Hello Ocala WriMo's!

Hello... anyone in here... it's dark and cold... Elise? Susan? Anyone....

"The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone. But to the vigilant, the active, the brave."

Waves from the corner. "Jason over here! Oh thank goodness I thought I was the only one out here in the lonely Ocala region. Tell me you brougt cookies! Anything man Thin Mints, Nutter Butters, a Chips Ahoy!"

Tee hee.

Protien Bars count, right? haha... yeah... I brought TONS of stuff... has anyone else shown up yet? I found a circut breaker.... but it needs a code from a "Susan. ML.".... any thoughts?.... we are Literally in the dark here...... so dark.... so cold....

"The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone. But to the vigilant, the active, the brave."

Whew! I'm going to post now while I can and send out more later.

First of all, apologies for the delay in geting in touch with you all. Both Susan and I have been sick and are still getting over the last of this flu bug right now. To top it all off, the NaNo forums haven't been cooperating all that well. (Prior log in attempts fried my browser in a beautiful display of absolute uselessness.) However, that's all nothing a little soup and creative timing can't help, and here we are!

Welcome to NaNo newcomers and old-hats alike! I'm Jesse, I'm one of your co-MLs, and we're going to have ourselves a grand ol' time this November. I'm afraid I'm not too coherent right now for a full introductory post, but I wanted to make sure you all got a response of some kind before I konked out for the evening. :)

A hat an old hat that's what we need! We can fan the ML's when they pass out ! Quick Jason toss them some eka-whatever that stuff is for the germs :)

Speaking of a grand ole time.... My wrimo is shaping up I'm ready for a kick off (not a kick in the pants that comes later in November)

NO no no... not echinacea... Hogwarts Herbalism 101 says clearly they needs some DESERT SAND ESSENCE..... this will dry the flu into submission and make them better at which time the other will help... BTW... my story has already taken hold of my weedle beety mind and beaten me to a plupy mush.... I am ready to let it pour onto a page.... NANO!!! HERE WE COME!!! ALL T... Wait... FOUR of us!!!! you guys will be better by then right? we need a kick off? Any ideas as to where? We should have a plan right?

"The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone. But to the vigilant, the active, the brave."

De plane? Boss where's de plane? Ohhh a plan! Yup should always have a plan floor plans, retirement plan, escape plan, but most important kick off party plan.

Yup yup... well most important as long as your not captured by monkey ninja's. Then the escape plan trumps. But you can always throw razor edged bananas to slow them down. Or confuse them with the floor plan, better yet let them try and figure out Obma's fiscal plan that should keep them busy for days at least.....

Yes I too have mush brain from writing like a frenzied ninja monkey. tee hee.

I'm here! Looking forward to another year.

Hey :) Great to see another victim ... er I mean Wrimo LOL. Glad to see you back this year

Hi everybody. I'm here too. I'm Tiffany, by the way, and this will be my (counts on fingers) third year doing NaNo. I am super excited, in spite of all the monkeys and spiders you seem to be training. =) My only problem at this point is that I have no idea whatsoever what I'm going to write. But as Chris Baty himself says, "No plot, no problem." Right? =)

Alrighty, it’s time for a proper introductory post!

First of all, I want to say welcome again to everyone who has posted so far or may be lurking right now. Susan and I really appreciate you all taking the first steps into the regional forum area while we’ve been chilling in quarantine; an empty forum can be a creepy place.

As you all can see on top of forums, there are two Municipal Liaisons for Ocala area: Susan and me. We have both done NaNoWriMo since 2005 and this will be Susan’s fourth year as ML and my second. However, it’s also probably going be the last year I can be as involved as I want to be with the Ocala group as a ML.

This past year, I was accepted into the University of Florida, but classes haven’t started and I’m working part-time, so I will be taking on the majority of the ML duties this go-around. Susan will be around, most definitely, but she’s working more than full-time, so bear with us. She’s already ordered our stickers and today she’ll be out confirming locations for our meetings. \o/

It’s really great to see so many returning writers! Elise, it’s fantastic to hear your writing endevours have been going well; traveling writing sounds like a lot of fun! I’m sorry to hear about your mother’s health, but it’s great she’s doing better now.

Jason, it sounds like you’re all packed up and ready with snacks—you’ll probably really enjoy some of the locations Susan and I have in mind. Have you been to the chocolate shop downtown? It’s the most amazing place ever.

Crusnik, I’m glad to hear that you’re back, too! I hope you’ve had a great year since last November. However, I’m incredibly sorry, but I can’t for the life of me remember your real name.

Tiffany, you’re definitely right: no plot, no problem! This year I’m going at it with no real inkling of a plot either, so we’ll be in the same free-wheeling boat (car? train?) this go-around. Who knows? It could be the most bountiful year yet!

Thanks Jess it has been a busy not always pleasant but busy year so far. Nice to see things are rollin for November fun.

I'm looking forward to this year too. We A chocolate shop sounds wonderful as long as it's not to down town LOL. I already drive over 60 miles one way to get to Silver Springs :)

*Waves at Tiffany... Hey great to see ya! well sorta tee hee. I have a plot but my MC is having an issue I wanted him to be one thing and the bugger isn't real sure he wants to play doctor he says he wants to play detective. *shakes head..... Brady and I are going to have to have some serious discussions on this LOL.

Check out my articles on local travel I'm getting ready to do some on several Halloween activites coming up too. http://www.examiner.com/x-25742-Orlando-Destinations-Examiner

Tonight we'll be going to Spooks and Spiders at Trout Lake Nautre Center. I'm going to be hunting for Spiders to nija train I couldn't catch the monkeys tee hee. Just kidding anyways I'll be posting an article about our spider hunt and the program so make sure you subscribe :)

HUGS
Elise

Hello all! It's my first year doing Nano so I'm both excited and terrified. I've been hearing from some friends who are doing the same in larger cities that there are usually a lot of events and the like, but I'm not sure how it would work here in lovely Ocala. I saw some scuttlebutt regarding write-ins but not much more beyond that.

Hopefully you all won't mind tons of questions as I find my way around all of this!

I write under a pen name, Amara D'Angeli, and I have for years upon years. I answer to Amara as many people know me that way, but my name is Sabrina and I figure since I live in town with all of you and will likely *see* you as this progresses...perhaps my real name might be a little less confusing for us all!

Welcome, Megan and Sabrina/Amara! You are about to embark on a fabulous adventure! This is only my third year doing NaNo, so I still feel like a bit of a newcomer myself. The Ocala group is great, everyone is super friendly, and super helpful. I look forward to meeting you both. =) Tiffany

Luuurk...

Done NaNo a couple of times, won it once that I remember for sure. Hoping to come to some of the write-ins this year now that I have a working laptop :)

Had a baby recently so doing NaNo is going to be that much more of a challenge this year. Whee!

NaNo or WoW? NaNo or WoW? NaNo or WoW?

Hi everyone. Just dropping in to say hello and give a brief intro of myself! Wow. I tried NaNo a few years ago and got a measely 2500 (yes, two thousand five hundred) words done and had to bow out. But I have someone willing to kick my booty this year, so I thought I'd give it another go.

I'm looking forward to trying this novella writing out. I've been writing little stories and ficlets for a few years now. That's fun, and keeps my writing fingers flexed and worked out, but I feel like I've conquered the short form story. I'd like to tackle the big stuffs now. :)

A little about me. My name's Michelle. I teach at one of the local high schools in Marion county, and I really love my students - even when they're being 'little darlings.' I love music and laughter. I was at Chilis the other day with my best friend and laughed so hard I had soda coming out of my nose. Best feelin in the world!

I guess that's about all for now. Just looking forward to working hard on the NaNo this year!

Hello, writers!

Can you all believe we are so close to November? A big welcome to our new writers. It's great to have you and I hope to see some, if not all, of you at our write-ins! I am positive this year will be a great one. Jesse or I will be posting more information soon about dates, times, and places for our write-ins. :)

Greetings from Minnesota.

I wintered in Williston FL last year for a few months and we plan to do so again. Got to Ocala a few times and, though we won't be in that neck of the woods for awhile longer, I wanted to participate in this fun month of writing with you. I have done and won the past two years of Nano - love it.

Looking forward to living in Florida vicariously with you all. (we are already having winter in Minnesota - no sunshine since the first week in October!).

Hi Kandotajan!

Wow Minnesosta I'm cold already. Yeah I'm a nativie so I gots thin blood LOL. I'm so glad you're joining us. We'll blow some Florida sunshine your way :)

If you like check out my Orlando Examiner articles about Flroida Travel. I'm getting ready to post about some haunted locations I've been to this week ;) http://www.examiner.com/x-25742-Orlando-Destinations-Examiner
G

Good luck for a win this year :)

So welcome to everyone! I really think NaNo 09 is going to fantastic and we’re thrilled to have you join us this year! It’s great to see some fresh names/faces popping up.

Sabrina: That’s a very pretty pen name! What sort of stories have you written?
Ocala might not be the largest of cities, but we’ve managed to pull things together well these past few years. Feel free to ask as many questions as you like—if we don’t know the answer, we’ll either help you look it up or make something up as we go along! There’s going to be more information on write-ins soon; I’m working on putting some stuff together right now. :)

Also: if there’s anything you heard from other cities you might like to see in Ocala, let Susan or me know. We can’t make any promises, but we’re always looking for new ideas to make NaNo even more fun for everyone.

Haunted: We’re so glad to have you joining us this year—and aren’t laptops wonderful? I can’t imagine doing NaNo without one personally because I move around so much! It certainly sounds like you have your hands full. What’s your baby’s name?

Michelle: Don’t put down those 2500 words! They were 2500 more than what you had before! I didn’t get much further my first time in ‘05, but perseverance can really pay off. We’ll all be cheering you on to 50,000 this year! It’s great that you write all the time—is there anything you’re willing to share about what you have in mind, or are you keeping it under wraps?
And a local high school teacher! What do you teach? I know of at least one or two high school students who are planning to join us this year, too, so you might even know them.

Kandotajan: Wow, Minnesota! October without sunshine is a sad thing; we’ll gladly share some of our warm weather and writing cheer with you. Congraulations on winning your past two years of NaNo! That’s fantastic. What sort of novel do you have in mind for this go-around?

Hi everyone,
I am with you all in Floridian spirit - love the horse country around Ocala.
My attempt this year will be another historical fiction - set in Minnesota - near where I live. A young girl comes to territorial Minnesota with her family who are employed by the governmental agency that has brought the Winnebago Indians to live between the Dakota and the Ojibway Indians who are at war with each other. It is truly fictional, whereas my previous Nano novels were historical fiction stories based on stories of my great grandparents' accounts of coming to America from Norway and Sweden.
Thankfully there's still a week to develop some of my characters and establish a rough outline - but I have a feeling the young woman will take me on a wondrous adventure.
Looking forward to writing along with all of you.
.

Hey, I just wanted to introduce myself. I'm Jenn, and this is my first time doing NaNo. A few friends have heckled me into doing it this year. I hope to win, but with a crazy two year old at home I don't know how far I'll get!

It doesn't help that I've suddenly (as in, tonight) changed story ideas because my brain is eeeeeevil like that.

LOL JediMouse. I know that feeling. My MC finally decicded on what he was going to be the brat. Good thing we still have 7 days to work out the kinks LOL

Baby's name is Colin, a.k.a. the Spawn. He's actually a very well behaved baby, so I don't anticipate too many issues with NaNo.

Oh gods, I just jinxed myself, didn't I?

My real name is Greg (I don't expect you all to call me 'Haunted G' ... that would be weird. Okay, no, it'd be kind of cool, but whatever. 'Greg' is fine too.) and I have lived in Ocala for a couple of years. Don't really get out much (all my friends live in Orlando or Gainesville and I'm lazy) so I'm looking forward to meeting some people in the area and maybe getting to know Ocala a little better.

My project for this year's NaNo is an urban fantasy story set in Bellingham, WA. Well, that's what it is right now. We'll see what happens on Nov. 1 when my Muse officially goes on vacation...

I like to babble about writing in general and storytelling specifically so if anyone wants to go all meta let me know.

NaNo or WoW? NaNo or WoW? NaNo or WoW?

My name is Martha.
I joined the Nanowrimo group in early October.
I am practically a native Floridian. I grew up in St. Petersburg--attended schools there from first grade through college. I graduated SPJC in 1967 and from USF in 1970. I have 45 hours toward Master's Degree in English from USF.
For 15 years I presented English at Boca Ciega High School (teaching implies learning) and then for another 8 years at Hernando High School in Brooksville.
I am the mother of three and grandmother of 10 Florida Crackers.
I have been a widow for 12 years.
In that time I have taken Press Tours all over the US (the only way to go).
I wrote a column for Hernando Today (Hernando section of Tampa Tribune)--aimed at Senior citizens. I have published in Woodall's RV; Get up and Go; American Woman Road and Travel (WEbzine); and other publications.
I have put 152,000 miles on my Class B Leisure Travel Van in the past 12 years.
I have spent many hours on local rivers in my kayak--and on the Rails to Trails on my bike.
I spin yarn (as well as tales) and I weave those yarns into usuable items.
I volunteered on Passport in Time projects (PIT).
And in my "spare time" I have traveled to Germany at Chrismas and New Years for 2 week River Boat cruise; to Peru--Machu Picchu; to New Zealand where I rented a car for two weeks;--to Dry Tortugas; tp Nova Scotia and Gaspe Peninsula--and oh, so many other places--
Procrastination and Tenacity fight each other in my character--
I often find myself saying "when I grow up I am going to be..." and then the realization comes to me--that I am grown up, and that I have been somebody.
If I have a deadline I will meet it every time. I need the impetus of this challenge to write 50,000 words to keep me going.
This month I have been practicing and find that I can turn out about 1000 words an hour--sticking to a topic.
I have decided on the subject for my novel which will be based on fact--and will involve some research.

Whoa, impressive. Everything from travel to spinning yarn. I bet you have quite a lot of material to work from. I will look forward to seeing your work. Also, 1000 words an hour? Now that is impressive. Keep it up!!

"The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone. But to the vigilant, the active, the brave."

Any solid thing as of yet? Time is running out and we've yet to have a place or time for anything...

"The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone. But to the vigilant, the active, the brave."

Hi all,

I'm Nancy and did this back in 2002, 2003, and 2004 (won 2002 and 2004 but was in the hospital so much in 2003, I had to quit at about 21,000 words!) I've been writing for a long time and I have a file of rejects to prove it. =) I have been published a little but nothing anyone would have seen, I'm sure. I am part of a fabulous writing group but I have been skipping out on them due to time - I started my own business.

My hubby and I have four rugrats and a slew of animals (anyone want some zebra finches - I have some beautiful brown ones, all with wonderful personalities (who knew?!) and well cared for.) We homeschool and after a year of both of us starting our own businesses, he caved and went back to work a Real Job but still does a little on the side with his business. Some of you might have met or at least seen me at local craft shows, selling my jewelry, beaded contraptions, and personalized Italian Charms. I have my oldest all signed up this year but still working on my next younger one, even if she does the young writer version. I still have all week to poke at her. Some day, maybe I'll get all of them writing toward the Ocala total.

See you around.

Hi Martha

That's quite the resume. I'm sure you'll cringe when I tell you I've taught creative writing for Living Word Academy and my first class rule is .... there are no rules toss everything in the trash until your 1st draft is done LOL.

Deadlines are a writers cattle prod they make you panic, sweat, and churn the words out of thin air if one is stuck. Missed deadlines mean not happy editors and no one wants an unhappy editor. They grow horns and breath smoke and fire very frightening LOL.

I always meet my deadlines as well and well ahead of them if I can. So far *knocks on wood.... I've won nano every year (2006, 07, 08) finishng over 50K in between the 20th and 24th of November. NaNo really brings out the speed typist in all of us LOL.

Research is one of my favorite parts of writing be it an article or fiction. I believe every bit of fiction should hold some kind of fact. In all my books there's tid bits of history and actual places of my bleoved state. I'm a proud Cracker :) Being a professional writer that is one of the most important steps having your research in line.

We have a great group this year it looks like. With a variety of subjects for us each to draw from each other. 50K here we come :)

Hi Nancy!

You snuck in when I was posting LOL Welcome to the crew. Four kids wow you have your hands full. It's great though isn't it :) I have one son and we homeschool too. I'm trying to encourage him to do something with Nano this year. He's more of an artist than a writer. I might trick him and add Nano to our studies tee hee.

Working for yourself is a great thing but it can be a trial at times to. I don't get the chance to get out and shop much like I used to *sighs... I miss shopping for fun. LOL. Do you have a website of your jewelry? I'd love to see it.

This is so cool the Ocala group is really growing :)