It's October 2nd. The leaves are falling, politicians are arguing, and NaNoWriMo is just around the corner. Soon, we'll be bribing our muses, waving "bye bye" to any latent writer's block, and diving head first into pure, unadulterated literary abandon.
So, why don't we all introduce ourselves first.
I'm Thomas. I live here in Rochester and this is my fifth NaNoWriMo. All of them here in town. I just finished a class at Crossings in Zumbrota called Mystery Writing is Murder, so I think I'm going to do some kind of a who-dunnit. Hopefully with a touch of humor.
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50,174 / 50,000
Oct 3, 2008 - 05 48
Hey, Thomas,
Welcome back.
I'm Jeremy, and this is my 4th NaNoWriMo. I've been excited for November as long as the retailers, but without the Christmas decorations.
52,827 / 50,000
Oct 3, 2008 - 06 32
Nice to have you back Jeremy. LOL@decorations.
Have you decided what you're going to write about yet?
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50,174 / 50,000
Oct 3, 2008 - 08 03
I'm going to write about the same thing I do every year: Taking over the world. (Pinky and the Brain, anyone?) Either that, or I'll continue the fictionalized account of my dating life. My girlfriend is very eager to read that...
17,108 / 50,000
Oct 4, 2008 - 02 23
Second time attempting NaNoWriMo... first time that I actually plan on seeing it through.
My name is Tiffany and, oddly enough, I am planning something similar for my novel this year. I'm a huge Agatha Christie fan and, since I have been working my way through her novels as of late, I planned on writing some kind of who-dun-it caper-trapped in a mansion-odd and quirky characters-everyone has a motive and opportunity-paying homage to classic mystery writers-with a lot of humour novel. :)
52,827 / 50,000
Oct 4, 2008 - 06 59
Sounds intriguing. You seem to have a lot of your story in your mind already. That's cool. I haven't decided on a setting for mine yet. I only chose the title so I could fill out my novel sheet here at the NaNoWriMo site. I'm going to work up five or six characters in the next few weeks and then toss them together. I'll probably decide on a crime and a setting for that too.
Good luck and stay tuned. We'll be organizing a kick-off meeting before too long.
----------www.43things.com/person/improg
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4,035 / 50,000
Oct 5, 2008 - 18 13
Hello hello!
Mi nombre es D. This will be my third Nano, but probably not a third win. I'm hoping to do a sci-fi/fantasy involving one alien entity, a few guys in dark glasses and lots of explosions. Beyond that I'm not sure. I'm going to concentrate on lightening the plot a bit with humor, although I haven't had much success with that in the past.
52,827 / 50,000
Oct 6, 2008 - 07 35
Welcome Dominator. Good luck with your project. I tried a sci-fi comedy in 2006. It turned out a bit different than I had envisioned but I had a great time. :-)
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65,000 / 50,000
Oct 7, 2008 - 12 25
Hi.
I'm Eric, and this is my first attempt at NaNoWriMo. I think I'm going to go with a pretty basic story of a girl who struggles with a diagnosis of a terminal illness...but survives. Guess what inspired me to write about something medical. :)
52,827 / 50,000
Oct 7, 2008 - 13 28
Welcome Eric.
Interesting story. Do you work in the medical field?
----------www.43things.com/person/improg
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http://improg.writing.com
44,030 / 50,000
Oct 9, 2008 - 13 36
My name is David, and this is my first NaNoWriMO. I have no idea what to write so far but am very excited about this. I tend to enjoy fantasy and SF the most, which is the genre I'm probably going to write in. The last few years I've created an imaginary world with a few character ideas and world history. I even have a map drawn :) Maybe now is the time put some action into that world. Perhaps the protanganist is going to be a thief... hmmm
Good luck to everyone and I hope to keep in contact with everyone! Peace.
52,827 / 50,000
Oct 10, 2008 - 12 47
Welcome David. I hope you enjoy your first NaNoWriMo. I enjoyed mine.
I think it's great that you have a story idea you're excited about. There's two more things, in my opinion, that will help you cross the victory line somewhere before midnight on November 30th. 1) Don't take yourself or your story too seriously. You're writing a first draft and first drafts are usually clunky. 2) Give your inner editor a month's vacation in Cosumel or the French Riviera. When you're writing a novel in a month, the last thing you have time for is editing. You can edit it all you want in December. Plus, editing after you finish your rough draft gives you the added advantage of being able to see the whole picture, something that's kind of difficult when you're only a halfway or a quarter of the way through.
Most of all. Have FUN!!! We'll be setting us some write-ins at local coffee shops before too long. It's a lot of fun to write along side other month-long novelists. :-)
----------www.43things.com/person/improg
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9,671 / 50,000
Oct 13, 2008 - 04 47
Ooh, I'm actually going to put effort into this year. That last few years I've thought about doing it things seem to get jumbled. But I'm pretty sure I can pull it off this year. Yay! Mine is also a sci-fi, which I recently learned is the genre of my novel. My inspiration was gathered from three books: Hawkspar, 1984, and Fahrenheit 451, all great books. My fingers are itching to write as well as to vote this year. Just can't wait till November.
-Cat
----------"Cross a perfectionist with indecisiveness and you get a person still stuck in the bottomless pit and thinking, 'Is this the best and only way to get out of here?', which is the one of many ways to describe me but not the best, I don't think."
52,827 / 50,000
Oct 13, 2008 - 06 39
Welcome to the forum Hilton. Your book sounds interesting. Ray Bradbury meets George Orwell meets Holly Lisle? I hope you have a lot of fun with it.
I see you're from Spring Valley. I've been there a few times. Do you guys still have the drive-in A&W? Anyway, I guess it's a bit of a drive for you to come to Rochester, but hopefully we'll get to meet at the kick-off party on the 30th of October or one of the write-ins. :-)
----------www.43things.com/person/improg
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9,671 / 50,000
Oct 13, 2008 - 10 48
Actually, that was two years ago...I've just been too lazy to change my information. I live in Stewartville now and go to RCTC. We still do have A & W, but it's modernizing to a fast-food restuarant type of thing...they're building on a dining area now. Open all year, too. With the good comes the bad, I suppose.
I definently am going to try to make the kick-off party...I'm just a little lost on how to get from here to there, basically. I am so bad with direction. :P
This is my third year trying...I am actually going to stop making exscuses of a busy schedule and finish this year. I am ready to go...*gulp* I hope.
-Cat
----------"Cross a perfectionist with indecisiveness and you get a person still stuck in the bottomless pit and thinking, 'Is this the best and only way to get out of here?', which is the one of many ways to describe me but not the best, I don't think."
51,071 / 50,000
Oct 14, 2008 - 15 25
Howdy,
My name is Erica, and I write historical romance. This is my second year attempting NaNo. Hope to see you all at the kickoff party.
----------Stories that Testify to Love
52,827 / 50,000
Oct 14, 2008 - 19 38
Welcome to the forum Erica. Historical fiction is really hot right now. :-)
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50,134 / 50,000
Oct 15, 2008 - 06 04
dang! Just lost my comments by backing out of a preview.
Anyway, I'm Tom. I'm hoping to work on a Fantasy story. It even has Sky-Pirates, so I might actually do a dare this time.
If I can get the words out, it will be the story I meant to write last NaNo and gave up when the words dried up. This year I'm going to try to create more characters and settings before I start writing. Maybe even make notes on the plot....
This is my third NaNo. I posted last years winning entry here: http://www.ficwad.com/story/87870 It needs a sequel, which is in the works and is too far along to use for NaNo.
Looking forward to seeing everyone on Thursday the 30th.
Tom A.
----------52,827 / 50,000
Oct 15, 2008 - 08 56
Nice to see you back Tom. Sky-Pirates? Sounds interesting. :-) Is this a futuristic fantasy, a medieval fantasy, or something entirely different?
Good luck working on your characters and plot. I look forward to seeing you again too.
----------www.43things.com/person/improg
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150,106 / 50,000
Oct 17, 2008 - 16 45
Hi All,
----------I'm back, and it's been I think 3 years. I'm Jen. And while I tried to write a book last time... I'm writing fan fiction and loving it. so since I'm already writing at an abmoral rate, sometimes 20 pgs a day... I know... odd. But anyway, I do know something about both the sci/fi-fantasy and Romance genre's as far as pubbing goes. I've written in both, haven't published, but my knowledge is vaaaasssttt.... (can't you hear the echo?) ok, well I might be able some questions if you have any.
Can't Wait
Jen
I did this a while back but can't remember my login... oh well. I've suceeded once and I shall triumph once more
20,115 / 50,000
Oct 17, 2008 - 22 09
Hey everyone! I feel kinda torn about which region I should make my home. I'm down here in Austin, TX for the next couple of months, but have lived in the Rochester area (Preston, Wykoff, Spring Valley, as well as Rochester) from birth up until just a few months ago. Regardless, I'll be visiting this section of the forum frequently throughout next month, even if I cannot make it to any of the local write-ins up there. =(
Kindest regards from a home-sick traveler,
----------J.M.
"The tree of liberty must from time to time be refreshed with the blood of patriots and tyrants."
-Thomas Jefferson
52,827 / 50,000
Oct 18, 2008 - 14 54
Welcome Jen. It's nice to have you as part of the group. Romance and Science Fiction/Fantasy? Sounds interesting. I look forward to reading your excerpts if you choose to post them. :-)
----------www.43things.com/person/improg
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52,827 / 50,000
Oct 18, 2008 - 14 56
Hey J.M. Down in Austin, TX? Are you helping out with the recovery efforts or has something else brought you to Texas' Capitol?
We understand if you don't use Rochester as your home region, but we'd love to have you if you're so inclinced.
Keep in touch through the forums and add an excerpt or two to your forum so we can see how you're doing. :-)
----------www.43things.com/person/improg
www.myspace.com/improg
http://improg.writing.com
50,484 / 50,000
Oct 21, 2008 - 13 14
Hey Everybody!
I'm Ashley. This is my first year on Nanowrimo and I am BEYOND pumped! I have no idea what I'm going to write about yet, so it's gonna be a "fly by the seat of my pants" type of thing, but I'm downright excited! I'm not sure if i'll make the whole 50,000 words but if I don't, well, I've never been this excited to fail at something, so i'm sure that no matter the outcome, it's going to be a blast! Best of Luck to you all!
52,827 / 50,000
Oct 21, 2008 - 16 14
Welcome Ashley. I hope you have a wonderful experience. This is my fifth year participating and each one has been awesome.
Personally, I like the "fly by the seat of my pants" method. I've done it that way every time. I just love watching a story come into focus while I right it.
I highly recommend you pick up a copy of Chris Baty's No Plot? No Problem! because it has a lot of advice for that writing style.
:-)
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http://improg.writing.com
3,011 / 50,000
Oct 22, 2008 - 16 44
Hi everybody my name is Winter. I just found out about this NaNoWriMo thingy and think it is absolutely amazing. I kinda have an idea for a story but I'm just mot sure I can stretch it out to 50,000 words. Also, I will totally try to be at the Caribou on the 30th. November will totally rock!
50,484 / 50,000
Oct 22, 2008 - 18 11
Winter! We can go together! I will go with you! It'll be a blast! I think Lauren is going too!
52,827 / 50,000
Oct 23, 2008 - 05 38
Welcome to the forums, Winter and live_your_life.
Don't forget to stop by the kick-off thread if you're planning on attending so I know how many packets to put together. :-)
----------www.43things.com/person/improg
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50,138 / 50,000
Oct 23, 2008 - 11 42
I'm Steph and this is my first NaNoWriMo (I can hear you all saying "hi Steph" in true television/AA-esqu fashion). I've had stories floating in my head for years, but I've never gotten around to setting them out on paper. I've heard about this for more than a year from some friends and thought, hey, I should try that. At this point, I haven't decided what genre I'll be going with - I have eclectic taste, so I don't know what I want to focus on yet. I'm guessing it'll either be sci-fi/fantasy or "romantic suspense" along the lines of either David Eddings or J.D. Robb/Nora Roberts, who are two of my favorite popular fiction authors. Either way, it'll be interesting to get my 50K words out there and see where it takes me.
50,729 / 50,000
Oct 27, 2008 - 10 46
Hi All,
My name is Cathy (formerly Tacinelli now) Tenzo. I spent 7 years in Rochester, and made some of my best friends there. I still belong to a writer's group there, even though I now live in Seattle. I'm with you all in spirit. This is my first NaNoWriMo but my second novel. I'm going with the theory I used the first time.....just start writing and go to the end. I'm going to settle on one thing to start on by day one but my current ideas fall into the following genres: 1) Young Adult 2) Urban fantasy 3) Romance 4) Mystery. At the moment the most likely candidate is a cheesy mystery in the style of the old Dell mapbacks from the 50s. I read mostly mystery and I've always wanted to write one, but the complexity of the task scares me (which is why it might be nice to do a shock fright get it done in a month before I have a chance to chicken out on it sort of thing). Good luck to all and stay warm! (I miss Minnesota, but not the frightful cold!)
54,972 / 50,000
Oct 27, 2008 - 17 41
Hi all, I'm Laura... this is my second NaNoWriMo. My idea is sortve "A Series of Unfortunate Events" meets my resume... Actually, it's going to be a humor work, somewhat fictionalized, about my work experiences. (To give you some idea... I'm currently unemployed after having worked my second contract job since coming to Roch...the first question I get in an interview is ALWAYS "So...you seem to have trouble holding a job.... why is that??")
Looking forward to the challenge.