Okay, maybe I'm doing this a bit early, but I've been planning my plot for this year's NaNo since July, so I figure I may as well continue this recent development of getting the jump on things.
So, all ye Wrimos from ye olde towne of Santa Cruz, name yourselves! Tell your fellow Santa Cruzans that you're here!
As for me, I'm now a three-year veteran Wrimo who hasn't won once yet, but that won't stop me a fourth time! I'm 19 and hail from Felton, which strangely sounds like a foreign land to some Santa Cruzans even though it's only 10 minutes away. :\ I attend Cabrillo College full time, and work there part time as a PR clerk. I'm hoping to transfer to CSULB to get a BFA in both Creative Writing and Illustration. In my non-nanoing time I like to play video games, surf the internet, watch movies, and occasionally hike.
I also have never, ever navigated the campus of UCSC, so if anyone plans to have official write-ins there, remember that there are people (like me!) who dislike the idea immensely. :( Just mentioning it early.
----------
The NaNo blog: http://mystikmadness.blogspot.com/
51,983 / 50,000
sept. 29, 2008 - 18 34
Count me in! How 'bout writing at The Buttery?
42,827 / 50,000
sept. 29, 2008 - 18 50
Anything near baked goods and pastries makes this wrimo very happy! :3
----------The NaNo blog: http://mystikmadness.blogspot.com/
50,022 / 50,000
sept. 29, 2008 - 20 34
Hi, tickyhead; here I am, Dave Empey. 1-time player, 1-time winner, in West Side SC.
87,024 / 50,000
oct. 2, 2008 - 15 44
Howdy, all. I'm a Mighty Mighty South Bay transplant. This will be my sixth time doing Nano, and I've won every year. Looking forward to seeing anyone in San Lorenzo Valley.
5,412 / 50,000
oct. 3, 2008 - 09 32
Ditto. Apparently the 69 bus runs right by there, so even if I don't want to walk too far it's not bad. Although google transit is a bit loopy - it has you walk around the block to get from the metro center on Pacific to the metro center on Front!
Anyway. I'm Bubble. I was ML in 2006 and Co-ML in 2007, but I've decided to step down from official ML duties this time, since I have more on my plate with life this year (graduating from UCSC in the spring, so I have to do my senior exit requirement). I am still getting the ML emails, I think, but I don't have ML powers or access to the ML forum. If there's a new ML, contact me and I'll get you the leftover stickers and stuff from previous years (I don't have them with me but can get them before November).
A bit I've gleaned from those years:
As to on-campus write-ins, my experience has been that they have never been overly successful, in part because of my disorganization, but probably more because it seems that UCSC students, even ones who live on-campus, are more likely to come to downtown/westside events than non-students are to come to campus events. For that reason, a downtown or Mission area write-in might be pretty successful (I'm partial to Emily's Bakery at Laurel and Mission, or there's Farrell's if you want donuts and ice cream at insane hours).
Write-ins at the Ugly Mug (Aptos? way down Soquel anyway) in 2006 were pretty popular, and I gather there was also a place in Scotts Valley that people liked. Some people have wanted to write at 99 Bottles, but it's very loud and many of us find that difficult to deal with, so those weren't terribly popular. Lulu's at the Octagon worked pretty well, but haven't tried the other location. Tables are small, and it might be hard to push more than two together, though. Oftentimes that's a non-issue.
A kick-off party seems generally a good idea, a few days before November. We had one at Santa Cruz Coffee Roasting Company in '06 which was popular, but it's not a good write-in space due to lack of bathrooms. Thank God It's Over parties are the other big draw, and having them at Saturn worked pretty well.
Anyway, looking forward to NaNoWriMo again this year!
----------Participant 04-07, Winner 04, 06, 07
NaNo 08:
Bananas to the Party: It's All Gone Pants - Doctor Who/Star Trek Voyager fic featuring Seven of Nine, with cameos by Captain Jack and K9 and lots of crazy nonsense
61,428 / 50,000
oct. 5, 2008 - 07 59
Hi everyone,
My name is Kathleen and I live on the Westside of SC. I think Kelly's is always a great place to meet.
This is my second time doing NaNoWriMo and I'm looking forward to all that insane writing that lies ahead......
----------2007 - Winner!
4,138 / 50,000
oct. 6, 2008 - 07 23
hi everyone, i'm super excited to take on a month of writing. looking forward to getting together to hear some veterans share experience and advice. i'm up to meet anywhere in sc, coffee helps...
ps- never done this before...
50,243 / 50,000
oct. 6, 2008 - 09 08
The place in Scotts Valley was Abouche, which is now a Peet's. Coffee Cat, across the street, is a very good spot for write-ins, and has wifi and lots of electricity (power plugs are the #1 challenge). Also, Coffee 9 in Ben Lomond was a very friendly spot, but their hours vary a bit seasonally, and they might be closed in the evenings in Fall.
--Stephanie
----------(former Santa Cruz ML)
--
Stephanie Bryant
http://www.mortaine.com/blog
NaNo08: Getting Buried in Vegas.
"When all else fails, add zombies."
0 / 50,000
oct. 6, 2008 - 13 08
Places easy to get to on the bus are always nice, so maybe somewhere downtown/on the route of the 69?
23,456 / 50,000
oct. 7, 2008 - 13 12
I never made it to a write in last year which was my first. I now live in Watsonville and work in Soquel. Having just moved a week ago I have a lot on my plate right now. That said I'm looking forward to this years nano and have my story already plotting around in my head.
An idea for those of us who are always online but unable to go to write in's. I have 3 friends who I did this with last year. We all met in a yahoo chat room and did 15 to 30 minute bursts of writing. Then we would chat for 10 to 15 minutes and do another. It was pretty successful because we were not trying to stay focused for large periods of time. Just a thought and I'm pretty much always on yahoo so if anyone is interested let me know.
Oh yeah I'm Jenn.
----------~*~Jenn~*~
87,024 / 50,000
oct. 7, 2008 - 13 53
FABULOUS idea! Those Silicon Valley smarties think they're so high-tech!
2,029 / 50,000
oct. 7, 2008 - 14 46
Hi! I'm Nic, and this is my first year, so I'm super excited and a bit nervous about getting started. I'll second the desire of places that are easy to get to on the bus, since I'm car-less. Really though, any place with caffeine and baked goods sounds a little like paradise!
----------50,052 / 50,000
oct. 7, 2008 - 16 13
I'm Deborah. This'll be nano #4 for me. I'm down in Rio del Mar, closer to Watsonville than Santa Cruz proper.
Ugly Mug in Soquel is a great place to write. Last year we also did write ins in the Aptos/ Rio del Mar area at Surf City Coffee, but those proved unpopular sadly. I think only one of last year's MLs and I ever went.
----------The great god Thor, he went to war, riding on a filly,
"I'm THOR!" he cried, the Horse replied, "So get a thaddle, thilly!"
10,948 / 50,000
oct. 7, 2008 - 17 30
Hey, Alice here.
It's my second time doing nano, though I had to quit early last year to resurrect my failing grades. As it is I ended up on academic probation. So for the sake of my sanity I'm not actually trying to win, just to write.
Anyway, I live in Soquel so I'm pretty much down for anything going on at the Ugly Mug.
Good luck to everyone and happy pre-writing!
----------~~~~~~~
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less travled by.
And that has made all the difference.
0 / 50,000
oct. 8, 2008 - 02 29
Hello, I'm another first timer. I'm all for The Ugly Mug, seeing as I travel through Soquel frequently. Heard about this recently, and thought I'd give it a shot.
50,261 / 50,000
oct. 13, 2008 - 21 29
Here there, ticky. 8D Long time no see.
Name's Charlie, and this will be my third year of NaNo. I managed to win last year, which was heartening, and the same with ScriptFrenzy. I live in Aptos but school in Santa Cruz and work in Soquel and spend way too much time on the 71 bus. So I would definitely be open to write-ins along that route. When I'm not NaNoing, I'm still writing. I also sing in a choir, practice Tae Kwon Do, and play various musical instruments. And, y'know, bum around on the computer.
Dunno what else to say. Guess I'll see some of you next Wednesday.
------------
Denial - not just a river in Egypt.
50,261 / 50,000
oct. 13, 2008 - 21 36
I went to a few Surf City write-ins, and I'd definitely attend this year as well - provided they were on weekends.
------------
Denial - not just a river in Egypt.
42,827 / 50,000
oct. 13, 2008 - 21 41
Hey hey, I was wondering when you'd show up!
I suppose I'll see you soon.
----------The NaNo blog: http://mystikmadness.blogspot.com/
50,549 / 50,000
oct. 17, 2008 - 09 37
Hey All!!!
My name's Cassia, this is my first Nano although I've already written a 90,000 word novel. I am sooooooo excited it's crazy! I saw someone suggested the Buttery as a place to meet and write--- if I am on shift when that happens I swear I'll drop dead from envy watching other people write while I make coffee O_O haha
I'm totally goanna try to show up at the Ugly Mug on the 22, I hopehopehope I am not working that day
:)
Oh yah, I'm 18, an avid traveler, I've lived in Southern CA, Santa Cruz, Portland, Felton and traveled around Central and South America. I wanna start taking some dance and english classes at Cabrillo again in the Spring. I work at the Buttery and love fire dancing
Cassia
----------"Morality, like art, means drawing a line someplace." -- Oscar Wilde
2,414 / 50,000
oct. 18, 2008 - 19 11
Hey, dudes. I'm Amelia, 20, and this is my first time trying NaNoWriMo (or writing anything longer than twenty pages, really). This sounds like it ought to be good times, even though I won't be able to make it to the Meet and Greet due to class. Que lastima. But I look forward to meeting everybody at some other get-together!
----------2008: By Inches (typing with one hand and knocking on wood with the other)
7,606 / 50,000
oct. 18, 2008 - 19 52
My name is Joshua and I'm from Banks, Oregon (a small town about 45 minutes away from Portland) and I moved to Santa Cruz in September to attend UCSC. My girlfriend discovered nanowrimo last year sometime just after November had started, so I wasn't actually able to participate but she rediscovered it again this year in time, so I'm looking forward to my first attempt at this.
----------I'm something of a polyglot although I prefer to speak mostly German or English. I also enjoy playing music and taking long walks in forests.
Nothing particularly interesting.
"Wozu Dichter in dürftiger Zeit?" - Hölderlin
21,712 / 50,000
oct. 24, 2008 - 16 25
Reporting for... well, roll call! I NaNoed in '06 (didn't win, but I got really close, and it was my first work of fiction that I actually managed to finish even a first draft of, so I was quite proud of myself), skipped '07, and now I'm doing it again. I am addicted to semicolons in all my writing, parentheses in anything on the internet (and even in posters and essays and such, I sometimes end up having to edit them out.)
--------------
"A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will certainly annoy enough people to make it worth the effort." -Herm Albright
25,583 / 50,000
oct. 28, 2008 - 20 25
Hi, I'm Christie, and I just signed on for this year. I've done NaNo twice for real. Last year I found myself signed up when I didn't intend to, so i kinda didn't it. This year it's for real again, and I'm looking forward to it. I'm just finishing a 100,000 word novel that started out as a 6000 word short story and just grew. The first part needs much revising, so I'm setting it aside for Nov. It segues into what I plan to blast out as a first draft this NaNo.
Looking forward to it.
I normally "work" at Starbuck's SV by Hiway 17, but Coffee Cat would be a good place for a write-in.
----------Camarec - Fantasy is the only truth.
50,009 / 50,000
oct. 28, 2008 - 22 23
Hey there everyone. :) So, I thought I'd poke my head in the door and introduce myself. I'm Jennifer, and I go to college in Scotts Valley. I don't really have transportation outside of Scotts Valley, and I'm a very busy person so I write when I get a spare moment and don't really have time to go to any write ins. However, I'm still here, soon to be chugging away with the rest of ya, boosting that regional word count a tad. Oh, and this is my second year doing NaNoWriMo, and I won the last one and was busier then than I am now, so my hopes for this year are indeed high. :)
87,024 / 50,000
oct. 29, 2008 - 19 26
Totally respecting your busy schedule, but there's a Saturday morning write-in at Coffee Kat, so if you're able to make it, we'd love to see you! Otherwise, we'll all be silently pulling for you!
0 / 50,000
oct. 30, 2008 - 13 06
Hey everyone! I'm Lily, signing up to do NaNo this year at the very last minute, but this is my sixth yearly attempt. Kind of sad that I've never won, huh? But I'm determined, as ever.
I just moved to Santa Cruz from Los Angeles in September, as I'm a junior transfer student (Literature major) at UCSC. I haven't seen any other Slugs around these parts-- anyone out there? I have to say, I'm kind of disappointed that the idea of an on campus write-in was shot down in the first post on this thread...
14,091 / 50,000
nov. 1, 2008 - 23 18
Hi,
I'm Jessi..I'm a third year up at UCSC (American Studies/Education). This is my second time attempting. First one I had like no plot, but this year I came up with my plot in the summer (yay me), and I'm so excited and it's all I can think about now. I think my brain might explode.
37,419 / 50,000
nov. 2, 2008 - 02 00
Hi everyone!
My name is May and I'm new to Santa Cruz and new to NaNo. Last year I thought it was silly because it results in some really crappy writing, so I didn't do it. This year, I've actually started churning out some stories, rather than just random drabbles and characters, and realized I bang my head against the wall too much looking for just the perfect word, so I'm attempting just letting loose this year.
I'm a freshman at UCSC right now, living on campus, and, at this very second, listening to a very obnoxious party going on next door. If anyone's curious, I'm at Crown College, but I don't really think anyone cares, haha.
The crappy part, my midterms are scheduled right at the half-way point. So I figure I might hang myself somewhere around there, or resume banging my head against a wall and hope all the math I need to know doesn't fall out. I'm not sure I'll finish, but I will give it a good honest try, haha.
Just like I'll give sleeping a good honest try before I go in there and pelt all the drunkards with water balloons...
Happy NaNo-ing!
87,024 / 50,000
nov. 2, 2008 - 14 34
I just moved to Santa Cruz from Los Angeles in September, as I'm a junior transfer student (Literature major) at UCSC. I haven't seen any other Slugs around these parts-- anyone out there? I have to say, I'm kind of disappointed that the idea of an on campus write-in was shot down in the first post on this thread...
There's no limit to where we can have write-ins. If you want to send me the specifics, I would be happy to put a UCSC write-in on the schedule. There were lots of slugs at the Meet & Greet, so we know they're out there. Just drop me a nanomail with the info you'd like on the calendar and I'll put it on.
9,118 / 50,000
nov. 3, 2008 - 01 01
Hello! 'M called Ben, or Sunshine, UCSC Freshman, Porter College. This is my first year NaNoing...
I'm doing something a little different... I'm running an improv theater / live-action roleplay event in late December, and I've decided to write all of the character sheets for the game as my NaNo. So it's not one long novel... more like a long series of character-centric short stories! One character down, and 3,555 words with it!
~Duk