Please tell me I’m not the only one gearing up for NaNoWriMo.
I’m still revising the first NaNo book I wrote in 2014 but I figured I’d work on a new idea I have: The Burning. Kind of a declining civilization fantasy, a team of folks discover their weird powers under the control and manipulation of a sociopathic Professor X. I’ve got it all figured out thematically (this is a trauma narrative - each character is representative of some symptom of prolonged trauma and the story arc is essentially about them going from survival mode to manipulation/abuse by their leader to healing/thriving independently.)
It’s dark and gritty because that’s how I do. The female protag is an indentured servant drug addict about to be pushed into prostitution, the male protag is a former prostitute and addict, charged by their abusive leader to help her get clean. Her power is to wield strange blue fire that destroys organic matter and his is the ability to summon an evil presence that controls with fear. I’ve got a telepath who can break down mental barriers between other people, including shared memories and feelings, a healer who refuses to heal trauma out of principle, and some other team members. And some secret society trying to harvest mutant energy & intelligence to get themselves off planet earth.
I was trying to be a good girl and get this all plotted out but I’m kinda spinning my wheels at this point. I have the gist of the first half nailed down but beyond that I’m kinda lost. I’m hoping it comes to me by the time I get there.
Anybody else? Got any preparation rituals? Let’s get fired up, people, we’re running out of time!
This is where I’m at, too. It’s frustrating as hell as I’ve been rolling an idea around in my head for years about a character and have decided to finally put the story onto paper.
My biggest concern is the fact that my lead character is a female, and I am not female. I fear that I’ll be writing about a person I can’t connect with and that it will plainly obvious to anyone that reads it. I’m also writing a crime novel, and the lead characters in crime novels (usually) have some unbelievable resume of skills, education, contacts, and funds with which to do good… Kay Scarpetta is a good example. This will not be the case in my book, and I don’t know if that’s a problem or not.
I have the first half or so of the plot figured out but past that… I just don’t know where to take it. Perhaps I can take the Michael Crichton approach and have the novel just fizzle out 2/3 of the way through the book?
I’m really looking forward to writing the book, but I want to have a decent product when I’m done. Right now that won’t happen if I can’t get the damn plot moving.
The secret to writing a woman is that we’re basically just like men, only treated differently. Ironically, it took me a long time to get good at writing women, because I myself had all these ideas in my head about what a ‘stereotypical’ woman was like. This will be a good opportunity to stretch yourself to write from a different POV. Just let her be who she is, and don’t worry so much about whether she’s ‘‘womanly’’ enough. We come in all varieties.
For right now, try not to think about whether your book fits perfectly into a genre. Just do your own unique thing and you can figure all that out later.
Of course I’m always here if you wanna run anything by me.
Hey, greetings! Of course, I’ll be writing this year, and volunteering as ML for my city. I’m actually going back to the same basic story idea I did in 2009, after having revised and workshopped the heck out of the old version. This time, I’m determined to write it as a high-stakes thriller, by the seat of my pants all month. It’ll be an interesting experiment!
Yes, I’m doing this. I am encouraging my daughter, who writes all the time to give it a try as well.
I’m writing fantasy/urban fantasy as well. It’s more on the fantasy side, involving changelings. People from Earth who are brought over to a side world because they can handle magic, which isn’t present on Earth. If they aren’t brought over early, they develop mental health issues back on Earth. They’re normally taken early, but my protag is brought over around 6 or so, which is late.
This book is set entirely in this side world (one of many), and deal entirely with who can wield power (magic is one aspect of this, but not the only one), and the impact this has on geo-politics (with some romance thrown in there, 'cause). Ideally future books will deal with other worlds, including Earth, and how the realms relate to each other.
Where do I get stuck - normally in really stupid places, like names. Protag is currently “Protag” in outline, and may be so called in the manuscript or the ever elegant “heroine”.:roll eyes:
If anyone would like to link up via the NaNo site, I would love to be buddies. I failed miserably last year. Hoping to do a little better this year.
I’m a slow and methodical writer and could never really get into the “full steam ahead!” mindset required for NaNo, but I’ve been participating for the past four years. (I don’t just write in November, although I have tended to make more progress thanks to all the NaNo excitement and support.) And…I’m almost done! With a fairly polished draft, at least. I’m working on the epilogue and hope to finish it by the end of the month and then spend this NaNo on revisions.
I know this isn’t the “right” way to do NaNo, but there were a couple of years when I set out to do the 50,000 words in 30 days thing and never got more than a few hundred words before giving up. But I’ve been rolling along ever since I decided I was just going to start off slow and steady and keep on past November. I mention this in case anyone else likes the idea of NaNo but has a hard time following the rules – do it your way, but keep writing.
Not only am I doing it, I’m doing the same novel I did last year. There was a major momentum loss around the beginning of the year. I blame the Great Apartment Flood of 2016.
ETA: I’m Ryl over there if anyone wants to add me.
I’m doing it again this year, though I’m not completely sure what I’m working on. I could attempt the same old-same old, or something new. New is intimidating. Don’t like it. :grump:
Earlier today I did have an idea for fleshing out the old story, and it would also beef up one of the supporting characters (who tends to get overlooked). So that may work.
I stopped doing it three or four years ago when my writing well dried up, but I’m considering trying anew this year. I have a whole world that I built by cannibalizing characters, ideas, and settings from literally everything else I’ve ever written. I have notes, sketches, outlines, character sheets … I have it all.
And I don’t know if I like it. I don’t know if I care.
I have a few vague ideas for something entirely new. And that usually works for me. I’ve always done my best flying completely by the seat of my pants. No ideas, no plans, just a couple characters, a setting, and maybe a funny bit of dialogue I plan to use eventually.
Several years ago, I took the whole first week of November off work and finished in six days. I’ve got the second week off this year … maybe I’ll try for a new record.
‘‘Introverts don’t play that game,’’ she says to the most introverted person ever.
Most writers are introverts. It’s not like you even have to talk to anybody (though it helps, if you want some accountability.) Also, you know me. I count as a person you know.
Maybe you’ll hit 50k, maybe you won’t. I’ve had smashing success some years and catastrophic failure others. You just have to take the mentality that you’ve won just for bothering to play at all.
If it makes you feel better (it may not) last year, a writer with whom I have corresponded online for literally years and years announced that he was doing NaNoWriMo and did anyone want to buddy up. Ooooo. Oooooo. Me! Me! Crickets (I’m talking before he was published people!)
