# NaNoWriMo 2007



## wmd (Sep 23, 2007)

I got an email from Chris Baty the other day saying that the Nano 07 page will be up soon!

I know that a lot of people around here do not think nano is "real" writing, but it is fun, and I can not wait for it to start.

Last year was my first year, and I only made it to 20,003 words... but it got me back into writing seriously.

Anyone else excited about doing it this year? I am trying to think of a goofy plot that I can just fill with padding and dares... that is the best thing about NaNo, just do it and have fun!


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## Hawke (Sep 23, 2007)

Yep, I received the same email. Since my Nano track record is pretty embarrassing (meaning I haven't finished one yet), I think I'll take a pass this time. But best of luck to you, wmd. And please let us know how you do, will you?


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## Shawn (Sep 23, 2007)

I signed up last year, but then I met my ex-boyfriend. Before I knew it, November was over and I forgot about it until May.

I'm doing it this year... yes... definitely.


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## Selorian (Sep 23, 2007)

I've done Nano twice.  I got to 15k the first year and finished the second year.  Last year I didn't even try, but I plan on giving it another go this year.

With this time of year coming up, I believe it's time to make an official NaNoWriMo 2007 forum.  I'll try to get it set up by the end of the week.


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## Perpetual♥blockage (Sep 23, 2007)

I'm doing NaNo for the first time this year.

I am so beyond stoked. Never have I had such a good excuse to eat chocolate and hit my head against my desk and be on the computer all day.
Also I really, really like my plot idea. :grin:


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## Kira the wanderer (Sep 24, 2007)

I have done NaNoWriMo for the past two years, entering in my thrid. I have won each time I participated, but am unsure if I can participate this year. Considering that I do not own a computer and had to be driven to the library each and every day of November possible, I consider those wins quite an accomplishment.

Should I get a computer this year, I am definately going to join again.


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## valeca (Sep 24, 2007)

This'll be my fourth year.  I'm not as excited this round because I've completed it every other year I've done it and the challenge isn't as great as it used to be, but I'm still glad it's here.


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## alanmt (Sep 24, 2007)

I did it for the first time last year and loved it!  I can't wait to do it again.  Not sure if I should do sequal to last year's fantasy, or a historical fantasy I have been plotting, or try my hand at whipping out a gay lit piece.


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## kalrarii (Sep 24, 2007)

I've done it two years myself, won both times. I find the community behind nano is the thing that really keeps me going.. All year long, even! 

So yes I am incredibly excited. 

( Not real writing? Then what IS real writing? (; )



			
				valeca said:
			
		

> This'll be my fourth year.  I'm not as excited this round because I've completed it every other year I've done it and the challenge isn't as great as it used to be, but I'm still glad it's here.



If so.. then make a more difficult goal. Say 75k? (;



			
				Perpetual♥blockage said:
			
		

> I'm doing NaNo for the first time this year.
> 
> I am so beyond stoked. Never have I had such a good excuse to eat chocolate and hit my head against my desk and be on the computer all day.
> Also I really, really like my plot idea.


Could I adopt you then?


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## Writer Kitten (Sep 25, 2007)

I'm not participating this year. Three years running (fantasy, fantasy, modern fantasy) I've beaten it (usually by quite a margin. Last year's final count was something like 70k) and I just don't have any ideas, and have so many "wips" (hahaha... they aren't "in progress" they're "stagnated") that I don't want to add another one to the list (that's already 15-20 long, depending on how you count). Plus, there's just no one I can chat with about it (and by chat I mean on IMs) because I always outstrip people and several actually got _angry_ at me last year because I'd be whining about word count at 35k, and they hadn't even broken 20k yet (needless to say, we don't talk any more).

... Wow that got parenthetical. My apologies (although I'll keep doing it because I'm odd like that).


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## Foxee (Sep 25, 2007)

I've done it. I've never actually gotten very far but it was fun.

For the sake of readers everywhere please _please_ *PLEASE* do not finish your NaNo novel then rush out and self-publish it! I've seen it done. It's a horrible thing.


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## Perpetual♥blockage (Sep 25, 2007)

> For the sake of readers everywhere please _please_ *PLEASE* do not finish your NaNo novel then rush out and self-publish it! I've seen it done. It's a horrible thing.



Oh man yes.
Basically the entire point of NaNo is that what you finish, you assume won't instantly be ready for publication.


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## Nicco (Sep 27, 2007)

alanmt said:


> I did it for the first time last year and loved it!  I can't wait to do it again.  Not sure if I should do sequal to last year's fantasy, or a historical fantasy I have been plotting, or try my hand at whipping out a gay lit piece.



That's cool, Alan!  Is that the book your literary agent is representing right now?


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## alanmt (Sep 27, 2007)

Nicco said:


> That's cool, Alan! Is that the book your literary agent is representing right now?




yeah


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## Code_Mage (Sep 27, 2007)

Personally my feelings are mixed.

I did Nanowrimo once.  I won, but I hated the result of my work.  There was simply too many holes.  I suppose that's what I get for attempting to tackle a tangled web of a plot in alongside a massive world-building stretch.


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## suzakugaiden (Sep 27, 2007)

I completed it the last two years, with 50k and then 70k. To make it fun, I'm going to try to actually FINISH the novel this year and make it good, instead of just have it trailing on into nothing like in the first two (although I'm gonna incorporate bits of Nano 2 in Main Story Project I'm working on sometime eventually). 

When are we allowed to do prewriting and worldbuilding, anyway :3


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## valeca (Sep 27, 2007)

suzakugaiden said:


> .
> 
> When are we allowed to do prewriting and worldbuilding, anyway :3



Whenever you want.  As long as it isn't counted in your 50k, you're good.  Most people seem to start the nitty-gritty of planning in October.


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## Elysia19 (Sep 28, 2007)

Haha,

Yes, i am entering this year. Its my first year, and i'm pumped! I have a great plot idea (and yes i know not to aim for quality) and cant wait to get writing. I've even gotten 3 friends entering aswell since i've been so excited about it. Im really just glad to get more people into writing. I cant wait to see everyones word counts once we start, but till then, im researching my topic like a maniac 

Cheers!


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## Iannis (Sep 28, 2007)

I've planned on doing NaNoWriMo for the last two years. I did some plot outlining the first year. Last year, I even made a few (false) starts, but I don't think I even hit 2k words. This year, I am going to finish. My Chaos-to-Motivation ratio is better. 2007 is my year.

I haven't (really) written fiction in a long time. I have to find a way to write through the voice in my head telling me that everything I write is crap. (I have that problem all the time, not just during NaNoWriMo.) Maybe I should PLAN to write the worst crap possible in November so that I can always tell my inner critic that whatever I am writing, it isn't as bad as that NaNoWriMo thing I wrote.


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## Butch Mandance (Oct 4, 2007)

I'm going to give it a shot, even though my better half believes that putting myself under that much pressure will be the final straw to push me over the edge into burbling insanity. Personally I reckon it'll do me good. I've managed to terrify myself into inaction on all my current projects and a month of 'no strings' writing might be just what I need to get going.

In fact I was working on a film script with the step son over the school holidays and did all the pre-writing. I'm at the stage where I have about 140 index cards blu-tacked to the wall and just looking at them causes me to break out into a cold sweat. I reckon that ploughing into it in novel form for NaNo might just be the breakthrough I need.

It'll be my first time, although I once did sneakily set myself the challenge of writing the 50K novel within the month and managed to finish it at 60K. I wasn't quite daft enough to self publish but it did earn me a nice shiny form rejection when I entered it into the Waterstones/This Morning's childrens' novel competition. Perhaps a single quick read through with a red pen wasn't nearly enough editing. Then again, there's always the possibility that it just wasn't very good.


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## badfaith (Oct 7, 2007)

I'm participating this year for the first time. I had a rough start to my planning, but I think I finally found the idea that's going to be worth 50,000 words. Hopefully, it won't die a horrible death before I can get it on paper (or in a text file, whichever). lol


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## Aeris (Oct 7, 2007)

I've never done NaNoWriMo before and like everyone else who's said that I'm psyched too.

I've gotten my boyfriend into it so we've both got our basic plot outlines and everything. Now I've just got to find a way to fit it in with my schoolwork and job.


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## JSMallory (Oct 10, 2007)

I'm giving it a shot this year as well.  This will be my first NaNo and I'm looking forward to seeing what I can concoct in such a short timespan.

It should be entertaining, to say the least.


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## Charlie_Eleanor (Oct 10, 2007)

I signed up today as well.  Don't know what I'll write about, but we'll see!  Should be fun to push myself.


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## scifi maniac (Oct 12, 2007)

I just want to know - I've been scared of starting a novel, even though I've had this idea in my head for half a year, and it has grown and developed. Now I feel ready to do it, and then I heard about NaNoWriMo for the first time. I'm thinking of using the competition as a kind of 'starting-pad' for what I hope will become a publishable novel. Is NaNoWriMo the right thing to be using as a starting-pad, because I hear that it's all quantity no quality. Anyone else doing something similar?


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## Charlie_Eleanor (Oct 12, 2007)

It is a way to get yourself writing, and keep writing.  You don't have time to edit right away, so sure, at first there may not be real quality, but a lot of people just use it to get their first draft down.

A little recommendation: start reading and outlining now if you want this to be a quality piece.

Plus...if you get into it, and decide that you just want to take more time at least you have started rather than just throwing ideas around in your head.


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## scifi maniac (Oct 12, 2007)

I agree - sometimes I feel like I'm more of a 'thinker' than a 'writer', in the sense that most of my ideas have self-imploded in my head due to my overthinking them. This one has a more solid foundation, however, and because it's stuck in my head for so long, I know that it's not a gimmick or anything. 

I have a basic idea of what's going to happen, but I'm not going to outline this novel, as outlines have always suffocated my creativity. I'll just develop the characters a bit more in my own mind, and then think more deeply about the story. Apart from that, I think I'll have a good shot at whipping this idea into shape, but this time it'll be *on the page*


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## Writer Kitten (Oct 13, 2007)

Okay. I _totally_ lied. I'm doing NaNo this year. Sort of.

See a friend of mine and I are both in the midst of editing manuscripts. Both of us procrastinate horribly because we _loathe_ editing with every piece of our being. 

So. Instead of writing a _new_ novel for NaNo, we will be working on our rewrites. Our goal is to have each written 50k on the rewrites, during the month of November. 

... Our heads are going to explode.


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## wmd (Oct 14, 2007)

Actually Nano is a GREAT starting pad for your writing!

Last year was my first year doing nano. Before that I had not written anything serious in about two years, and the minute I signed up for nano I got so pumped to write something it was incredible. The Nano Community is very unique and can keep you going forever.

I did not win last year... Only got 20,005 words or something like that, but I feel that I am a winner because it got me writing seriously again. I have written a lot of stuff in the last year and continue to do it.

I do not take the nano project seriously... my novel will be full of dares and full of plot holes, but that is okay! There are a lot of people that write serious books during nano with the intention of edits and re-writes in the following months to make it a publishable novel.

Keep in mind that the more planning you do now the easier it will be to keep writing through November. You will not have to stop to plan things or go back and check details. And you do not have to _finish _your book to win, just reach 50k. As long as you get to 50k you win and you can continue to work on your novel in December.


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## geektarra (Oct 15, 2007)

I was really, really excited when I learned about Nano.  My mind was instantly swarming with the possibilities of it...and then I fell to Earth and realized that I already have three (3!) works in progress.  

I have this really bad habit of biting off more than I can chew.  Still, I chew and chew and chew until my jaw aches and I finally ralf all over.  Yuck.  I don't want to do that again.  I really like my WIPs and want to see one through to the end!  I think my friends are taking bets on whether or not I'll finish.  

Oh, but Nano's pull might be too irresistible.  We shall see.  I have no fresh ideas for a new plot.  I like Writer Kitten's idea of rewriting, though.  

For those of you who have participated in past years, how many hours of writing did you do per day?  I don't know if I have the stamina to write that much in only a month.  I'm really pokey.  I spent over 12 hours writing on Saturday and only have 10 single-spaced pages to show for it.  

I do like a good challenge, though...


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## Charlie_Eleanor (Oct 16, 2007)

I'm going to make my personal goal to write between 1500-2000 words a day, and 2500 words on Saturday and Sunday.  I think I should be able to pull that off if I designate the time. (An hour and a half in the morning and another hour and a half at night.)

Oooo, I'm getting so excited.  I wish November was here already.


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## scifi maniac (Oct 16, 2007)

OH MY GOD I WANNA WRITE SO BAD I HATE THIS OUTLINING, WORRYING ABOUT IT BEING TOO SHORT, WORRYING ABOUT PLOT HOLES ETC... I WANNA WRITE!!!!!!!!!! BRING IT ON NANO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Shawn (Oct 16, 2007)

Enthusiastic, scifi?


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## Charlie_Eleanor (Oct 16, 2007)

I am starting to get really pumped too.  Will november ever get here!?


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## scifi maniac (Oct 17, 2007)

lol, just a bit


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## silverwriter (Oct 18, 2007)

I've done it the past two years and have yet to finish on time. I'm in it for this year (and highly doubting I'll get it done). I'm thinking of switching my fantasy gears and writing a random/dare nano or a romance.


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## silmaril (Oct 19, 2007)

I'm going crazy since it's still 2 weeks before Nano starts, and I have forbidden myself to write any fiction before Nano. Aaargh. Oh well, maybe I could allow myself to do a short warmup story or something.

Nano is kind of like a special holiday for me. The feeling is a bit similar to Christmas but lasts for a whole month. I just love how everybody struggles and whines together during Nano :razz: It's so special!


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## Jocelyn (Oct 19, 2007)

Well, I was feeling rather unmotivated and ambivalent about nano this year until I read this thread.  The enthusiasm is contagious.  Now I know where to go to lift my spirits.


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## wmd (Oct 19, 2007)

I have to get through the new posts on the Dares thread tonight... 

November can not get here sooner. I remember last year having ny nano going in word and the forums up in explorer... maybe that is one of the reasons I did not finish.

I am so excited for this year... my novel is going to be so off the wall and ridiculous that it will be easy to reach 50,000 words.


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## silentorchestra (Oct 20, 2007)

I did NaNo last year for the first time and won, though it was really hard work because I had no clue what I was writing. I'm doing it again this year and I have a plot, so hopefully it should be easier this time.


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## river-wind (Nov 1, 2007)

I'm signed up and ready to go.  Starting tonight by re-writing a page from a few months ago, and then working along the outline I worked up last month for the whole story.

I expect a good amount of words out tonight, nearly 0 tomorrow, and then I hope to blast out a good number of pages over the weekend, since work is going to prevent me from writing a few days this month.  I need a buffer up front.


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## alanmt (Nov 7, 2007)

I am a few thousand words behind, hit a stumbling block, but wrote through it, and expect to be caught up by the end of the weekend.  I love this month!


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## playstation60 (Nov 7, 2007)

I'm 1400 words behind because of life being a pain in the ass and not allowing me the time I needed.  Oh well.  With tomorrow off of work and the weekend fast approaching I will make up those words in no time. 

This is my first year doing it and the plot has pretty well evolved on it's own accord.  I have a good grip on what happens in the first "act" of the story, but lose view after that.  I'm pretty please with how well my MC is developing and presenting himself as a human being.


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## Drezzal (Nov 8, 2007)

Can someone explain what this nano thing is ? Sorry, im new ale:


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## Selorian (Nov 8, 2007)

Take a look at NaNoWriMo.org.

That should answer most of your questions, but *Na*tional *No*vel *Wri*ting *Mo*nth is basically trying to write a 50,000 word novel in a month.


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## abbsinthe (Nov 8, 2007)

Well this is my first year trying it and I think I have a great outline, I did all my research last month and was really hoping that it would just write itself like the rest of my "well thought out" writings, but unfortunately I fell behind. I have been non stop at work and since my job is so un-demanding i have been carrying around a small recorder writing my story as i am working. 

Problem is today is what? the 8th? and I have only hit like 5k. I havnet had much time to just sit down and put all my thoughts in order. Any tips?????


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## valeca (Nov 8, 2007)

Only one, abbsinthe.

Keep going.  Just keep going.


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## silverwriter (Nov 10, 2007)

That's all you can do, really. Just keep typin'. 

You're not alone in being behind. I had a reaction to a medication which made me sick and kept me away from the computer for a few days.


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## Shinn (Nov 10, 2007)

Hey guys 

Just started nanowrimo three days ago, and I am already up to 2,000 words for my story "The Anstead Line", which is about a fictional Underground tube crash. I've got nineteen days to finish it off and edit it. So, just wondering, if I don't get it done this year, can I enter it into next year's competition?

James.


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## Writer Kitten (Nov 10, 2007)

Shinn? The end is when you write 50k. There's no real "contest" save for beating the 50k mark. Other than that, it's all personal.


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## Shinn (Nov 10, 2007)

thanks for clearing that up, WK


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