Introduce Yourself

Jumping right in, my pen name is Peter Salvo, should be good enough for now. You may have seen my other page Peter Slavo, lol, great typo to kick off Nonowrimo! Hopefully the Peter Slavo page will be deleted soon. Honestly it's been up for a while, just now got the urge to correct it.

I've participated for 3 years, never won the prize. This year I actually prepared the right way, I've got my synopsis, my characters are outlined pretty well - I actually even went so far as to define my themes and preset some nice little constructed motifs to work into the action. All in the name of finishing.

I'll skip talking about the novel idea, I'd like to get past the first week of November first :) *crosses fingers*.

I'm in Charlotte, NC - I work a lot of hours, but I am committed more than ever to knock this out.

I am a father of a first time high school student (FRESHMAN), and CIO of a pretty successful company, that's just starting to kick into gear. I think the stars are finally in alignment. Let's type out a novel.

Write!

Okay, here goes...

I am Maureen and I live about an hour north of Charlotte in Advance. I just came back a couple weeks ago from a Donald Maass Breakout Novel Intensive week in San Antonio--and "intensive" is the right word. The result of that is my story is way stronger--and I have to start all over again. So I'm spending this month revising my book plan, laying out a stronger story line and getting ready to start blasting out words November 1!

One of my favorite tea mugs shows a writer at a typewriter, and in his head you can see tappata-tappata-tappata-tappata-tappata-tappata-tappata as the words just flow out. From the actual machine, however, there's only a pathetic tap-tap. It's labeled "Delusions of Grandeur" Yeah...I know...that's me too! But not this time!

I've never done a NaNoMo before, and I'm looking forward to really pushing forward on this one. I'm determined to have my story not only done but polished within an inch of its life by the time Maass does next year's Breakout Intensive week--in CHARLOTTE, btw!!! (Sept 13-19, 2010) That's an experience NOT to be missed...so plan ahead! I'm already signed up for it, and I'll be happy to explain why if you want to email me privately. Just put something relevant as the subject line so I can spot your message if your email gets caught in my spam filters.

Because I'm so far north of the city in Advance, I probably won't go to every single weekly meeting, but I do want to get to the kickoff party, particularly if it's kind of on the north side of town, and for sure the whine-and-jeeze (!!) party at the end. And I will try to get to as many of the in-between events as I possibly can manage!

My story is (according to Maass) one of the most difficult genres to do well--it's a science thriller ala Michael Crichton. Which is why he suggested (okay, I'm being kind) a massive do-it-again campaign. Getting the science specific and believable is tough. But I think I can do it--I think I have an idea of how to accomplish it now. I hope so, anyway. Next September will tell the tale of that!

So...I'm starting to get real excited about NaNoMo! I'm really determined to get those 50K words done! It won't finish my story, but it'll be a great start!

Maureen

Maureen Caudill
SUDDENLY PSYCHIC, Hampton Roads Publishing

I am a married, new empty-nester with 3 "kids" and 3 dogs. I have been writing my whole life, but mostly journaling. While my ambition has always been to be a novelist, I failed at writing 2 of them in my twenties, then had my kids, then got very sick and have gone downhill since then. I have been slaving over the same stale novel for way too long. I'm trusting that NaNoWriMo will be the perfect remedy for my overcontemplated attempts in the past. Time to shake things loose, and just write. This book will be a literary fantasy, a non-scientific science fiction novel. So, I put myself in the literary fiction genre, even though that seems very arrogant to say about yourself. But if I could write anything, that's what I'd choose. But I do feel inadequate and almost didn't dare to check that box.

Because of my illness I will not be able to attend any of the group functions ;( and I don't know how active I'll be able to be on the boards. My time and energy are very limited. Still, I hope to meet a couple of friendly buddies to check in with daily. I don't care about genre, age, any of that. I'm looking for a friendly person or two to share this with. Perhaps we could write at our own houses at the same time once in a while. If you are interested in being a buddy with someone who is upbeat, curious, and not going to tell you what you should be doing, please drop me an email, but only if you are seriously interested in checking in every day if possible, or every couple of days at least. I need mutual support and to stay focused on the task at hand, not someone who wants to chat.

I hope everyone knows about www.drwicked.com, where you set a time or word limit and if you stop typing it yells at you , or worse, depending on your settings, starts to take words away. It's fantastic tool for NaNo.

Also handy, I think, is the free program yWriter available at www.spacejock.com.

I also realized I need practice just writing fiction. I've been journaling for so long, in other words, writing about my novel but not writing it. Kiss of death. So for the next couple of weeks I'll be givng myself little assignments, not necessarily to do with my Nano book, but just to loosen up the joints and get back in the habit of fiction. I'll post my prompts on my website, www.nvl917.blogspot.com in case they might be helpful to someone else. You could subscribe to the RSS feed and forget the long posts, which are intended more for my friends than other participants. We each have our own approach . . . the prompts for writes will be clearly marked as such so you can use them if you want and skip the rest. And please add ideas for prompts to the comments section and I"ll include them in my posts, too.

I look forward to getting to know a few of you better, and I will miss you all at the group events! I'll be with you in spirit.

Write on! Let's all win this thing!

Cynthia

Nvl 917
If there is no Earth on which humans can thrive, nothing else matters.

Well I'm back again this year. *sigh* I've done this since 2003 and have not yet won. *BIG SIGH* I was seriously considering not even doing Nano this year, but my daughter has given me the evil eye and said I must do it! She'll be doing it again this year as well.

I'm married with two children and three cats. I work full time and love my job, but I may have to put in OT during the next few months. So once again, I think I'll probably fail. Ah well, at least I enjoy the company of other writers for a short time.

I live in Union County, southeast of Charlotte and hope to get to the kick off party and *crosses fingers* a few write-ins. I also hope to see some familiar faces!

Good luck to everyone!

Cheri

"You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club." --Jack London

Hey I'm Robbin and I'm in the over 50 group. Never participated in NaNo before - just heard of it today... I'm technically in SW Mecklenburg County with Hubster, cat and fish. This should be an interesting experiment :D

Step 1:Remove cat from computer
Step 2:Remove cat from computer
Step 3: Remove cat from computer
Step 4:Just give it up already

Nvl917, thanks for the links! I hope you slip back into the world of fiction easily. If not, write your memoirs! I think you should be able to write whatever comes out of your pen/keyboard. :) Since I live online, I'll gladly check in with you on a daily basis.

Emerald Dragon I'm glad you are giving it another shot. Personally, I don't think winning is the most important part of this journey. The fact that you are willing to try again says a lot about you. Hey, even if you don't make it to 50K, you are still learning, growing, and teaching your daughter that it is worth the effort. Kudos!

Robbin, Welcome! This really is an exciting adventure. I hope you meet lots of new friends and enjoy the creative experience. Hope to see you at some of the write ins.

"If you are a mother and a writer then you have to make the time to write everyday. Because nobody is going to give it to you. I guarantee it. That means a lot of other things in your life have to go."

Nano 2008: Sendek--win

I am Pink Griffin. I hate that name but don't know how to change it. gah.

This is my third year of nano, I think. I don't know if the sign up date was for Nano or if it included my year in the YWP. so it might be four... but I have yet to win and am determined to do so this year. I think my story idea this year is stronger than before and this year I have my own computer that actually works, so I won't keep losing my notebook. YAY. and I have my Nano Wrimo Pen Drive. My dad got it somewhere and gave it to me. It's a pen, but if you unscrew the top there's a handy hidden flash drive. excellent for toting story to school and such. :D

I write fantasy. Always have, and plan on always doing so, for every other genre I try fails miserably. I like fantasy.

I managed to drag two friends in with me, but I'm not sure one knows the forums exist, and the other may or may not have actually signed up yet. oh well.

I reallyreallyreally want to go to some write-ins and such, but that would mean begging my mom to take me. It might not happen.

Good luck to everyone!!!

"Quantity produces Quality. If you only write a few t

I'm Tracy, and I've been around since 2002. I've yet to finish a novel, but every year I think, "This is the year!"

Haha... hope springs eternal. I've been an ML before, but due to illness I can't do it anymore. I do love to do write-ins and check in frequently.

What else can I say? Most of you know me!

There's nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and open a vein. ~Walter Wellesley "Red" Smith

Hola yall!

This is my fourth nano attempt, and likely to be my fourth fail as well. I already know I don't have enough time to complete the minimum word count every day, but I do want to get back in the habit of writing daily. My personal goal is to write seriously, every day, for 30 days. Who knows? Maybe I was too focused on word counts in the past, and this is a better goal for me. We'll see.

I have three special needs kids, aged 4, 7 & 11. I homeschool the boys (4 & 11), and my daughter goes to school for special instruction. We just moved here almost two months ago, and we're still getting acclimated and unpacking. My parents will be here, from Fort Worth, for eight days during Thanksgiving. November is always a very busy month for me, second only to December. But maybe that's a good time to develop the writing habit. If I can write every day in November, I can write every day forever...

I like doing write-ins, but only when they're productive. So I hope to meet some of yall soon!

:-) Jen

Hi! I'm ashe, or mnemesyne737 on here. I live near Hickory/Lenoir and this is actually the closest region to me. I'm willing to meet people as long as it's in like Hickory or Lenoir--I'm not wheeled yet.

Anyway I love parnormal fiction and fantasy, especially with a little bit of romance thrown in there.I write a little bit of it and this is my first official foray. I love Keri Arthur and Sherrilyn Kenyon- they are my favorite paranormal authors.

Anyway, you can reach me online on yim. SN: ame_oubliee. Feel free to say hello.

Hi All!

I'm Lauren and I'm in the over 40 group. This is my second NaNo and my first in Charlotte. In fact, I'm moving from Long Island, NY to Charlotte (Ballantyne area) next week. As such, don't expect me at the kick off Friday!

I hope life will settle down enough to let me get right into writing. Still not sure when all my belongings will arrive, but my laptop and writing materials travel with me always.

I've got two completed novels under my belt, although one is in the revision stage and I had hoped to finish them before I left NY, but life's gotten way too hectic. I may spend some of NaNo finishing those revisions.

I'm torn between writing my first ever chick lit or my first ever mystery for NaNo. If I can work out the details of the mystery, I'll go with that, otherwise, my chick lit is already outlined and ready to rock.

I'm looking forward to meeting some new people and hopefully finding some folks interested in working on critiques together post - NaNo.

Lauren
www.ljwwrites.wordpress.com
http://www.examiner.com/x-12973-Long-Island-Books-Examiner

Hi everyone,

This is my first Nano. I am hoping that it will help jump-start my writing.... (I am *very* good at putting my writing at the bottom of my to-do list.)

I am a flight attendant and an insurance agent. I am also married and the mother of a 5 year old. Needless to say, I have a lot going on these days! :-)

I have a couple of novels floating around in my head and I hope to get at least one of them out on paper by the end of November. I have most of the character sketches finished and I am working on the outline now. I am really looking forward to the "nano" experience.

Dee

Aloha, Fluffi here.

I'm 18 years old, fresh out of high school, and completely clueless about what I'm going to do with the rest of my life. I've decided to attempt writing a novel in order to focus my thoughts and perhaps help me figure out my life goals.

I live in Troutman, which is forty-fiveish minutes north of Charlotte. I spend my days working at Arby's, working on my truck (which is always breaking down), and jammin' to hot beats. If anyone lives near me, speak up, I'd love to meet you (especially if you're female, I'm single and lonely).

I know exactly what my novel is going to be about. I'm not telling you guys though, it's a secret.

If you'd like, you can add me on Facebook. My name is Robert Barber. Or you can chat me up on Skype, where I am Fluffi.Barber

My name is Rachael and this is my 2nd year to do NaNoWriMo. I won by the skin of my teeth and by changing a character's name to something like 20 words long. :) Shh, don't tell...

I had something of an outline last year but my creative juices are just not flowing yet this year...We'll see how that goes.

I am married and have two preschoolers: a 3-year-old girl and a 2-y-o boy. The kids keep me busy and tired, but I wouldn't trade being a sahm for any job. But NaNoWriMo gives me a sense of completion and satisfaction I won't get for a long time from raising kids.

I'm a SF/Fantasy girl, and I just don't have the time or the inclination to do the research I would like for a SF book, so I'm sticking to fantasy again this year. Working title: The Pilgrim Train.

Hope to see some of you at the Kick-off on Fri.

Hi, everyone.

My name is James Flowers and this is my sixth year doing NaNo. So far I am at 2 successes and 3 fails. I am a computer consultant who lives in hotels, so usually I am plenty of writing time. Normally, my works are SciFi or Paranormal, but this year I am doing an Film Noir 1930 Detective Novel.

Hello, all! I'm excited to be joining you for NaNoWriMo. This year marks my sixth NaNaWrimo. I have five wins under my belt already, but alas none of them are published. Writing a 50,000-word novel is the easy part - editing it is something else!

I am a rarity in these parts - I'm a native of the region. I was born in Charlotte and raised across the Catawba River in Mount Holly. My work experience has taken me through several different paths, including civil engineering, broadcasting and banking. And this year, Life allowed me to do something equally exciting - play on the legendary game show "Jeopardy!", which allowed me to talk about my NaNoWriMo adventures and win a few bucks in the process. It was that experience that has inspired what I will write about this year.

I want to wish everyone the best as you strive to hit that magical 50,000 word mark. Getting there never gets old for me. It'd be wonderful if everyone in Charlotte hits that milestone!

The Writer's Nightmare (2004, Win)
Santa's Sleigh Is Missing (2005, Win)
Now Batting...(2006, Win)
Shakedown: The Great Las Vegas Earthquake (2007, Win)
Rocked (2008, Win)

Hello,

My name is Ian, and I've been taking part in NaNoWriMo every year since 2004 (apart from 2007, when I was on vacation). Finishing writing the book is never the problem. The problem is what to do with it after that. I have five completed novels (one non-nanowrimo) that all need to be edited up, polished and sent off, but I can never get that bit done right.

My wife has promised to help this year, and is actually doing a parallel challenge to me. By the end of November, she'll have completed a preliminary edit of my NaNoWriMo from last year, which was a paranormal romance called Jack In The Green.

My work always has an element of the fantastic about it. Thus far I've written one children's fantasy, two science fiction, one adult fantasy and one paranormal romance. In between NaNoWriMos I write flash fiction: ultra-short 600 word or less short stories. I've had several published at 365tomorrows.com and I'm fairly pleased with them. They're also a brilliant exercise for tightening up your writing style. When you only have 600 words to play with, you trim the fat and write close to the bone.

This year, I'm going to be writing War Poets, a young adult novel about soldiers with special abilities in the first world war. I want to keep it as realistic as possible, so the things people can do are small, and their major effects are real-world. I'm hoping it will work well.

http://www.irennie.com

Hi I'm Jenny. I thought about NaNoing for many years. I finally started and did not win last year; but I did enough to understand the mind-tripping awesomeness of having characters 'take over'.

I'm really looking forward to tapping into that weird sensation again and not being afraid of it this time. And I am determined to succeed this year(!)

I just finished reading the first part of No Plot, No Problem. (Love that Chris Baty!) It's really my only prep for the coming month. It's ok though. I have faith in this whole strange event. And I'll start my 'research' this Sunday, only the week before, like the book said... (must believe, must believe... I'm kinda nervous about this, but so excited!)

I'm in Waxhaw, and would love to meet up with anyone to do some writing at Crossroads Coffee!

Hola! My name's Micah. I live in the University Area (almost directly across from the campus. yay me). I'm and oooolllllld 23.
I was born 'round these parts but lived most of my life in Western PA. Woo hoo! On a nursery. I did this whole thing last year, and forgot to put anything of it on the site. So while I didn't get 50,000 I got more than 23 words. It was a fun experience and I've been looking forward to it all year. I'm actually semi-prepared this year. (I'm done patting myself on the back)
I'm looking forward to meetin' some of y'all soon. I'm pulling double duty at work so we'll see if I can make the kick off party tonight.
P.S. I'm a pen and paper guy. I don't have a laptop, just my angry old desktop at home and my phone on the road.

Hi, I'm Mikayla. I'm 15 years old, and this is my second year doing NanoWrimo. I found out only a few days before it happened last year, so now I'm prepared and I'm going to hopefully accomplish my goals. I would love to attend kick-off parties and such, but seeing how I don't even have my drivers license yet it would be hard for me to attend.
Can't wait to start again this year!

~You're teenage life will never be the same

Hi all. I'm Kathy. I have no idea how many years I've attempted NaNo, so I'll have to look once this gets posted. I am blissfully married to my second (and last) husband, so all my writing has kind of dribbled down to nothing. I'm hoping to get past that this year and actually succeed this year. I have three children from my first marriage who are all way more intelligent and beautiful than they should be, and had I not seen them born, I would have suspected they were switched. I love to read all sorts of genre, but my writing emphasis seems to hover around literary fiction.

Other than that, I have no pets. I have a strange Buffy fixation, and I'm addicted to Coke Zero. Also, I have a serious ant phobia, which almost led to a meltdown at Chili's on Wednesday, and I don't like to leave my house. Oh, and sometimes I stalk Justtra.

Hi!
This is my 2nd year doing NaNoWriMo. My first year was two years ago when I was a junior, but, I didn't complete the 50,000 words. But! I'm still working on the same story, and I'm well over 50,000 words... This year, hopefully, I'll be able to get to 50,000 words in one month with a new story. :D

My name is Nikki, and I'm an 18 year old college freshman. I live and go to school around the South Park region of South Charlotte. When I'm not doing homework (I never realized there would be so much reading in college >.>), I'm writing or playing Mario Kart at my friend's house.

Hi, Fluffi, you're the only other 18 year old here that I see :)

PL Byrd from Badin here for a 2nd attempt. Notes From St. Maniac is the novel; check the excerpt posted on my author page. Write on, everyone, and good gigging.

Aloha Nikki! I won't be 18 for long, I turn 19 in December.

Hi.
my name is John.
this is my first time actually trying to write a novel. i signed up last year but never got around to it.
i live inthe concord/harrisburg area and would love to meet up with anyone and get/give some inspiration.
nice to meet all of you.

Hey everyone! I'm Tori and this is my first year doing NaNoWriMo =] I never knew about it until this year, but I'm really excited. I love to write and I've been doing it since I was 10 years old. I usually get about 20,000 words into a story and then fall flat so I'm hoping this will give me the inspiration I need!

I'm another 18 year old, getting ready to go to college in January and working hard to make money until then =] I live in the harrisburg area and I'm currently not driving b/c I totaled two cars last year.... haha, so I probably won't be able to make it to any parties/write-ins unfortunately.

I'm super excited though for November to start! =]

Hello all,

I am Kimberly and this is one of many "wild-hares" that have taken my attention. This is my first year doing NaNo, in fact, I just heard about it today. I am in the over 50 group and live in mid-town as well, and am nervous and excited and nervous about this commitment I just made.

I have a full time job and a full time life with a supportive husband, 2 incredible kids, 2 fabulous grandkids, and lots of interests - hopefully I can find a way to use all those things to spice up my writing.

The last time I tried to write my novel, my husband out-shown me at our Creative Writing Class, and that was it for me. I think I have finally grown a tougher skin, and I have definitely decided that I can at least write a BAD novel - and for today, that will be exactly good enough!

I am also delighted at the many ages of people participating. EXCELLENT!

ok, off to start procrastinating!

- Kimberly

Hello!

I'm Amanda and I'm Kimberly up there's daughter! This is my first year participating in NaNoWriMo, however I will be finishing up my first novel-in-a-month attempt tomorrow using the "Book In A Month" system. Before I even have time to reject the thing I'm starting here in hopes of really getting some good practice under my belt.

I live in midtown with a boyfriend who keeps supporting these month ventures with big smiles (thank god) and three cats that are respectful enough to stay quiet while I'm working as long as we keep the food coming.

I have a total fear of letting people read my work so if you see me at a write in, I give you absolute permission to call me out and ask to read a page or two.

Very excited to start again! See ya at lunch, mom.

Hello Everyone!

I'm Cami (and I'm awesome in case you hadn't figured out ^.^). I'm 19 years old, but I'll be posting in the 20's group because my birthday is on December 18th and I'm a Junior in college...it just makes more sense to me I guess.

So, I live on campus at my school. I'm a pre-med Biology major, and a native of New Jersey.

This is my first attempt at NaNoWriMo. I just heard about it today, so I don't have any type of outline or summary. I haven't even decided on a genre. However, I am foolishly optimistic about this whole thing. I'm the type of person who is really gung-ho about a lot of big projects and then rarely goes through with them. Also, I'm very easily distracted and a huge procrastinator. That being said, I'm going to be looking for a lot of moral support!! I've already added NaNoWriMo on Facebook and Twitter, and I'm really excited about this. Writing a book is something I've dreamed about doing since elementary school!

I look forward to this great adventure and hope to make some friends in the process!

*growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional*

Hello, my name is Gary and this is my first NaNoWriMo.

I never post on forums so here goes. I am 32 years old, with wife, two kids, and one cat. I work the 8-5 job, my wife works at the church part time as the assistant to the music minister, and teaches private music lessons with her other time. She also homeschools our oldest, who is five white the other watches and tries to learn some too.

I first heard about NaNo in a podcast by Brandon Sanderson, Dan Wells, and Howard Taylor at www.writingexcuses.com They are all professional writers and offer a lot of perspective of different topics. I recomend checking it out if you have some time.

I think that I would like to write novels for a living, but I don't know that I have enough creativity for that. Reguardless, it all starts one book at a time for anybody. Feel free to add me to your buddy list.

The trick for me on this whole adventure will be making the time and then using it to write, not getting sucked into something on facebook. Or even worse picking up my new autographed numbered copy of the The Gathering Storm, in the Wheel of Time series, and reading that. Why did it have to come out right before this starts. That is just someone's cruel joke or something.

I think that covers it. Pretty sure I rambled a bit.

Anyone can say you can't write. Don't let anyone say you don't. - unknown