National Novel Writing Month - November 30, 2010

Another NaNoWriMo is coming to a close and I have, yet again, failed to complete the 50,000 word goal set by the contest.  I haven't really lost anything, just the bragging rights, and I got a few great ideas to develop into something.  Of course, who knows when that will be.

Clearly the problem with me writing is the lack of discipline.  Though, I do work two jobs which makes dedicating time to write a little difficult.  I don't want to stay up late to meet word deadlines only to feel exhausted at my paying jobs the next day.  Yet somehow, J.K. Rowling was able to do that and raise her kids so I should really stop finding excuses.

Hope everyone out there had a better turn-out than I did!

National Novel Writing Month - November 2, 2010

We are only on the second day of NaNo and I am already behind.   My total word count for yesterday: 326.  The saddest part is when I went to verify the word count on the official NaNo site.  They keep track of writing streaks and failure streaks, so I am already showing a failure streak of 1 day and I'll need to write 1710 words a day for the rest of the 29 days to make up for not meeting my 1666 word count for the first day.

On one hand, it's a very handy calculator that helps me adjust my goals.  On the other it's kind of depressing to see how far behind I've already gotten.  The problem is that I already hate where my characters are and I don't want to start all over again, though that is probably the best course of action.  Let me know if you have any helpful hints.

National Novel Writing Month 2010 - The countdown begins

Only 4 days left until the official start of National Novel Writing Month.  For those of you who are unaware of this crazy contest, please check out their official website at http://www.nanowrimo.com/.

I have been on the fence about ideas, but think I have committed to the Disney Princess meets Sex in the City one.  Obviously, they will be characters of my own making but I am basing them on the personalities of the Disney Princesses.  My main focus in research right now is to figure out what alcoholic drinks I think each of these ladies would order on a girls night out.  It's giving me a bit of insight into what I think each of their characters will be.  I welcome any suggestions, so far my list is as follows:

Snow White: Candy-Apple Martini
Cinderella: Godmother (Amaretto and Rum)
Mulan: Cricket (Grasshopper with Vodka)
Aurora (aka Sleeping Beauty):
Tiana:
Jasmine:
Belle:
Ariel:
Pocahontas:

National Novel Writing Month 2010

I have attempted to win National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)since my friend, Katherine, introduced me to it.  (For the record: Since 2004)  The goal is to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days.  It starts on November 1st and ends at midnight on the 30th.  In order to meet this goal it is necessary to write 1,666 words a day for the entire 30 days.  My friend aims for 2,000 a day so that she isn't as panicked towards the end of the month.  The exercise is supposed to free the writer of all responsibility to edit and just allow them to create.  As the NaNo website clearly states:

Because of the limited writing window, the ONLY thing that matters in NaNoWriMo is output. It's all about quantity, not quality. The kamikaze approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, and write on the fly.

Make no mistake: You will be writing a lot of crap. And that's a good thing. By forcing yourself to write so intensely, you are giving yourself permission to make mistakes. To forgo the endless tweaking and editing and just create. To build without tearing down.

I'm usually good for about 10,000-20,000 words and then I hit a road block from which I never recover.  The best year was when I was incredibly passionate about the story and wanted to develop it into an actual (possibly publishable) manuscript.  Unfortunately, Ianthe and her protectors didn't make it out of the forest scene I'd written.  I still have this one on my hard drive, waiting for inspiration to strike again.  The next best year was when I took a cue from Jasper Fforde and created a playground for some of my favorite literary characters.  Borrowing his bookworld as the framework, I was able to work out some of my aggression towards the Twilight series. The worst years are when I start with absolutely no idea at all.  Though, last year's time machine story wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.  I've been worried about this year because I haven't had any brainstorms or even a low pressure system threatening to move in.  That is, until last night.

While working at my second job, a local retail store, I had an idea.  I was dressed as Snow White for the big Halloween debut event the store was running and had to walk down to the grocery store to buy my lunch.  Not thinking about this ahead of time, I failed to bring a change of clothes and had to walk through the store still in costume.  A little girl was so excited to see Snow White that she ran to get her father and dragged him back to meet me.  It was really quite adorable.  But it also got me thinking about the Disney Princess Line-up and what if they all lived in a house together.  (Maybe a sorority, Real World, or Sex In The City-type group.) Or possibly I could take the Princesses' personalities and use them in characters in a different setting, like a small town or college group of friends.  Maybe they are looking back after 20 years and wondering about the course of their lives.  So this could be a good start for NaNo, depending on how I can develop these seeds.