Welcome to the NaNo '09 season! Over the weekend we'll get some nuts-and-bolts posts up, such as event information, how to donate (even when you're broke), tips for hosting write-ins and other fun stuff.
In the meantime, how about some introductions?
I'm Jenny and I'm one of your Municipal Liaisons or MLs. (Your other is Kara, who I'm sure will be by soon.) MLs are the organizers at the regional level and we also moderate the forums, so if you have any questions or concerns, feel free to e-mail or PM us. Kara and I have conflicting schedules, so one of us is almost always awake. 24 hour MLs! Ha!
Anyway, this will be my 8th year participating in NaNo, 4th year MLing, hopefully 6th year winning. I've written a thriller, fantasy, spec fic, adventure, horror, a...um... dark carnival romance and a mystery. I have no idea what I'm writing this year but I have no doubt it will be ridiculous.
I write outside of NaNo but haven't been published (yet!.) I've recently gotten serious about editing my 2006 novel (the adventure) and hopefully one day you'll see it on the bestseller end cap at Barnes and Noble (or at least, on the employee picks shelf.That would be good enough for me.)
When I'm not writing I like to read, knit, walk my beagle-dog, glue things together and watch trashy reality TV.
----------
____________________
Jenny, co-ML for Memphis, TN
38,378 / 50,000
Oct 2, 2009 - 05 03
HiHi! I'm Kara your other ML for NaNoWriMo 2009.
This will be my 7th NaNoWriMo and my third year MLing. And, I hope my first year winning (I know, I suck). I have a vague idea of what I'm writing this year; there are several ideas running around in my head right now.
Like Dev, I also write outside of NaNoWriMo. I'm a published author of short stories and poetry and am currently working on a fairytale/ fantasy novel. I'm also the founder and editor of a small literary magazine.
When I'm not writing I enjoy reading... everything. I sew and do a few other crafty things, but the magazine and a few other organizations and writing related adventures take up most of my free time.
Anyway, as Jenny said we keep different hours, so there's almost always one of us available. We're very excited about this year's NaNo and can't wait to get started!
----------Kara
Co-ML, Memphis TN
~*~
"However, if anything is missing from above the knee level, there's only one person who knows about it, and is hiding the details because he's too afraid to tell his wife." - Laurie Notaro, Autobiography of a Fat Bride
13,378 / 50,000
Oct 2, 2009 - 05 33
Hi! I'm Diana. This is my third year officially trying NaNo, despite having tried to do it on my own (and failing) a few years back. I won in both '07 and '08, and I'm looking forward to a third this year.
My novel is going to be a sci-fi romance set in the very near future, where a high school sophomore has to move to the Nevada desert to live with her mother, and finds out that she is part of a government experiment to see how well humans can get along with an (as yet unnamed) alien - excuse me, "extraterrestrial", in this world "alien" is an unspeakable racial slur! - race that first came to Earth about 20 years ago. Since she is moving into the town, she has to become part of the experiment as well. She thought the people at school were weird back home, but at least they weren't willowy eight-foot-tall creatures with nearly see-through skin and mouths that speak without moving! After getting over her initial shock and learning a little about her new neighbors, she begins to become friends with some of the people at her school - both human and not - but when one friendship with a (whatever the race is called) becomes too close, people begin to notice, and soon the whole town wants to either analyze them, use them as an example (for good or bad), or force them into an experiment that neither of them is ready for.
Can you tell I've actually been thinking this one out this year?
I teach for a living, but I also like to listen to music, drive around aimlessly, watch DVDs, make crafts, and spend entirely too much time on the computer.
-------------`It seems that somewhere there is a break in the chain of light
and one of the stars has been lost.'
- from "Lost Star", by Rabindranath Tagore
0 / 50,000
Oct 2, 2009 - 07 19
Wow! October already! This year has really flown by. I've been so intent on wishing my classes away that I'd forgotten about NaNoWriMo.
I have no idea what I'd like to write, and there's even a part of me whispering that I have too much on my plate and that I should skip it this year.
...
Nah. Can't do it. I need my year-end dose of intense, nerve-wracking, self-exerted pressure to see me through the holiday season.
I'm a stay at home mom and part-time college student.
In my spare time, I mostly spend way too much time on the computer. I have three online classes, so that's my excuse. For this semester. I love to read and write. Plus, there are several other hobbies I do on occasion, including painting murals in my house, making soap or jewelry, knitting or sewing, picture framing (less of a hobby, more of a part-time business, still very enjoyable), and whatever else catches my (short) attention.
----------wordcount widgets
18,021 / 50,000
Oct 2, 2009 - 09 16
I'm Carolyn. Last year my beloved encouraged me to try NaNo partially as a way of discovering whether I'd accidentally killed my inner writer during that unfortunate incident with my inner child. It looks like my inner writer was fine, just resting. My inner writer and I reached the finish line together at the last minute last year. So this year we're going for it again and this time my beloved is joining us!
Last year I wrote a science fiction/adventure novel. During the writing of it I discovered that I blush too much to write sex scenes and I don't care for onscreen violence. I am not certain what genre I'm writing yet, though I do know how the book begins and what some of the scenes will be and I know that there will be very few (if any) scenes with sex or violence. (My inner writer is very sensitive and can only handle G or PG rated scenes.)
I work as a programmer/analyst. I lack spare time so I have very few hobbies. Right now those hobbies are geocaching and drinking tea. Teaism is a very convenient hobby since it can be done while doing other things. I also game when I can find the time and the people.
383 / 50,000
Oct 2, 2009 - 10 37
Hi, I'm Rhea! I'm a single mom and am currently at U of M majoring in Psychology. This is my 6th attempt at doing this. I have yet to finish, but I still keep trying. :) I have no idea what I'm going to write this year since I have been writing Psych essays and English summaries until I'm about blue in the face. I'll figure something out, though. Naturally, I love to read. I crochet, sew, do genealogy, play softball and I'm active in my church. I have a son who also keeps me pretty busy. I don't have a job so school is my entire focus these days. I love to watch movies, but I just can't seem to find the time right now. lol
----------Rhea Palmer
http://www.facebook.com/rhearhea
http://irishstrawberryshortcake.blogspot.com
36,705 / 50,000
Oct 2, 2009 - 18 36
Hello,
I'm Lola (not my real name), age 23... and I ,like Rhea, also went to U of M. Graduated December 2008 with a major in Communications (Film & Video production) and minor in Philosophy (should have double majored!!!)
I just got my Alphasmart Neo yesterday and I'm in love with it! I've written about 10,000 words in 2 days. That's probably more than I've done all year! It's amazing, really.
Anyhow, I've NEVER done Nanowrimo although I've meant to for like the past few years (woops!) But I will definitely be doing it this year. I'm really excited to start. I was planning out a fantasy novel but now I'm wondering if I should just do a ton of short stories... I don't know. I would like to have a full novel, though.
Well, we'll see!
I have a screenplay I wrote (Psychological Thriller) and I write on my free time, but often find myself not finishing what I started. But that's before I got the NEO... now I'm hoping to amass a large collection of COMPLETED short stories. I used to write tons of poems in middle school and high school but lately haven't done that.
I'm a bibliomaniac (collect books). I also collect soap. Oh, and recently learned to make soap using the melt & pour method. That's fun. An of course I like to watch movies though I rarely go to the theatres. I like to wait until all the hype dies down.
So do people in Memphis do "write-ins" or how does it work??
----------http://writethingwritetime.blogspot.com/
32,577 / 50,000
Oct 2, 2009 - 18 48
We definitely do write-ins, Lola. We have two fantastic MLs!
I'm Karen. This is my sixth NaNo and hopefully sixth win. (I really, really enjoy NaNo. LoL.) This year I'm writing the third book in a trilogy I'm working on about two rival crime families. I'm very excited.
I've been having internet problems, so I'm not sure how much I'll be on the forums this year, but I will definitely try to see you all at the write-ins!
----------"I want to do something splendid...something heroic or wonderful that won't be forgotten after I'm dead. I think I shall write books."
~Louis May Alcott
2,326 / 50,000
Oct 2, 2009 - 19 41
Aw, I just accidentally hit the refresh button and lost my whole post. =[
Anyway, I'm going to try again. Hi everyone, my name is Kim. I'm 20, I go to school part time at Southwest, and work part time at a deli. Most of my free time is spent watching movies with my boyfriend or playing cards with my friends. I've been reading whatever I can get my hands on since I was 12, and tried to start writing my first book when I was 14. It didn't work. I have tried two others since then but always seem to get stuck. Hopefully NaNo will be my cure. This is my first year doing this, so I'm very excited and nervous. I'm still trying to learn everything I can about how exactly all of this works, so you might have to bear with me and my questions a bit if you don't mind. =]
36,705 / 50,000
Oct 2, 2009 - 20 39
Ah great, yeah I just saw the calendar on the region page.
I can do the U of M ones... but is this MacAlisters on Poplar anywhere near that Borders?? I really usually don't drive that far down Poplar so I'm not really sure. -I'm VERY close to Millington btw. So yeah, most people tend to live closer to where everything is.-
(Did you guys need to ask permission from MacAlisters to do this?? Just wondering.)
So how do write-ins work? (Newbie here lol)
----------http://writethingwritetime.blogspot.com/
31,092 / 50,000
Oct 3, 2009 - 01 03
Hello newbies and welcome back vets!
Carolyn, that's cool that you geocache. I tried once, but didn't have much luck and got frustrated. It doesn't help that I don't have the right kind of GPS.
Kim, there's a ton of information to wade through on this site and it can be kind of overwhelming. Feel free to ask about anything. More vets will probably trickle in over the coming month so you can ask questions on the forum or you can PM/e-mail me or Kara. That's what we're here for. :)
Lola, I have an AlphaSmart Pro and an AlphaSmart 3000. I don't use my AS as much since I got my laptop, but I may keep mine in my car in case I find myself out and about with spare time to write.
The McAlister's we're using is at Poplar and Exeter so not near you at all. We use that one because they have a roped off area that we can take over. Most places that sell food are open to write-ins as long as people buy stuff. I like to think it's worth the drive to come to at least one event, but you're also welcome to hold write-ins in your area! I'll post more about that this weekend, but it's pretty simple- just find a place with seats, outlets and a good writing atmosphere. (Coffee and wi-fi don't hurt.)
At every write-in I've ever attended it's been a pretty even ratio of writing, complaining about our writing and socializing. We also do word wars (where we set a timer for ten or fifteen minutes and no one is allowed to talk, only write.)
----------____________________
Jenny, co-ML for Memphis, TN
38,378 / 50,000
Oct 3, 2009 - 05 40
Sorry for my lack of conversation participation guys. I'm at the GMX in Nashville this weekend hawking my magazine.
Lola, I also graduated from U of M in December of 08, I have a BLS in Art History and English.
----------Kara
Co-ML, Memphis TN
~*~
"However, if anything is missing from above the knee level, there's only one person who knows about it, and is hiding the details because he's too afraid to tell his wife." - Laurie Notaro, Autobiography of a Fat Bride
18,021 / 50,000
Oct 3, 2009 - 10 14
Carolyn, that's cool that you geocache. I tried once, but didn't have much luck and got frustrated. It doesn't help that I don't have the right kind of GPS.
You and your husband are welcome to join us sometime and we'll show you the ropes. Just not in November. ;)
36,705 / 50,000
Oct 3, 2009 - 11 22
Ah, we very well could have had a class or two together then. I did take creative writing some semesters ago.
...Or at least I'm sure to have seen you around campus. :)
But yeah, since I'm a bit far from Germantown it would be great to have at least one write-in on the UM campus.
----------Shouts: WE SHALL TAKE OVER THE FED EX CAFE!
http://writethingwritetime.blogspot.com/
36,115 / 50,000
Oct 11, 2009 - 22 31
Hi everyone old! And hi ickle newbies :D
Hey Kim, we just talked about this last night. Go us!
I'm Dani (ugh, name. but I am female, promise) and I've been doing NaNo for.... a really long time now. I can't think. I think it's like 4 or 5 years and have only won once. I'm not sure if I'm actually going to go into this with a plot this year. I have a ton of good random ideas (like zombie goldfish) and think it'll be more fun to just have something random this year instead of a self imploding plot. Which tends to happen with me a lot.
I write outside of NaNo and usually fail pretty epically but we're working on that. I have a few side projects I'm hoping to wrap up by the end of this month. I work at a grocery store pretty much all the dang time but I'll probably start having random write ins during the week when I'm not working.
When I'm not writing, I hang out with friends, subject to Hanson torture (why yes, that IS Taylor Hanson in my user pic :D), obsess over musicals, and act really, really weird. But really, I'm mostly harmless!
----------35,441 / 50,000
Oct 4, 2009 - 03 42
Well, hello, to all the newbies & returning vets. My name is actually Beth & this will be my fourth Nano... sounds like I should be standing up in front of some AA meeting... anyway, I've won twice. So far, I have a vague idea of my story this year, which will be about ghost hunters & psychics & magic, which is pretty typical for me.
In my non-Nano time I write more...well, try to, and read - an obscene amount. I also study (on my own time, not in school) japanese, photography, ghost, ufos, knitting, science, & theology, among numerous other things.
----------Gabriel
"I've figured out what's wrong w/ life: it's other people." -Dilbert/Scott Adams
33,239 / 50,000
Oct 5, 2009 - 10 04
Unless I mis-read something, I'm the first nanoer with a Y chromosome posting in this thread. Not that I have anything against you ladies, but I do hope it evens out before the write-ins start happening or things are going to be pretty lopsided.
I'm Caleb, 19 years old. This is going to be my first year doing nano. Otherwise I don't generally write too terribly much (except this month I've been good about writing like 1k a day), but I do love me some books, so I thought I'd give it a shot this November. If it turns out as bad as I suspect it's gonna, I'll at least have the excuse of an inconvenient deadline.
Besides reading, I like wasting inordinate amounts of time surfing the web on my sister's laptop, chain-smoking Camel Lights, doodling/writing in my notebook, and causing trouble with the bros.
----------32,577 / 50,000
Oct 6, 2009 - 08 00
Ooh, a boy!
Welcome, Caleb. You're not alone. We actually have a few male Wrimos here in Memphis. Hopefully some of them will post soon.
----------"I want to do something splendid...something heroic or wonderful that won't be forgotten after I'm dead. I think I shall write books."
~Louis May Alcott
40,068 / 50,000
Oct 6, 2009 - 10 47
I was wondering if any guys were going to show up. :) Sorry, I'm also a girl.
----------My name's Melissa and my husband and I just moved here from Birmingham AL. I'm sort of in limbo right now since we just moved and I'm expecting my first baby in March. Next year I plan to continue getting my Masters of Ed. at UM.
I've done Nano three years and won twice. I'm currently trying to finish/edit/rewrite last year's novel, which is progressing at an agonizing crawl. I'm hoping to get a lot done this month (cross fingers) so I can take a well-deserved break and write something completely new in November.
http://tiredace.wordpress.com
50,000 / 50,000
Oct 6, 2009 - 11 57
Hello all! Most of you already know me, but for those that don't, I'm Eric, scifi nerd extraordinaire (yes, I have seen most of the different Star Trek series, and Picard is the better captain in my opinion, lol). (Yes, I am a guy...)
Been in college for the past 3 years (still nowhere near graduating, but I'm getting there, haha) studying computer and electrical engineering.
I want to say this will be my fourth year attempting. Hopefully, though, I'll do better than the 25,000 words I did last year.
When not writing (seems to be happening less and less these days as I get deeper into my chosen field) I enjoy shooting little plastic pellets at other people from extremely real-looking BB guns (long story - ask me about it sometime; I'll probably have pictures, lol), tinkering with said BB guns (I actually turned that into a source of income), reading obscene amounts of books, and coding software for school (who woulda thunk it? I actually enjoy my homework).
I actually had a crazy idea (not going to attempt it because it is truly crazy, even for me): What if I were to write a 50,000 word piece of software code? I wonder if the NaNo validation software allows for pieces spanning 5 different files....
Anyway, I don't have a plot, per say, but I do have a starting point, so there's no telling how my story will turn out.
31,205 / 50,000
Oct 6, 2009 - 14 14
Hello all! My name is Adam. I've tried NaNo before and just never found time but this year is going to be different! I'm determined to successfully win this year, I just have to. I'm a senior in high school and I'm 17 and I'm a guy. So between this, senior year, volunteer work on monday nights, and church events on Tuesday and Wednesdays I'm going to go crazy. :) Haha. Any who, I love to read and write. If you suggest it I will most likely read it. I love to just sit outside on a sunny day and get inspired, so this rainy weather is just not floating my boat down the stream.
I currently have no idea what I'm going to write or even where to begin. I have a couple of ideas floating around in my head but alas I'm a bit indecisive. Haha. I also saw someone mention geocaching earlier? I love it! Me and a few of my friends geocache quite a bit in this area actually. I volunteer with the special needs on Monday nights at the bowling alley it's a great thing for me since I plan to major in Special Education once I go off to college! Anyway that's all I can think of feel free to chat with me whenever or ask me anything else!
2,118 / 50,000
Oct 6, 2009 - 15 26
OK, let us see....My name is Ariel and aparish told me about this. I have never tried it before, but it sounds like something I would enjoy. I have a world of ideas due to an overly average yet amazingly interesting life.
53 / 50,000
Oct 6, 2009 - 17 04
I'm Sandi. I'm Karen's sister. I've decided to give NaNo another try after taking a couple of years off. I didn't win any of the years I attempted in the past, life kept getting in the way, hopefully this year I'll have better luck.
4,585 / 50,000
Oct 6, 2009 - 18 22
Hello everyone! I am returning for more writing abuse this year. I currently plan on attending the kick-off party and look forward to meeting all the new folks there. This will be my 4th year to participate and hopefully my 4th win as well. (Hopefully I won't have to overcome being all crippled up to win this time.) :D
----------"Some people are born stupid, the rest of us really have to work at it."
38,614 / 50,000
Oct 7, 2009 - 21 57
I'm hoping you guys are cool with it, but I'm actually from Mississippi -- however, I'm way closer to Memphis than I am near any of the Wrimos events going on in Mississippi so I thought, "Hey, I ought to try with the Memphians!" because let's face it -- Mississippi sucks that way. Boo hiss, hometown! Boo hiss!
Anyway, if you guys are okay with outsiders (and OUTLAWS! Goin' against my own state! Haa haa!) then my name is Brooke, I live in a podunk town called Sardis (ever heard of it? Eh, don't come live here. There's nothing to do.). I'm almost 23 years old (October 18th, baby!) and I graduated from Northwest MS Community College in '08 with a Medical Office Technology degree. So far it's not done a thing...oh, except disappear. Apparently I can't even keep up with a little piece of paper.
Other than "graduate" I've also added the title of "mother" to the list this year with the birth of my (new and improved, 2.0 model!) daughter Lillian. She'll be 6 months in the middle of November. Her father, my longtime boyfriend and now kinda fiance (it's not official yet), has been the love of my life since I was 16 years old so I've got that going for me too. Haha! Oh, he's also a writer of sorts -- he recently started getting back into writing (he had taken a few year hiatus from it), and I'm trying to convince him to join me in my NaNoWriMo endeavors. I also seem to have gotten my little 14 year old sister interested to try this year, so I'm a little excited about that too.
Oh right, this is my second year doing NaNoWriMo -- so I'm neither a newbie or really a veteran of the program. Last year I didn't do well at all, what with pregnancy and college, but this year I'm really getting into it. Last year I quit before I could get really into being a part of what NaNoWriMo is all about. This year I won't make that mistake again! Plus, if I'm able to attend some of the write-ins (Poplar is only an hour and a half drive!) it would be a good excuse to get away from the family (or most of them) for a few hours and do my own thing -- which I don't get to do much now that I'm doing the full-time mother gig. :)
Annnnnd...end the rambling there. Hope to meet you guys, I really do. You all seem like a nice bunch of folks! <3
----------NaNo '08 - Blackholes & Revelations (Abandoned)
NaNo '09 - Monsters Among Us (Here's hoping!)
3,189 / 50,000
Oct 8, 2009 - 09 08
Well, I'm back again. Let's see...
I'm Justin, I'm from Memphis, and I'm 21. I write software, so you can probably guess what my genre of choice has been for the past 3 years. I have yet to actually hit 50k, and I seriously doubt I'll do it this year, as I'll be out of town for the first ten days of November. But what the heck, I'll participate anyway.
I have absolutely no idea what I'll write about this year, so I guess I should start brainstorming.
14,520 / 50,000
Oct 8, 2009 - 12 02
Hi, I'm Kali. I'm a 34 year old artist and dreamer living in Millington, TN. I did Nano in 2002 and was the ML for the Tampa Bay group that year. I failed miserably, primarily because of illness. Since then, it seems like November is always a busy month for me. With my birthday, my MIL's birthday, Thanksgiving and holiday start up, the month seems to have fewer days than it should. However, this year, I am not working (yay for disabilities) so I thought I'd give it a go.
I have no plot. I haven't even thought about it until today. I hope something comes to me soon, if not, I'll wing it!
Bright Blessings,
Kali
0 / 50,000
Oct 11, 2009 - 06 52
Hi I'm kind of a veteran NaNo-er. This would be my fourth year of NaNo and my fourth year of winning... if I were to be sucked into the black hole of writing once more. But I'm resisting this year. :)
If y'all don't mind, I'd like to drop by on a write-in or two, but I'm not going to 'officially' do NaNo this year as I started a novel this month and it's the one I'm going to be working on. Can I please still come and write with y'all? =3
I'm Legossi, and you can call me that in person as well, if we ever meet. I'm 18 this year and... graduated from high school. Supposedly. I have my diploma anyways. In my 'spare' time, I write, read, sew, crochet, knit, spin, embroider, quilt, pet my horse, and perform various other sundry tasks.
If I'm able to requisition my mom's van this year, I hope to make it to at least one write in.
31,092 / 50,000
Oct 11, 2009 - 10 41
Brooke - you are definitely welcome to hop the border and write with us.
Legossi - you're what's known as a NaNo Rebel. But you can come to write-ins, too. :)
----------____________________
Jenny, co-ML for Memphis, TN
7,538 / 50,000
Oct 11, 2009 - 16 19
Hello Memphis. I am back for my fourth year and hopefully my fourth win. This year I am writing about a division between brothers and sisters centered around the funeral of their father. I have a brief outline and ideas for opening and closing . A little more serious topic than any I have previously tried. Working title STOMPING WORMS.
57,657 / 50,000
Oct 12, 2009 - 10 03
Hi y'all! I'm Stephanie and have recently moved back to Memphis after 6 years away.
This will be my 6th or so year of doing Nano and hopefully my 3rd time winning it. I like to write fantasy, with a lot of governmental intrigue worked in for good measure. I do write outside of Nano, but just as a hobby. I may work up the courage to submit some of my short stories to magazines or collections or something someday, but mostly, writing is my therapy.
----------Ambition--the journey of a thousand miles sometimes ends very badly.
Giant cups of Tea: 7
Stress level: Meh.
Times my characters have done something they weren't supposed to: 3