Anyone else started thinking about Nano? [2015]

[crich70]

Originally Posted by Arrghus

Yes, I'm seriously considering it this year. I am thinking of cheating and writing a handful of shorts rather than a long piece.

I have been trying to work out my ecosystem for planning and writing, and I think I shall be doing most of it through Evernote on my Android Slatebook 14.

I am avoiding Scrivener as I am moving my digital life to the cloud.

Nothing wrong with writing a series of short stories for NaNo. I've heard of others doing the same thing.

[KimaPrince]

Been thinking about NaNo a lot lately, and I've decided to change which story I will work on. As mentioned in a previous post I was going to go with a seat of pants story idea I had but now I've decided to write a story I actually have a lot of prep work for that recently it seems like I have enough of the pieces together for that story that I'm willing to use the NaNo time to write it.

[crich70]

Originally Posted by KimaPrince

Been thinking about NaNo a lot lately, and I've decided to change which story I will work on. As mentioned in a previous post I was going to go with a seat of pants story idea I had but now I've decided to write a story I actually have a lot of prep work for that recently it seems like I have enough of the pieces together for that story that I'm willing to use the NaNo time to write it.

Good luck with it KimaPrince. There is nothing wrong with changing your mind about what story to work on. I've heard that some NaNoers even change their mind a few days into NaNo.

[KimaPrince]

Originally Posted by crich70

Good luck with it KimaPrince. There is nothing wrong with changing your mind about what story to work on. I've heard that some NaNoers even change their mind a few days into NaNo.

Thanks.

And oh wow. Changing a few days into NaNo? If they're aiming to have the new work meet the 50,000 and not count the previous work they'd have a lot of catchup to do. I believe you need a bit over 1,700 words each day to meet the 50,000. Which is doable, but the trick is if you miss a day, you have to make up that word count. That's over 3,000 words in a day if you missed one day.

[crich70]

Originally Posted by KimaPrince

Thanks.

And oh wow. Changing a few days into NaNo? If they're aiming to have the new work meet the 50,000 and not count the previous work they'd have a lot of catchup to do. I believe you need a bit over 1,700 words each day to meet the 50,000. Which is doable, but the trick is if you miss a day, you have to make up that word count. That's over 3,000 words in a day if you missed one day.

Yep. the minimum words per day is 1,667 actually though if someone can get 2,000 words a day they can do it in 25 days (but that's probably tricky to manage too). And like you said if you miss a day you have that much more to do to catch up. I crossed the 50k line once on day 28 back in 2009 and it wasn't easy. You can put yourself under a lot of stress very easily if you fall behind. Someday I have to still go back and see if my project from then can be salvaged. It still had some loose ends to tie up among other things I think last time I checked.

[Graham]

Originally Posted by KimaPrince

I believe you need a bit over 1,700 words each day to meet the 50,000. Which is doable, but the trick is if you miss a day, you have to make up that word count. That's over 3,000 words in a day if you missed one day.

Yup. If you can get ahead early and then keep up the daily word count it's less stressful.

It's a nice feeling seeing yourself above the graph line of words per day, and it motivates you to keep on going.

Getting the words on the page is easier in the middle of the story, though. I found it tricky to get started, and also slowed down a lot towards the end, where I was trying to bring everything together.

Graham

[hoichi]

So... this is the year when everybody's seriously considering NNWM.
Well, me too. I tried it three years ago. Failed miserably. (Probably tried before that too, but didn't even register my novel.) Then did't try for a couple more years, because I didn't feel like starting a new project, didn't think it was fair to continue the old one, and thought I'd rather write on my own schedule (that didn't work too well either).
Now I'm back. I'm not gonna do a whole lot of setting up this time. Just run through my files, select one of a few stories I consider writing (or at least choose a universe and a starting point), gather some notes I might use and kinda rush into it. I'm not gonna plot too much (maybe a quick and dirty tactical outline so I know what to write next) and I'm definitely not gonna write the magnum opus I have so much notes for, because God knows I plan too much and write too little, and this one to burdened with ambitions and expectations to do it fast. I'd rather try and just have and adventure and get some experience, even if I end up somewhere silly. Isn't that the whole idea of the NNWM?
Also, I'm probably not gonna use Scrivener. I have it, I use it, but this November I'm using something simpler and comfier, like my old friend Atlantis Word Processor. (Might as well be Word or LibreOffice Writer, I guess. Or FocusWriter. Or WriteMonkey. Whatever's familiar enough.)

[hoichi]

Originally Posted by Graham

Getting the words on the page is easier in the middle of the story, though. I found it tricky to get started, and also slowed down a lot towards the end, where I was trying to bring everything together.

That's why some gurus advise to just start wherever, not necessarily at the start. Any scene you're have any idea how to write.
And I don't think it's against the NNWM rules to create a bunch of non-sequential episodes. And even if it was, it still goes a long way towards your goal

[KimaPrince]

Nanowrimo.org has been relaunched for 2014~
You can enter your novel information and cover on the site now and they have new nano 2014 avvis and a site banner. I'm still a newbie and want people to get used to my normal avvi so I'm not going to use the NaNo avvi. But the banner and such has been fun to put on social media and website.
Sorry, bit excited XD I've been waiting for the site update so I could put my novel info up and see the new banner/avvis.
http://nanowrimo.org/participants/kittymarie-prince is my nano account
Anyone else actually use the site or do you just take the challenge and not bother updating the site?

[hoichi]

Originally Posted by KimaPrince

http://nanowrimo.org/participants/kittymarie-prince is my nano account
Anyone else actually use the site or do you just take the challenge and not bother updating the site?

You've been added
I probably won't go through obfuscating my draft and uploading it every day, but I guess I'll try to update my word count regularly for my buddies to see

[crich70]

Originally Posted by hoichi

You've been added
I probably won't go through obfuscating my draft and uploading it every day, but I guess I'll try to update my word count regularly for my buddies to see

I added you too KimaPrince. I'm CBrentner over there at NaNo. Which are you hoichi?

[hoichi]

Originally Posted by crich70

I added you too KimaPrince. I'm CBrentner over there at NaNo. Which are you hoichi?

I'm Samokhov. Could be hoichi, but NNWM doesn't let you change your login and I don't want to lose my sad, sad history

[badgerboy]

I feel like I want to do this, but then I wonder and fear that the result will be some spectacularly bad bastardised hybrid of my favourite books.
Do you find your writing to be original, whatever that means, or is it a hybrid that you end up hoping no-one will recognise as a rewrite of other novels?

[KimaPrince]

Originally Posted by badgerboy

I feel like I want to do this, but then I wonder and fear that the result will be some spectacularly bad bastardised hybrid of my favourite books.
Do you find your writing to be original, whatever that means, or is it a hybrid that you end up hoping no-one will recognise as a rewrite of other novels?

Write what you enjoy to write, and part of learning to write is working out the 'like such-and such" writing and turning it into your own. There is nothing wrong with getting influence from other series though. I've heard that Shades of Grey was actually a NaNo project as a parody of the Twilight series (neither of which I've read or want to read) and Shades of Grey has gained just as much popularity.

My nano project this year actually started off being highly influenced by Dragon Ball Z and over the time I've plotted out and grown the story, characters and story world I've weeded out a lot of the DBZ-ness and I see it as something that holds itself as unique. Will people catch that it has some similarities to DBZ? Perhaps. Did I outright copy DBZ? Nope. It's just influenced by it.

You can't get mad at every fantasy novel for having a band of heroes that include an elf and wizard that set out to save the world a direct copy of Lord of the Rings, but you may see where the story was influenced by it. (If it has hobbits though, I'd start getting worried. :P )

So if you want to do NaNo I say go for it. Nobody is expecting you to publish your work either, and many first drafts are a mess anyway. That's where editing and rewriting come in to help fix your story.

I'm sure you could do fan-fiction as well, if you're not into publishing. Many people enjoy writing fan-fiction.

The point to NaNo, is to just write, and have fun, and loose sleep over trying to make that 50,000 word goal :P (I don't advise the loosing sleep part though.)

[hoichi]

Originally Posted by badgerboy

I feel like I want to do this, but then I wonder and fear that the result will be some spectacularly bad bastardised hybrid of my favourite books.
Do you find your writing to be original, whatever that means, or is it a hybrid that you end up hoping no-one will recognise as a rewrite of other novels?

Your (or mine) first draft might as well end up a spectacularly bad bastardized hybrid of your own original ideas. Whatever that means. At this point in history there's hardly a character, setting or plot turn that haven't been done multiple times before. It's how you spin it and whether or not it all comes together nicely.
But, yeah, I wouldn't worry about it before December. That's why first draft is often called sh***y draft: it's just a start.

Originally Posted by KimaPrince

The point to NaNo, is to just write, and have fun, and loose sleep over trying to make that 50,000 word goal :P (I don't advise the loosing sleep part though.)

I'd say, if you do lose your sleep, at least sit down and write