A Return to NaNormalcy?

Well, life has quite the repertoire. It throws knuckleballs, sliders, change-ups, as well as hellacious curve balls. Lately, I've faced a bunch of different pitchers who successfully twisted me into knots. The gap of nearly two months between posts should be evidence of that.

Now that baseball season is done, however, National Novel Writing Month has begun. Once again, I've entered NaNo WriMo (see my little "participant" badge?), and I'll take on a new set of knot-twisting challenges. But today I actually did something different: I ate my lunch in a room with an electrical outlet, which enables me to use my archaic laptop. I use the outlet to spark up the gerbils that run on the Intel wheel inside. As a result, I was able to write today.

It only accounted for 400 words so far. Maybe I'll get more tonight after I put the girls to bed. But it feels good to go out of my way to write creatively.

How are you doing? Are you participating in Nano? Are you feeling creative?

Not Quite, but It Was Worth the Attempt

Well, I didn't quite get to where I wanted to go with my 2009 attempt at National Novel Writing Month. I had less than a thousand words to go with five days in which to write them, but between babies and other family demands, I wasn't able to spare any time. That happens.

Much thanks to all those who joined me in this and encouraged me to keep at it. I know several of my NaNo buddies topped 50,000, including a co-worker who I suspect is quite proud of herself — and justifiably so. She knows that 50,000 words is just the beginning; there's more to be written, revised, shaped, and decided. A novel doesn't happen in a month, but the writing can.

Congratulations to all you NaNoers who put in the time. Whether you completed the 50,000 goal or not, you should be applauded for making the attempt. While that's all well and good, if you truly believe you want to write a novel, keep going, regardless of your "winning" status. On the NaNo site, they often mention that "December is for revising." (Or do they say 'editing'? I may need to revise that.)

For me, I have 9100 words that I didn't have on October 31. That's on top of the 15,000+ words I'd written for this manuscript last November. Who knows what the next tweleve months have in store for me. I'd like to believe that by next November I'll have finished this particular manuscript, or at least written too much more to use Nano to complete it.

What have you written lately? Please share a story about your latest story.

NaNo 2009: Two Weeks In

I thought I'd get much further last night, but all I ended up doing was starting a new chapter, jotting down a couple scenes, and then quickly outlining some thoughts I'd had throughout the day about where the story needed to go. It got me over the 7,000 word mark, which is less than a third of the way toward the overall goal, but still is farther along than I expected this year.

Of course, the main reasons my bar is set so low were crying much of the day, ill and uncomfortable. As probably any writing parent knows, it's not very easy to write when the kids are sick, especially when one parent is away for a business trip.

Back to the kids and computer, but before I do let me ask: How'd you all do?

I know that several of my NaNo buddies have topped 20,000 words and all I can say is congratulations and keep going!

Nano '09: One Week In

What started off well has quickly fizzled for me. I wrote 2000 words the first and have been unable to match that total since, but I still hold out hope for today.

Meanwhile, the babies are stirring, calling me away from the computer once again.

Write on, fellow Nanoers!

[Update: I've topped 4300 so far and am diving in for more.]

What Do You Mean You're Not Done Yet?

And so it begins: National Novel Writing Month. I'm about to embark on another writing adventure with the ultimate goal of writing 50,000 words within the month of November. I'm already more than nine hours behind!

I'll keep this post short and sweet. But I look forward to hearing of other people's successes at this wonderful challenge of imagination and dedication. As a writer who's not yet written 50,000 words total toward this project in the two years I've done it, Nano is not about the success as much as it is about the attempt to be more for tomorrow than who you are today.

Have fun, fellow Nanoers. Write well, write often.

T-Minus 20 Days to NaNo

I'm surprising myself. I'm getting psyched up for NaNo (National Novel Writing Month, or NaNo WriMo) and I already know I won't succeed. I'm not a pessimist. I didn't succeed either of the past two years I started NaNo novels, and I have even less time this year. I don't need to be an Antactic researcher to know it'll be a cold day in hell before I finish 50,000 words when I'm lucky to get five hours of sleep and four or five hours of family time per day.

Novel writing includes a lot of sacrifice. I'm willing to do that. Indeed, I've done that. But this year, not quite as much will be allowed.

Still, I'm getting psyched. Why? Because I've got Twitter friends who are encouraging me. Many of these are part of the online community of writers at AgentQuery, which is probably my favorite writing-related site, but I've also come across other NaNoers. Some of them even follow me through my work-related Twitter account, which is kinda cool.

I'm eager to get started, though I'll admit I'm of two minds about what to write. I could easily get back into my work from last year, which requires much more than another 50,000 words, especially since I only got about 15,000 written last year during NaNo and far fewer once December hit. (And virtually none after the closing days of the year brought me two bundles of happiness and poopy diapers.) But I also could return to writing funny stuff (well, funny at least to me.) And like many who've been treated like a cat toy over the past year, I could use a couple laughs.

Perhaps I'll post updates on Twitter like this: Fell asleep on the train again while writing 30 words. It's 30 I hadn't written before.

Regardless, I know that I need to get back into my writing. My girls deserve it.

Good luck fellow NaNoers. The most grueling days are before us. Keep your pens, pencils, and minds sharp.

Working Toward Nano?

With October just around the corner, I can't help but think about November, when National Novel Writing Month begins. I've done it the past two years (I've yet to reach 50,000 words total during my NaNo experiences), and this year with two small kids demanding the time they deserve from daddy I feel safe in saying I won't reach 50,000 words.

So I'm thinking it's still appropriate to work on the novel I started last year, regardless of the rules. I know I need to write more than 50,000 words before it's going to be "done," anyway, so I don't think I'm flouting the rules.

But writing doesn't necessarily require rules. Of course, grammatical rules should be adhered to, except when there's a point to side-stepping them. But point of view is something you can play with, as is the believability of the narrator. The novel can be structured in almost any manner these days. Personally, I prefer to have characters and story I can follow easily. I don't relate to characters in adult stories that are bananas or armoires. Still, when it comes to Nano, all bets are off.

What's my point? The point is writers write. Writers who are new fathers pine away wanting to write. But they write in their heads all the time. Ok, I write in my head all the time. I miss doing it on paper or a computer screen for myself. Over the next few weeks, I'll review what I wrote last year and try to get back into those people's minds. It won't be quite the same, but it's time for me get back into writing. My kids deserve it.

National Novel Continuation Month

November is almost over; just about six hours to go here on the East Coast. And with the end of November arrives the close of National Novel Writing Month. Though I have topped 15,000 words, it is not physically possible for me to get to 50,000 today unless I were to steal words from other documents and paste them into my work in progress. That's not going to happen. I respect myself and my fellow writers too much to do that.

But that doesn't mean I'll stop writing what I have begun. I'm still getting to know the characters in my new novel, Blood Falls. They're interesting and I'm sure there's a lot more complexity to them than has been shown so far. But that's what you learn when you first meet people. I know something about my main character's family, how her parents died, the awful disease her sister has, the brother who seems about as deep as the condensation on a bottle of beer. I met people I didn't know about, like the niece of my main character, who strikes me as smart and precocious and potentially uplifting as this family's story progresses.

I've also gotten to know a couple fellow writers better. For that I am most thankful. I feel like I've been welcomed into a community of writers and I've already learned a lot from them; I suspect that more will come. I hope I've helped at least as many people as have helped me.

But tomorrow, despite the board meeting I must attend and the mountains of work I must tend to, begins National Novel Continuation Month(s). Most likely, it'll extend into the new year. It may also overlap with the beginning of Local Life-Interrupted-by-Babies Lifetime, but I'm ok with that too. Because they will be a big part of my writing life for years to come. Indeed, I expect them to garnish a huge chunk of my salary over the next 20-25 years.

So, off I go to live the life of yet another aspiring novelist -- albeit, one with a novel to show for it and another on the way and dozens of workable ideas to pursue after that. I'll probably reach about 16,000 words on this year's Nano. I strongly suspect I'll start something else next year, but this year's word count may end up as a high-water mark for a while, unless I start fictionalizing what my kids do. Lord knows what tomorrow brings.

Brief Update on Nano WriMo 2008

For those who might care, I've not been able to write often here. I have a couple posts in the hopper, but I'm trying to write a new novel this month as part of National Novel Writing Month, and I just don't get much time to write anything else.

As you can see by the cool little widget on top of the sidebar, I've written more than 7000 words. If that sounds like a lot, I thank you. It's not. I'm way behind pace. And these 75 words or so don't count.

If you're a fellow Nano, feel free to visit me. I'm elephantguy.

NaNo Site Problems, So What Else Is New

I'd forgotten how much of a pain in the butt it can be to access the National Novel Writing Month Web site during November. Honestly, the only thing I want to do there is update my word count, but I can't get into the site.

I don't know if it's because there's so much activity or because they have so little bandwidth available... all I know is it's a hassle.

This year, I'm far ahead of my pace from last year, though I haven't maintained the pace I need to reach my goal. Basically, I'm a little farther than two days in using the average of 1666 words per day; today is November 4th, so I need to catch up. This month is too busy to let things get behind.

Hope everyone out there participating is able to write regularly. If I can borrow from the old joke about voting (on this Election Day), Write early, write often.

Funny, it's more appropriate this way.

T-Minus 24 Hours to NaNo...

In 24 hours it begins: National Novel Writing Month, 2008. I'm geared up. I've been mentally playing out scenes, wondering what types characteristics make up the people in this story, much of which will take place in Antarctica. What are her siblings like? Where is she when she hears about her parents' tragic death?...

I attended a kick-off event tonight. I chatted with a woman who's planning to write an office murder mystery. It sounds like a lot of fun, actually. I wondered who I might want to kill in my office. What would be my motivation? Money? Anger? Trying to get ahead? Trying to frame someone else? Maybe in 2009, I'll write something with a murder or two in it. I'll kill a couple characters in my new novel, but it's not quite the same.

So, to all you fellow NaNos, I bid you good luck. And if you must kill, make sure you do it on paper first.

There's a Word for People Like That

One of the things I love about newspapers (and their websites) is that there's always something interesting to read, regardless of where it's placed. For example, I went into the science section of today's New York Times looking to see what might be new in that fascinating world. What did I find there? News on the science of words.

Interesting stuff, indeed! While I don't know whether I'd go through the difficult rigamarole to analyze what my characters say in a novel or how they say it, perhaps it would be time well spent. It could offer a level of characterization that readers and teachers study for years. I remember English classes in college when we'd ponder what the author intended in various scenes. Sometimes I thought such analysis was daft, but now that I've completed a novel and begun imagining new characters for my next one, I realize that an author does — and should — consider things like how a reader may interpret a character.

I didn't realize, for instance, that men tend to use more articles (a, the) than women, who are more likely to use pronouns (I, she, they). For the novel I'm imagining now (I won't start writing till November, when National Novel Writing Month begins), the protagonist is a woman in her 30s who works as a research scientist in Antarctica. Now that I've read the Times article, I may ponder even more about how she thinks and speaks. Perhaps her mannerisms alter slightly as change occurs in her life. Or maybe she's so frozen in her mannerisms that she can't break out.

This is one of the many reasons why I love writing!

Blast! Foiled Again!

Well, I didn't get anywhere near where I wanted to go with my NaNoWriMo novel. A bit better than 10 percent. Shabby, definitely shabby.

I'll do better next year. For one thing, I'll go in with a plan; this year, I jumped in without any prior thought to doing it.

While I joined the competition with nothing more than a stray idea inspired by my wife, I exit November with more ideas for the future. I've contacted a couple other writers and I might even venture into a different genre yet again. Not exactly virgin territory, but something I've only written in torrid fluorishes.

So, now it is December: a month of revision and resolution. I won't post my New Year's Resolutions here. That's no one else's business. But rest assured, dear readers (both of you), I will advance my writing career in 2008. A decision will be made about my first novel -- hopefully, an agent or other publishing representative will recognize its (and my) potential -- or I'll find another way to get it out into the world.

The people who've read it have liked it and offered me excellent recommendations for how to improve it. So I believe I'm on the right path.

I hope all of you out there are too.

Hello NaNo WriMo

As you can see from the yum-yum yellow banner on the left-hand side, I've ventured into NaNo WriMo Land. They only require 50,000 words -- not 90,000 -- so it's not quite as rigorous as I'd feared. (I should have known better; my 282-page novel clocks in at around 95,000 words. I guess this novella would clock in around 120-125 pages.)

To any of the writers from the competition coming by to visit (and anyone else for that matter), welcome! I hope we can develop a little conversation and dialogue here. Think of the Bookshelf as a place to rest your pint glass that doesn't require coasters. Scotch drinkers welcome too. Sorry, no smoking.