Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

[STICKY] Get your weekly e-mail here!

karalianne — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 22:11:49 -0800

I'm going to post our e-mails here on the forum. Please refrain from posting replies to this thread; this is meant to be a reference, not a conversation piece! :D

Thanks, gang!
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-Janna
NaNoWriMo Co-ML, Calgary
NaNoWriMo Moderator, Character & Plot Q&A
NaNoWriMo Moderator, All-Ages Coffee House
NaNoEdMo ML, Canada
ScriptFrenzy ML, Alberta
http://chatnano.net
The Book of Tim

Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

[STICKY] Calling all Wrimotaurs!

karalianne — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 10:28:23 -0700

Please tell us who you are, how long you've been participating in NaNoWriMo, what you're writing this year, and whereabouts you live in the city. Also any other random facts you'd like to share. :)

I'm Janna, one of your co-MLs. That is, I coordinate and run events, moderate this forum, send out peppy e-mails, make weird videos, etc. Together with Heather (who will introduce herself later, I'm sure), I do my best to make October and November memorable for you - in a good way! :)

I've been participating in NaNoWriMo since 2001 or so and have been co-ML for Calgary since 2005. So far, I've only won once, in 2006. That is attributable to both the chat room and Tim. ;)

This year, I've decided to write a sequel to my winning novel from 2006. It's a YA novel about an autistic girl who has to testify in the trial of a man who sexually abused her. Fun! (Or something...)

I live in Bowness (NW for those who don't know the city very well) but travel all over the city for meets, so unless I'm stuck doing something I really can't get out of, I'll be at as many write-ins and other events as possible - even the ones Heather and I don't plan!

I own two guinea pigs, one of whom seems to be very pregnant. Anyone want a baby guinea pig? It'll come with a cage and stuff!

I work in the disabilities field, for the Alberta Council of Disability Services. We certify agencies that provide services to adults with disabilities in Alberta. It's all about the quality of life!
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-Janna
NaNoWriMo Co-ML, Calgary
NaNoWriMo Moderator, Character & Plot Q&A
NaNoWriMo Moderator, All-Ages Coffee House
NaNoEdMo ML, Canada
ScriptFrenzy ML, Alberta
http://chatnano.net
The Book of Tim

Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

[STICKY] Validate and Win!

karalianne — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:36:27 -0800

There has been some confusion about validation and winning, so I thought I'd try to make things somewhat clearer.

Validation makes your word count bar turn purple, and it lets us all know you won. It also lets the widgets know you won, which helps us in our challenges this year. On top of that, you will get to download and print a PDF of the official NaNoWriMo Winner's Certificate, and you'll be allowed to order a winner's t-shirt when they become available! So you do want to validate! Please validate!

When you go to the validation page (My NaNoWriMo > Validate & Win!), you will see two boxes. The first one says Word Count above it. This is where you type your word count before and after you validate. The second one says Word Count Validator above it. This is where you paste your whole entire story in order to validate.

Underneath the Word Count Validator box, it says:

Quote:

Paste your entire manuscript here and our robots will count it for you and update the word count on your author profile. Your draft will not show up on our website and will be deleted after it is counted. You can also scramble your manuscript before uploading it. See our Technical FAQ for tips.

Note: The Word Count Validator is now LIVE. From now until 11:59:59 PM local time on November 30th, if you paste a 50,000+ word manuscript into the word counter, you will become an official NaNoWriMo winner, and will be taken to the special winner's page to collect your winner certificate.

After winning, you can continue to update your word count until 11:59:59 PM local time on November 30th, at which point your 2008 word count will be frozen. To "unwin" simply input any word count less than 50,000 in the Word Count field above (not the one on the top of every page) and click submit .

Here is the information on scrambling your manuscript:

Quote:

If you are using Microsoft Word it is very easy to scramble your novel in a way that will not affect its word count.

Open the file and make a new copy of your novel using 'Save As...'
Open the Find and Replace dialog box (Edit -> Replace).
Click the "More" button to expand the box.
Check the "Use Wildcards" checkbox.
In the "Find What" field, put this: [a-zA-Z0-9] (include the square brackets, no spaces before or after)
In the "Replace With" field, put this: a
Click "Replace All"
Save the scrambled file as a text file, and upload away!
The procedure for Open Office is essentially the same, except that Open Office refers to 'Regular Expressions' instead of 'Wildcards'. (Thanks to Peter Dudley for this advice!)

You can get the same effect in a more cumbersome way by just doing a find-and-replace on every letter in the alphabet, one letter at a time. Open the find-and-replace interface on your word processing program and tell it to replace every "b" in your story with an "a," and every "c" with an "a," then every "d" with an "a." And so on.

You do not need to scramble your words before you paste them! The site deletes the file as soon as it's done counting the words, so it's safe from being pirated.

Hopefully this is all clearer now. If you have questions, feel free to post to this thread. The least you need to know:

Validating is good. Validate your novel once you hit 50k, even if you plan to continue writing.
If you are still writing after you validate, you can keep updating your word count the way you have been doing all month, right up until midnight on November 30.
You don't have to re-validate. Once you've uploaded your words once, you're done, even if you keep adding words to your count.
If you're writing a second novel, validate using your first book only. After that, change your total word count as you keep working on your second book. Don't re-validate; it's unnecessary.

----------
-Janna
NaNoWriMo Co-ML, Calgary
NaNoWriMo Moderator, Character & Plot Q&A
NaNoWriMo Moderator, All-Ages Coffee House
NaNoEdMo ML, Canada
ScriptFrenzy ML, Alberta
http://chatnano.net
The Book of Tim

Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

[STICKY] Official Events - Please Read! (updated 25.11.2008)

karalianne — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 10:27:26 -0700

Okay, we have a calendar of events, but I know some people don't remember to look there. So I'm going to list our events here. If you have questions, feel free to ask!

Online Events
Location: http://alberta.chatnano.net/Calgary/index.html

We chat all year 'round on Tuesdays and Thursdays, starting at 7.00 p.m. During October and November, people are always in and out, so feel free to stop in any time!
Our Starting Gun will be on Friday, October 31, starting at 9.00 p.m. It will continue until sometime on Saturday, November 1. We begin with chatting and goofiness, and at midnight we start the word wars!
Our Race to the Finish Line will be on Sunday, November 30, starting at 9.00 p.m. It will continue until shortly after midnight. We do word wars all evening and finish up at around 11.30 p.m. so everyone gets validated on time.

In-Person Meets
Please RSVP to my NaNoMail or my e-mail, so I can be prepared for everyone!

Saturday, October 25, 6.30 p.m. Ricky's across from Chinook Centre
It's the Kickoff Party! Please come and pick up your NaNo Survival Kit, partake of some word wars (we'll have writing prompts if necessary), and enjoy the insanity of helping write our fourth Round Robin Story! Of course, be prepared to order and eat dinner; Ricky's is a diner-type establishment, and the fare is pretty good. Novel-Adjacent Persons are more than welcome at this event.
Friday, November 14, 6.30 p.m. Ricky's across from Chinook Centre
Our Midway Bash is always a lot of fun! We'll be doing a craft (I am stellar at this; just ask the people who made ninja plot bunny finger puppets last year) and mostly just hanging out, but if people are interested in writing as well, we can have some word wars.
Friday, December 5, 6.30 p.m. Ricky's across from Chinook Centre
The TGIO (Thank Goodness it's Over) party is always a good time, as well. It's a time to celebrate our accomplishments and receive awards! Novel-Adjacent Persons are more than welcome at this event.

Weekly Write-Ins

Saturdays at 10.00 a.m. The London Fog Cafe
The owner has graciously allowed us the use of his fine establishment for our write-ins this year. I'll get there early and set up where the square tables are (to the right of the door). They have all-day breakfast, and the food is made fresh!
Thursdays at 7.00 p.m. Denny's on 16th (Motel Village)
We had a good time there last year, let's give it a shot again this year! (I think I eat at Denny's way too often.)

12-Hour Write-Ins

Friday, November 21, 6.00 p.m. - Saturday, November 22, 6.00 a.m. Denny's on 16th (Motel Village)
The All-Nighter is a first-time event here in Calgary and will hopefully become an annual one! Word wars (with prizes), food, and caffeine: the best combo ever! Note: Minors require permission slip; e-mail karalianne to get one.
Saturday, November 29, 1.00 p.m. - Sunday, November 30, 1.00 a.m. Road King truck stop
This is another first for Calgary. Hopefully it will also become a tradition. Or not; we'll see how it goes! Same combination of goodness as the All-Nighter. Have fun!

Monthly Meet/Write-In

Tuesday, November 11, 6.30 p.m. Denny's on the corner of McKnight & Edmonton Trail
It's a Write-In, but it's also our usual monthly meet. These happen on the second Tuesday of the month. Please let me know if you're coming, so I can warn the staff and we can get the party room!

I'll be sending out weekly e-mails from now until NaNo is over, giving you more details on events that are coming up that week.

I hope to see you there!
----------
-Janna
NaNoWriMo Co-ML, Calgary
NaNoWriMo Moderator, Character & Plot Q&A
NaNoWriMo Moderator, All-Ages Coffee House
NaNoEdMo ML, Canada
ScriptFrenzy ML, Alberta
http://chatnano.net
The Book of Tim

Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Calgary / Manitoba Word War!

bpunkert — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 06:05:27 -0700

Hey everyone... *taps gauntlet lightly in palm*

Calgary's asked us if we think we can write more than they can - anyone game? :)

-Bets-
(For the newer folks:
Intraregional word wars - this one will probably be based on percentages complete or something like that rather than individual counts - are a fun way to encourage a little friendly competition between areas. In the past, we've taken on the Dakotas, and it's turned out to be a great way to foster a sense of communal identity.)

Winnipeg vs. Calgary (Average Per User)

ETA: Realized as I was reading the Calgary Taunt Thread that I forgot to post this to both forums so everyone can share in the throwing of snow-filled gauntlets. Now where would be the fun in missing that? *G*
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Participant / Winner: 03, 04, 05, 06, 07... 08
Winnipeg, MB Municipal Liaison: 04, 05, 06*, 07* ...08*
* with help
Forum Co-Mod: Nano Technology
-=-=-=-
Reach the Winnipeg co-MLs at
http://www.nanowrimo.org/mlcontact

Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Hamilton-Calgary-Delaware FRIENDLY Taunting Thread

Gale M-N — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 19:18:33 -0700

So, it seems to be agreed that our three regions will once again have a friendly -- but fierce -- competition during NaNo.

Here's the competition widget:

Here are the categories:

Extreme and Awesome Wordiness Award : to the region with the highest average word count per active member.

Delightfully and Deliciously Loquacious Award: to the region with the greatest number of 50K winners per active member.

"All Words Are Good" Award: In the NaNo tradition, every region which participates is a winner. This is not a lame consolation prize, because, ALL WORDS ARE GOOD.

"Certified Taunter" Award: Within each region, the MLs may, at their discretion, make one or more "certified taunter" awards to the member(s) whose taunts were clever, friendly AND literary. The awards could be given at the TGIO party.

An "active member" is a member who is "homed" to the region and who has logged a word count of any size.

This is the thread that, by the magic of the NaNo site, appears in all 3 regions.

This is the thread where we taunt one another. In a FRIENDLY fashion, of course.

Let the taunting commence!
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Gale . . . www.ThornesQuest.com . . . or . . . www.stringingwords.creativemindwebdesign.com

Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Daily Writing Prompts

Gale M-N — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 08:11:30 -0700

For another writing site that I'm involved in, I provide daily writing prompts, and I thought I might post them here as well during November.

The category in November is "Details, People, I Need Details!", and the sub-categories (of which I will provide 3 each day) are:

- Clothing and Footwear
- Weather and Temperature
- Colours and Lights
- Critters
- Minor Characters
- Food, Glorious Food!
- Plants and Foliage

For those not familiar with writing prompts, they are evocative words which any writer can use to write whatever comes to mind. My November prompts are particularly focussed on visual images, and I'm hoping that people will use them to provide the small details that enrich a novel and make descriptions pop.

Here's an example of one of November's writing prompts:

Example wrote:

Clothing/Footwear: a pair of bronzed baby shoes

Critters: a mole scampering across a snowy field

Colours/Lights: the warm candlelight of a menorah

Perhaps only one image would speak to you, so you could incorporate that into your novel. Or, if you're stuck that day, you could have your MC tell a story to someone which involved all 3 images. The prompts are there to spark your thinking and your writing, and you really can use them in whatever way works for you.

Happy planning, everyone! November is nearly upon us! oOOo

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Gale . . . www.ThornesQuest.com . . . or . . . www.stringingwords.creativemindwebdesign.com

United States :: Delaware

Inksters

Donna W — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 19:37:12 -0700

Hi,
I am curious to know if there are any Mystery Writers Ink members doing NANOWRIMO.

Donna W
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Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Radio Interview

MeaghanM — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 16:15:17 -0800

Hi there,

I'm a producer of a talk radio show called Calgary Today - that's on AM 770 CHQR.

Just wondering if anyone out there might be interested in doing a 5 minute, on-air interview on the show with our host.
The interview would be Friday (tomorrow), late afternoon, probably at 5:45 pm, but we also have some other times available.

I'm trying to track down Calgary branch coordinator/facilitator, if there is one? But I'd be happy to speak with anyone.

Here's my contact info:

Meaghan MacSween
Producer, Calgary Today
AM 770 CHQR Radio
403-444-4353
meaghan.macsween@corusent.com

Please let me know if you're interested!

Thanks very much - good luck in these final writing days!

Meaghan
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Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Plot Plants!

Rei — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 20:12:26 -0800

Wooo... I think it's a sign that all hope is not lost for my NaNo Novel, and my chances of still winning.

MY PLOT PLANT SPROUTED TODAY!!!!

Well... even if it's not a sign, I'm taking it as one. I can still do this, only behind by 16K words after all.

Has anyone else's plot plant sprouted?
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Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

[POLL] All-night write-in, anyone?

karalianne — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 08:35:24 -0800

This is an idea I've had bouncing around in my head for a couple of weeks. I thought I'd see about interest before I actually looked into a venue. It's something other regions do, too. :)

Basically, what happens is that we have a location that will have someone at it the whole time. People come and go as they please/need, and we stage word wars and what-not throughout the time. Typically these things last for a full twelve hours.

So, what I'm curious about is whether or not there is any interest in such a thing, as well as when would be a good date for the event.

As with the other polls, simply reply to this post in the format

VOTE="my choice"

and it will come up on the graphic.

As this will be an official event, we are stuck with times I am available to host. Here are your options:

Friday, November 21, from 6.00 p.m. until 6.00 a.m.
Friday, November 28, from 6.00 p.m. until 6.00 a.m.
Saturday, November 29, from 1.00 p.m. until 1.00 a.m.
None of these dates/times work for me, but I sure wish they did!
None of these dates/times work for me, and boy am I glad!
This is a crazy idea, and I don't think I want to do it!

If you have any suggestions for locations, please include those in your post, send me a NaNoMail, or e-mail me with the info so I can look into it. The poll will be open all week, but I won't count votes that appear after Sunday evening.

So, vote away!

Results

----------
-Janna
NaNoWriMo Co-ML, Calgary
NaNoWriMo Moderator, Character & Plot Q&A
NaNoWriMo Moderator, All-Ages Coffee House
NaNoEdMo ML, Canada
ScriptFrenzy ML, Alberta
http://chatnano.net
The Book of Tim

Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Guess What Everyone!

Feytouched — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 23:47:03 -0800

I want everybody here to take a moment, and look just to the left of these words.

Yep. That's my nickname, Feytouched, with the gorgeous halo beside it.

And yes, above that is the ever coveted Green Bar...

Okay, so perhaps I'm blowing this all out of proportion, but I made it! I hit 50k! And I did it just before midnight, regardless of what the day listed says!

WooHoo!!!!

I did it with a full week to go!

And what will I do now, you ask? Well, my ambitions are quite humble... I'm going to keep on writing! After all, just because I hit 50,000 words doesn't mean the story is over, right!

So, please forgive me patting my own back... But I'm just so pleased. Last year I didn't succeed, so this win is particularily sweet!
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For those that love me, no explanation is needed. For those that don't, none can be given.

Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

I included Tim in my story

Elisabeth_queen_of_D8aland — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 20:54:34 -0800

Many thanks to the people of Calgary for sharing Tim with the world. I've been a pseudo-single parent this week, due to the year-end financial closing at hubby's (my fellow wrimo) work. I netted about twenty minutes on Wednesday and thirty minutes on Thursday of good writing time. Tonight I was planning on going for two thousand words to make up for the lost time. Then I burned my finger and the pain zapped every last word from my head.

So, since I was well and truly stuck, I added Tim to my story. This time Tim gets to be a waiter in a Mexican restaurant in Metropolis. (Belatedly I realized I should have made him a Benedict Arnold in organized crime. Oh, well. There's always next year.)

I added four hundred sixteen words by including Tim in my story, if you include the special note of thanks to Tim, and to the entire population of Calgary, that I placed on my special dedication page, thanking you all for allowing me to include him in my story.

One weird note--although I would never mistake one for the other, there is a striking resemblance between my husband and Tim. You look close enough in appearance to my husband that you could be in the same line-up together. "Officer, I am certain it was Number Three."

Elisabeth

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Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Challenge Posts

Huushiita — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 19:44:54 -0700

It's been a running joke to put Tim in your novel, right?

Well....

I'm Tim's side kick. No, really I am. Ask Tim. I never go anywhere without Tim.

So. It is MY suggestion that if you put Tim in your novels, you must also put Nikki in them, too. *winks*

There. That's my challenge.

lmfao

What's YOUR challenge?

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Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

The Ten NaNoMandments

AkitaFallow — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 21:55:25 -0800

At the Midway Bash, my friend xXSilver-RoseXx and I decided to create the NaNoWriMo version of the Ten Commandments. And so, after great deliberation (and great fun), here are the Ten NaNoMandments.

I. Thou shall write 50,000 words in one month.

II. Thou shall not edit, lest thou be smited.

III. Thou shall not have any story beside thy novel, for thy November is dedicated to it.

IV. Thou shall not outline thy plot scene by scene, lest thou be unable to proceed due to over-planning.

V. Thou shall not covet thy neighbour’s word count.

VI. Thou shall not lie about thy word count.

VII. Thou shall honour thy muse, and not allow it to be brutally murdered by real life ad non-NaNoers. If this should occur, stab thy interfering infidel with a spoon.

VIII. Thou shall include Tim in thy novel, and hopefully kill him in the end for gore factor, in order to gain points.

IX.Thou shall attend local write-ins and meet thy fellow NaNoWriMos, and share strange author speak that non-NaNoers shall not understand. And thus, thou shall further confuddle the outside world.

X. Thou shall not bring down thy region’s word count by abandoning all hope in Week Two.

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When life gives you lemons, make grape juice. Then sit back and let the world wonder how you did it. Then, when it gives you a month, write a novel, and let them wonder how you wrote it and made grape juice at the same time.

Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Look For Me...

WinterOne — Tue, 4 Nov 2008 08:31:07 -0800

Every year, when I'm writing at a coffee shop or at the local Chapters, I can't help but be aware that there are others with laptops or notebooks around me. I'm insanely curious about them - are they just students? Or are they trying to achieve 50,000 words as I am? What is it that they're writing down? Are they people whose names I might recognize from the board or from the chat?

Last night, two different people were writing beside me, and these thoughts couldn't help but flow distractingly through my mind.

Does anyone else think this while they're away from home, trying to find that solitude amongst strangers that will push you past your word count of the day?

As for myself, I'm fairly recognizable. I'm chubby, have blond and bright red (fading to pink I'm sure) hair and blue eyes. I'm always in a bunny hug and jeans, and am most often in the SW. If you see me hunched over a shiny 15.4" Asus laptop or a not-so-shiny 13" Dell laptop, always feel free to say hi if the mood hits.

What about you?
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*WinterOne

Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Special Challenge

karalianne — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 08:04:19 -0800

Okay, gang, we've had a very special request. We're all putting random friends and what-not into our novels (as well as Tim).

http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/node/3129303

The person who made that post is asking people to put his brother, Jon, into their novels. He said he saw the Q&A about Tim, and his brother has just been killed over in Afghanistan, and he would appreciate it if people could do the same with Jon.

You can post here or to his thread, to say that you're taking this challenge.
----------
-Janna
NaNoWriMo Co-ML, Calgary
NaNoWriMo Moderator, Character & Plot Q&A
NaNoWriMo Moderator, All-Ages Coffee House
NaNoEdMo ML, Canada
ScriptFrenzy ML, Alberta
http://chatnano.net
The Book of Tim

Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Tuesday Nov. 18th - 6:30PM - Denny's on 16th Ave

IanDaniel — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 15:06:02 -0800

Come one, come all, to the fabulous Denny's on 16th Ave (near the Banff trail CTrain station and the motel village) this Tuesday from 6:30 PM until we decide to leave (past meets usually end around 9). Come earlier or later, stay for the whole thing or only part of it, it doesn't matter. Our wonderful ML Janna isn't able to make this one, so it'll be an unofficial meet (still worth points!), but I've already had confirmation at the Midway Bash that at least a couple of us will be there.

I'd love to see some new faces come out; we don't bite, I promise! I'm sure someone will have a timer and we'll do some word wars (a GREAT tool for word count, and if yours is anything like mine, you'll need all the help you can get), eat some food, and have a good time socializing. We usually get the back corner of the restaurant to ourselves, but if you can't find us, just tell the staff you're a writer, they know the drill by now and can direct you to us.

Hope to see lots of you there!
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Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Roound Robin #4

Huushiita — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 20:22:14 -0800

Once upon a time, there was a wizard named Declan, who, though he trained as a warrior, was the only one skilled enough to take over the old wizard's duties. That night he was sitting alone in his study, holding hid vodka thinking if he had taken the right path. He always knew he had a choice and he knew being a wizard might put his talents and abilities in work, but will never bring him a life with peace or any popularity among non wizards, who were many.

Never the less, Declan was a mdoerately competent wizard until the fever struck. When he recovered, strange things began to happen.

The squirrels would then come out and start gnawing on people's ankles. It was indeed very scary. Very scary indeed. Yes. Indeed.

Suddenly, a loud crash came from the room nearby.

Declan jumped from the chair, knocking his drink on a menacing squirrel as he attempted to race into the other room.

'Excuse me, sir wizard.' The small voice made Declan pause in his run out of the room and he turned to stare in surprise at the talking squirrel. Never one to allow others to see his shock, he coughed and said, 'Um, yes?' the squirrel made a menacing ace and then sneezed. 'Do you perchance have a tissue?'

'... What?' he asked, his hand running through his sweat soaked mop of hair.

The squirrel looked at Declan and sighed impatiently. 'I asked if you had a tissue?' Declan handed him a tissue, apologizing for its large size. Then he came down to rest on his knees and asked the squirrel, 'Now what can I do for you, small sir?'

'You may place it on top of the safe, and repeate eyleards therorrum backwards, starting with ... '

Declan couldn't understand what the squirrel was saying, and with a thought and slight gesture, set the vodka soaked squirrel alight.

Fortunately the overhead sprinkler systel kicked in, along with the smoke detector, and a huge wailing shower descended on both the squirrel (extinguishing him) and Declan's drink. 'Oh no!' Declan cried. 'That was not supposed to happen.'

'But thank goodness it did!' the squirrel muttered, a little angry with Declan for trying to set him on fire like that.

Tim, the squirrel, wondered if there was'Declan Training School'. He had just graduated from Squirrel Training School, where he was trained in clearing leaves and twigs and pin cones from cabin's eavestrouphs. There had been nothing in the course about being set on fire. After shaking the water and what was left of the vodka from his fur coat (and wondering how to fix his singed tail), Tim leapt to the next branch and learned to his horror and dismay, that the sufficient fur was gone from his tail to seriously affect his aerodynamic properties. Unfortunately, he realized this after his last paw left a secure footing, and just beofre he realized what was below.

Tim stretched out his two front paws and looked straight down at the ground below, rising rapidly towards him.

'Yikes!!' Tim screamed, his eyes changing colour from blue to red as his powers kicked in.

Just then, he realized that it had all been a dream.

Suddenly, ice cream cones, thousands of them!

Whoah!, though Tim. What was in those acorns? He decided to sit down and think about it for a while, which was when the doorbell rang.

'Avon calling,' he heard through the still unopened door. He opened the door and peeked cautiously through the opening, only to be violently shoved backwards as something burst in.

'Carol!' He shouted, setting the woman to one side. 'I thought I told you not to (unintelligible word) me here!'

'Bah!' Carol cried. 'Since when have I ever listened to you??!'

'I just thought that.. this time...' he stammered, 'since you know about my disease.'

Carol frowned, slapped him in the face, and kissed him passionately.

'What are you doing? he demanded. 'What about your husband?'

'I've killed my husband!' said Carol. 'That's why I'm here darling, so we don't have to hide anymore...'

'Um, you're not exactly hiding. I'm right here' Tim piped up.

'Well. Damn... Now I will just have to kill you too...' said Carol Drawing a gun as big as her leg, she pointed it at Tim's and head and pulled the trigger. But

amazingly enough his squirrel powers returned and he was able to use his powerful haunches and well toned squirrel instinct to dodge the bullet. 'Wow!' thought Tim 'That was cool!' Carol in the meantime slumped to the floor and

was throwing a large scale temper tantrum at having missed. She recovered quickly glaring at Tim before, promptly fainting due to lack of caffeine. Tim stared as she hit the floor head first, creating a small echoing 'thump'. Then he shrugged, climbed into his space ship, and flew off to join a rebel group on Naboo.

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Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

RSVP here for the Midway Bash! (or, you know, send me a NaNoMail or an e-mail)

karalianne — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 09:02:55 -0800

Friday, November 14, 6.30 p.m. Ricky's across from Chinook Centre
Our Midway Bash is always a lot of fun! We'll be doing a craft (I am stellar at this; just ask the people who made ninja plot bunny finger puppets last year) and mostly just hanging out, but if people are interested in writing as well, we can have some word wars.
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-Janna
NaNoWriMo Co-ML, Calgary
NaNoWriMo Moderator, Character & Plot Q&A
NaNoWriMo Moderator, All-Ages Coffee House
NaNoEdMo ML, Canada
ScriptFrenzy ML, Alberta
http://chatnano.net
The Book of Tim

Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Calgary

stormsprayer — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 13:48:41 -0700

Is anyone actually basing their novel in Calgary? If so, what landmarks are you using? Or events? Is anyone having a giant hoe-down at the Stampede, or an epic ninja battle in Eau Claire Market?
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Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Round Robin 4 Part II

WhyteCreau — Sun, 9 Nov 2008 04:31:06 -0800

(to be added to Round Robin 4)

"Tim, the squirrel, could not believe his good fortune. For there, under the shadow of the Roman
Colliseum-sized building bearing an enormous sign saying "Chinook Centre" on it's roof,
he discovered one of the richest collections of mixed nuts that he had ever encountered during
his life.

Tim at once realized how valuable this new-found resource was. It meant that there would soon
be enough new material for him to create another "Book of Tim".

He could see the ongoing production of Tim Books in the future.

Soon he would have enough to occupy a whole bookshelf in the libraries around the world.
And maybe even his own Dewey Decimal Number as well, or his own category (TIM).

He would have a 53-room mansion in L.A. (Lethbridge, Alberta).

He would have an exclusive resort hotel in L.A. (Leduc, Alberta).

And he would have a colossal Writer's College in L.A. (Lacombe, Alberta).

He would have his own private Lear Jet parked in L. A. (Lamont, Alberta).

Tim would have a town in B.C., Timtown, where people could visit, and see how vast tracts of
black spruce forests are harvested and transformed into pulp and paper by the Tim Paper
Mill, then transformed into Books of Tim by the Tim Publishing Plant. From there, the books
(as well as other Tim merchandise) would be carried by the Tim Transport Company trucks
to the Tim Airport, to be ferried by Tim Air Freight jet aircraft to Amazon, Indigo, and Coles
warehouses. Or from coast to coast (of Pigeon Lake), using his Tim Line of cargo ships.

Tim would appear on Colbert, Open Mike, Oprah, and Paris Hilton's TV shows, to promote
the latest Book of Tim as well as his exclusive lines of fashion merchandise and author-ware
that he produces and sells.

Tim would have his own TV show, cable channel, web site, set of international theme parks,
a museum and interpretive center, and a retirement village for senior citizen "Book of Tim"
writers in Timmons, Ontario. (Not to mention a knowledge and reference web site,
"Timipedia".

Tim looked up in the sky, and discovered the Tim Constellation and Tim Galaxy, Tim Nebula,
Tim Quazar, Tim Supernova, and Tim Comet. A new planet, larger than Pluto, was discovered
at the edge of the Solar System, and it was named Tim.

Archeologists discovered an enormous city buried beneath the sand in the Sahara Desert. It
contained large numbers of clay and stone tablets, all inscribed with what was eventually
translated as "Book of Tim" stories. The tales contained numerous references to an ancient
civilization, the "Followers of Tim", and to even larger and more magnificent Tim cities located
around the world, but which had disappeared when they sank into the Oceans, probably
because of the combined weight of too many Books of Tim stored in one place. Or, they
were buried by volcanoes, or totally destroyed by literary critics.

Near Drumheller, Alberta, a dinosaur skeleton was discovered holding a "Book of Tim" stone
tablet in it's mouth. The previously undiscovered species was named Timosaur. That tablet
became known as "The Tim Stone". Like the Rosetta Stone, it helped historians translate
several ancient languages such as Fortran, Cobol, and Pascal into modern languages, such
as TIMese and English.

Tim the squirrel felt really proud of his accomplishments, so he decided to create a
commemorative objet d'art for the occasion. It was a TIM scarf, and it was 100% TIM and a
yard wide. And it is exclusively available from TIM dot com (soon to be renamed TIM dot tim).

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Declan: Tim, as an outsider, what do you think of the human race?

Tim: I am truly amazed that this group of biological organisms, which conscientiously
chooses to kill each other over trivial things such as a box of TIMbits, has managed
to survive this long. I give them another 20 TIMiseconds before they succeed in
making themselves extinct.

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Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

ML appreciation day!

Rei — Sat, 8 Nov 2008 14:10:51 -0800

Today is ML Appreciation Day!

I want to give Janna the hugest thank you for doing such a good job pulling everything together for us so far, it's been amazing!

Show your MLs some love.
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Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Kicking it hardcore...

therabidwombat — Sat, 8 Nov 2008 10:47:08 -0800

Hello Calgary wrimoes! As of today, I am kicking it hardcore - my novel has been dogging it due to some extreme hours put in at work and other little commitments, but as of today I am going to be taking it to the next level and typing like mad. (Perfect way to relax after a huge deadline, write?). Just curious who else is falling behind but taking steps to catch up!

PS. I may show up at that thing at Ricky's next week, In my three years of Nano-ing I have yet to meet any other NaNos in person, so maybe it's about time.

PPS. Don't laugh at my pitiful word count. As I said - extreme hours. D=
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Canada :: Alberta :: Calgary

Students

karalianne — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 19:43:19 -0700

I noticed that we have a few participants who are attending the U of C this year. I am wondering if it would be worth it to you guys for us to have a write-in or two on campus? Obviously you can meet up on campus anyhow, but I'd be willing to run an "official write-in" at least once during November. I'm an alumni, as is my boyfriend (who has yet to post to the introductions thread), and my brother works at the library, so I'm sure it would be simple for us to book a space.

So, this is the thread for all you students (regardless of school) to post about your schedules etc. Set up your own meets on-campus! Make new friends! Trust me, it'll be worth it. :)
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-Janna
NaNoWriMo Co-ML, Calgary
NaNoWriMo Moderator, Character & Plot Q&A
NaNoWriMo Moderator, All-Ages Coffee House
NaNoEdMo ML, Canada
ScriptFrenzy ML, Alberta
http://chatnano.net
The Book of Tim