So, who wants to share how NaNoWriMo has changed their lives? Wouldn't it be interesting to see how we've all grown and changed since NaNo began? I guess I'll start.
This will be my fourth NaNo, and as a result of the WriMo, Noveling has pretty much taken over my life. I have two manuscripts written in a series that I'm now podcasting (piggymotoasbb.mevio.com), I've gotten a third MSS written for a new fantasy series, and last month, I started another novel, which I will be putting on hold for NaNo.
My days begin at 5:00 in the morning, and end at 10:00 at night, and most mornings add about 1,500 words to my collections. NaNo has brought me new senses of discipline, self-respect and creativity. Before November of 2009, the world just kinda' floated by, leaving me adrift with life's flotsam. But now, I have a direction - a dream. :)
----------
Nicholas McRae
I'm podcasting my 2006 NaNo Novel! Check it out at:
http://piggymotoasbb.mevio.com
90,695 / 50,000
Okt 23, 2009 - 07 07
<------ is a subscriber, and plays piggymoto promos on his own podcasts.
As for how NaNoWriMo changed MY life...
um... Well, I don't really *have* a life, so I guess it's changed mine in that during November, I *do* have a full social calendar. I go places and talk with people, which I often avoid during the rest of the year.
(This is why 2008 had such a dreadful November... no NaNoWriMo to make me social.)
I wish I could say that the WriMo has made me a better writer, but in truth, November is the only time I ever write these days. I'm *not* a writer, which should probably make me question the wisdom in participating in an annual WRITING event. Then again, see above. THAT is why I'm participating again.
----------GO LUSHGUINS!
50,000 words is easy.
50,000 words that make sense? Much harder.
52,822 / 50,000
Okt 23, 2009 - 08 48
The Midnight Write of NaNo 2007 got me my job - if I hadn't gone, I never would have found one of the best jobs I've ever had, working at Dragon's Lair. NaNo is my yearly reminder that I can write, I like writing and that I have the discipline and passion to keep writing.
----------~alan m rogers
50,000 / 50,000
Okt 23, 2009 - 10 42
I don't really *have* a life, so I guess it's changed mine in that during November, I *do* have a full social calendar. I go places and talk with people, which I often avoid during the rest of the year.
Me too. I've even managed to make a few relationships last year-round. And I'm really really hoping (looking at FlippantMoniker) to get a year round writing support group going again. All writing and no socializing makes Snowbaby a very dull girl. NaNo has made an already busy month for me (my birthday, Thanksgiving) even busier, but there's no doubt that it's worth it.
----------Snowbaby
6 time-NaNo winner: 2002, '04, '05, '06, '07 and '08.
"What lies before us and what lies behind us are small matters compared to what lies within us. And when we bring what is within us out into the world, miracles happen" - Emerson
56,036 / 50,000
Okt 26, 2009 - 02 04
As for how NaNoWriMo changed MY life...
um... Well, I don't really *have* a life, so I guess it's changed mine in that during November, I *do* have a full social calendar. I go places and talk with people, which I often avoid during the rest of the year.
(This is why 2008 had such a dreadful November... no NaNoWriMo to make me social.)
I wish I could say that the WriMo has made me a better writer, but in truth, November is the only time I ever write these days. I'm *not* a writer, which should probably make me question the wisdom in participating in an annual WRITING event. Then again, see above. THAT is why I'm participating again.
NaNo did vastly expand my own circle of friends, and through NaNo, I've met some of the most stable and longest-lasting friends that I have. NaNo also paved the way for me to meet that special someone. I think it's both a great way to socialize *and* to get some writing done. :)
Do you have a promo that I can drop into Piggy Moto? I'd love to reciprocate your generosity :) :)
----------Nicholas McRae
I'm podcasting my 2006 NaNo Novel! Check it out at:
http://piggymotoasbb.mevio.com
56,036 / 50,000
Okt 26, 2009 - 02 05
Ooh That's awesome! Dragons Lair always seemed like a really neat place to work!
----------Nicholas McRae
I'm podcasting my 2006 NaNo Novel! Check it out at:
http://piggymotoasbb.mevio.com
56,036 / 50,000
Okt 26, 2009 - 02 11
I don't really *have* a life, so I guess it's changed mine in that during November, I *do* have a full social calendar. I go places and talk with people, which I often avoid during the rest of the year.
Me too. I've even managed to make a few relationships last year-round. And I'm really really hoping (looking at FlippantMoniker) to get a year round writing support group going again. All writing and no socializing makes Snowbaby a very dull girl. NaNo has made an already busy month for me (my birthday, Thanksgiving) even busier, but there's no doubt that it's worth it.
I do like the idea of getting the writing group going again. Last time, we all kinda' drifted and got really busy, but I think if we aim for an even lighter arrangement.. Well-scheduled monthly get-togethers.. I think we could all benefit :)
----------Nicholas McRae
I'm podcasting my 2006 NaNo Novel! Check it out at:
http://piggymotoasbb.mevio.com
22,722 / 50,000
Okt 29, 2009 - 20 47
I don't remember being this anxious for the month of November to begin the past two years......start already....START!
21,934 / 50,000
Okt 30, 2009 - 23 18
Wow. How has NaNo changed my life?
When I stumbled across a news story about NaNo in 2005 I had not written so much as a poem in years. I had written a few assignments for a professional writing class, and every once in a while I typed an extra long email at work, but I was effectively a non-writer. But I was intrigued by the question posed by the headline: "Do you want to write a novel?"
I signed up, very apprehensive that I was at any moment about to be hit with the surprise fees, or that my computer would suddenly be invaded by marauding virii or trojan horses. Instead, I found a bunch of people who called themselves Penguins and who welcomed me with open... uhh... keyboards? See, at the time I lived sixty miles north of Austin, and so attending any events in person would have been impractical at best. So, nobody gave me a real hug, but I like to think I got plenty of virtual ones.
At the end of that first thirty days I had a sort of a novel, a whole bunch of new friends, and a renewed love of the written word. Most of my new friends were fellow Penguins, but some of them lived in other far-flung places.
Last year I was hanging out in the Off Topic forum, in a thread dedicated to the wonders of Urinal Mints when one of my friends told me that she believed my writing was good enough to be published. This was no idle compliment, as she was the editor of an online e-zine that specialized in amateur writers like myself. (It's called the Piker Press, and there is a link to it in my signature.)
So I got out my first NaNo novel and polished it up a bit. OK, I polished a LOT! The 50k+ words were slimmed down to just under 35k, and it went from a short novel to a novella. I submitted it, and it was accepted! Although I got no money for it, I could now honestly tell people that my work had been published!
Since then, I have written several other pieces as well as digging up some old stuff that I had thought was permanently relegated to the file cabinet. I enjoy writing, and do so on a regular basis, both for publication in the Piker Press, for my blog, or just to exercise my writing muscles.
All because of NaNo, and a bunch of Penguins from Texas.
How's THAT for a changed life?
----------Tweetywill
The Piker Press
51,775 / 50,000
Okt 31, 2009 - 13 09
Let's see if I can count the ways NaNo has changed my life (and me, in the process):
***made some awesome friends, some of whom I see only in November and one whom I see more frequently
***introduced me to some neighborhoods I'd never ventured into before
***made me realize that caffeine in large doses one month out of the year is not going to kill me
***made me less afraid of people I don't know
***got me to leave my apartment when I didn't know anyone who would be where I was going
***without NaNo, I'd have driven to/from Minnesota more than once by myself instead of with a passenger who even stayed awake the entire 21 hours despite not having slept well the night before
***introduced me to ALPHASMART products!
***helped me find other erotica writers with whom to discuss details that some folks find uncomfortable
***gave me the courage to submit things I'd written and got published
There are more, but these are the main ones :)
It's very nice to be back this year.
56,036 / 50,000
Nov 2, 2009 - 19 57
Holey Wow!! Congrats on EVERYTHING! That's an inspiring story! :) Reading that really encouraged me to keep on keeping on :)
When I stumbled across a news story about NaNo in 2005 I had not written so much as a poem in years. I had written a few assignments for a professional writing class, and every once in a while I typed an extra long email at work, but I was effectively a non-writer. But I was intrigued by the question posed by the headline: "Do you want to write a novel?"
I signed up, very apprehensive that I was at any moment about to be hit with the surprise fees, or that my computer would suddenly be invaded by marauding virii or trojan horses. Instead, I found a bunch of people who called themselves Penguins and who welcomed me with open... uhh... keyboards? See, at the time I lived sixty miles north of Austin, and so attending any events in person would have been impractical at best. So, nobody gave me a real hug, but I like to think I got plenty of virtual ones.
At the end of that first thirty days I had a sort of a novel, a whole bunch of new friends, and a renewed love of the written word. Most of my new friends were fellow Penguins, but some of them lived in other far-flung places.
Last year I was hanging out in the Off Topic forum, in a thread dedicated to the wonders of Urinal Mints when one of my friends told me that she believed my writing was good enough to be published. This was no idle compliment, as she was the editor of an online e-zine that specialized in amateur writers like myself. (It's called the Piker Press, and there is a link to it in my signature.)
So I got out my first NaNo novel and polished it up a bit. OK, I polished a LOT! The 50k+ words were slimmed down to just under 35k, and it went from a short novel to a novella. I submitted it, and it was accepted! Although I got no money for it, I could now honestly tell people that my work had been published!
Since then, I have written several other pieces as well as digging up some old stuff that I had thought was permanently relegated to the file cabinet. I enjoy writing, and do so on a regular basis, both for publication in the Piker Press, for my blog, or just to exercise my writing muscles.
All because of NaNo, and a bunch of Penguins from Texas.
How's THAT for a changed life?
Nicholas McRae
I'm podcasting my 2006 NaNo Novel! Check it out at:
http://piggymotoasbb.mevio.com
56,036 / 50,000
Nov 2, 2009 - 19 57
Shoot all these stories of folks getting published makes me wanna stand up and actually give it a fighting try :) Thanks for sharing :) This is great :)
***made some awesome friends, some of whom I see only in November and one whom I see more frequently
***introduced me to some neighborhoods I'd never ventured into before
***made me realize that caffeine in large doses one month out of the year is not going to kill me
***made me less afraid of people I don't know
***got me to leave my apartment when I didn't know anyone who would be where I was going
***without NaNo, I'd have driven to/from Minnesota more than once by myself instead of with a passenger who even stayed awake the entire 21 hours despite not having slept well the night before
***introduced me to ALPHASMART products!
***helped me find other erotica writers with whom to discuss details that some folks find uncomfortable
***gave me the courage to submit things I'd written and got published
There are more, but these are the main ones :)
It's very nice to be back this year.
Nicholas McRae
I'm podcasting my 2006 NaNo Novel! Check it out at:
http://piggymotoasbb.mevio.com
21,934 / 50,000
Nov 3, 2009 - 07 15
Flippant, and everyone,
The Piker Press is always looking for more authors. Check out the submission guidelines here: http://www.pikerpress.com/submissions/submissions.php
The editor is one the most wonderful people it has ever been my privelige to be acquainted with. Tell her that I sent you!
----------Tweetywill
The Piker Press
50,050 / 50,000
Nov 4, 2009 - 05 03
Everybody's inspiring stories are inspiring me even more!
Since I started doing Nanowrimo in 2004, I've actually written two complete novels that are think are close to being publishable. I turned my first nanowrimo novel into a screenplay. I've gained confidence that I can actually write and complete a long fictional work. Someday, after perhaps a few more years of this, I may even achieve the holy grail of publication...at least maybe self publication.
Woo hoo!
56,036 / 50,000
Nov 4, 2009 - 14 22
The Piker Press is always looking for more authors. Check out the submission guidelines here: http://www.pikerpress.com/submissions/submissions.php
The editor is one the most wonderful people it has ever been my privelige to be acquainted with. Tell her that I sent you!
Wow!! great! Thanks for sharing this link!!
----------Nicholas McRae
I'm podcasting my 2006 NaNo Novel! Check it out at:
http://piggymotoasbb.mevio.com