Nanowrimo - Get your writing motors running!

[Robin M]

I have nanowrimo on the brain today. It's just 7 weeks away and I'm ready to start writing a new story. Going to try and preplan this year following K.M.Weiland's Outlining Your Novel suggestions.

 

A name for a character popped into my head saying write my story. Seems silly since been totally blocked the past few weeks and haven't written a thing or worked on editing anything. *sigh* Been working on getting up a bit early each day. Now I just need to work on weening myself away from the internet. Summer break, family stress and a whole hoard of other stuff sent me back to the interwebz and it's time to break the addiction. Going to take all that angst, throw it into a story and immerse myself in story planning.

 

Who is joining in this year?

[jessicalb]

I plan to try this year. My son asked me to do it. I am nervous - I have never written any fiction longer than a page or two.

 

Ds has won the last three years, once with chicken pox and once with a broken finger (and he types his!). We set pretty high word goals, with the idea that he will hit 50k his senior year in high school. :)

[Word Nerd]

I'm in this year.

[elegantlion]

I'll be there. I haven't decided for sure what to work on. I have a few ideas rolling around in my head.

[Reflections]

This will be our FIRST year. I am excited! :D

[aggieamy]

I am totally excited about it. I haven't come up with an idea yet though. The first year I won, last year I didn't finish. This year I'm going to give it another go!

[catz]

I'm excited ... for my kid at least. I'd love to try it some year. Not sure if this is my year. Maybe! Kid hit 8000 words as a 5th grader last year. Wondering if I should encourage him to try 10000 this year.

 

I wish my 8 year old could type. My son taught himself to type really early. I think by next year she'll definitely be ready and could maybe do something short this year if she wanted. My son first did NaNo as a young 9 and it really helped his typing skills even if the story wasn't the best that year.

[jenn-]

This will be our first year.

 

My dh is talking about signing up. He already has an idea what he wants to write about.

 

I might sign my oldest up. He really enjoyed the writing prompts I gave him last year that were only supposed to be 15 minutes. He would write pages. I'll have to get him started on an idea.

 

Could someone give me the bulletpoints on how it works? Please???:D I searched all over the NaNoWriMo site and had trouble finding out how you win, do you have to go to the meetings? Anything else that might be useful info would be very much appreciated.

 

Pretty much on November 1st you start writing/typing on a NEW fiction work. Type like crazy until Nov 30th and hope you manage to get 50,000 words down. Starting around Nov. 25 you submit your work by copying and pasting it into a word count verifier. Normally verified winners (just the people that submit to the word counter, no one actually reads their work) are offered prizes. Often that it is a printed copy of their finished work through a different company. Mainly, you win bragging rights.

[Classical Country Mama]

Could someone give me the bulletpoints on how it works? Please???:D I searched all over the NaNoWriMo site and had trouble finding out how you win, do you have to go to the meetings? Anything else that might be useful info would be very much appreciated.

 

Oh, it's frightfully easy!! First you register on the site. When Nov 1 hits (at 12:01am if you wish!) you start writing like mad, and you update your word count on your page there. The website will help you track your progress. There's a weekly pep talk; there are forums for everything from writers' block to what poisons were most popular/accessible in 1800. On Twitter there are word sprint challenges too.

 

You're not required to attend anything, but the kickoff parties and weekly write-ins are FUN, and worth attending if you can. The IRL support is fantastic.

 

To "win," at the end of the month you copy and paste your entire story in their word verifier, and it'll confirm your 50,000 count. That's it!

 

That just leaves the simple matter of 1,667 words/day. :D

[jenn-]

 

Who is joining in this year?

 

Every year at the end of NaNo I swear I won't put myself through it again. Every year about the end of August my brain goes into creative writing mode and characters start waving around in the background trying to get their story heard. So far I have told them all to shut the $#@% up, but they aren't listening very well. I am sure November 1st will roll around and I will be giving myself carpel tunnel issues for the 4th year in a row.

[SunnyDays]

Hmm. I need to roll this around in my brain a little. I think it would be fun for DS and I to do it. I need to decide whether we're up for the commitment.

[CupOCoffee]

My kids will be doing it again this year. They will start the Young Writers notebooks in October, and begin writing Nov 1. Remember, the 50k word count is only for the adult NaNo.

 

Would anyone be interested in setting up a "classroom" for our kids? We did one on another forum I used to participate on, but I don't really go to that forum anymore. It was neat to see the kids in the group update their progress. Dd is my "writer" and she hit something like 18,500 words last year (we had to keep upping her goal, she was unstoppable)! Ds is not so much a writer, but he was the one I really wanted to encourage to get writing; he met his goal as well, I think it was 10k. They had a lot of fun!

[aggieamy]

I told DH that I was doing NaNo again this year and he looked really sad. He wanted to know if there was a support group for NaNo widowers he could join.

 

I also got my idea. Yea! Bring on November!

 

This will be our first year.

 

My dh is talking about signing up. He already has an idea what he wants to write about.

 

I might sign my oldest up. He really enjoyed the writing prompts I gave him last year that were only supposed to be 15 minutes. He would write pages. I'll have to get him started on an idea.

 

Could someone give me the bulletpoints on how it works? Please???:D I searched all over the NaNoWriMo site and had trouble finding out how you win, do you have to go to the meetings? Anything else that might be useful info would be very much appreciated.

 

I'd love to know about your writing prompts. Most of the ones I've seen online haven't been very impressive and I'd love to get some tried and true prompts other have used.

[frugalmama]

I'm thinking about it. I have this hp fanfiction story idea that just won't go away, and I have the first page or so written but that's it {and I need to re-write that}.

 

Can someone link the website? I'm not familar with NaNowrimo at all, but I know a lot of the fanfiction writers I read write stuff then.

[Sara Mac]

We're having a bit of writing intensive for the rest of this year so it is perfect timing :001_smile:

My eldest dd is raring to go; she seriously can't wait to start and is biding her time working throught he middle school workbook. I figured that it would be a good example for me to sit down and give it a go at the same time as my kids. Might as well make it a family affair even though I have absolutely no clue what to write about. I'm seriously not a creative story kind of person :lol:

[dtsmamtj]

http://www.nanowrimo.org

 

My oldest dd is already talking about it - huge activity with her and several friends for the past several years.

[Georgiana Daniels]

If my book proposal gets rejected (here's hoping it doesn't, LOL!) then I will participate because I will need to start a project from scratch. It's been several years since I did it. Man, the last time was sooo super fun!!!! I love the late night pushes.

[jenn-]

Since I am pretty sure I have committed myself to this fun again, now I have to decide if I am going to coerce my unwilling children to join in. DD always complains about it, but then puts out a decent enough story. The middle boys are about the right age to try it. I am thinking of buying those little hardbound story writing books that I remember from eons ago when we had to write stories in school for them.

[Robin M]

Every year at the end of NaNo I swear I won't put myself through it again. Every year about the end of August my brain goes into creative writing mode and characters start waving around in the background trying to get their story heard. So far I have told them all to shut the $#@% up, but they aren't listening very well. I am sure November 1st will roll around and I will be giving myself carpel tunnel issues for the 4th year in a row.

 

Me too, me too!

 

Are you able to have italics or other formatting when you submit your writing??

 

Yes, as long as they are words, the word counter will count it.

 

5 Minute Daily Writing Practice from Scholastic (it's on sale right now for $1:001_smile:). They were all funny and cover persuasive, descriptive, expository and narrative writing. They also have story starters and endings.

Some examples: (since Scholastic stopped letting preview anything:glare:)

 

Persuasive

Imagine your town is going to be renamed. What do you think its new name should be? Write a letter to the editor of your town newspaper making a case for your choice.

 

Descriptive

You just got a new puppy. You've only had it for an hour when you realize it can do something no other dog can do. Describe what it can do.

 

Expository -

Write directions for a friend explaining how to get from the school to your house.

 

Narrative - He loved every.single.one of these

You find a magic stone on your way home from school. When you rub the stone, magical things happen. Tell a story about what happens to you.

 

Your aunt arrives with a huge box. You hear strange noises coming from the box. Write a story about what's inside.

 

 

Starter and Endings

They have general themes like most embarrassing moments, alternate universe holidays, wacky interviews, weird history, on the job with a...and more. They give you a full paragraph for your starter or ending. They are really fun.

 

Starter

Of course I had to work in the starter Tenochtitlan when we covered Ancient America. It starts out with all the perks of being an Aztec emperor until one day, the emporer was being carried around on his litter when...

 

Ending

..."this is exactly why I don't like to take anyone along on my top-secret missions!

 

I think taking the pressure off of grammar and editing really freed him to just be creative. He has a hard time coming up with a topic on his own when under pressure, so this remedied both of those problems.

 

Thank you, this is great. Off to the link to do some shopping. :001_smile:

 

 

 

So happy to see everyone joining in. Working on my kiddo to join in as well.

[Robin M]

I love synchronicity. Working on getting my writing butt back in gear and today received email from Writer's Village University about their F2k online 7 week creative writing course starting tomorrow. Diving in with both feet. See it as good prep for nanowrimo.

 

http://writersvillage.com/f2k/

[Classical Country Mama]

I love synchronicity. Working on getting my writing butt back in gear and today received email from Writer's Village University about their F2k online 7 week creative writing course starting tomorrow. Diving in with both feet. See it as good prep for nanowrimo.

 

http://writersvillage.com/f2k/

 

I want to hear more!!!! Have you done this program before?

[kolamum]

Me. :)

[Saille]

Ooh, Jen, that's really interesting.

 

I've won NaNo three years running, and the WTM boards are what got me started. NaNoWriMo kicked me into gear and got me writing more each day. My first year, 1667 a day was a struggle. Last year, I generally averaged 2K. I've been struggling to get my writing routine smoothed out post-move, so I'm glad NaNo is looming on the horizon. I don't know whether I'll start something new in November, or (more likely) use the energy of the event to push me to finish my current WiP.

 

My 11 yo is a reluctant writer, so no 10K word counts here, but I figure any fun he has writing is a win. The 9 yo has a blast, and comes up with really zany and genuinely funny ideas. Even so, I thought I might be the sole NaNo'er in my house this year. But the nine and eleven year old have both come downstairs after bedtime to talk to me about NaNo planning since I ordered the classroom kit. I'm probably going to donate some of our swag to our local bookstore, Robots & Rogues, and offer to host some YWP write-ins.

Edited September 19, 2012 by Saille

[Tutor]

Yay! Thanks for the reminder. I think three of our kids are going to join me this year. I don't know if I'll make the word total, but if I double my current story length I'll be very happy.

[Robin M]

I want to hear more!!!! Have you done this program before?

 

No. Signed up with Writer's University at the beginning of the year and hadn't had a chance to take a class until now. Heard good things about it though.

Glad you decided to join in.

[Paisley Hedgehog]

nm

[jenn-]

I missed this thread the first time around so here's a bump and a lurk :lurk5:

 

I am doing NaNo for the second time. Last year, I made it about two weeks and just over 25,000 words before I gave up. I was writing something with a historical element and ended up having to do too much research to keep on top of the writing. I ended up burning myself out.

 

For 2012, I already have my inspiration, my basic plot structure, and my main character's name. I am letting my ideas germinate (ferment?? ;)) until November 1.

 

My 14yo ds is contemplating doing NaNo as well. I've told him I would give him the month off from Grammar and Literature if he gave it a shot, plus a 100% test grade if he finished. Yeah, it's a bribe. So what?? :tongue_smilie:

 

And on a purely superficial note, when will they post the 2012 Nano web badges?? I want one for my avatar.

 

Typically they reboot the site for the next NaNo in October. They will wipe the forums and put up the new web stuff.

[Robin M]

2012 site has been launched.

 

www.nanowrimo.org

Go check it out.

 

I've started planning for Green Ice and think I've found my female character. Picture on my blog.

[bobbeym]

DS14 is doing NaNo this year for creative writing. We've already started working the YWP workbook. He's not sure how high to set his word count though since he's never written a full story before. I told him we can just set it low to start and move it up as we go along. He does have characters and plot in mind so we just need to work on fleshing it out a bit before he actually starts writing.

 

For grading, he'll get 100% as a notebook grade for finishing the workbook and then 100% as a project grade for reaching his word goal.

 

I haven't written in years and know I'd never finish this year, but I might consider it for next year if things aren't so crazy.

[Georgiana Daniels]

Since my last book idea got nixed, I'm thinking of joining. I need the external motivation!

[jenn-]

I am setting my 7th grade DD's goal for 10K this year. I always try to set it to a reachable goal as she is a fairly reluctant participant. Has your child typed any of their short stories? If so, you might check the word count on one of them and figure out a goal based on that.

 

ETA: I just saw on the young writer's site that they have a word count-goal calculator that could be interesting to use. It is 10 minutes of free typing/writing.

Edited October 3, 2012 by jenn-

[JenneinCA]

I just signed me up.

 

I don't know if I will make 50K words, but I have an idea and it isn't going away. I think I will start at the beginning and go until the idea is done.

[jenn-]

I had my DD try the word count calculator using the writing on paper option. I was shocked to find out that her word count goal should be over 16K. I am going to stick with the 10K though. This will be the first year I will allow her to try and type it straight into the computer. Normally she hand writes a bit and then has to type it in later.

[pfamilygal]

I'm in.

 

2 questions:

 

How do you know how many words you've written?

 

and

 

Is it okay to start outlining your story now?

[jenn-]

I think most people type their stories into a word processing program which will give you a word count. If you do it with paper and pen, you will have to use the good old fashion method of counting your words.

 

You can definitely start outlining and researching anything you need for your story now. No writing the actual story until Nov. 1st though.

[bobbeym]

DS used the word count calculator tonight - 20225 words. I think he actually put down 22500 on his profile though. TBH, I will be amazed if he writes that many! :001_unsure:

 

Has anyone set up a classroom that he can join? He'd love to have some writing buddies to work with, esp while we're working through the YWP workbook.

[Paula in MS]

I would really like to encourage my reluctant writer to do this. She is the most imaginative child I know and has plenty of things to write about. Aside from going through the young writers notebook, what else could I do to help her? What is whe best way to plan, outline a novel? This would be doable if she knew she was writing about a certain event on a certain day. Any ideas? I am completely challenged as a creative writer, so I am no help. I am fairly sure her topic would be horse related. She is 10.

 

I am also wondering if it would be better for me to guide her through it with some questions along the way?

 

Does anyone have any ideas?

[Paisley Hedgehog]

nm

[bobbeym]

Sure, after I printed out the workbook. :tongue_smilie:

 

That's what I thought too.

 

We were on the site last night, and it looks to me like they're just updating the teacher's plans and not the YWP workbook. I can deal with last year's version for me since I already have it printed.

[jenn-]

DD and I are more pantsers. I have attempted to really plan out 2 of the novels in the past, and my characters rebelled each time. Nothing like spending all of October planning a book out for the characters to take over at the beginning. Now I spend October getting to know them and their general story in my head and planning a cast of characters. I will name the immediate people in the story line and then create my name list to randomly assign to unimportant people. I hate sending my characters to the hospital and sitting there staring at a screen for 20 minutes trying to think up a name for the nurse we will never see again.

[elegantlion]

DD and I are more pantsers. I have attempted to really plan out 2 of the novels in the past, and my characters rebelled each time. Nothing like spending all of October planning a book out for the characters to take over at the beginning. Now I spend October getting to know them and their general story in my head and planning a cast of characters. I will name the immediate people in the story line and then create my name list to randomly assign to unimportant people. I hate sending my characters to the hospital and sitting there staring at a screen for 20 minutes trying to think up a name for the nurse we will never see again.

 

:lol::lol: I so get that. I usually glance around at what is on my desk or the books on the nearest shelves. I pluck authors names to use for minor characters. I use Scrivener, which has a name generator, but it's easier to look up and grab a name.

 

Homer because the homeless guy down the street in one of my stories one year. It turned out perfect.

[Robin M]

Seventh sanctum has some great name generators. I use them all the time.

[Word Nerd]

Does anyone use Scrivener? I'm trying to decide if I should buy it before NaNoWriMo.

[elegantlion]

Does anyone use Scrivener? I'm trying to decide if I should buy it before NaNoWriMo.

 

I do, I really like it.

 

It makes it easy to separate out chapters and segments, which was previously a pain. You can compile parts or all of the manuscript.

 

I also have ds use it for school. He's not quite to full fledged research papers yet, but I know it will be helpful then. One license allows you use on more than one computer.

 

Last year they had a free 30 day trial during Nanowrimo, then if you won, you got a discount on purchase. I felt it was a good investment.

[Robin M]

I have Scrivener, but the learning curve was just too much for me because I got it right around the start time of nano 11. If you get it now and start using it, then you'll be ready to fly with it come November. Need to practice what I preach and get started. :)

[jenn-]

I downloaded Scrivener last year. It was cool to play around with, but in the end I just used Word. I write straight through from beginning to end though so it is pretty easy for me to not care about chapters. I know some people write in all sorts of orders and I can see where a program like Scrivener would be good.

[Mom22ns]

My kids and I all use Scrivener for NaNo. Ds uses it for writing papers too. It is great for organizing and breaking a long document into shorter parts (chapters).

 

I just got our classroom setup for NaNo this year. We love November!

[funschooler5]

Great to see everyone gearing up for NaNoWriMo this year! I haven't read the whole thread yet, but I thought I'd mention the WTM NaNo social group just in case: http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/group.php?groupid=40

 

Come join the conversation! I was late getting all of the new web badges up, but they're there now. :001_smile:

[jenn-]

Pretty new web badges. I had to take my winner down from last year and put my commitment up for this one.

[Word Nerd]

Just an FYI that you can currently get an extended free trial of Scrivener. They want to give people a chance to get familiar with the software before NaNoWriMo begins. It won't expire until early December.