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Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Gearing up for National Novel Writing Month

November is almost here. For me, that means one thing. OK, a few things. Naturally, there's Thanksgiving and the approach of Christmas and New Year's.  But more prominently, for me, it means writing. Lots and lots of writing.

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 For the fifth year in a row, I will be participating in National Novel Writing Month (also known as NaNoWriMo, because that's less of a mouthful). Each year, writers log on and commit to writing 50,000 words in the span of 30 days. Some do this all in the privacy of their homes. Others join local write-in events. I'll likely be doing a mixture of both.

I've only actually finished NaNo twice. And by finished, I mean reached 50,000 words, since that's the goal. My first NaNo project, in 2011, wasn't actually done until five months later. And then there was editing involved.  Finally, in September 2012, it became a full and finished book ... Ta da!!


Two years ago, I started a sequel to Riffs of Regret, but I've gotten stuck a few times so it's still waiting for me to finish it.

Three years ago was the second time I reached 50K words during NaNo. The project, Dropped Third Strike, has been in editing stages for a long time. That's what happens in self-publishing. But I'm still a fan of the book and hope to finish it soon.  Maybe I'll share an excerpt of it with you next week.

I've been re-reading this story lately because my project this year will be a sequel to it. I still haven't settled on a title, but I'm very excited to delve into the life of one of the side characters. I'll be updating you on my progress and sharing some of my writing process for the next few weeks.

By the way, there's probably still time to join the writing community Helene is organizing, if that's your thing.

Are you participating in National Novel Writing Month?
What kind of story would you write?





4 comments:

  1. Yay for Nano. I won once and failed 3 or 4 times but this year I have a plan and really want to get it done. Good luck to you!!!

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  2. You're amazing! I've sadly never finished. I need to get on that! Thanks for sharing the group!

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  3. Awesome! Last year was the first time I'd ever finished. I'm hoping to do it again this year, although I don't feel as prepared with this story. Last year was a retelling of a fairy tale, so I knew where to go basically. This year was an idea for a science fiction story, and I'm not sure where it's going to take me. But I've been doing lots of writing exercises and hope to finish again! Good luck to you as well!

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  4. I think it's so awesome that you're participating. I used to do this every year, but it's been awhile since I've done it. I thought about doing it this year, but I'm finishing up a film challenge and starting a reading challenge and, if I'm being honest, I'm really not going to get around to writing. But I really do miss it! Maybe next year!

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