Here's a thread fo us all to introduce our NaNo novels. What style or genre are you writing? Who or what is your protagonist? Does it all end in a messy pile of body parts or happily ever after?
We can compare notes and even buddy up with someone writing a similar genre, or we can just point and laugh (that last bit was a joke - pointing and laughing won't be tolerated, unless it's by an ML (also a joke)).
I'll start the ball rolling by saying that mine is a sort of fantasy take on 'The Long Kiss Goodnight' - my amnisiac heroine has a strange encounter which encourages her to find out who she used to be, and how she ended up in the frozen north, half dead and with no memories of her life.
Along with the man who took her in, a couple of nomadic hunters and a young nun who may not be all that she seems, she sets out to find the truth and remember the destiny she'd forgotten she had.
Also, there's a mute, a cute lost kid and a pack of sled wolves. Oh, and an evil cult which rules half a continent by fear and violence. Funtimes.
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2009 - Ice and Fire (working title)
2008 - The Mobster and the Mermaid
2007 - A Consequence of Living
2006 - Blue, Part 2
2005 - Blue, Part 1
40,526 / 50,000
Oct 16, 2009 - 08 28
So, despite saying I was going to have Zombie Jesus, it seems I'm not. Having been through ideas including, but not limited to, werewolf apostles, drunken time travel, dead flamingoes and Arthurian legends with lube, I think I'm going back to my fairies.
Does anyone here remember my fairy world (and/or the porn that was clearly plot essential)? Basically we have a petulant princess going on a sort of accidental quest to solve the mystery of her father's disappearance, and her best friend getting some hot sprite lovin'. There will be actual plot too (hopefully) but I'm not finished planning yet. (Gasp! I'm actually planning this year!)
Uhem, I'll stop abusing parentheses now (maybe).
ETA: I'd love to buddy up with someone for support this year.
----------Jesus saves (and backs up regularly).
43,089 / 50,000
Oct 16, 2009 - 09 14
My story is called Queueing For Purgatory. Whether or not this has specific plot relevence or not has yet to be revealed...
The universe is ending, I have a cast of characters who are attempting to not let this happen, and one who is not so concerned with stopping the universe from ending. He's just interested in watching, and occasionally stirring things up a little... Also, the granddaughter of a woman who once saved the world.
----------2006 - Dance of the White Smoke: 51,191 words
2007 - The Wyching Hour: 50,100 words
2008 - Lost In Thought: 35,504 words
2009 - Queueing For Purgatory: ?
The Tsp as in teaspoon.
30,277 / 50,000
Oct 16, 2009 - 12 20
Whoops, replied to the wrong thing...
----------6,501 / 50,000
Oct 16, 2009 - 12 15
Queueing for Purgatory's the best title I've heard in ages!
Mine's called Going Ape, & rather predictably it's about some radioactive chimps who form a glam rock band in mid-80s LA & gradually turn the human population into monkeys through their high octane rock n' roll. It ends with everyone being chimps.
I've changed my nano name to try & get more into the spirit of the story & may go as far as living as a chimp for a month though not sure how far will get with nano if I do ... (though if I lived as an infinite number of chimps ... then we'd be cooking.)
I'd welcome chance of buddying up; whether with human, monkey, or X-Factor viewer.
30,277 / 50,000
Oct 16, 2009 - 12 20
This year my idea concerns a couple of characters I've been kicking around for a while, but never seriously developed. I figure that now is the perfect opportunity to let them finally tell me who they are.
So there's a guy... he's a short-order cook as the story starts but gets fired on page 1 (or thereabouts) and desperately needs a new job, so he answers an odd advert in the paper and finds himself working for a reclusive inventor. The story has bits of Timon of Athens and Macbeth percolating through it- my theory is that when it comes to nicking ideas from other sources you can't go wrong with Shakespeare- and will hopefully be a sort of a sci-fi-humour buddy-movie of a novel. The world feels like a more-or-less contemporary London-type city where the technology has gone all super-sleek and Appleish, but the trends and the fashions, especially of the rich, have gone more towards the Roaring Twenties.
Then there's the inventor's brother and his merciless social-climbing wife, a pair of elderly twin sisters who make the best suits in the city and also possibly kill people, a personal-trainer robot that won't stop beating up the protagonists, a way of texting using fireflies, and an evil pigeon trying to elbow its way into the plot.
I'm toying with the idea of writing it in first person from my protagonist's (the chef/assistant/voice of sanity's) view, but I'm not sure if limiting myself to one voice and vocabulary might not get a bit frustrating. I really don't know what genre to chose from the list, either. I mentioned sci-fi, but the links with sci-fi are sort of... tenuous, only a bit of robotics and physics, and those elements will hopefully take a backseat to the humour and the characters' relationships. Hopefully...
----------40,654 / 50,000
Oct 16, 2009 - 13 04
I'm writing an urban fantasy with undertones of sci-fi. The setting has been in my head for a while, but it's only know that I'm sorting out an actual plot.
Since the Fallen were banished by the Angels, they've been trying to get back by any means necessary. Their latest attempt involves using Earth as a bridge back to where they came from, and they've been working on this since around 1940. The Angels have come to Eartch too and are trying to stop them. Though most humans don't even know either of them are there, a small group of humans, known as Angelborn, with Angel ancestors have the ability to see the Angels and Fallen for what they are, amongst other abilities. While the Angels and Fallen are caught up in fighting each other, the Angelborn have to stop the war from destroying humanity.
It'll be told mostly through the point of views of the various Angelborn (thus the title), though I'm thinking of using occasional POVs from the Fallen and Angels to hint at things to come every so often. Anticipating lots of things exploding, people being shot, others being sent to Hell, but also a romance subplot or two that end up being very important, and some (admittedly rather soft) sci-fi twists. Theme-wise, sort of 'do the ends justify the means', what do people do when they know failing might mean the end of their race.
----------2009 - Angelborn - Urban fantasy
43,089 / 50,000
Oct 17, 2009 - 13 21
Well, thanks for the compliment on my title, but I know feel really underprepared plot-wise...
Actually, I know more than I'm letting on, but, unfortunately, my characters all know more than they're letting on, too...
----------2006 - Dance of the White Smoke: 51,191 words
2007 - The Wyching Hour: 50,100 words
2008 - Lost In Thought: 35,504 words
2009 - Queueing For Purgatory: ?
The Tsp as in teaspoon.
19,546 / 50,000
Oct 17, 2009 - 15 13
Mine's set in some sort of alternate universe version of regency england with welsh werewolves, The Fey (which according to her high majesty Queen Mab must be capitalized), Angels (errrmm magical beings with wings in no way really related to any form of religion although they may have had a hand in sort of influencing a few people who may have mistaken people with wings for messengers from some sort of deity) and vampires. Plus a librarian, a book shop, spies and a georgian square in London.
The plot currently revolves around an attempt by some of the magical bunch to work with the english government, which is going to be thwarted by the werewolves joining the evil vampires, a bunch of exorcists and a very bad tempered angel in a bid to conquer the country. There maybe a love plot if my leads get their act together.
It all made a lot more sense beofre last years cast decided they were werewolves and hijacked the proceedings.
30,277 / 50,000
Oct 17, 2009 - 15 58
I have the same kind of issue with the plot. Lots of neat characters, a bunch of set-pieces in mind that I know could be really spiffy, but a great big lump of LAALALALAA SO WHAAAAAT instead of a story...
----------43,041 / 50,000
Oct 18, 2009 - 06 05
Well I wasn't sure but I think I will take part this year after all. Going to try to write something about the strangely distressing prospect of human immortality.
Shady pharmaceuticals companies will probably be involved, and ancient Persian manuscripts and a world-weary consultant who may or may not be a five-hundred-year-old alchemist.
5,020 / 50,000
Oct 18, 2009 - 06 54
Mine's a RomZom. My MMC is a mid-20s weapon's expert for the army, taking some high power weapons in his big van to the army base. On a deserted road, a woman - my FMC - jumps in front of the van. She climbs in and tells him to drive. She's an early 30's biologist who specialises in genetics. He tries to throw her out, but a horde of zombies try and attack the van, so he speeds off. She directs him to a secluded house which turns out to be hers with a lab in the basement. They live together, developing feelings for one another but not doing anything about it. They spend a lot of their time using the weapons to kill any zombies that come towards the house. One day, however, another survivor runs towards the house, who turns out to be FMC's ex-husband...
That's it at the moment, I'm hoping it works well.
----------44,607 / 50,000
Oct 18, 2009 - 16 29
I'm really determined to win this year, so I'm doing the thing properly and writing a blurb and a summary before NaNo officially starts!
Here's the crap blurb I wrote in about five minutes:
Life is going well for 18-year-old Marc Mileham: He managed to get into university (if he passes his A-levels that is, a subject which he has his doubts about), his football coach is hailing him as the next David Beckham to every club manager he can find, there is a whole summer of football and drinking with his mates ahead of him, and come September he’ll finally be able to get away from the never-ending rumours about his best friend Liz’s murder two years ago.
At least that’s the plan, until two men in grey suits show up on his doorstep one afternoon- before he can answer the door Marc finds himself being hauled to the floor by the most unlikely of rescuers who tells him that the men outside are magicians hoping to recruit him, and that his only options if he opens the door are to say yes or die.
All of a sudden Marc is thrown into a world where magic is real, magicians are evil, and dead people aren’t really dead (they just have to do a lot of paperwork).
He finds himself left with a question:
Why do the magicians seem to want him so badly? And what doesany of this have to do with his dead best friend?
It's urban fantasy that involves secret government agencies with secret underground bases, swordfights, guns, friendship, lies, make-outs, failed relationships, and the occasional spot of torture.
Fun for everyone! :)
----------0 / 50,000
Oct 20, 2009 - 11 56
That is a fantastic story idea, word-monkey. I would *definitely* read a book about a band of radioactive glam rock chimps.
12,743 / 50,000
Oct 21, 2009 - 05 31
I don't know what to write I've got a lot of idea's to choose from!!!! You wouldn't think that being spoiled for choice would be a problem but it is lol!!!
6,501 / 50,000
Oct 21, 2009 - 11 12
Thanks Janina!
Already having a few issues in planning (such as 'is this the most stupid idea anyone's ever come up with?'!) so that is going to spur me on to actually write this thing.
They need a foil so am thinking of having their arch rivals as a grunge band of dour genetically modified oran-utans.
1,688 / 50,000
Oct 21, 2009 - 12 05
Well, as you can see I've literally only just signed up for this. I heard about it in a lesson when I should probably have been doing work and started to try and think of ideas for it.
I was thinking of doing a sci-fi story. Conspiracy theoriess and secret organisations and that, but I probably shouldn't go into too much detail since I may completely change it... It's only the first day after all.
----------"I've always been my own teacher, and I must confess I've always been my favourite pupil as well."
0 / 50,000
Oct 22, 2009 - 03 53
This is my 5- minute blurb. As you might be able to tell, my MCs are your typical embittered private eye and a rich, precocious 11 year old girl.
Everything changed the day she walked into my office. It was a wet afternoon in November, rain trickling down the window pane and bourbon trickling down my throat.
Business had been slack for a long time. My secretary, Rebecca, remained optimistic even though I hadn't paid her for three weeks. She knocked twice on the door; gingerly as if to see whether I was fit for visitors. I wasn't, but two minutes fixing myself up in front of the dusty mirror wasn't going to change that. She cleared her throat
"There's an, ahem, young lady here to see you."
Things were looking up. I glanced at the mirror and contemplated running a comb through my hair, then decided against it.
"Show her in". Rebecca ushered the client to a seat and I was forced to do a double-take.
"Some young lady", I muttered. She couldn't have been more than eleven or twelve, with her long brown hair tied up in bunches with red ribbons. She wore a pristine white dress with a red belt and matching clutch purse and white pumps.
"Good afternoon Mister Detective" she spoke; the pearly white of her teeth temporarily blinding me to her unfortunate lisp.
"I would like to hire you to find my imaginary fwiend."
At the moment, I have no idea where it's going to go from there. Or rather, I have several ideas but haven't decided what combination of them are going to end up in the novel
2,565 / 50,000
Oct 22, 2009 - 07 29
It's all about a silly girl who urm, shags her 40 something next door neighbour (she's 15) and just when you think it can't possibly get any worse, there will be A HUGE AND SURPRISING TWIST. Well, hopefully. I haven't quite worked out how I'm going to realistically include the twist without making the entire thing seem farcical. And this idea is all thanks to BBC3 and their delightfully creepy series on teenage wives.
2,565 / 50,000
Oct 22, 2009 - 07 32
Well, I already want to know where it's going from there.
*edit* Ah, that was supposed to be a direct reply to Tweedlsmart, I haven't quite got to grips with this 'ere forum yet.
38,059 / 50,000
Oct 22, 2009 - 10 03
Looks like a wonderous month ahead with many and various exciting characters to meet!
My own personal challenge this NaNo is to actually write a story. In previous years I've just been left with 50,000 words of descriptive stuff, with some flash-backs and explanatory stuff. Nothing ever happens. Forget an ending, I'd just like to have a middle for a change!
I foolishly planned a holiday slap bang in the middle of the month. However, I've decided to try my hardest to write (I always write on paper anyway) whilst I'm out in Morocco, and so that's where I'm going to draw my inspiration. Tamezut the Camel is going to be about a 11yr old girl taking part in trek out into the desert (it's what we're actuallly doing, so I should be able to get that it right at least!), probably on some sort of pilgrimage to a site deep in the Sahara. She doesn't have any other children to talk to, so she's going to imagine the histories of those travelling with her. So I get to make up loads of stuff based on a young girl's imagination, seas of sand, smelly camels- and possibly the odd bandit attack if things look a bit too boring. Bring it on!
I also realy like the idea of writing a blurb before kick-off, might try to do one of my own tonight! Although I might then have a hard time stopping.
Just remember- nothing that you write before 00:00 on 1st November can be used as any part of your NaNo novel. It's got to be written from the beginning, from scratch, during the 30 days. I know you all know that, just thought I'd remind you not to get carried away and start writing before the starter's pistol has gone off :D
MB
21,224 / 50,000
Oct 23, 2009 - 10 36
Last year it was a frenzied rush to catch up after starting 11 days late. The novel 'The Good Girl' was a back-story to my memoir 'The Ice Maiden' focusing on my grandmother’s life in Ukraine during the Russian Revolution. This year’s novel 'Cry Baby' is set in England in the mid 90s, about a single professional academic woman in her mid 30s with a dark past and a wrong to right. Have I got any ideas of what I’m writing about? No. Not really. But the liberation of not having to be fact perfect as I try to be with the memoir is already doing its magic. My protagonist is squirming to get out. This clever, pushy, damaged and angry individual - I can’t wait to let her out of the ivory tower.
----------2008 - The Good Girl
2009 - Cry Baby
43,247 / 50,000
Oct 26, 2009 - 10 45
I'm completely new to NaNoWriMo, and I found out about it from my friends who I write a lot of fanfiction with. So I've decided to leave the fanfiction realm behind for a month and try my hand and writing something of my own.
Knowing me, it'll probably turn out to be the typical chic flick novel with a few twists put in along the way. But if I can figure out my beginning and ending, then hopefully it'll turn into something more!
Everyone else's sound incredible! I could never even begin to write about a.... radioactive band of glam rock monkeys? At least, I think that's what it was!
----------6,501 / 50,000
Oct 26, 2009 - 12 09
Not too sure I can write about a band of radioactive glam rock chimps either to be honest!
Also started last years 10-11 days late & it's weird being able to actually plan a bit this year. Normally I hate planning - just like jumping straight in - so having to make myself more disciplined.
Looking forward to finding out more about people's disparate & intriguing sounding efforts too. Just goes to show that if you lock a bunch of writers in a room & tell them to hammer out a novel in a month they'll all come up with something different.
40,654 / 50,000
Oct 26, 2009 - 12 47
I have to agree with Word-Monkey, I'm looking forward to hearing more about various people's ideas as they develop. There do indeed seem to be all sorts of things from all sorts of genres, but they all sound interesting in their own ways.
In addition to the obvious glam rock chimps, I'm particularly fascinated to know how Tweedlesmart's detective goes about tracking down the missing imaginary friend for his young, lisping client.
Hope it goes well for everyone!
----------2009 - Angelborn - Urban fantasy
32,622 / 50,000
Oct 28, 2009 - 03 28
As usual, I'm in a bit of a heap of concepts at the moment, but I've got a starting point I like, and I kinda think I know how it's gonna climax, though not how that'll end up. We'll see.
Anyway, current title is Wolf Interval (because it sounds cool, it currently has nothing to do with the actual narrative). We're on a kind of mytho-conspiracy bent somewhat modern politcially, but with touches of old and touches of future. It's set in Helsingor (aka Elsinore) on the island of Sjaelland (Zealand) in Denmark. Only it's not in Denmark anymore. The main character (Dogstar Hypnopomp) keeps on dreaming of himself, the castle, the city, the island floating down a river through space, and it's gonna turn out to be true...eventually. There's an Illuminatus style conspiracy of government denial trying to keep the populace isolated, and in fact the whole thing is probably just some grand psychic experiment.
Or something. Each time I try to synopsize it comes out entirely different, so maybe it's gonna have to wait and see.
Anyway, I'm excited, and I'm reusing the MC name from last year's grand catastrophe. And may reuse some of the research, but none of the words.
Because the words were rubbish.
Exhale.
------------------
This was unlike the story
it was written to be
I was riding its back
when it used to ride me
- Joanna Newsom - Peach, Plum, Pear
46,145 / 50,000
Oct 29, 2009 - 10 23
Currently I'm planning on a novel based around a recently resurrected bard attempting to get his life back on track after having taken a ten year involuntary absence from it, while at the same time trying to solve his own murder. Tied into everything there's also going to be a plotline involving his mad scientist sister (the one that brought him back), the demon she made a deal with (in order to do said bringing back), a creepy castle full of shadow monsters, and, if I can find space for him, some sort of religious assassin.
As of yet it doesn't have much of a plot, but I'm hoping something will come to me. Hopefully soon.
----------Compassion hinders my creativity.
0 / 50,000
Oct 30, 2009 - 03 49
Oh but I wanted to read zombie jesus kali- Still more fairies
I'm finishing a short story- well ploitted out , just need to iron out the end. Designed around the dissapearance of a widdowers 12 year old daughter and the efforts he'll go to to get her back. HAs grief sent him mad, or did he actually follow her into fairy land to retrieve her?
I'm then going to sit down and either a) type up/ finish off from memory as best I can the end of veil of tears- my largely political fantasty novel with the rather sudden introduction of supernatural plot that underlies the rest of the series. (It's annoying me, I keep wondering if I should abandon it and start with book 2 where at least half the characters have half a clue about what's going on).... finishing it even if I later decide I'm not using all of it.
or I'm b) writing a bit more of the rangers from last year.
I'm not planning on aiming for 50,000 words 2 years of law in one is far to intense to try, but I will be keeping vague track of my words, ocassionally coming along to meetings and making an effort to actually write SOMETHING that isn't rather elaborate and possibly terrible harry potter fanfiction . I will definately be cheering everyone on through the site.
47,258 / 50,000
Oct 31, 2009 - 10 58
Well I didn't do this last year as I have a gang of horses and they kinda take my time up BUT this year I have a broken leg so no excuse to sit in front of my lap top and write!
My story is a fantasy about unicorns ( you can keep the horses away from the girl with the broken leg but you cannot stop her writing about them! ). They live with a herd of horses and protect the sun. But theres a bad pegasus and a plot stolen from the Icarus story which leaves him with burnt wings and anger. He is determined to steal the sun so let the horsey battle commence!
Oh and my story is going to start with all the unicorns dying! Fun!
38,024 / 50,000
Oct 31, 2009 - 16 49
I don't know where it's going from there, but it did make me laugh.
----------Of course, the obvious route is that the imaginary friend turns out to be a real friend who has disappeared. For some reason everyone denies the existence of said friend.
Or the girl turns out to be imaginary. Maybe an imaginary friend of the detective.
Maybe the detective even turns out to be an imaginary friend of Rebecca. Maybe Rebecca is the 'girl' who hires him, to find her imaginary friend. Who turns out to be the detective himself. So he is hired to find himself.
There, sorted!
Ivan Pope
http://blog.ivanpope.com
40,526 / 50,000
Oct 31, 2009 - 18 05
Sorry to disappoint, although the Bible's a pretty good source of zombie Jesus. That and Google. Who knows, maybe I'll get round to it some time.
----------Jesus saves (and backs up regularly).