OK, I'm posting it publicly, so I guess I'm committed. I'm counting on you guys to keep me accountable!
I have the next 4 days (Nov 5-8) off of work, and except for a few errands and one social commitment, it's all unstructured free time. So my crazy-assed goal is:
Write 20,000 words in 96 hours. That's 5000 a day. I've done 5000 word days before, but not in a sustained fashion.
Anything I write tonight (Wednesday) doesn't count towards that goal. In fact, some of what I write tonight will probably be outlining for the big push, so it wouldn't count anyway (It'll be on separate paper; just a few terse notes to keep me on the path).
Anybody else with me?
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-- Aspen
The perfect is the enemy of the fast. The good is the enemy of the fast. The halfway decent is the enemy of the fast.
--- Gail Carson Levine
46,173 / 50,000
Nov 4, 2009 - 19 26
Wow, that sounds...crazy-assed. I love it!
I'm not with you on it, but I am fully in support of your plan, and happy to provide accountability. :)
63,075 / 50,000
Nov 4, 2009 - 19 28
yeah, me too, no. If I didn't have to work, maybe.
however, I will be hammering away at it. as much as I can.
good luck!
64,504 / 50,000
Nov 4, 2009 - 20 46
Awesome!! Crazy-assed personal short-term goals are my favorite kind!
I'm getting to a difficult set of chapters and I have a ton of math homework to do this weekend, so I'm thinking 5k each day will be out of my reach.
Still, I'm always up for a challenge - and if you want to fudge the definition of "with me" to include 3 or 4k per day, then I am totally with you. I'm hoping to manage 80k by the end of the month (despite a couple tests that fall really inconveniently in the middle of it), so I could use the camaraderie.
----------27,152 / 50,000
Nov 5, 2009 - 19 28
I sort of have to have 14k words by tomorrow night unless I want to have 14k words to write for Sunday evening, because I am going on a mandatory, unexpected 2 day trip to pick up my brother in Wisconsin. I kinda want to hit him a little bit. I will be gone Friday and Saturday, and may or may not get back by Sunday evening. Pray for me, as I slowly go insane.
[EDIT] WELL, CLEARLY I AM NOT GETTING THIS DONE TODAY. I still have so many things to do before bed It's not even funny. Yes, I still have nothing. Yes, I am taking my notebook with me. Yes, I am going to try to do it on Sunday.
Yes, I am not happy with that arrangement.
----------_________
2007: Hotaru (unfinished)
2008: WoWNoWriMo (won!)
2009: Ghedflaeg
40,577 / 50,000
Nov 5, 2009 - 19 03
Thursday report:
5265 words for today; 11704 words overall. I'm going to beat a whole lot of people in the Day 5 challenge, I'm sure. Now if I can keep up the momentum, I'll be fine.
I had a minor soda bottle failure in my backpack on my way to the write-in tonight-- luckily my notebooks are fine (my mail threw itself on the hand grenade, metaphorically speaking) so I didn't lose any words. Some of my outline notes are toast, though.
------------ Aspen
The perfect is the enemy of the fast. The good is the enemy of the fast. The halfway decent is the enemy of the fast.
--- Gail Carson Levine
50,114 / 50,000
Nov 5, 2009 - 20 57
Let's see.
----------I decided that I was going to write 10,000 words in one day, and sadly, I have.
Today, actually!
I need to get as many words done as I can before Thanksgiving because I won't be able to work on my novel for three days.
I'm hoping (and working towards) having the 50,000 word count before Thanksgiving.
"Sometimes, it's what you don't understand that makes the adventure worth while."
- On the Other Side -
NaNoWriMo 2009
46,173 / 50,000
Nov 5, 2009 - 21 22
The image of mail throwing itself upon a soda-fueled grenade is pure awesomeness.
More seriously, glad to hear not too much story stuff was damaged. And congrats on the huge word production! Keep it up!
40,577 / 50,000
Nov 6, 2009 - 19 17
5574 words today. 10839 since yesterday.
I'm still on track but behind where I wanted to be. I was hoping for an 8000 word day, but it just didn't happen. I pumped the well of inspiration dry a couple of times and had to wait for it to recharge. Also, I was kind of glued to the news this morning (sad, sad news).
Tomorrow will be a real challenge; I've got a party in Leavenworth to go to, and it's probably kind of rude to show up with a notebook and spend the evening scribbling in the corner. If I can get my daily count over 4000, I'll have a shot at making my 4-day goal.
------------ Aspen
The perfect is the enemy of the fast. The good is the enemy of the fast. The halfway decent is the enemy of the fast.
--- Gail Carson Levine
22,468 / 50,000
Nov 6, 2009 - 19 40
Wow, Aspen! Are you doing those words handwritten? And good to see your pace is still moving up.
40,577 / 50,000
Nov 7, 2009 - 18 02
5669 words today, which brings me to within 3500 (3499, technically) of my goal.
Back to back 5000 word days are not something that I plan to continue. Not if I want to have a life.
I'm to the point in the novel plot where things are going to start happening very very fast.
------------ Aspen
The perfect is the enemy of the fast. The good is the enemy of the fast. The halfway decent is the enemy of the fast.
--- Gail Carson Levine
46,173 / 50,000
Nov 7, 2009 - 18 34
Sounds like you're going to need to pick up the pace of your writing, then. To keep up with the plot.
**EVIL GRIN**
40,577 / 50,000
Nov 8, 2009 - 15 10
I did it! Twenty thousand and nine words in less than 4 days!
Go me! Go me! Go me! Go me! Go me! Go me! Go me! Go me! Go me!
This brings my total up to 27,830 words for the novel. I'm at the point where my heroine's life changes forever/she goes from being a girl to being a woman/gets the crap beaten out of her by her no-goodnik brother/runs away from home/takes charge of her life. I think I want to be fresh when I start a scene so emotionally fraught and pivital.
Now I'm going to get a pizza.
------------ Aspen
The perfect is the enemy of the fast. The good is the enemy of the fast. The halfway decent is the enemy of the fast.
--- Gail Carson Levine
46,173 / 50,000
Nov 8, 2009 - 18 38
Congrats on meeting and surpassing a very impressive goal! I'm really happy that your NaNo is going so well this year!
44,500 / 50,000
Nov 8, 2009 - 20 03
Grats, Aspen! I knew you could do it!
2,278 / 50,000
Nov 9, 2009 - 11 23
I heard about NaNo for the first time on the 5th of November. I thought it sounded like something right up my alley (with some persuasion from a friend) and signed up. I was thinking that I could incorporate previous blips I had written into my novel (it was such an awesome idea!) and finally write that novel I have rattling around in my head. I thought 5 years of rattling was enough. Then I read the contest rules.
What do you mean I can't use previously written works?!?!?!?? Argh. So I started from scratch, I am a stickler about following rules, and have written several starting sentences but it doesn't seem to go to far past that. If I could write a novel of first sentences or paragraphs I would be golden!
Then this weekend I looked at my schedule of commitments and tryied to figure out how to juggle it all. Two jobs that are just starting to hit their busy season, a teenage Son I make a point of spending time with every day, two high strung cats who demand more attention than a newborn (At this point I would prefer a newborn!) and somewhere in there making sure my house doesn’t fall apart, burn up or turn into a landfill. Then there is cooking. I love my Son but he is a housefire waiting to happen when he cooks. If he had his way he would eat Top Ramen, Mac and Cheese or frozen pizzas every night. But I have some guilt about allowing that especially since I am unable to convince him that the Flintstones vitamins I try to hand him every morning, are candy. It's good for me? No! Not that!
So here is my crazy-assed goal... to not give up writing. I may not hit that 50,000 word goal but I will NOT give up. Since I have to remind myself every morning that I need to make a point to write at least 10 minutes twice a day, broken up or all together, this is my short term AND long term goal.
40,577 / 50,000
Nov 9, 2009 - 18 03
I blew it. I'm so depressed.
I checked my math tonight. I did not get to 20,009 words. I only got to 19,996. Four words short. So sad, but spreadsheets do not lie.
Also, my total word count is only 26,635, not 27,830 as I previously reported.
:'-<
------------ Aspen
The perfect is the enemy of the fast. The good is the enemy of the fast. The halfway decent is the enemy of the fast.
--- Gail Carson Levine
22,468 / 50,000
Nov 9, 2009 - 19 38
You! did! not! blow! it! Four words? Are you kidding? You probably wrote them, cut them, and went on without even realizing it. Somewhere, you have four words that you added to an outline, an idea, a possible title.
You made your goal - and it was an amazing goal!!! Come on, writing is tricky enough without being so hard on yourself.
So, as the Princess of the Paper, I dub thee okay with that awesome goal :). Now, go and cause that gal some more trouble!!!!
46,173 / 50,000
Nov 9, 2009 - 20 41
40,577 / 50,000
Nov 10, 2009 - 04 03
At least 99.98% successful, at any rate.
------------ Aspen
The perfect is the enemy of the fast. The good is the enemy of the fast. The halfway decent is the enemy of the fast.
--- Gail Carson Levine
22,468 / 50,000
Nov 10, 2009 - 09 00
Oh, yikes! I hope I didn't cross some Nanowrimo line by making my comment - or step on someone's toes!! I was just so amazed by Aspen's goal in the first place and that she then made it. We writers can beat ourselves up about so many things - didn't want her to do the same over four words. Plus, it was late, my writing was going well, and I truly did feel like the Princess of the Paper for a while. Back to wrestling with my own story.
46,173 / 50,000
Nov 10, 2009 - 09 56
22,468 / 50,000
Nov 10, 2009 - 17 21
Thanks - I thought that was the case. As a writing teacher, teacher-teacher, and mom, I find it easy to encourage - and necessary with so many who want to write and have hidden their dreams and talents. One of the reasons I love NaNo!! Your toes may be in the closet but a lot of writers are popping out of one for this month :).