Writing Buddies

Disclaimer: Apologies to those who have seen this already. Just re-posting, since the forums were wiped.

Bonjour! My name is Matt, I'm 26, and no, I'm not French. (I just get so tired of all the HELLOs!) I'm from western PA, a suburb twice-removed of Pittsburgh. Despite what many "professional" people have told me, I love my western PA slang, and I will always say things like 'yins' and 'jaggers' and 'buggies' and 'clickers.'

I've tried NaNo once or twice before, but I've never won, largely because I have the perseverance of an ice cube in an oven. I've got this burning desire to write, I've had it since I was seven, but for some reason, something always seems to stop me. Usually it's self-doubt and a crippling sense of failure, but that's not the only culprit. I'm determined this year, though, to finish my novel and get my 50,000 words. I shall be an ice cube no longer!

My novel is titled Eternity in an Hour. It's GLBT, insofar as the main characters are two gay men. It's also fantasy, insofar as there is magic, but there are no evil wizards, no talking dragons, no rings to throw into burning hearts of volcanoes. Epic fantasy is fabulous, but every time I read one, I always wonder what the normal people are doing. So here, in the world of Eternity, magic is just like our technology today: sure, it can save lives and destroy worlds, but mostly it just cooks dinner and makes things pretty.

Here's the tentative (badly written) blurb I've come up with:

I'm already about a third of the way finished with Eternity (~70,000 words), and I'm hoping to be much farther before November starts. (This seems unlikely, if I keep up the same pace I've had for the past few weeks.)

If you're at all interested in reading more about the world I've created for the novel, you may want to check out the wiki I'm developing, which you can get to by following any of the links in that blurb. There's even an excerpt of Eternity in those pages! I'm one of those people who works best with constant incoming feedback, so if you check out the wiki, let me know what you think. And if you're at all interesting in keeping up with my NaNo progress (and forcing me to finish!), feel free to friend this forum account, or if you read LiveJournals, ask me for my writing journal's name!

Good luck this year!

Eternity in an Hour
GLBT light fantasy

Hiya Matt, I'm a yinzer as well... I live in a small town about 45 mins south of Pittsburgh. I guess if I had to pigeonhole my stuff I'd classify it as magic realism. I've had a few short stories published, just finished a novella. This is my 3rd attempt at nano, but this is the first serious attempt. I mean it this time. Really. :)

Jay

--

I feel a little bad because I can't say nearly as much as Mike up there, but I can at least do my best. =) And sorry of the smilies offend your writerly sensibilities, I can't help it really.... ^-^; Anyway, I'm Celia, just call me Cee, and I'm writing what I think (at the moment anyway) would best be described as an Adventure Fantasy... of sorts.

^-^;

Anyway, I've developed a fun, basic four-elements magic system and a semi-complex world, as for why I'm here I'm just hoping that finding a few writing buddies, or just people to chat with while I'm doing NaNo, would be fantastic. Someone who can talk me out of a slump (not necessarily kindly :p) and get me at least through the basic wordcount each day would be an invaluable friend this NaNo. =)

I have nothing witty to say here. Please move along.

Hi guys, 2009 will mark my 5th year doing NaNoWriMo and hopefully my forth win. This is my fifth time writing fantasy also. The story this year is totally new compared to the last 3 years.

Basically, I have a competitive streak so if you wanna fight me, by all means add me as a buddy. *Laughs*

2005, 2006, 2007 - WON
2008 - FAILED

2009 § The Sidereal Rose

http://thesiderealrose.blogspot.com/

Looking forward to NaNo '09!

I joined impulsively in 2007 five days before November, and I've been an addict here ever since. I barely drove myself over the finish line on the 30th each time, then went off to metamorphisize into an incoherent puddle. Still, NaNo got me started on my 'Blue Crystal' project, and after two years of work, I'm about ready to go agent shopping. Yeah!

Anyway. I'd love to meet more buddies on here. The more the better. :) Feel free to drop me a line.

Here's what I've got for my project so far:

Eliza

http://elizawyatt.net
http://elizaw.wordpress.com

Oh Hai! This is my third year on NaNo, first year I kinda forgot about it...second year got way too hectic at school...but I won last year! I'm hoping to win again this year with this webcomic novel/video game parody I've got planned ( link! http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/node/3263975 ), but I'm going to be working two jobs this year, and one's at Wally World. In November. As a cashier. Kill me. Now.

In any case, would love more buddies, cuz maybe then I'll be able to keep motivated once Thanksgiving rolls around...

~"Everything is idiocy if viewed in the proper light."~
Same can be said of fantasy, right?

2007: Antihero story... Fail >.<
2008: In The Gods' Time...WON!
2009: Some Random Roleplay...Hoping!

Hey everyone. This is my third year here but I've never been very active on the forums before. I'm trying to kick my lurking habit this year. I won the last two years but I'm a little worried about this year since it's my first year at college.

I wrote fantasy both times I participated before and I'm planning on doing it again this year because it's my favorite genre. When I was trying to narrow down my list of ideas for NaNo, all thirty-seven of the ones I was considering were fantasy (I think that's when I decided I should start branching out a little . . . eventually). The one I finally decided on doesn't have any magic or fantastic creatures or most of the usual fantasy tropes, but it takes place in another world so I say it's fantasy.

Anyway, I'd love to find some more writing buddies here.

Hi there, I'm Miny. I'm a norwegian German or a german Norwegian, depending on how you see it; either way I am living and studying in Oslo at the moment. I'm writing a ditty about fairies this year. I'd love to have some new writing buddies, of course =) that's always very nice. Anyway, see you around... :)

www.minyaliel.com

NaNo projects:
2009: Working title: "Isa's Journey"
2008 - Når Kråkene Kaller (novel)

I can always use new writing buddies who can help me out when I need it, or who aren't afraid to ask me for advice or help when they need it!
:)
I'm working on a fantasy this year and could use all the help I can get ;)

An Author is someone who gets paid to tell them where to go, and how to get there.

Hi everyone! I'm Felix, and I'm (still) working on the first novel in a series of seven epic fantasies. This is about version 3.0 of this one, so it's been a long time in the making so far - hopefully this will be the last time I rewrite it.

I like the sounds of your book, Matt. Admittedly I'm not much for M/M fiction, but I always find it interesting when people write fantasy that isn't adventure. After all, to me fantasy is less of a genre and more of a setting - after all, why cant you write a murder mystery in fantasy? or a romance? or a bigoraphy? it doesnt all have to be world-changing war (even if mine is).

----
Check out my website! www.felinuanbooks.webs.com

NaNoWriMo 2008 (WON!) - Beyond the Black Stump (91,000)
Script Frenzy 2009 (Well, lets find out!) - Writer's Block

Hello! I'm Laura from Latvia. This will be my third year doing NaNo and once again I'll be writing medieval fantasy sprinkled with romance. I've taken up a novel idea that I tried to use last year, but it came out flat and boring because of overplanning. So this year I'm starting from scratch, only using the same characters (well, more or less) and setting. The novel is titled "The Forest Children" and it's a tale about a young girl from an enchanted forest who leaves her home and everything she knows and enters the human-dominated part of the world to look for her lost sisters. I can't wait to see how it turns out!

I'm hoping to find new writing buddies who are as much into fantasy as I am, maybe even more. It would be great to have someone to talk to and who'd keep me motivated. Feel free to drop me a line! :)

You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club. /Jack London/

Good morning, everyone!

I'm Brooks, and this will be my second NaNoWriMo. It is a pleasure to meet you all! I'm a 20 something clerk at a university with a passion for creative writing and a history of writing short stories and poetry. I've spent a lot of time world building for various projects, and thought that applying them to something longer than a short story would be grand! A friend of mine suggested NaNoWriMo last year, and I happily dove right in.

Last year, I "won" on my first try which would be fairly impressive if what I churned out happened to be somewhat coherent (spoiler: It wasn't). I tried Historical fiction last year, and while I felt I had some good things going with setting and characterization, there really wasn't enough conflict or action to move the pacing along. I also felt that what I produced was more along the lines of a begining by the end of the 51,000 words (a really long, boring begining) and felt that the entire story was bad and that I should feel bad! I was only introduced to NaNoWriMo about a week before, and lack of preparation made it quite difficult as time went on.

This year I'm using prior proper planning to have some place to launch from. While I don't have as nice of a text description as a lot of you, I'm thinking of trying fantasy this year with the aim of telling the story of two travelers. One a young man running from an oppressive household seeking someplace he can live peacefully beyond the reach of his family. The other is a young woman seeking her family after finding out that the woman she thought was her grandmother took her in to protect her from those seeking her death.

Naturally hijinks will ensue as they go one their separate quests. I'm working with third person limited narration, episodic chapters alternating between the story lines, and focusing on seeing events from various perspectives and the differences in how things are interpreted based upon upbringing and gender perspectives.

Knowing that others are working on their wordcount goals would rock! If anyone wants to tag up as writing buddies, let me know.

Best of luck to you all!

-Enc

Nano 08: Tales from Nodegan Harbor (Winner)
--A Victorian Colonization novel about a child governor.--

Nano 09: Travelers of The Road (TBA)
--A Walking-The-Earth short story collection--

Hi, It's my first year at this and I seriously doubt I'll be able to stay until the end. Despite that I'm looking for friends that can push me into actually reaching the end. I'm an avid fantasy reader and I'll be attempting to write a fantasy story and making the most of this experience.

In the beginning the Universe was created.
This has made a lot of people very angry and has been widely regarded as a bad move.

I don't know if I'm looking for friends yet, but I also wanted to say hello to anyone who's out there. Coming from north of the US borders, I want to wish everyone good luck on the coming Nanowrimo season so that whether we finish or not, we'll all have a good time.

Best wishes to you all. :)

So it's not that easy to get distracted...

Um, what was that again?

Hiya. My name is Matt as well, and ironically, I'm French. =P English is my second language. Good times, right?

Anyway, this is my second year doing this stuff. I kind of lost motivation last year, but hopefully I can pull one out this year. =) Don't really have an idea yet, but I'm working on it. I'd love some buddies just as a fun little reminder that other people are struggling along, too. xD

Good Morning all:

My name is Chris (Nw on Nano) and I am going to year three on NanoWriMo.
I am all for writing buddies so if anyone is interested please let me know.

Working on my third Fantasy novel this year and the storyline is heading toward Epic.... AHHH so many ideas and so little time to write them all down.

I hope everyone has a great time.
Good luck to all!

[Writing is life!]

Writing.com http://caliccardi.Writing.Com/
AIM:NiteWriter2007
Yahoo:Nitewolfcal
-------------------------------------------------------------
Vote for NaNo to win $10,000! Learn more at:
http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/node/3268406

I, my opinion only, am not good at plot development or writing combat sequences, but I believe that I do have a talent for character development and dialogue. I am interested in teaming with someone who has some good plot/story ideas, but is having difficulty with characters or dialogue.

If you have a good story idea, my ears are open.

I have a character I have developed, but so far have not come up with any good story ideas. My proposed character is a half-elf. He never knew his father, and his mother is part of a band of rovers. In the backstory I have developed for him, he has been exiled by the rovers for causing the death of his brutish cousin. If this sounds interesting to you, I will send you my first chapter.

On the other hand, if you have an interesting story and you need help developing characters or writing dialogue, please send me your ideas. I can be contacted by NanoMail or write me at Drakestone@witty.com. (yes, that really is my email address)

Hi All,

I'm Laura, 23 and from Los Angeles, California. Writing urban fantasy this year taking place in either LA or San Francisco. I'd love to meet some other urban fantasy writers who'd like to hash ideas over and chat about characters/story/plot, the norm.

I'm trying to keep this short in hopes someone will actually read it. O.o So! Onto a quick summary of what I plan to be writing this year:

Mmmm, yes, writing buddies =p

Um, I haven't fully fleshed out my novel yet (nor do I have names, a concrete setting, stable plot, a title... yeah), but I do know what it's gonna contain and how it's going to end, so that's good, right?

First off, it's going to contain homosexual content (yay), and it's more romance than fantasy to be honest... but there's magic and winged people and that makes me happy. It's gonna be angsty and a psychological drama. I hope to portray both the good and evil in people, especially when confronted with different races and the prospect of greed. Or something like that.

I really want buddies to motivate me, cause I know that when I get to the nitty-gritty of this character's torment, I'm gonna want to curl up and cry. I just know I will. And I'll probably need help; immensely.

So. Yeah.

NaNo'08: Collision [failed]
NaNo'09: Dissonance [ ]

Hey all, I'm Chris. Uhhh... not much to say really. First year of NaNo, though I've wanted to do this before and never got the chance to. I mainly write fantasy, worlds where the ones who've existed longer have wings of angels and others have ears of elves. Dragons fly and humans walk. Things like that.

Not sure what I'll be writing for NaNo. We'll see.

I have confidence issues, so I'm poking at friends I know to be there as they write and I write, too. If anyone needs a writing buddy? I'm here. ^_^

The stars will be the bringers, the teachers, the messengers.

Hello! My name is Piper and I'm 20 years old from Arizona, USA.

This is my seventh year doing NaNoWrimo. I have won four times in a row, but that doesn't make it any easier for me! Seasoned I may be, but I still struggle along with everyone else to hit the 50,000 word mark.

I will be re-attempting my since completely changed novel from 2008, a western fantasy called Boot Hill.

I'm mostly looking for buddies who use an instant messenger of any kind so that I can speak to them on a regular basis, plan word wars, etc. I love to have communication during NaNoWriMo; it keeps me going and moving during the month.

Please message me if you would like to exchange instant messenger IDs. :) I enjoy meeting new people online, so have no fear! I do not bite often.

NaNo 2009 - Western Fantasy

deviantART | LIVEjournal

I think I'll join the rest of the group here and say that I'd love to find some fabulous writing buddies to help spur me on. I'm a 22-year-old (soon to be 23!) college senior planning to do my second NaNo after failing miserably last year. I've got several of my friends joining the NaNo trend again this year, so I should have some local buddies to help me; however, I'd love to make some new friends, especially ones who use instant messengers.

I think having a writing buddy (or two or three) would help me by giving me someone to bounce ideas off of. I'd be happy to do the same for someone else, and since I'm planning to write in the fantasy genre, I could probably use all the help I could get from people in here with me.

So if you have one of the following messengers and want to be buddies with someone who will be online fairly often during November and willing to chat about all aspects of the story-writing process, let me know! I have: AIM, MSN, Yahoo, and Skype. I'm most frequently on MSN, but I can be on any one of the others at most times as well.

Now, onto the more interesting information about my story!

I've been developing this story for a while, but I haven't got a concrete outline together yet. I've developed my main characters and several of my side characters but have difficulties naming characters and developing some of the more minor ones. In addition, I have to get from the beginning of my story to the end without the middle figured out...which will definitely take some doing.

The story is tentatively titled "Fire and Ice Bound" and centers around the idea that all creation came from elements. I've been a bit unorthodox in that I created 10 elements, and yes, I know that's tons more than the traditional four or five. However, the main conflict in my story is that characters are either 'bonded' to an element (i.e. they can control that particular element in nature) or 'impassive' and therefore normal humans with no power. Due to government regulations and traditions, it is taboo to address the concept of a person being bonded to more than one element, despite covert tales of this very phenomenon having taken place.

My main character is a school girl named Brenn who is both bonded and latent (which refers to not having a bonded element manifest itself in a person). She is finishing her studies but is unusually intrigued by the creation theories of the world (there are three theories, only one of which is accepted by the government), and she is bothered by the idea that people can only be bonded to one element; in addition, she and her classmates are thrust into their final examination (a harrowing trip in the country's great forest) on the eve of a war with a neighboring country.

That's the basic idea, and I'd love feedback from anyone who feels inclined to give it. If you want to hear more about my story or be writing buddies, please feel free to send me NaNoMail letting me know! I'm pretty much open to befriending anyone who wants to.

-Rae-

"Bob. B-A-U-B. It's more fantasy sounding."

This is my second NaNo. I didn't win last year (about 5k short), but I had a blast and I learned a lot about my writing style. This year I'm writing a fantasy that is a convoluted mixture of Scandinavian mythology and A Midsummer Night's Dream. I don't post on the forums very much, and I'm trying to not lurk either. I'd be happy to make more buddies this year. If you just want encouragement or throw ideas at somebody, send me a line.

I'm Takato Metallium as far as my author name goes. 23 years of age (will be turning 24 during NaNo), from Australia, and this will be my first proper NaNo (didn't even try last year, so doesn't count).

My main genre is Fantasy, with a sprinkling of urban, mystery and horror. I've got three plots that I'm developing at the moment in preparation for November (omg, it's a month away! *flails*), both of which I am proud to announce are NOT vampire stories, which is the direction my ideas usually take :B

I'm an artist, currently doing a cert III course in Business Adminstration, and a writer of 13 years. My hobbies outside of writing include Tae Kwon Do, movie outings, roleplaying and video games, as well as learning about history and mythology.

Fandoms include: Sonic the Hedgehog, One Piece, Kingdom Hearts, and Avatar: The Last Airbender.

http://cupcake_writer.livejournal.com

2009: Welcome to Hell. A novel about Gods in high school.
2010: Thermals (tentaitive title). Steampunk. High adventure/fantasy of an all-female crew of airship pirates.

Yia sas, everyone! I'm Wolf. This'd be my second NaNo, and hopefully my first success! Last year went...badly. I write Arthurian fantasy. Last year, I attempted a Mordred novel (which I'm still working on!) called The King's Raven, and this year, I'm writing a Merlin novel. I'm eighteen years old, and from the lovely (read: boring) town of Bel Air, Maryland. I'm trying to wrangle a bunch of my friends into NaNo this year, and I've got at least one victory so far.

NaNoWriMo's resident Arthurian freak. <3

Sir Mordred was framed! Spread the word!

2008 -- The King's Raven. (Failed.)
2009 -- Storm-Wanderer.

Oh, hey Wolf; remember me? We, didn't really talk much; like maybe a few mails and that was it .-.

Yeah. I didn't finish mine last year either, I stopped on the second (my bday) and partied instead, so that was that :(

Good luck this year~

NaNo'08: Collision [failed]
NaNo'09: Dissonance [ ]

I do remember you! I'm flattered that you remember me. We shall definitely talk more this year. Any idea what you'll be writing about this time 'round? I'm much better prepared this year already, so I have a good feeling. Except that I just realised that the abbreviated form of my title sounds like a rather nasty four-letter word when spoken aloud. Uh-oh... XD

Good luck to you as well, love. <3

NaNoWriMo's resident Arthurian freak. <3

Sir Mordred was framed! Spread the word!

2008 -- The King's Raven. (Failed.)
2009 -- Storm-Wanderer.

I'm bleeding-chocobo. :) This'll be my first Nano. I'd like a buddy or two.

Hey everyone! I'm Courtnee aka faeryofshalott aka AP (don't ask long story). This is my third year doing NaNo and I'm hoping to have better luck than in the last two years as circumstances beyond my control prevented me writing. I would love to have more NaNo friends so that we can spur each other on. I am somewhat competitive but only when it comes to writing. I have several ideas for my NaNo novel this year but am unsure as to which one to write on at the moment. I will be posting my NaNo on my lj this year... well, if I can remember to post. :)

But yeah, message me if you want to. I will be going through these boards in awhile and messaging at least a few people. So... yeah, good luck everyone. :)

http://aproberts.livejournal.com
http://writing.com/authors/a_p_roberts

Hello everyone! I'm a semi-crazed Canuck, going into my third year of NaNo. With any luck, this will be my second win!

i'm fully intending on writing another fantasy this year. Now how to describe it? I suppose you could call it an adventure fantasy. magic isn`t commonplace, but does pop up thanks to the heros. Temples, rebellion, and some guy trying to kill you at every turn. Who could ask for more? (laughs) I think I had too much coffee today.. oh well!

i'm always up for making new friends, especially ones that can stand listening to me go on and on about my super awesome plot idea that will floor everyone :P note: i'm not always like this lol

I prefer chatting over msn, since it's the only IM program I really use, so if you wanna yak, maybe help eachother find the courage to get to 50k this year, drop me a line and i'll give you my e-mail address ^.^

Death Toll: 70