Opps- I seem to have signed up for NaNoWriMo

[SouthernandCross]

Does anyone else want to join me?
Failing that, has anyone else done it and managed the 50 000 words?

Southern - That's a good way to do it, I think I might try it later because I'm driving myself crazy thinking that I have to hit 2k a day

EvilTwin - I hope you manage to hit that target!

juneybean - I had to use the workaround that MyBrainIsOutOfTune posted with a few people. I think they're still working on the NaNo site and ironing out little bugs. Plus they're getting ready to add widgets and stuff too, so that's going to send it a little crackers.

MyBrainIsOutOfTune - I bet you'll be able to hit the target even with having to complete your thesis says the woman who did her assignments the day the were due

MysteriousHamster - I hope you have fun with your boy, even if he does keep distracting you when you're trying to write

I don't seem to have much problem getting words out at the minute and the children aren't distracting me because they're too busy with their own NaNo novels to be bouncing around. DH though, he's trying to be 'helpful' and it's driving me batty. I appreciate that he's doing stuff around the house while I write, but he keeps taking breaks to tell 'advise' me on what to write and how to write it.

Does anyone have any tips for stopping him from doing that? I know he's trying to be helpful and keep me going, but telling me what to write when he writes in a completely different way is annoying. He writes like an academic, where as I write the same way I talk and clear it up later so his suggestions tend to be a little dry and technical.'

I'm half expecting him to try and check I've used Harvard referencing for everything

at Harvard referencing. Maybe you could ask him to keep his advice to himself until you ask for it? Or tell him to at least phrase it as questions, instead of telling you what to do? Or tell him to write his own novel using Chicago referencing because it's so much better?

I'm deeply frustrated because I'm sure I've never had an original idea in my life. Every word I write feels like it's stolen from somewhere.

Am now imagining a rat using FIFTY THOUSAND WORDS to tell the story of how he was having a nice time snuggling up in the cheese locker, and then there was all this noise, and lots of water, and then he died

Even better, 50k words, all of which are 'squeak'

MyBrainIsOutOfTune, I don't think anyone has an original idea. Aren't there only supposed to be seven plots in the world or something?

The originality is in the presentation.

Often someone who seems to have written something really original has taken their inspiration from something that went before - standing on the shoulders of giants. Tolkien - the Father of modern fantasy, seems to have leaned heavily on Celtic and Norse legends, and his Catholic belief. If you go back to the source material, a lot of his ideas are drawn directly from there.

1100

But I was interrupted. And I will try to do some more when the children are asleep.

Thanks for those tips Helvetica - I found them useful.

MyBrainIsOutOfTune - I did tell him to write his own and he thought about it for a while before coming up with a fairly good idea. I tried to encourage him and get him going, but he's done absolutely nothing about it except take this sudden interest in my writing. I do like the idea of Chicago referencing though

I agree that with you that it feels like there are no original plots left, but like OneHandFlapping said, it's in the presentation. I mean, making up a whole story around not having a zombie plan isn't that original. I'm just adding my own brand of childish humour :)

Helvetica - I've resorted to the following at the moment: 'I think that's a great idea DH, I'll take that on board and discard it later as necessary

Thank you ladies for your brilliant ideas. I have to admit, throwing things at him does have a certain appeal right now

Hello, I like to arrive at things late and waft about for a bit elusively, or like a foul stench, whichever description pleases you more.
I've just joined NANOWRIMO and because I literally CANNOT write if left to my own devices have taken the first few thousand words of my novel but joined late (IFYSWIM) so as to not seem like a 'cheat' - I literally have no idea where the plot is going though, and really struggled just to come up with a synopsis.
Looking over the thread I may try and add one or more of you if that is alright ? Just so I don't feel as though I am floundering out there all alone.

I do not know how to add people. How do I do it ?

Ah, got it. Thanks! I may try adding some of the names from this list - I've got an hour or so this afternoon when DD is asleep (and when I would usually have my own siesta) and will try to get some words down then. I'm writing an absolutely unabashedly mainstream thriller/supernatural affair which certainly won't win me any prizes -certainly nor for literature - but which seems to be gathering pace nicely, at least.

Well, I've managed to get about 1k written today and have another 1k in me but I'm getting really frustrated with writing myself in to corners. Has anyone got any spare ninjas I can borrow just so I can make my characters do something other than argue with each other, wander around a hotel and occasionally set each other up to be eaten by zombies?

Sephrenia do you want to give us your plot so far and see if we can give you some ideas to work on?
I'm not sure how mine is going to end, so when I get nearer to that point I might give you guys a quick plot summary and see what you think should happen.

Yeah, what if tampons absorbed Zombies like they do blood?

I've just read the 'pep talk' email by Erin Morgenstern who mentioned that she took her plodding, going-nowhere characters in the story to the circus - which tipped the plot of her NaNoWriMo book into something fantastic (and published) - can they escape the hotel and go somewhere else with more opportunity ?

Sorry about the delay, I've been keeping an eye on my derailing thread on Chat while getting some writing done

I'll post the (rough) synopsis:

Everyone knows that having a zombie plan is a great idea, and Sally Morgan was no exception. She kept putting it off though, always meaning to do it in a couple of weeks and yet never quite managed to get around to it. It was only a laugh anyway, wasn't it?

This morning, she woke up to find zombies everywhere and it's too late to make a zombie plan.

Now Sally has to make a run for it, making up a plan as she goes. The only problem she has now, is creatures just as strange as zombies are coming out of the woodwork and she's got to get out of the city and back to her family without getting turned into the living dead.

Sometimes, waking up sucks.

*

As of now, my characters are in a hotel (don't know why, it just seemed funnier that way) and have made it to the hotel kitchen for supplies, only to be nearly killed by a flying can of garden peas lobbed by a young couple who were hiding in the tin cupboard. It's taken 10k words to get there. I don't know why

Busty I'm trying to get them to Buckingham Palace where a rather clever dude has covered up in plate armour (think Monty Python's Black Knight) and is quite happily lopping off various limbs in the middle of the Mall. At one point, he's probably going to pick up a severed limb and attempt to beat a zombie to death with it.

I know, I'm weird like that

Thank you all so much for helping me with this! You're all absolutely wonderful :)

Oh, I almost forgot Helvetica, it was MN that gave me the idea!