Mission Viejo Write-In

Silverlock, Awesome--let the games begin! Thanks, David S

Thanks, David S

I really have no excuse to not go at least once, so hopefully I will actually get up the nerve to meet some of you guys this year.

Good plan. Hope I can make one or two. I'm a middle school teacher and am planning on having one of my classes do the young writers version throughout the month... but I have to lead the way!

Sounds excellent! :-)

Orange County South ML
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I'd love to come to some of these, but I don't know if it can happen. I'm in high school, and I also run cross country, and I'm not old enough to drive. So basically, no free time, and no way to get there. Right now, I'm trying to figure out a way to carry a laptop so I can write while I run. No success thus far. GRR.

For the subject of places, Olympiad Park (aka Florence Joyner Olympiad Park, aka Flo Jo Park) has a large, flat, grassy area, if anyone here is open to outdoor write-ins (during the day, obviously). Plus, a certain cross country team sometimes runs by there . . . :P I have a scheming mind. See, we could be a symbiotic relationship. We tell you to write, write, write, and you tell us to run, run, run. Okay, I know I'm rambling. I'll just leave now.

Warning: Prolonged exposure to this writer may result in spontanious acts of insanity. You have been warned.

Hope to see you guys there! This is very close to where i live, shouldn't be too hard to get there!

I'll definitely do my best to attend those.

AWWRIGHT!
This is so close to home I've got no excuse this time (even North Orange County meetups were too far for me). Can't wait.

“The dog Bartholemew gave me an unpleasant look and said something under his breath in Gaelic, but I ignored him.” --P.G. Wodehouse

I will do my best to attend, though it might mean missing out on reading my daughter a bedtime story and kissing her goodnight. I probably won't be showing up until after 7 though, and I don't tend to write well in crowded places where there are lots of distractions. But I want to meet some of my fellow writers.

Hi, new to NaNoWriMo and I go to Saddleback. I'll definitely try to come at least once! This is so cool. I'm really excited.

This is too good to pass up! My son introduced me to this site and I just signed up. He is very excited to go to the meetings. See you there.

I'd love to come. I'm in the same boat with having to come after my son goes to bed around 7, though. I'm just so nervous that I'll stare at the computer for hours if I try to do it all on my own. I need to see other people struggling too :) It will be nice to descend upon It's A Grind and hear the incessant clickety-clack of keyboards for a little while.

Will there be a write in tomorrow?

Yes! We will all be there from 5:30pm to 8:30pm or so (you can stay longer if you wish -- I think they close at 9:00pm). I can't wait to meet everyone!

Just so it's official, the address of the It's A Grind coffee house where we are meeting is at 25522 Marguerite Pkwy, in Mission Viejo, between La Paz and Oso. The cross-street is Estanciero Drive. It's next to the Del Taco and part of the same shopping center as the Trader Joe's, across from the California Pizza Kitchen.

See you all tonight!

NaNoWriMo 2008 (win): "A Stacked Deck"

I'm debating going tonight. I didn't end up going to the Halloween party (family in town just for this weekend, only chance to see them was that night), but my boyfriend did. I'm hard of hearing and pretty introverted so I'd probably be hiding behind him anyway. It would probably be good for me to go tonight. He has class so I wouldn't have anyone to hide behind. It'd help me get out of the house, meet some people, get some work done. I guess I don't have any good reasons not to... :P

RM

I'm a little behind on all this NaNoWriMo business and I know this is a very late reply, but I was wondering whether we need to have some writing device for these meetings. I don't own a laptop and I'm very slow writing by hand. I just want to know what to expect before I come to any meetings.

Hi Rachel -

People typically bring their own laptops to the write-ins. We're just using the coffee shop as a place to gather as a group ...

NaNoWriMo 2008 (win): "A Stacked Deck"

Good to know. I don't think I will make it tonight's meeting, but if I can convince my Dad to lend me his laptop, I will try to come to one in the future. Thanks for your help!

I would encourage anyone that did not show up and lives nearby to come to the next one. This was my first write-in even though it is my 4th year doing Nano, but it is by far the most exciting Nano related thing I have ever done. It was awesome to meet so many other writers and clicky-clack away with all of you.

I may join you for that one next week. Pity I can't stay the whole time though, as I have a class in the evening.

Hey there...

I was one of the three teenagers that came to the write in (we must of seemed a bit anti-social since we were off in our little corner typing away by ourselves, although the main group didn't notice we were fellow nanowrimos until the near end), but really I think we were a bit shy and a bit intimidated by all the adults, but I promise we'll come and join the main group at the next write in!

brockisonfire (and others)---
I didn't find out your were wrimos cause I had to leave a bit early (I get up at 4. Snore.), but I hope to meet you next time.
o_o I can't imagine anyone being intimidated by me, I'm only an adult on the outside.

“The dog Bartholemew gave me an unpleasant look and said something under his breath in Gaelic, but I ignored him.” --P.G. Wodehouse

Hi All -

Thanks to everyone who participated in Monday's write-in last night! We had a fun, productive time scattered around the coffee house, with a jumble of us clustered around our one-and-only power strip (I will bring more next week, with longer extensions, I promise!). skatepixie started a word war that she won handily (I'm guessing she started it right when she was facing an easy passage...), and word counts for the night were in the thousands for most. It was really fantastic to meet so many fellow NaNos.

My apologies to the cluster of teens on the other side of the coffee house for not asking sooner if you were part of the NaNo world -- you seemed to be happily clacking away in your own space. I'm glad one of the "adults" was smart enough to speak up. :)

By my count we had fifteen people arrive and participate at some point, which is a wonderful turnout. I'm really looking forward to next Monday night! Keep at it!

NaNoWriMo 2008 (win): "A Stacked Deck"

I had a great time. Thank you silverlock for setting this up!

Hey, brockisonfire, that's okay. I showed up very late and demonstrated my usual lack of conversational skills. I think I just confused the nice person sitting next to me when I tried to be funny. Then when she moved to find a power strip, my computer battery died out of sympathy. I lost a few hundred words. Then I moved across the room to sit next to you guys because it was the only power outlet I could see. I guess I should have said "Hi" but you were all so busy talking and laughing and I didn't want to intrude. Then you guys took off, and I was the only one sitting on that side, so I migrated back over to the main group. But by then I was feeling like a total idiot for moving around so much. I finally went home a little early to kiss my daughter goodnight, but she was asleep when I got home. *sigh* Kind of a Charlie Brown experience for me, I'd say.

Anyway, I guess my point is, you don't have to be a teenager to be shy or intimidated. But I'm still glad I came. And I hope to come early next time so I can meet more people before they get to writing, and maybe leave to get home before my daughter's bedtime. She was bummed I didn't get a chance to tell her a bedtime story.

You know, you do an excellent job of relating to people. Because whenever I go alone to a group like that, I do the exact same thing that you do. My friends might not be able to come to the next one, but I enjoyed the atmosphere, most definitely. I plan on getting there early also, so perhaps we can sit together so that we don't feel quite so awkward since we're so much alike really. :] I'd really like to get to know you, as well as the rest of the NaNoWriMo group.

I am, I will admit, going to feel awkward when I get there early and say, "Er, Wylkyn?" to every person that walks in, but that's okay. Can't wait to see you there!

We all need name tags saying "My name on the boards is _____________ and I am as quiet and awkward as the rest of you."

Although I can't bash my self that much because I am still super proud of myself for just going to the write in. Which was an epic step for me.

My name is Jack, just so you don't have to ask for wylkyn. That name is one that I use quite a lot because it is usually available as a log-in name. It's an old medieval Welsh name that's pronounced like "will-kin." Aaaanyway. I look forward to meeting you as well. I'll try to update my profile picture.

I wasn't at last mondays write in unfortunitely due to being in Georgia at the time, but i'll hopefully make it to the next one.

Don't worry -- you didn't come off as anti-social. Personally, I figured you were WriMos right off -- everyone else in the place was! -- and that you were clustered on that side to take advantage of that coveted electrical outlet.

Jo