Just a quick note: for over 5 years, I was a Uni liaison officer: the team who visit schools, tell ppl about uni, UE, and give advice. It was awesome. Great students with great dreams, great opportunities ahread of them, lots of cool stuff.
However, I met TWO nanowrimo writers who attempted Nanowrimo during NCEA L3 with negative results. One of them missed UE by 2 credits that they easily could have got if they'd not been writing in November. The other got UE, but missed out on entry to a limited entry course (and therefore had to change their DEGREE) due to novel distraction.
Now, I know this isn't everyone. Some of you are going to romp through NCEA without issues. Some of you will have UE without turning up to exams. So I'll only say this once, and feel free to ignore it if you know it doesn't apply to you. But if what I say below scares you in the slightest, teenytiny little way, you should have a think.
IF YOU ARE DOING U.E. THIS YEAR AND HAVE ANY DOUBTS ABOUT YOUR ABILITY TO NAIL THE EXAMS, POSTPONE NANOWRIMO UNTIL NEXT YEAR OR UNTIL AFTER EXAMS. THE COST OF SCREWING UP THE NEXT YEAR OF YOUR LIFE IS EXTREMELY SIGNIFICANT.
Okay, that's my social service message. There are other years of Nanowrimo. Seriously, if you've got any doubts, don't do it. NCEA L1 and 2 are a doddle, I'm not worried about you there. But I've had too many people crying in my office not to say this. Yes, this was meant to scare you.
I'd better distract you so this isn't too much of a downer: LOOK! Squirrels!
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2009: Any sufficently advanced Technology
2001-2008: A butler who fights crime; a doorstop; a bbq; a travelogue; a book of things drawn out of a hat; a WWI vampire; Will Shakespeare - Unemployed Actor: he fights Crime; and a
226,389 / 50,000
Oct 12, 2009 - 03 23
I totally agree with aj.
I did NCEA level 3 last year while writing and in truth I probably shouldn't have. While I easily got university entrance and into my course I missed out on both my scholarship papers by one mark and probably under performed in various papers.
It would be a real shame if you didn't get through because of Nano... unless the novel you wrote instead goes onto make you a billionaire but as far as I know that's pretty rare so better play it safe ;-)
Whatever you do don't get into a competition with an Aussie over word count, especially when that Aussie has all the time in the world.
Anyway, good luck to everyone sitting exams in the next month and best wishes. :-)
OOOOH! SQUIRRELS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
----------8,944 / 50,000
Oct 12, 2009 - 20 12
It also conveniently falls at finals time for uni.
Or inconveniently. Its all exciting for the first three days, and then you remember all of the lectures you have to catch up on over study break........sigh
2,510 / 50,000
Oct 13, 2009 - 00 21
SQUIRRELS!!
Luckily, my deadline for the Uni course I want to get into is this Friday, so no NaNo distraction there. And I'm being really good with my study this year and going to afternoon classes and such and such :)
So I should most definitely get through Level 3 and write that World Famous in New Zealand novel!!
*Feeds nuts to squirrels*
----------31,357 / 50,000
Oct 13, 2009 - 19 22
Two years ago, I did NCEA Level 2 along with my first NaNoWriMo, and perfomed in a musical, all in the month of November. I scraped through with 50,000 words and passed NCEA Level 2 with Excellence! However, last year, I did not do NaNoWriMo because NCEA Level 3 was far more important (as well as harder).
----------0 / 50,000
Oct 14, 2009 - 05 34
Interesting observation about NCEA L3, however last year I had university exams that were significantly harder than NCEAL3 for the first half of it. If all you're doing is studying, nano actually works as a pretty good break tool. I would be wary of doing this combination if you also have a job though. Studying + working is hard enough as it is without NaNo on the side.
38,842 / 50,000
Oct 15, 2009 - 21 44
I know this feeling I entered Uni this year and thankfully my last exam is on the second of Novemeber so I will be doing nano but missing out on the first day and doing a major catch up afterwards. However i think this warning is well justified because I know that if It was later on in the month I would not be doing Nano.
and another distraction *evil plot bunnies*
----------37,004 / 50,000
Oct 16, 2009 - 22 57
Irritatingly enough, my final exam for L3 is on the 30th November. Now hows that for timing? But the joy of my exams is that there is only one hard one. Once that is out of the way I am GOING for it! :D Even if I don't win I still want to do better than last years effort. Which is not particularly difficult lol
SQUIRRELS!!! So cute and deadly...
----------RAWR!!! Words... prepare to be written! Tina powah! :D
3,449 / 50,000
Oct 18, 2009 - 15 53
I attempted NaNo during L2 and L3, but failed both times because my exams always ran right thru to Dec (grr, French =D). This year is my first year at uni, and my exams finish on the 11 Nov, so I'm slightly more hopeful! =)
But yes, I agree, your study should really come first =)
----------~the dreamer xox~
40,315 / 50,000
Oct 18, 2009 - 16 28
Hey, thanks for this, it's really useful for me to think about eh.
This year I am doing Level 2 and my last exam is not till 2nd Dec, so I know I'm gonna struggle with writing and studying... Then again, I managed last year: VERY early morning is my NaNo time and the rest of the day is study/exams. However, this year I feel like school is a tad more intense but at the same time I've lost a lot of interest in school... therefore I am semi-worrying that I'll spend too much time on my novel...
I'll try to be as diciplined as possible; I know school should come first (*grumbles*).
And please remind me of this advice next year when I'm convincing myself that I can juggle novel writing with Level 3! :)
SQUIRRELS??? In New Zealand???? Who let them in? =O ... hehe =)
----------2007 ---> 'The Golden Prophecy' - Fantasy
2008 ---> 'The Colour Red' - Other?
2009 ---> 'Trouble with Identity' - Um, unsure...
Writing ~ the best way to talk without being interrupted. ; )
♥ "The pen is the tongue of the mind..."
36,068 / 50,000
Oct 24, 2009 - 20 51
I'm just a teacher of NCEA level three and it's stressful enough for me, let alone the students. At least I don't mark externals, and all the internals will be done and dusted by the end of this week *crosses fingers*
Also, squirrels? Aren't possums bad enough?
---------->>>>
Writing: a particularly insidious form of madness. There is no cure.
2008: Ki Runga, Ki Raro (winner)
2009: Muddy Prints
35,000 / 50,000
Oct 25, 2009 - 03 15
Re the Squirrels: okay, you guys ALL have to go and see Pixar's UP.
I can't believe no one got that.
Seriously, it's one of those "if you only see three films this year" films...
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2009: Any sufficently advanced Technology
2001-2008: A butler who fights crime; a doorstop; a bbq; a travelogue; a book of things drawn out of a hat; a WWI vampire; Will Shakespeare - Unemployed Actor: he fights Crime; and a
66,186 / 50,000
Oct 25, 2009 - 03 40
Hehe, I got that.
Not that I've seen it either. But one of my workmates went to see it with her niece, and apparently ever since then if the niece doesn't want to listen she'll just look away and say, "Squirrel!"
I want to see UP :-( But I have no small children to take to give me an excuse to see it :-(
----------Ruth
Municipal Liaison - Palmerston North, New Zealand
http://phyntosia.blogspot.com
20,262 / 50,000
Oct 26, 2009 - 21 08
Who needs a kid?
I'm a teacher, I went one afternoon during the holidays. Ended up with hundreds of kids!
I third or forth the NCEA L3 warning. Enjoy the novelling but don't let it distract you from the main purpose of this year, getting your UE.
I am currently wondering about my own sanity; teaching a full load, organisizing prizegiving, completing 2 papers from my masters and taking on Nano..... What was I thinking?
As for squirrels, I have discovered this big and deadly one, its Called Forums...LOL
Cat
13,000 / 50,000
Oct 27, 2009 - 01 34
Agree with ajkiwi and everyone else's comments. If NCEA Level 3 is killing you already, there is no need to shorten your life span any further by adding to the load.
If you are a student AND a NaNoer, REALLY beware that you don't forget what's important. And be wary of finding yourself using NaNo as a way to avoid studying for exams. I think the combination can really work for you, or go down really badly. I've found both happened to me, luckily with no significant horror stories.
A 'good' story with NaNo:
In my early years of NaNo, particularly my first year (Year 10 extension/some NCEA Lvl 1), I was so inane about how I was going to write 50K in a month ("homg! I have no time!") that I spent HEAPS of time planning throughout Sept and Oct. By Nov, I had a 2 page list of everything that happens in each of the 30 chapters, plus about 3 page list of NaNo dares, that all I had to do (for one lunchtime a day, or for an hour after school) was sit there and type out what happens. I didn't even really have to think about it (for the entire Nov, I forced myself to think of nothing but exams). Yes, it turned out to be a crappy novel. But it was still so much fun to write! And I had something in between all the studying to look forward too, which I think helped me immensely reduce my stress. Because I was forcing myself to be methodical, I think I ended up studying harder than I would've normally. (I probably would've avoided studying even more if that was the only thing I had to do for a month). In the end, I did mediocre for my mock exams (which was given the priority of 'meh who cares' during Stressful October) in Oct, but did really, REALLY well in the finals in Nov. I think that year, NaNo actually helped me did better in my exams, because it made me write faster AND because my full focus was on looking after myself and keeping myself in top condition for exams.... Well, that said, it WAS NCEA Lvl 1...!!! Please don't risk it if getting into uni is involved.
A 'bad' story with NaNo:
Somewhere around third or fourth year-ish, I grew lazy and started using NaNo as a way to avoid studying, or as an excuse to daydream. I mean, I didn't do terribly or anything, but I could totally see how NaNo was a detriment to my studies that year... I started saying to myself, "I wanna plot (not study)", "It's only two topics, I can do that in an hour/I can handle it/I'll be fine", "1.5K is easy, I'll be done with that in 10 minutes... later", "*looks at textbook* *starts daydreaming NaNo*"...... Basically, I did everything I DIDN"T do in the good story. I have also realized since that by doing that, I was undermining BOTH my exams and NaNo.... So I will try to take both more seriously this year (but with priorities in mind, obviously).
My story for when high school exams actually become REALLY important (A story that turned out 'ok'):
Last year, I had the big high school exams (IB though, not NCEA). I did give NaNo a try, but I refused to overwork myself and kept watch that NaNo or no, I was in the best condition I could be for my exams by being focused on my studies. In the end, I didn't finish NaNo, but I got what I wanted, which was finish high school with a mark I'm happy with :)
I know sometimes, especially on NaNo where everyone is so encouraging, that you CAN get carried away and going along with everyone else in the flow. But ajkiwi is right, if you're trying to get into uni, you really have to have the ability to say NOT RIGHT NOW.
Side note, to those like me who are studying AND writing, remember you could always try to incorporate NaNo into your study strategies too. Like, write something study-related as part of your NaNo. (I do psychology at uni, so the first topic I'm probably going to study is schizophrenia since it's kinda related to my NaNovel). I know I am really focused when I start constantly making references to the things I was studying in my nanovel... my nanovel from the 'good' story was full of words and odd, ODD metaphors/quotes/inside jokes related to what I was learning in Science, Geo, etc.
....sorry, another long post. ^_^ (Thanks for reading?)
----------NaNo 09: Coming soon!
[Nov 1-11 New Zealand] [Nov 12-30 Poland]
Twitter.Anime.Fanfiction.Addict.
3,472 / 50,000
Nov 2, 2009 - 11 00
I'm doing NCEA leveltwo this year and it's so easy (well not as easy as levelone in terms of workload). It's before exams and I already have 70excellence credits. But I do have to agree, not planning on doing it next year, especially given I'll be taking three art subjects and three core subjects. Thanks for all the advice!
----------~time may give you more than your poor bones could ever take~
41,007 / 50,000
Nov 2, 2009 - 15 03
I'm actually in the midst of my Cambridge Exams, doing year 12 which is like the NCEA equivalent of Level 3.
Thankfully, they're fairly spread out, and I spend my study breaks hammering away at these keys on my novel.
I'm a good student but I really hope this doesn't affect my marks. This forum scares me! I am determined to make it!
57,025 / 50,000
Nov 3, 2009 - 00 30
oops I teach level 3 am I too old?
But agree with everything she said.....
AND I MEAN IT.....
Squirrels