NaNoWriMo Dreamwidth Writers

Day 30 - Hours remaining


A man sometimes devotes his life to a desire which he is
not sure will ever be fulfilled. Those who laugh at this folly are,
after all, no more than mere spectators of life.

— Ryūnosuke Akutagawa






This is it Nano Writers - the last day! The word count is 50,000 and if you've written at least 1,677 words for the last thirty days, you'll soon see your NNWM word banner turn a lovely shade of "winner" purple.

So two things to do before the clock strikes midnight for your time zone -

Validate! your word count so to be officially recognized for your wonderfully amazing accomplishment... 50,000 words (or more) of a brand new novel!

Back It Up! - one last time this month so your story will be waiting for you when it's time to put on your editor's hat to transform your first draft from the pure creative muck it is now to a shining, beautiful novel that patiently awaits your loving attention.

But that's for later! Today, validate your word count and don't forget to Back It Up!

Questions? Comments? You can do it, Nano Writer so... Write!Write!Write!

Day 28 - 2 days remaining


This is how you do it: you sit down at the keyboard
and you put one word after another until its done.
It's that easy, and that hard.

― Neil Gaiman






Today's word count is 46,676! Two days, Nano Writers! Two days! Are you looking at a less than stellar word count and wondering how you'll get it done?

This is how... sit down in front of your keyboard and write. Shut off your e-mail/internet/twittery face thing, turn up your favorite music (or in the case of roommates/parents/irate neighbors put on a pair of headphones/ear buds first) and start writing. One word, two words and so on until it's done.

You. Can. Do. It. So get it done and finish that story!

Questions? Comments? Go on, get out of here and Write! Nano Writer! Write!

Day 26 - 4 days remaining


He who chooses the beginning of the road chooses the place it leads to.

— Harry Emerson Fosdick






The word count today is 43,342! Some time ago, you started down a road Nano Writer, just you and your protagonist and maybe an assorted cast of friends, allies, a mentor or wise woman and perhaps a shady guy you were never quite sure about...

Your protagonist had a goal, a mission, a desire and standing in his/her way was an antagonist with the same (or better) desire to keep your hero from that goal or desire. Over the last three weeks or so, battles were won and lost, lessons learned and perhaps love was found (or lost). Now it's time to start thinking about the road home.

Of course, a lot can happen in four days... and maybe your road still has one or two more twisty turns in store for your weary characters. But keep in mind all journeys come to an end and ours is just around the corner.

Questions? Comments? Travel tips? It's all good - so keep writing!

Day 24 - 6 days remaining


I may not use ten dollar words, but I use words which are
perfectly good, and what I write conveys meaning and feeling.

— Ernest Hemingway






The word count today is 40,008! Another 10k-prize day! Yes, even this close to the end, you still deserve congratulations and recognition for what you have created so far! But it's not done yet!

Write! Write! Write! Don't spend time chasing after ten dollar words or trying to lay down perfect prose. Now's the time to capture the pure essence of your story - beginning, middle and end - in a butterfly net of creative joy and crazy, stupid love for your characters.

You can do it!

Questions? Comments? A ten dollar word to share? It's all efficacious - so keep writing!

Day 22 - 8 days remaining


After nourishment, shelter and companionship,
stories are the thing we need most in the world.

— Philip Pullman





Today's word count is 36,674! Happy Thanksgiving to all who observe the holiday! And with that I'll leave you to your day!

Questions? Comments? Excerpts to share? It's all good - so keep writing!

Day 20 - 10 days remaining


Nothing is particularly hard if you divide it into small jobs.

— Henry Ford






Today's word count is 33,340 - are you keeping up? If not, take today's quotation to heart!

It's easy to become discouraged if your story stalled out or real life needed attention and now, everyday the daily word count looks more and more insurmountable.

But you can still do it! Nothing is impossible - you just need to look at the task at hand in a different way. If your word count seems stuck, subtract it from the daily count to get a more realistic idea for the task at hand. Then divide that by the days remaining (always available at the top of the day's post). Add the daily writing count which is 1,667 and that's your new daily target.

So instead of a hopeless 10,000 word deficit, focus on writing just a 1,000 more words a day. Add little more description to a scene, a longer conversation between characters, a new complication (pirates? ninja? zombies?)... and you've nailed it!

Questions? Comments? Pirates on the horizon? It's all good! So keep writing!

Day 18 - 12 days remaining


Writers fish for the right words like fishermen fish for, um,
whatever those aquatic creatures with fins and gills are called.

― Jarod Kintz






Today’s word count is 30,006! And time for mini celebrations and "10k" prizes if you've got 'em. Mine is the two C's - chocolate and a chapter - a nice dark chocolate and a chapter (maybe two) of my current read - a little incentive to help reach for just a little more which can be hard after finishing a tough scene.

So how is everyone doing? Questions? Comments? Swedish Fish fans? It's all good, so keep writing Nano Writer!

Day 16 - 14 days remaining


I'm sorry I wrote such a long letter.
I did not have the time to write a short one.

— Abraham Lincoln






Today's word count is 26,672 and it's Back-It-Up Friday! You know the drill everyone! Back Up Your Novel!

And it's the beginning of our third weekend - time to catch up, add to or push ahead with our stories! Remember too, now is not the time to give into worries and doubts the inner editor tries to saddle us with while we are creating! Write "long" and give it your all!

Questions? Comments? Back-up plans? Just do it and keep writing!

Day 14 - 16 days remaining


Name names. Make your writing physical. Use lots of exact nouns.
"Food" is an idea; "black-bean soup" is a thing. Naming not only makes
the writing more visceral, it makes the reader trust you.

— David Long






Today's word count is 23,338, Nano Writer! And at the end of the day, we'll see the backside of Week Two! Congratulations to everyone who survived the week, who pushed back the doubts and despair, worked through the daily struggles and insecurities, and have become stronger and more dedicated to completing both the challenge and their story!

But there's still work to be done. Your character may now be resolved to take on the bad guys by now, tired of being pushed around/lied to/given the runaround/betrayed and is even now preparing, mentally and physically, for what may become a series of confrontations designed to fully test your character's mettle. Will they survive the battle/apocalypse/illness/investigation/ensoulment/loss of love and/or hope?

Questions? Comments? Recipe for success? My favorite is the resolution to write everyday! So, Nano Writer, keep writing!

Day 12 - 18 days remaining



If you tell the reader that Bull Beezley is a brutal-faced, loose-lipped bully,
with snake’s blood in his veins, the reader’s reaction may be, ‘Oh, yeah!’
But if you show the reader Bull Beezley raking the bloodied flanks of his weary,
sweat-encrusted pony, and flogging the tottering, red-eyed animal with a
quirt, or have him booting in the protruding ribs of a starved mongrel and,
boy, the reader believes!

— Fred East






Today's word count is 20,004! A banner day and time to indulge in a 10k reward if you got one. Otherwise, congratulate yourself on a job well done coming this far!

And if you are a little short, no need to dispair. Could be time to indulge in a little word padding. No, not the kind where you write out contractions or quote long passages of poetry - time for that later, maybe.

No this is the kind of "padding" that might actually add a little 3D to a character that might feel a bit flat. Read through today's quote again and see where "showing" (instead of "telling") infuses a little bit of reality into your fictional people.

So instead of writing: "He was happy to see her come through the door" for a total of ten words, why not write the scene as: "He felt the smile come over him, like the sun chasing shadows, worries about the day's troubles fading too as he watched her push the door open and come into Lucky's Laundromat carrying that ridiculous red Santa sack of what he could only speculate was elf unmentionables, assuming elves even had what one might stuff into unmentionables." Fifty-seven words.

Purple prose? Maybe. But it's got words. And some of it might even survive the editor's pen later down the road.

Questions? Comments? Your best purple prose? It's all good! So keep writing!