[NaNo] National Novel Writing Month 2011- Over for another year.

Was the website supposed to look different?

 

I've got a similar thing to SoA in that I'm using a story that's been sitting in it's little plot-bunny cage for a while now, so I've got most of the general plot points and pretty much all the characters lined up. I'll probably go through all my notes and scribble out an updated outline as November gets closer.

Now this idea, I really like. I think I'm gonna try this.

 

I don't think the new website has gone up yet. They must be running behind schedule.

I've done and won NaNo for the past two years, but I don't think I'll do it again this year--partially because I have more schoolwork, but also because I never seem to write anything good for NaNo. I like that it makes me productive, but I don't like having 50,000 words of writing that not even the world's best editor could make good. I might just set a writing goal for myself and try to make that instead. Or maybe I'll try to write some short stories, rather than a novel.

 

The site hasn't reset yet. They've been doing a good job of keeping their twitter updated when things go down/up. You can really tell when it changes because your past word count will be reset to 0 and the forums will be reset. I figure they didn't say when on the 10th and since they in the pacific time-zone so they've still got at least 4 hours!

You can write short stories and still participate in NaNo! Technically, it's 'cheating' but it's really not. There's even a section of the forums for NaNo rebels for people who are writing something other than a fiction novel.

 

See, and I had this plot bunny and began this story two years ago and had to abandon it at only the second chapter--it's practically clawing its way out of my head! I thought about cheating and writing it last year for NaNo but decided to do the right thing and start fresh. Not this year!!

Really helped me last year, thanks for the reminder SoA!

 

So, thanks to Dr. Who, my muse for the sequel to my completed novel has been talking to me again. I'm going to be writing that all the time except for in November, when I am going to write the book that I've been meaning to write on. Long story short, I'm in.

 

Discussion Question: Do you prepare for Nano? Write outlines, character profiles, get pictures (or draw) of what your characters look like, etc.? Does your story already have a beginning, middle and end? Do you do all your planning on the computer, on paper or a mixture of both?

If you don't plan: do you have any idea what your going to write about? Do you just keep it all in your head or do you just write what comes out?

I try not to prepare too much for NaNo. I tried planning a novel once and it felt like I'd already written, so when I came to do the actual writing I just couldn't really be bothered.

That said, I have a vague idea as to what some bits will be. Mostly I just sit down and go with whatever comes out, even if it doesn't make any sense at all.

However, I have done some research in the past. If I have weapons in the game I look up proper terms and images so I can describe them. I've also made character images using the tektek avatar maker for gaia online to make character sketches. I still have some floating around from when I've done them before.

 

Looks like the new website is up. Just a reminder - if you did/won NaNo in 2010, update your author information once you log in.

 

This is the most legwork I've done on a story before actually writing it. I'm doing a modern version of Swan Lake, which means that I've not only worked out the mythology, character names, characterizations and which of the endings I'm going to use, but have looked up the following:
1) Mating habits of swans
2) Basic ornithology
3) Hebrew surnames and their popularity in America
4) Curfew laws in Boston
5) Shoplifting laws in Montreal
6) Public nudity laws in Canada
7) Flight styles of swans
8) Dietary habits of swans
9) The story that Swan Lake was based on
10) How to roast a swan
11) Flight speed of swans
12) Celtic swan legends
13) Places in Boston open all night
14) Typical sentences for first-offense shoplifters/streakers
15) Canadian immigration laws
16) Average flying range capabilities of swans


The list actually goes on and on. #10 was found by Kateydidnt when looking for any information on swans. God bless Wikipedia. I've also written a reverse-Swan-Lake as an exercise for one of my classes.

 

Oh, definitely! I've spent a good deal of time perusing the Rebel forums. What I meant was, I'm not sure if I'll try to actually reach 50K or not. I might just set my goal as completing x amount of stories, word count be damned.

 

Curious, since I was bit by the writing bug last week and have been plotting and planning since... How late in the game can one enter? Due to my finicky muse that has a habit of abandoning me in the middle of something, I'd like to make sure I have some content underway prior to making a commitment to the contest, rather than join and at the end, have nothing to show for it.

 

Last year I didn't plan anything and just winged it. I only got two thirds of the way done so this year I am creating a detailed outline. I'm going to do pretty much the opposite of last year. So a pretty detailed outline and character backstorys and such.
I can't wait for it to start!

 

It doesn't start til November 1 so you still have time. First step is to sign up over on the NaNo website if you haven't already.

 

I don't plan ahead much. My goal is to write a finished first draft of a novel, not the novel itself. So tehre's a lot <details in here> and <more research on this> sometimes even <landscape description>.
The two times I won, I worked with one spreadsheet only.
Once to keep track of who was where and who's PoV I was using for the stuf ahead. The other time to keep track on which universe I was in for the plot to happen and which song was the leading theme.

I might start planning something once uni work slows down. From time to time I condiser doing TRIDU, my current WIP. But I feel that would be cheating. I am trying to get up to 1k words a day for that anyway.

 

I'm definitely tempted to try this out this year. November is a busy month for us but it could be fun to be a part of it.

 

Participants list updated! People that sound unsure are going on the list anyway to try and encourage the insanity!!

NaNo isn't really a contest per say, unless you count it as a contest with yourself. You can sign up, say you are going to participate and not write a single word, it doesn't matter. The only really important 'rule' is that you don't start before November 1st. One could of course do so but you could also cheat the system and copy/paste anything into the word count verifier and say you won; but there would be no point in that.
There really isn't any commitment at all, just a challenge. But to answer your question specifically, you could sign up at anytime even through November.

 

Ishtar, I would love to read that story!

 

eep name on a list....
ha ha well I figure I wrote 3 large novel sized fanfics all of them with words counts of up over 300,000 okay so it's taken me seven or so years but I hope I can do it. But I guess we'll see.

 

Hey, I thought I'd post this quickly as it might be very useful: yarny.me

It's like Google Docs but not Google and also has lists to keep characters, places, objects, and snippets. I haven't used it much but it seems to be rather good and I like the idea of having important details right there next to my writing. Oh, and it has a word count at the bottom of the page too so you can watch it counting up as you write.

 

I'm definately participating. This would be my sixth year, I believe.

I actually have an idea for a halfway decent story but that's what I said last year too so...

 

I've been trying MS OneNote to keep track of things this time. It came with MS Office (Home and Student edition) and PC Advisor magazine had a 'getting started' article in a recent issue. So far it seems useful.

 

Sign me up! I have yet to decide on a story and figure out a plot, but I'll definitely be doing it. I love NaNo.

I plan everything. I try to get a comprehensive outline written before I start writing, along with setting and character notes, so I know what I'm doing. I don't do character profiles beyond the basics - brief physical description, age, name, etc - but I have to have a plot outline. I do my brainstorming on paper, and then refine it all on the computer. I've tried a lot of different programs; at the moment, OneNote is winning out. It's just so handy because you can include pictures and move everything around at will. I have Liquid Story Binder too, and I like it, but it almost has too many features.

I'm working on a word count tracker for this year, too. I'll link to my NaNo resources once I get them all organised and online.

And character pictures - I do those more and more now. I don't like using photos, especially celebrity photos, so I draw them and put them into OneNote too. I like having visual references, and I like drawings because I guess they're more unique than photos, kind of. I usually try to have cover art etc for NaNo, too. It motivates me to finish it and it makes my NaNo page look shiny!

 

Participants list updated.

I guess I should answer the discussion questions myself.

Discussion Question: Do you prepare for Nano? Write outlines, character profiles, get pictures (or draw) of what your characters look like, etc.?
I don't prepare too much, I certainly don't write outlines. I was never good at them in school and I still can't do them very well. I do a short character profile of my main character but leave most of it to what happens when I start writing.
I have sheets for my characters where I can fill in information (hair & eye color, distinguishing features, personality quirks etc.) as I go along so I don't have to go back and look in the story. I find it easier to write these things down than have them saved on my computer, so I can just look at them and not tab off my story screen.


Does your story already have a beginning, middle and end?
Ha ha ha... no.
It has a beginning... maybe? A possible middle but no end at all so far.

Do you do all your planning on the computer, on paper or a mixture of both?
Mostly on paper though I do my writing on my laptop. I have the above mentioned character sheets, a small notebook I've been joting down ideas, plot devices and possible twists. I also have in that notebook a huge list of names (thank you babynames.com) so when I can't immediately think of a character name I can just pick one from there without having to spend too much time on it.

If you don't plan: do you have any idea what your going to write about?
While it sounds kinda like I'm planning, I'm really not. Very little is planned out at this point, mostly just the vaguest of general idea. I'll pretty much write what comes to me and see what happens.

 

Even though I'm still hesitant to join in, I may as well participate in the discussion...

Discussion Question: Do you prepare for Nano? Write outlines, character profiles, get pictures (or draw) of what your characters look like, etc.?

Well, for any story, I do some level of preparation, particularly if the story is to be much longer than a simple vignette. I do a lot of character studies prior to writing, have pics of most of the characters drawn (minor characters that I prefer to leave ambiguous don't get much description), profiles in terms of articles on Star Wars Fanon, and, of course, outlines.

Does your story already have a beginning, middle and end?

If my muse bites me, I'll start with an idea or a scene, then go from there. Usually, I try to get the ending figured out, first, that way I have a goal and all I need to do is draw the map. If I don't have an ending in mind to start with, be it even just an ending scene, then the story could go off on a screeching tangent into a brick wall.

Do you do all your planning on the computer, on paper or a mixture of both?

Paper, paper, paper. You should see the copious amounts of notes and outlines I write in my many, many notebooks. Everything is done by hand on paper. Even my rough drafts.

If you don't plan: do you have any idea what your going to write about? Do you just keep it all in your head or do you just write what comes out?

That only works for short vignettes, like one story I wrote during an IRC netsplit. For longer pieces, I need to plan. I learned long ago what happens if I write by the seat of my pants; I end up with a lot of pages that don't really tell anything.

 

I'm hoping to participate again this year, but I'm not sure yet if I will. I always seem to get visitors in November. I won my first year but lost my next two (?) years. It's fun if I can get into it and get on a roll, though, so I hope I'll convince myself to do it.