Welcome Brissie WriMos!

I signed up to finally write a full novel. Granted that 50,000 words isn't huge but it should make for the most thrilling month of writing.

I'm a WriMo to start and finish a 50,000 word novella. My hope for this year is be published.

Websinthe (Kieran)
My work: http://kieran-tales.blogspot.com
My Blog: http://websinthe.blogspot.com
My Comic: http://websinthe.thewebcomic.com
Genre: Suspense/Sci-Fi

Why did I sign up??? Because I am determined that one year I will actually finish & reach the magic number & get this book written once & for all :-)
Plus I enjoy the challenge of trying to write a novel inbetween coping with all the crap that life usually dishes me during the month of November *lol*
Carole

"A cat spends her life conflicted between a deep, passionate and profound
desire for fish and an equally deep, passionate and profound desire to
avoid getting wet. This is the defining metaphor of my life right now."

Why am I back?

Because I'm crazy, and I love it. :-)

I've been doing this since 2002, although the first three efforts were pretty dismal. My life was in a deep dark hole, and it definitely destroyed any spark of enthusiasm I might have had for writing. Perhaps one day I'll go back to those early stories and jump-start them -- after all, in my 2006 novel I restored a character from an unfinished tale I began 20-odd years ago for a special cameo appearance -- but not yet.

In 2005 my life changed. You know those moments where something happens that is so gut-wrenchingly awful that you feel as though you just want to curl up and die, only to realise after perhaps two minutes of soul-destroying depression that, hey, life is actually pretty good now that you're finally free of a really bad situation?! Well, for me that happened in October of 2005, and so -- having already decided that I would never again darken the doorway of NaNoWriMo with my obvious inability to string 50 words together, let alone 50,000 -- I signed up once more. I had no plot, but hey, no problem, right? Up until November 2, I still had no idea what I was going to write. Then the idea came. I'd basically read an exceedingly bad Matrix parody, and started reading an even worse Star Wars parody, and I thought to myself, "Hey, self, I could do better than this! If only I had some excuse to sit down and write a novel..." And my Star Wars/Matrix crossover parody trilogy was born...

I had great fun with it in 2005. The novel practically spilled out in final form onto the page. The thrill I experienced at hitting the 50,000 mark that first time (with three days to spare) is indescribable to anybody who hasn't done the same thing. I literally danced with glee. My word count by the end of November was 53,000; the final edited novel weighed in at around 60,000. And I'd already decided that I would be writing two more in the trilogy...

In 2006 I went along to the KOP -- rather nervously, I was quite shy back then -- and had a great time with that too (although it's possible that nobody else present realised I was enjoying myself... ;-)) I started socialising, went along to the TGIO party too, and somewhere in there churned out the first draft of what would become book two in my trilogy, although I had to go back and finish it off during the next few months. I dragged myself across the 50,000 word line and then dropped it for six months before going back to finish it off. Then I rushed it to print (yay Lulu!) with errors in, and I'm still tinkering with it, on and off. Its final wordcount, however, is 73,689 or thereabouts and I was happy with the end result...

In 2007 I went to several write-ins, which were great fun but didn't really help me to get much written. That, combined with my long work hours at the time, dragged my word output down and by the end of November I was at 43,000 and feeling miserable about my efforts. But the TGIO was still fun! :-) I think the biggest thing holding back my efforts on my third novel was the very fact that, as the third novel, I had a lot of pre-established story which I had to follow. The NaNoWriMo guys recommend that you use a new story for NaNo because it gives you the freedom to just write any old thing; having tied myself in knots with the third one -- I wrote several left-field scenes which might have worked by themselves, but which I knew I was gonna have to scrap because they just didn't fit with what I'd already written in the earlier novels -- I know exactly what they mean! I wasn't too disappointed about not having hit the 50,000, though -- hey, I'd already proved I could write 50,000 in a month -- twice! (as Rick O'Connell stresses so vehemently.) And now that I'm finally getting back into the world of my third novel, I'm finding that, while the pacing is a little slow in places, much of what I wrote in the early chapters is pretty good. I hope to finish it off before November, but whether I do or not, I'm confident that the third novel I produced during NaNo will be a worthy closing chapter for my trilogy.

So why am I back? Because I love it! Because NaNo managed to drag a trilogy out of me that I never knew was there, and because I'm hoping to once again recapture the initial thrill of writing something new -- although the story I'm planning to write this year has been fermenting in my head for at least 18 months now, so perhaps it's not so much "new" as just relieving the pressure... I know that I do not manage to find the time to write outside of NaNo November, so if I want to keep writing stories, I'm gonna have to keep coming back!

2005 to 2007 - The Array Wars Trilogy!
2008 - Half Life Zero: No Life

Why do I do this to myself? Because I love it. I love the excuse to say to hell with the petty things that get in the way, and just do the thing I really want to do - sit and lose myself in the story I'm writing. I love the feeling of achievement that checking my wordcount at the end of a day gives me, and compulsively updating my wordcount. I love meeting people as nuts as I am, and rolling around in ideas and shared frazzledness.

Need I say more? :)

~Mel
co-ML for Brisbane, Australia
Captain of the Purple Ninja Nightowls (of Death)

2007 - Queen of Diamonds
2008 - Shuriken

I am crazy. That is why. Plus, 50,000 words is quite an aim.

But mainly, the people are awesome. :D

07: ... *fails*
08: Twisted Fate (genre: YA spec fic)

The Writey Ducks! (TEAM 3)

Heya fellows, I'm back again. This is my fourth year participating, and hopefully my first success. I don't think I have any excuses this year - 2005 I was finishing highschool, 2006 I was moving, and in 2007 I was organising a film-shoot. 2008 may well be my year!

2005 - "Trevor James: Space Actor"
2006 - "Writing a Novel"
2007 - "Basil Turret and the Prisoner of Algebra"
2008 - "The Black Handle Club"

Ah, Pete(r). :D

07: ... *fails*
08: Twisted Fate (genre: YA spec fic)

The Writey Ducks! (TEAM 3)

I'm here because I hate myself enough to go through this again.

2007: Wizards Don't Cry (failed)
2008: TBA

I'm here because I want to prove to my friends that I'm nowhere near as sane as they think I am.

And also because I hope this will finally give me the motivation to get more than eleven pages into a story and finish writing before another idea comes along and shouts "HEY I'M BETTER, WRITE ME INSTEAD", as that becomes very annoying very quickly.

This is my first attempt at NaNoWriMo. Hell, it's going to be my first attempt to write a novel. Not that I don't have lots of ideas; I just tend to procrastinate myself out of actually sitting down and writing anything about them.

I guess I'm going about writing a novel this way because I can sign up here, talk to people in the forums, go to the meet ups, write about my progress on my blog, tell all my friends I'm writing a book, compete against my brother (he's in New Zealand and this is his first go at NaNoWriMo too), and generally put so much social pressure on myself to complete a novel that I actually make it to the 50,000 word mark!

Also, I have a (bad?) habit of jumping in the deep end.

Why did you sign up?

My year 12 teacher wrote a comment on one of my last English assignments along the lines of "I hope you never give up writing, you write very well". And in the decade plus since then I've written...... almost nothing. I absolutely loved writing when I was young. I was always chafing at the bit at the super-limited scope for English assignments, always wanting to write way more than I was allowed. But then I got to uni, and busy-ness and my laziness got the better of me... Meanwhile I've had a number of novels burning a hole in my brain, and I've always had this fantasy that I'd start writing again... This seemed like a pretty good excuse to actually start getting words down again!

Why are you a WriMo?

I've been aware of NaNo for a couple of years now, but have always thought I couldn't do it, that there's no way of pulling it off. And life has progressively gotten more busier and full (having a family with 4 young children does that to you). But I figured I need something as crazy as this to get me kick-started again with my writing, and I'm hoping that by the end I will be inspired enough to keep on writing at least a few hours every week. Besides, I have adopted a polyphasic sleeping schedule giving me a heap more time. Basically - I sleep a lot less overall these days but have more naps :)

Why am I doing this to myself? Well, some have called me insane, but my main goal is to actually finish this year. Heck, I'm still writing my nano novel from last year.

A.k.a. Chewy... I'm Here...

Why am I back? Because I love to write, and NaNo is the only thing that really pushes me to write original fiction instead of fanfiction. I want to be published someday, and I've learned enormous amounts from NaNo - including the fact that I can really churn out the wordcount when there's something pushing me to do it.

You're not the only one! :-)

I can only hope this year's effort works itself out a little more easily than the last couple have!

2005 to 2007 - The Array Wars Trilogy!
2008 - Half Life Zero: No Life

I signed up because I bought yet another writing book a couple of years back (to go with the other 23 or more) and, as usual, they all sat on the shelf next to my 7 books on how to defeat procrastination (which I fully intend to read one day).

This particular book was Chris Baty's 'No Plot? No Problem', which was all about NaNoWriMo, and it seemed destined to be just as eagerly unread as the other 22 BUT THEN ....

Margaret, the Love of My Life, and I went wandering away on a leisurely tour in July, and I packed that book (mainly because it didn't take up a lot of space), and, even more improbably, I read the danged thing!

So, after a month or two of percolating the thought, I signed up. And here am I waiting, with my eleventeen ideas for writing something all sloshing around in the head.

I have joined this support group as my ultimate anti-procrastinating weapon, so please don't let me down.

with warmth,

Norm

AT some point you have to put your fears aside and actually put words on paper. I am a little bit nervous because as a 'creative person' it will be hard to look at the work I've written and discover that I am not as 'special' as I thought I might be. It is so easy to be one with potential but to follow through. I have to try.

img79, I think you've hit the nail on the head.

But yes, you could go through your entire life doing nothing for fear you'll suck -- and really, it's ridiculous to think you're going to be great at anything right off the bat, isn't it? You get better at *anything* through doing it; there's no reason in the world writing should be any different, nor why we should put pressure on ourselves to be perfect at creative things immediately or assume we can never be any good at it at all. Maybe some people will grow better at something more quickly than others, but if you want to do something, then regardless of whether you experience that "This sucks" moment or not, sticking at it can only make you better and move you closer towards achieving it -- eventually, if not as immediately as you'd prefer.

And in the process you learn and experience more than you would've if you hadn't tried -- and the more you keep on trying, the more you keep learning and experiencing -- so even if you *never* get there, the process is worth the bother.

(Note to self: look back at this later when you're feeling anything *but*.) ;-)

Thanks for the insights. :)

Because I found out about it years ago, but only stumbled upon it again just before Halloween last year and signed up. Before I really knew what I was doing I was writing a novel. I didn't finish last year, but damn was the story great! Everyone who read it loved it and it made me relaly happy.

This year I am going to try REALLY hard to do 50 000 words. REALLY hard. And I hope to succeed! Only problem is I have no idea how to top the story I did last year .

I'm also doing it because no one really believes I can do it. I have minimal support from my housemates and very sarcastic support from my husband. Although after i gave him a good talking to he came up with a brilliant ending :D

So that's good.

I want to do it because I love the crazy people I talk to along the way, I love word warring with complete strangers and I love seeing this story take shape without really ever having control over what is going on :D

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Hello once again, Brisvegas Forum.
I don't even have to think about signing up to do this anymore, it just like "hey, it's nearly November, time to start plotting."
I've only finished one year (my first year) and I think it's about time I finished again. So that's my only goal for this year.

Hi everyone, and good luck!

Why did I sign up? Because in high school, I was widely considered to be the one most likely to be published... if I could get my ideas in order. The first year I entered this crazy competition, I finished my book/novella - Streetcop - and was very proud. Since then I've attempted a few fantasy novels, but have finally found a story that not even I know what's going to happen.

I'm a Wrimo because I'm mad enough to try for 50k words while writing a daily serial for my mates (I am mad for doing a thousand a day for those girls!) so that makes... 2,666 words a day for thirty days. Oy. At least Hyde will keep me company. *switches on the Anthony Warlow and tunes out*

Tonight, I'll take from all mankind, conquer all the odds!
And I feel I'll live on FOREVER!...
Show the world that tonight and forever the name to remember is the name
EDWARD HYDE!
*is slapped by Star-scorch*
Me: YOU are the character, you will do as

I did this the first time last year. Sometimes, you just need something concrete to lean on when you come up with excuses not to do it. And the peer pressure thing is great! "Hey, everyone's writing a novel this month, I will, too!"

And the continuous support is priceless.

Everyone--every single human being--has a story to tell. Most of us have many. This is a brilliant chance to get one down on paper without fear, without judgment--just get the words on paper (or phosphor).

It's a lovely exercise in fearlessness.

I think I'll be bringing a little paper effigy of my internal editor to burn (or, if that's too hazardous, drown) at the KOP. There's something really appealing about that...

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Typing blind. If it's no good, at least I'll have dadaist poetry after running the spellchecker. -Me, 19 October 2008

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Typing blind. If it's no good, at least I'll have dadaist poetry after running the spellchecker. -Me, 19 October 2008

Love it! :) Mind if I steal the idea? I don't think one would be enough for symbolically popping off my own internal editor; I may make a whole paper doll chain to burn progressively throughout the month. ;)

By all means! Anyone who wants to throttle that little sock puppet of doubt (that's one of my epithets for the thing) should bring something along and stomp it but good!

...And I very much like the idea of a sequential burn-off...mind if I steal that myself? ;)
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Typing blind. If it's no good, at least I'll have dadaist poetry after running the spellchecker. -Me, 19 October 2008

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Typing blind. If it's no good, at least I'll have dadaist poetry after running the spellchecker. -Me, 19 October 2008

A) I love to write
B) I've never done nano before- only found out about it last year when it had already started
C) I love new experiences
D) Why the hell not? It's not like it's many words each day ; )
E) I'm not good at listening to advice of those in my life... "Haven't you enough to do already without taking on something else?"

You are what you consume- whether it be words on a page or food on a plate.

Someone sent me a link to the site and said "I'll give you twenty bucks if you commit to doing this."
After reading about the Event, I decided I'd be happy to do it, with or without the cash prize at the end.
(I'm choosing not to tell my friend that ;P )

I would love to pursue writing as a career, so I guess this is a perfect opportunity to test my abilities.

"I Mustn't run away, I mustn't run away!"

Why am I doing this?
Possibly because I'm crazy? Mostly because I don't usually write fiction and I need something to get me started and focused. At this moment I have no plot, a couple of character ideas and a list of things that amuse me.... I guess that's a start! I'm looking to enjoy the journey and learn some fun stuff along the way.

How does it get any better than that?
Lisa

Lisa Murray
www.ReviveCoaching.com.au

First Time Lucky?
Nanowrimo seems to be the kick up the ass i've been needing!

I found out about nanowrimo last year, on about the 17th November, and chickened out even attempting to write 50,000 words in 13 days. So I vowed I would do it this year. I totally forgot about it until someone on a forum I frequent mentioned it last night!

So, I have no plot, no MC developed, no thinking done at all. But I AM going to write 50,000 words, even if it's total rubbish.

Me, because I am so friggen sick of rewrites BEFORE I've even sent it off to publishers to reject 72 times a day! So part motivation, part long-term goal, part discussion, part experiment, part hope, part hopelessness, part time-wasting, part procrastination, part procrastination-beating, part... well, you get the idea.