NaNoWriMo
For all the rabbits, writing novels this month
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Thu, 11/01/2007 - 07:30Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit. The poet tells us April is the cruelest month. Perhaps November is the most complicated. Like other months, I start off with “Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit”, the old phrase we said as kids at the beginning of each month, hoping to bring good luck. I could sure use a little good luck right about now.
Then, my title mashes up two other important themes for the month. Everyone was out last night for Halloween, also known as All Saint’s Eve. Today, is All Saints day, a day we remember those who have died. There is a great hymn which is often sung on All Saints day, or the Sunday immediately following, which begins,
For all the saints, who from their labors rest,
Who Thee by faith before the world confessed,
Thy Name, O Jesus, be forever blessed.
Finally, today starts National Novel Writing Month. So, mashed all together, I get, “For all the rabbits, writing novels this month.”
In a few moments, I will shower, and drive to the train station. I have a big meeting in New York today. Providing I can find enough energy for myself and for my laptop, that will give me a great opportunity to start writing my novel.
That may be a challenge. Kim is fighting a cold and didn’t sleep well last night, so I worry that I may be fighting something similar and did not get much sleep on account of all her tossing last night. However, I did get a good working tagline for my proposed novel, “They saw their dreams start to come true online, but things don’t always turn out as planned.” It is going to be about the experiences of people in Second Life, and I hope this catches your interest, piques your curiosity, and that I actually get time to get this written.
NaNoWriMo Prep
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 12:24Thursday, All Saints Day, I will begin my first attempt at writing a novel. Last year, my daughter Miranda wrote her first novel, Subtle Differences. She has been giving me suggestions in how to approach my novel.
I’ve set up my account on the NaNoWriMo website. I’ve been getting several emails from that group about events coming up. One email pointed me to Typing Test. According to them, I type around 50 to 60 words per minute on my laptop. At that rate, it will take me around 15 hours of typing to write my novel. When you add in ‘think’ time, based on how long it takes me to write a typical blog post, I’m going to guess it will take me 120 hours altogether. I’m not sure where I’ll find the time, but, I’ll work on it. The same email that pointed to the typing test also pointed, here for an activity log to help optimize time.
I was recently in a discussion about optimizing time spent networking, and some people chafed under the discussion. Whether we are socializing, writing, or doing both, we need to have fun doing it. It is in this vein that I’ve been participating in the NaNoWriMo 2007 Group on BlogCatalog.
Word Strumpet runs the group and put up a great discussion starter asking how people are preparing for NaNoWriMo.
I started my comment with
I'm drinking heavily. I figure that in a drunken haze, the story and the characters will reveal themselves to me. Then, I pass out and get lots of sleep. This will leave me well rested for thirty days of coffee and cigarettes as I stare at the half blank screen.
I haven’t spoken about my story yet, but it is going to involve Second Life, and probably the mob, terrorists, Federal agents, and so on. Not the type of novel I ever would have expected to be my first attempt. So, if I wanted to continue on in my Hunteresque style I would say that I’m balancing out my drinking prep work with hanging out in Second Life as well as with as many mobsters, terrorists and Federal agents as I can find.
So, I have a large task ahead. I’m hoping to have a lot of fun writing the novel and hopefully some people might even have fun reading it some day.
Casting Call
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Thu, 10/25/2007 - 12:45Miranda has been urging me to do National Novel Writing Month, NaNoWriMo. The goal is to write a 50,000 word novel during the month of November. I always have writing ideas, sometimes even in the shape of a novel, but rarely do they present themselves to me the way this latest idea has. I don't want to spill the beans, especially since I have no idea if I'll actually carry it out or if it will turn out at all like I'm currently expecting, but in my current imaginings it will involved Second Life, finance and who knows what else.
As I sit on the train heading into New York, I let my mind wander. What is the story I want to tell? Who are the characters? What will happen and when? How will it turn out? My mind becomes flooded with possible characters all auditioning for a role in my story. I've already gotten about a dozen seeking their chance to have their part of the story told, and that doesn't even get to the part that the reader plays.
If I can get these twelve characters to cooperate and tell their stories in a collaborative way, if I can find time to write this, as well as deal with the rest of my life, this could be good. So, Miranda, I'm not committing to NaNoWritMo yet, but I'm getting closer.
