NaNoWriMo

[EmpressOfTheGoldFlames]

Hello

Is anyone doing NaNoWriMo this year?
I'm going to start it at least & hopefully finish it. I've got characters swirling around in my head at the moment & some glimpse of a possible plot...

[Alameda]

I hate the phrase 'personal enrichment', it's my reason for everything!

[FlyingAardvark]

Yes my third Nano. The one I did in 2010 I evolved it into a much better story but still the same basic plot. I used the first two chapters of it for a creative writing module in my degree and got good marks for it. It is probably the story I will work on first when I get the chance as one I'm most proud of. The second one I enjoyed writing the most but I realised writing it I'm going to have to do quite a bit of research as it's set in the middle ages and I don't have time to do that, so I've put it away for now. This one is just something completely new for me.

It's really good you have someone to share your story with and get useful feedback too. I used to worry about criticism and would never let anyone look, after doing the creative writing course and having to let others look at my work it's really developed my writing. I still don't like criticism but I've learned to look at is as useful and it's such a boost when someone likes your work!

[LoopyLoopsOlympicHoops]

A quick question. Is it OK, do you think, to include a mumsnet in joke? It's something that I always find funny, but non MNers are unlikely to see the relevance of. Would it offend any MN readers, do you think?

[LoopyLoopsOlympicHoops]

I think Caitlin Moran did that a couple of times in her book.

[Penelope1980]

I have had one reference to it in my previous novel and plan to reference it at least once MN is pretty well known now, you hear about it in the news now.

I feel like am going ok as have written every day, but have fallen short of the target each day. I might have to take a day of leave when ds is in creche and play catch up.

I tend to write about 500 words every 30 mins or so as a rule of thumb, when I know where the chapter is going that is!

I know you aren't meant to edit as you go, but I can't help it some times.

How many POV's do you have? I have 4 and wondering if one more is one too many (my book is about what different people do when the world is ending)

[castlelough]

Hi Penelope,
This is probably a silly question but what is a POV?
Have you already published a novel?

[bigmouthstrikesagain]

POV = point of view

I am determined to make progress but it is so easy to skip days or fail targets, I am a Queen of good intentions and Empress of procrastination. Still I will put Mumsnet down and pick up my chapter no looking back just going forward for this month at least. It would be so amazing to have a completed first draft to work on by Christmas.

[bigmouthstrikesagain]

Hurrah a thousand words tonight! Now to bed, before I read them back and think they are crap.

[Penelope1980]

Castle No I haven't published a novel! Just written one that I am not sure what to do with next. It wasn't a Nanowrimo one but took about three months then another 6 months for the edit. Ug. Editing sucks. That's why I am enjoying the idea of NaNo!

Is it just me or are some of the message boards over on the NaNo website a bit mean? Maybe I have been looking in the wrong places but that's how some of them felt. Or perhaps I am just a giant wuss.

Kinky I think part of what makes it hard sometimes is finding the right "voice". I just totally abandoned two of what were supposed to be my main people because it just didn't work, and ended up emphasising a minor character more. Trial and error I guess.

[LoopyLoopsOlympicHoops]

A quick gloat, if I may? 12000 words :)

[Penelope1980]

loopy am impressed! I just hit 6982 after having a few free hours - am just glad to finally be around what the daily average ought to be.

Am happy to have done that much but not sure I can keep up this momentum

[LoopyLoopsOlympicHoops]

Ah, but I cheated a bit, had a couple of thousand already

[Engelsemama]

Loopy ! Am just about to break 6,000 but heading out for coffee with DH's relatives now. If I want to get ahead I'm going to have to head upstairs this afternoon and leave DH to it with DS ignoring pile of marking in the corner that has to be done for Tuesday

[Engelsemama]

pen I am ignoring the nano site except for peptalks and checking my buddies word counts. The only way I can get writing done is if I switch off my internet not working too well right now is it?

[castlelough]

Ooh you are all doing so well! Hoping to make some more progress today!

Happy with ANY progress because I haven't written a story since I was at school! (15 years!)

I checked the nano message board last night and thought it was such a NEGATIVE place, filled with doubt and people hating themselves for not getting on as well as they had hoped they would be....best to steer clear of!

[FlyingAardvark]

I've ignored the forums after looking at them the first year, it just all seemed more about competition rather than support. Though I do check out my regional forum I don't go to any meets as even if I had the time I'd find it distracting. I can't sit with people and not talk and I can't write and talk!

If anyone finds the internet distracting I can recommend the freedom programme, it was recommended to me by a MNer and I use it often now. Only problem is when I get to a part and think 'Oh I better check that' and find I can't get on the internet because I've blocked it

[Wilding]

Loopyloops, I have a MN in-joke in my novel too... I'm going to look out for references in all the new books I pick up now!

Very at how much you're all managing. I did about 1200 yesterday which I was enormously impressed with myself about! Going to try and force myself to do more writing tonight instead of watching repeats of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (slightly addicted )

[LoopyLoopsOlympicHoops]

Yeah, I've ditched the nano site apart from the stats. No replies on forums, really badly organised, and really negative. MN is enough forum for me.

[castlelough]

Did a half an hour there and brought my word count to 1100 . Yay! I have a feeling I will be the slowcoach in this group, but I don't mind! Progress is progress!

[EllenParsons]

I completed it in 2002 and wrote about 60k words. I am still quite proud of the novel I wrote then so it really feels worth it once you complete. I went and got mine bound into a nice hardback and it looked amazing (a bit sad maybe but since I had written a book, I wanted it to look like a book!) I have never done it since as I feel like my idea was a one off and I havent had another one since. Good luck everyone!

[madwomanintheattic]

Ah, castle, everything has been manic, so I'm about 300 behind you - as I didn't have a character or a plot I had to use the first couple of days to brainstorm!! (I know I can catch up though, as work schedule changes this week... And am also planning to resign. And secretly hoping they will tell me not to bother working my notice -in theory I'm still in probation period/ training, so it's probably more bother than it's worth for them to get me to work my notice... And they do have someone who can cover my hours really easily whilst they recruit a replacement)

I'm not actually resigning because of nano, lol. I've spent most of the week weeping and not sleeping because I just haven't gelled with the job or the people.

I also haven't been able to get onto to the nano site - well, I can get n, but every time I try and do anything I get booted off, so I've given up for now. Will try again later after today's efforts!! (Clocks went back last night, so I get an extra hour ). I'm deffo going to include a few mn refs in mine, in fact the website the main character uses is a thinly disguised mn, so I can't not, really... It isn't the main focus, but it's how she initially started the series of unfortunate events

I got distracted by Julie Burchill last night. Mostly these things happen on the periphery, but in the face of continued typing, I became irrationally fascinated by her marriage set up. Complete waste of three hours, initial flames fanned by the India Knight/ Liz Jones thread. At least extreme makeover:home edition might prove useful one day. It's unlikely anyone is ever going to quiz me on that particular ménage a trois. (Although as Charlotte Raven makes a cameo appearance, I can attempt to chalk it up to research.... )

Right. Few things to do this morning so that I can have unfettered access to laptop this afternoon.

[SolidGoldYESBROKEMYSPACEBAR]

Still on a bit of a fail so far. ANd I am sort of cheating in a way as I was a chapter and a bit in before I started; I'm not going to bother with the official site much (unless I start feeling malevolent) but I'm sort of working alongside it as I actually have a, er, um, deadline to get book done by.

[Engelsemama]

We're on "Discussions of the Day!"

Managed to get over 7,000. Going to try to do a bit more now.

I tried to start early today but didn't creep out of bed as quietly as I thought ad DH was down with DS pretty soon so my cunning plan was foiled.

Am really getting into my story though. Am thinking about sending first chapter to my sister who has just got back from travelling and has nothing to do

[Alameda]

my friend is on 12000+ words

me - still around 1300, mainly a description of a scuba instructor's torso when I wanted to write a funny murder/suicide skydiving thing. I don't even have a title. Why am I so rubbish!

[kermithermit]

Hi!
I'm doing it - second year. I managed to win last year but then spent the next 12 months editing what I did as I started with only a vague idea of plot and my characters were a bit hazy. This year I'm doing more characterisation and