hell is being trapped in a room with no books.
2006- When lies change Me
2007- The Rise of Emperor Mole
Xenacat
2007- Magic Meow Mystery

United States :: California :: Monterey

Write in word war results.

xengab — Thu, 1 Nov 2007 21:59:31 -0700

So I got home, uploaded by work written at the write in.
Found the place I started the word war in and found it was 1024 words.
Not bad for a crappy typer on an alphasmart.
Monkey Mocha coffee is great.
Next week I will post the results of another word war if we have it.

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My idea of hell is being trapped in a room with no books.
2006- When lies change Me
2007- The Rise of Emperor Mole
Xenacat
2007- Magic Meow Mystery

United States :: California :: Monterey

90 Minutes till start, or Cheesy Inspirational Message #1

yangnome — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 22:33:49 -0700

OK, this is a repost of hte email I sent just in case you've decided not to accept emails, but still want to read the ravings of a lunatic.

Hello Monterey WriMos,

I am sitting at my computer, counting down the minutes now until the launch of this year’s NanoWriMo. Similar to years past, I’ve felt a rising sense of excitement through the week, and I am sure you have felt the same, whether you are a returning veteran, or a newcomer. I thought that before the madness starts, it would be good to take a moment to wish everyone good luck.

By signing up and participating in this challenge, far ahead of many people who have a novel they’d like to write someday. For our newcomers, sometime in the next few hours, you are going to be putting words on paper that will change your life. No longer will you be someone who’d like to write a novel someday. You’ll be the person who is working to fulfill that dream. A month from now, you’ll look back and feel a great sense of accomplishment over what you’ve created this month. 30 days from now, you will have brought a story into this world that did not exist before you worked up the nerve to sit at the computer and pour your subconscious thoughts on your virtual paper.

At the moment, the idea of 50,000 words might sound like a daunting task. Keep in mind though that the number one thing that causes people to fail at NaNoWriMo, is the act of actually sitting down and writing those first few words. Sure, once you start, you will definitely have highs and lows during the month, but at the end, you will have a creation you can be proud of (even if you refuse to show it to anyone before you rewrite it).

The best way to ensure success this month is to sit down before you embark on this challenge and promise yourself that you will finish (or die trying). If you make that honest promise to yourself now, and hold yourself to it, nothing—short of death—can stand in your way. NaNoWriMo is really a challenge for your mind, a challenge of your willpower more than a challenge of how many words you can pen during a month. If you set your goals now, you will be able to finish—I promise you.

For those of you who can make it out to our write-ins, I encourage you to join us at Bad Ass coffee in Seaside. A side benefit of NaNoWriMo is the cool people you get to meet during this event. We’ll be at Bad Ass tomorrow night from 7:30-9:30 (they are staying open late, just for us.) We’ll also be at Bad Ass on Wednesday nights (same times) each week in November.

If you can’t join us for the “official” write-ins, pop into the forums so we can share this experience with you. There’s a very good chance some of us might be able to meet with you at other times, or other locations. Even if you can’t meet, we’re more than happy to discuss progress with you and offer encouragement throughout the month.

OK, time to start preparing my documents and files that will play home to the words I am about to write. Good luck to everyone. You’ll be hearing more cheesy encouragement from me throughout the month. See you on the other side.

Al (yangnome)
ML Monterey, CA

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__________________________
Metaphors be with you
yangnome
Municipal Liaison
Monterey, CA

United States :: California :: Monterey

Pre Nano Meet-up

yangnome — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 14:02:47 -0700

If at all possible, I'd like to have a pre-nano get together so we can get to know one another and maybe talk about what we'll be doing this year. I was thinking maybe we could meet this Wednesday evening (8pm-ish) at Badass. This would also give us a chance to check out a potential write-in spot. Anyone interested?
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__________________________
Metaphors be with you
yangnome
Municipal Liaison
Monterey, CA

United States :: California :: Monterey

TSOD

yangnome — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 19:11:17 -0700

The Traveling Shovel of Death has made its return...
http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/node/1006695
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__________________________
Metaphors be with you
yangnome
Municipal Liaison
Monterey, CA

United States :: California :: Monterey

Free WiFi places

xengab — Wed, 3 Oct 2007 13:14:10 -0700

Just thought we could list places were those with laptops can go and get free internet WiFi.
Since it is very new and not many know the new Marina Library has WiFi, open un12-8pm Tues -wed.. 10-5pm Thurs-Fri and sat 10-4pm.
Also Seaside Library now has WiFi too.
I think Monterey public Library has WiFi, I am unsure of their hours but could find out.
In Salinas their is Rawlins cafe, its in Old Town Salinas.
Anyone else want to add theirs?
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My idea of hell is being trapped in a room with no books.
2006- When lies change Me
2007- The Rise of Emperor Mole
Xenacat
2007- Magic Meow Mystery

United States :: California :: Monterey

Bad Ass opens Saturday!

CrankyBeach — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 19:13:05 -0700

It's in today's paper.No mention of the hours.

http://www.montereyherald.com/business/ci_7156737?nclick_check=1
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- - -
2005 NaNo Winner - "Lynch Creek Campaign"
2006 NaNo Winner - "The Four-Night Stand"
2007 NaNo: Spewing prose, in desperate and vain search for a plot

United States :: California :: Monterey

Discussing Write-In Schedule & locations

yangnome — Wed, 3 Oct 2007 12:09:24 -0700

Hello all-

I wanted to talk to everyone and see what we could arrange for a write-in schedule. I am usually available in the evenings. I'd like to set up at least one night a week where we can get together and meet. In years past we've met in coffee shops and in wrimo houses. Both seemed to have worked well.

For a scheduled time, I propose something mid-week when we'll be able to avoid large crowds. I think just about any night of the week will work for me, mid-to late week would probably be best for me.

I would prefer we avoid using the East Village Cafe (formerly Morgan's) this year. The new owner wasn't all that friendly to our group last year.

Two years ago, we went to Cafe Noir. it was a decent place, though it was often crowded upstairs. Parking is also an issue.

There is a place in Seaside opening called Bad Ass Coffee. I don't know what their hours will be, or what the place is like, but I can swing by and check it out.

any other ideas?
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__________________________
Metaphors be with you
yangnome
Municipal Liaison
Monterey, CA