NaNoWriMo Begins!

 It's time to start NaNoWriMo! Yay! 

Are you ready to write the next great 50,000 words of genius? 

It's okay if you're not. Just fire up that old computer/tablet/writing instrument and just write.  Yes, that's the way to do it. 

The best way to start NaNo when you have no idea what to write is to just write something. Don't judge whether its good or bad, just get it down. You can edit/fix after you got those 50,000 down. 

If you have a story idea then you're ahead of most in the game. There's a lot of people who have no idea what to write and they are almost ready to give up before they start. 

Please don't give up! You can do it!

Without an idea the advice to "just write" can still be intimidating. So, what to do? Here's some ways to get started; 

1. Google writing prompts. These are brief story starter ideas that can spark your imagination. You can also google these in your favorite genre. Love romances (the biggest industry in publishing) then put into the search engine; Romance Story Prompts. Sci-fi? Historical? Horror? Erotica? It's all there somewhere on the web. 

2. Ask yourself "What if" and then let your imagination go. What if a man has a body in his trunk? What if he get's back ended and the trunk pops open? What if a woman accepts a date with a man then discovers his best friend is the man who is the father of her kid - and she never told him he was the father? What if a space alien landed in your back yard. He's hurt. Do you nurse him back to health or call the cops? What if you go out for a walk at night and are bitten by a vampire? Werewolf? What if you discover your mother is witch? 

3. Get a book off your self. Close your eyes, open to a random page and point. That sentence is the first sentence of your novel. (Yes, this one is a big challenge. Are you up for it?)

4. Find a piece of artwork. Either in your home or store or anywhere you happen to be. Stare at it and then write about what's next for that picture? Is it a picture of a house? (I have Thomas Kincade pics here) Who lives in that house? What if something happened there? Ghosts? Did the in-laws move in? Did the woman who lives there find a strange animal and raises it only to find out it's a baby dinosaur? 

5. What if you were an alien. What would your impressions of the earth be when you landed. What if you were a time traveler? Would you go forward or back in time and what would you find? 

Remember stories are everywhere. Set your imagination loose and find those story lines that are uniquely yours. It's all good. 

Happy NaNoWriMo! You got this! 

NaNoWriMo 2023 Starts in 3 Days - Ready?

 

Three days till NaNoWriMo starts!

Are you ready to write? A plotter or a pantser? 

I generally make my notes in a sketch book. This gives me room to draw or write and make arrows and lines. Little boxes of character notes. Its a real mess to everyone else, but it keeps me centered. A sketch book also gives me a place to draw out my town. I know which streets my character goes down and where everyone lives. Sorry, but it your character can make it three miles across town, walking and still show up on time for dinner.... someone out there in reader-land will nail you for it. Details! The devil is in the Details! 

For NaNo? I have nothing planned. 

Today we had our NaNoWriMo launch party and someone brought these dice that gave plot ideas when you rolled them. So I gave it a roll.

Next idea came from trying to make a witch for my front yard. There's a way to do it with a gallon milk jug, black plastic table cloths and a stick. So I went to Pinterest and found out how to put it all together. Do you know what happens when you ask Pinterest something? Like witches?
Your feed fills with witchcraft and spells. Next thing I know Facebook groups are showing up with witches. What's a writer to do?

First I started a Pinterest board for witch stuff. I need to know more about this stuff! Did I join the FB group? Well.....

So, in the past week or so the universe has brought to me those four plot point dice and witches. That's what I'm going to write about for NaNoWriMo. 

Witches, Illusion, Non-Gen, Protect & Anti-Hero

Gotta love a challenge. 

So did you pick your plot, yet? Got a seedling of an idea? Or just gonna go for it? 

5 Ways Not to Lose Your Story Ideas

 I'm driving to the day job, watching the road, thinking about the other drivers and the landscape around me. 

SUDDENLY! 

I've got a story idea. It's rolling around in my brain. Building up. Getting legs and growing. Yeah, I like this story idea. I want to run with it. 

However, I'm driving. Not able to write anything down without crashing my car. Options? Pull over somewhere and put notes in my phone or scratch it out on one of the ten a gas receipts flowing around in my console. Do I do this? Naw, I'll remember and take notes when I arrive at work. 

I pull into work and there goes my brain. I'm not even out of the car yet and my mind is thinking about workie things. Did I write this brilliant story idea down? No. Do I remember it hours later? No.

5 Ways Not to Lose Your Story Ideas

1. Always carry a notebook. These are easily purchased in any store (Dollar Store, too!) to keep in your purse or your car. Make sure there's a pen or pencil with your notebook. 
2. Notes on the phone. I use this feature for a lot of stuff. From work passwords to reminders and grocery lists. It's a quick easy place to write it down if you have no pen or paper. 
3. Learn to use the voice recording feature on your phone. I think that comes with every phone on the market now. On the iphone it's called Voice Memo. I moved this to the top of my aps so I can easily click it when needed. --> At the red light and never while driving. :)
4. If  unable to get it down any other way think of key words. Like building anything online a key word will help trigger your brain into remembering. Don't use generic words like rain or road. Think of something more story specific. If the story is about a woman who meets a prince that turns our to be a serial killer use something like killer prince. Story about aliens landing in a backyard of a hippy. Use alien hippy. Whatever is more exact but short. 
5. Repeat your plot/idea out loud over and over. Then again and again. Repetition is one way to memorize things. Saying it out loud helps cement it into your memory. 

Be Prepared and save those ideas! 

5 Steps to Complete NANOWRIMO

 

The challenge; Complete 50,000 words in the month of November.  Don't worry it can be done without panic. 

First: Check out all the good stuff on the official NANOWRIMO website; https://nanowrimo.org/ They've got lots of inspiration and things to get you writing. 

Second: Plot your NANO attack. I don't mean plot your novel but you can if you're a plotter (not a pantser?) I mean plot your work time. Think of your life and where you can get uninterrupted time to write.  I once got up a half hour early to win NANO. That book is now up on Amazon: Soul Mates A Different Kind of Love Story At that time in my life I was in work by 8:30 am so I got up at 6:30 am and wrote for a half hour to an hour depending on how the story was moving. But it was getting up at that hour that gave me time to dedicate to my goals. 

So plot out your writing time. Make it a time when you can have some uninterrupted writing time. I chose morning before the family woke up but if you're more of a night owl go for it. What's your perfect time?

Third: Assemble your space. There's nothing worse than having to get up and clear dishes or toys off your table before getting to work. Truthfully, that has tanked my writing sessions more often than not. Got a desk? A table you can squeeze into a corner or any place you get on your laptop, tablet or however you write and be set to go when you sit down. Make it yours, make it comfortable and make it a place you want to go. 

Fourth: Get down the bones. Write your story. Get up & go to your special place and write. Decide if you're a plotter or a pantser. This is probably something you already know if you're been writing a while but the one thing to know is you don't have to be exactly one or the other. You can combine it. 

I get an idea and first write the blurb of the idea. You know that first inkling of a story that comes to you? Not the whole story but maybe a bit of the direction you're going. The blurb is kind of like that thing on the back of the book or in the book description that gives you a bit of the bones of the story. It doesn't have to be a lot just enough for you. If you like to plot then write down that outline. You don't have to follow it but if it gets you going, then great. If not, then change it as you go. The writing rules at this point are your rules. 

Fifth: Tell people. Join a NANOWRIMO group in your area. Find other writers either in person or online for encouragement and to help keep the NANO alive in your vision. Life gets busy and sometimes our goals fall to the sidelines when that happens. Connecting with others with the same goal can keep you on track. 

GO NANO! You've got this! 

Here....Comes....NANOWRIMO! Ready?

 
No, not ready and have no idea what story I'm going to tell. Could be anything at this point. 

Does NANO have to be fiction?  

    Why? The writer is in control so write what you want. Do you know how to calibrate antennas? Write a how to book. Love to cook and have a closet full of recipes? Write that cook book. (Don't forget the yummy photos) Got a life to tell us about? Write your memoir. Like making up stories and adventures? Write fiction. 

    I write fiction. So I'll think up some kind of murder, adventure or paranormal something. 

    I think it was the movie, The World According to Garp, where the man (Robin Williams 💔) sees a pair of gloves on the side walk and it prompts him to write a story.  The moral here; Ideas are everywhere. 

    When my kids were young and we'd go to a restaurant, or anywhere we had to wait, we'd play a What if game. I'd challenge them to find something in the room and I'd tell them the story about it. Pick up a spoon? Well, I'd say. This was the spoon that George Washington ate his oatmeal with on the morning he crossed the Delaware to fight the British in Trenton, NJ. In fact, since Martha gave it to him, after breakfast he put it in his pocket for good luck. He lost this spoon during the battle and it lay in the dirt for decades. Then when they were building this restaurant a workman found it and put it in the sink of the restaurant. And here it sits, on our table. George Washington's spoon. 

    The kids loved this game as sometimes the stories got pretty silly. (Don't ask how we time traveled and peeked in an outhouse to see Mrs Lincoln on the potty. Yes, some stories stay with you.) Soon the kids were making up stories and asking me to pick the item. Creativity explodes!

    The point is that there are ideas everywhere if you're looking. Remember to keep the "What if" in the front of your brain. Look around, take a walk, eyeball that stranger in the supermarket and think what secrets could be hiding in his closet. 

Okay! Don't scare people by staring at them! 

Be discrete. 

    Think of all the myths and stories there are out there. Can you bend them & take the winged Pegasus and make him human? What if? Or read the news and put something sinister behind the scenes. What if an angel lost his wings and was forced to earth to pay for his sin? (Wait, I already did something like that!) Someone gifts our heroine a plant and as she takes care of it she begins to see messages printed on the leaves. Magic or gaslight? 

    So look around, open your mind to the possibility that anything is possible and get ready for NANOWRIMO! 

  

Oh NANOWRIMO! Will I make it?

 Our beloved NANAOWRIMO is almost over. Eleven days and counting. Will you make it? 

Will I make it? eh, not sure. But I do have some good bones of a story to continue on with. 

I always thought NANO should be in January. I mean, half the country is snowed in and there is much more down time than in November, the month where the big holidays begin. 

But what do I know? It's kind of like dry December. If you are even a social drinker, that's when you drink the most. parties, get togethers, heck! I've worked in offices where they break out the wine and beer at lunch in December. People can't wait to start the party. Crazy month. 

Yet, here we are in November struggling to write that breakout novel. I did start on November 1st. I went to one of those plot generator aps and it gave me Mermaids and a person hunting. Hmmm, In my mind I made that a man who hunts mermaids. But the "why" question had me thinking he has to believe in mermaids before he can hunt them, right? So my opening scene had Paul discovering a fish-like woman caught in the sand on a beach in New Jersey in March. If you know New Jersey you know it's chilly at the beach in March, not swimming weather and beaches are pretty deserted.  So Paul sees this vision of beauty and scales on the beach just minutes before it sees him and flips back into the water. Now he might be a believer. Or headed to the nearest psychiatrist's couch? 

Okay, that went for about 500 words before I lost interest. Bah!

On my computer I have dozen's of story premises. When an idea come into my head I jot down the blurb. Those 2 or 3 paragraphs that give the idea some light then I just hit save into the abyss that is the "Ideas" folder.  It was to this folder I went next to find Soul of the Painting. I must have written the blurb over a year ago. 

I hit 3756 words this morning. Nowhere near where I need to be to complete NANO but it's moving along. I actually like this story so it might get completed. I can see the future scenes in my head which is something the Mermaid Hunter didn't give me.  

Let's do the math; To hit 50,000 words in the next 11 days I'd have to write 

4204 words a day. 

I laugh so hard I cry. Challenge or an unreachable goal? 

So how is your NANO coming? Share your word count and your challenges and on November 30th we'll pour the wine whether we make it or not. Because we tried and we have a great story still inside us that will someday make it out. 

Types of NANO Books to Write

Most talked about subject leading up to NANOWRIMO is probably; What will you write? Do you have a story idea? Subject? Is there an adventure inside you? 

Well, it doesn't really matter which direction you write in, it's all good. You can write any type of book. Just write. 

 Fiction. All those genres are yours for the taking. Write a romance, horror, drama, paranormal. Whatever's inside you is a great idea for a book. Write it. 

Non fiction. Could be a cookbook, how to book, memoir, expert advice subject, etc.

Kid's books. From fiction stories to picture books, this could be the most fun genre to write. Tell tall tales about child wizards, kids with the ability to morph into animals or anything your imagination can cook up. 

No rules for NANOWRIMO,  just write!

Most of all, don't worry if it's bad or good, if someone might be offended by it, or think you're weird, just write it down. You can edit or decide to publish later. Some NANOs leave my desk, some end up in the files. They might come forward later, but for now, for tomorrow when NANO starts, just write. 

May the NANO be with you as you start the journey tomorrow, November 1st. 

It's Almost NANO Time

 November brings NANOWRIMO; National Novel Writing Month. The challenge is to write everyday & try to complete a novel in 30 days. Can you do 50,000 words in a month? Yes, it is possible. 

Of course, writing it down isn't the hard part. It's after that they my finished novels just sit in the drawer (or hard drive) and wait for the editing to start. 

So, now with another NANO starting in less than a week it's time to start thinking about what to write.  There are plenty of writing prompts on the internet. (Thank you, Google) And there are our own ideas. 

I was talking to another writer yesterday and she suggested shutting off those audio books I listen to while driving. That my head should be in building the world of my novel and not living in the works of others. 

What do you think? 

NANO ~~~ Why have I deserted you?

 Yes, the beginning of NANOWriMo was rockin'. I wrote and wrote and then started a new story and wrote some more. Problem? I took the premise as a challenge from my daughter and never really fell in love with the character or thrust of the story. 

No lie, I have about 100 story starts in my computer. Whenever something pops into my head I get it down before I forget it. I sometimes do a whole Hero's Journey outline then stuff it in a file. Sometimes I just write the book blurb. I dream of the day when I can just stay home and write. 

Oh wait! I had two months of that last year. Did I finish a book? No, I was too wound up worrying about my business. (We started a business 7 months before we were shut down for covid) 

So now I have other excuses. 3 very needy foster dogs. Business work stuff; meetings, marketing and paperwork.  Oh yeah! Tomorrow I get my booster vax so I can use that excuse, too? Eh I didn't react to the last two shots so probably won't this time either. 

Excuses aside, there are 3 solid days left for NANO. I'm at 4573 words in Aliens Hiding in Plain Sight (not really a title)  story and 1056 words in Xiberon Survivors, another 813 words in Day 864. I think I wrote a little in Saving Saverine, too but that was on my other computer so I don't have the word count. 

I feel this NANO is doomed. 

So cheer me up! How's your NANO going? 

Double Timing NaNoWriMo Word Count

 I have two laptops. My old laptop is on my desk at home.  Most of  my writing takes place on that one. It's got a lot of stories and idea blurbs on it. 

NaNoWriMo is Here! Are you Rockin' It?

 I'm a bit over 2000 words. Not really a great count for day 6 of NaNo, but its something. 

Here's the problem. 

This was a challenge to do from a randomly picked prompt. not my idea or something I'd usually write about.  So I spend a lot of time forcing myself into the shoes of my MC (main character) to come up with the next move. 

This time I also printed out a worksheet of the Hero's Journey to fit my story into. I've got some of it down but mostly I have no freakin' clue where I'm going with this story. 

And so I flounder... questions! Questions! Questions! 

What next? 

What should MC do now? 

How does she know this isn't just her imagination? 

Is the guy she just met one of them or will he help her?

Is she about to get sucked into a nightmare? how do I save her and let this get crazy? Should I? 

Oy! My head! 

Ok, NaNo, See in tomorrow at 7 am with coffee. 

Good luck out there you NaNo wizards. Write on, Write good, Write often. 

How's your word count? 

Gearing Up for NaNoWriMo

 Most writers know what NaNoWriMo is; National Novel Writing Month in November. It's yearly challenge, started in 1999, for writers to complete a 50,000 word novel within the month. Yes, it's possible. My novel, Soul Mates was a NaNo. Good things come through a little discipline. And coffee.... lots of coffee. 

How???

Here's a few tips to do now to get ready to join the NaNoWriMo challenge. 

NANOWRIMO Approaches... Are You Ready?

 Love this time of year when we prep for NANO.  What? you don't prep for NANO? 

I guess it comes down to a plotter or a pantser or even a just give me an idea! 

Seriously, Ideas pop into my head all the time. I'm constantly writing scenes in my head that might never make it onto the keyboard. 

I think it was the World According to Garp where he sees the red gloves in the gutter and a story pops into his head? Correct me if I'm wrong, it's been awhile. 

That's where I think the stories hide. In those everyday things all around us. Stephen King says in his book, On Writing that he just puts too ideas together. Like for Carrie; Telekinesis and a girl who gets picked on in school. Easy, right? Rapid dog and mom trapped in a car with her son. Writer has accident and meets crazed fan. 

So for this year's NANO I'm going to take King's idea and merge two things together. I'm starting a list; 

Housewife and the devil meet

Old car and ....wait! That was King's. :)

Vacation on an island and contact is lost from the mainland

Man gets job in restaurant Owner is a ghost

Woman is murdered and haunts her murderer

Girl discovers secret passage in her new home discovers aliens

Woman buys a bracelet at a garage sale and can suddenly hear voices. 

The list is growing.... which to pick. 

Who doesn't love a good NANO challenge?  

So where are you going with NANO this year? 

Nano & Plot twists

I started NaNo and I'm at a paultry 3412 words. And it's November 18th already! WTF?
So I have my story idea but it's only that. A basic idea with nowhere to go. :(

Tonight after our NaNoWriMo write in I realized how pitiful this story is and that I have nothing. It's getting to a blah, blah, blah phase.
So I came home and googled "plot twists" with the intention of just grabbing number 3 on whatever list I found and to just write it.
I didn't do that.
Instead I found the most amazing plot twist sites.
Check out my  fav which lists movies and how they used plot twists. That one is called. Reedsy Blog. 
The next awesome plot twist site was found at the Writer's Den. This was a generator where you just click and you get your twist. This was fun! Gave me some good future story ideas, too.
My 3rd required more info. Add some details and you get the twist. That one was out of the UK (love that country!) The twists are here. Check them out and find some unique ideas.

That's it, I'm back to NaNo-ing! I have some ideas and I'm ready to write!
Write on, my friends. I'll see you in the pages....

NaNoWriMo Begins

NaNo is here! Wo0T!

Yesterday I was tooo crazy busy but got some words done today. So since NaNo is  a worldwide challenge I'm going to try to post my progress here every day or so. To the right is my word count.
Wish me luck!

Before NaNo I wrote a quick blurb for the story. Now I have no idea where to go with this story so it's a bit of a challenge.
Premise?
Woman stumbles into a grounded angel and they fall back into a bar where wayward angels meet. This gathering of angels have been put back to earth to earn their wings. They're a rag tag bunch and the woman can't be sure if they'll help her or not. One catch; she's trapped and can't figure out how to get out of the bar and back home.

Day 1 of NaNo, 231 words
Woman (Casey) is running from a mugger and runs right into an angel. They fall back into the bar that only angels can enter or even see.

Lordy! This is going to be a hard story to write.... Hello NaNo challenge!
See you tomorrow.

Where to Find Ideas for Your NANOWRIMO

Face it. There is a lot of pressure with NANO. We want to write the story all the way through to hit 50,000 words. We want to write that book that's been peculating in our brains. But what if....

The dreaded "What if..."

We have no story idea. Nothing is coming that could form into a plot. Our brains that usually has stories starting everywhere we go....goes silent.



Been there, multiple times. So where do you go when your writing brain wants to take a vaca?

1. Google. Of course you can find anything on Google. I've always thought Google and Amazon are taking over the world. If you need it, Google can tell you where to go. Just type in Writing Prompts.

2. Writers Digest. This is one of my favorite mags and they have a great article about prompts right here.

3. Another site is Awesome Writing Prompts on tumbler --> Here

4. My fav is the everything idea shop aka Pinterest! Just type in writing prompts and ka-powie! You got a whole page of them. Awesome!

5. Then there's the awesome advice from the Aimless Writer; 10 Prompt to Start Your Novel.  :)

So if you're looking for something to do the best NANO ever... just pick one and start writing down some ideas to go with it.

15 days till NANOWRIMO.  Tick Tock.

5 tips for a Successful NanoWrimo

This year I'm going to do it. Years ago I did. (now a book on Amazon) So why not again. What got me to the finish line was a lot of things. Life gets in the way? Sure! But here's a few tips to make it to November 30th.

1. Have a designated writing space. Whether it's a desk or a square of kitchen table stake it out and claim your space. Let them all know this is a writing space. It's kind of holy. 
2. Schedule your writing time. And guard it. Sorry honey, it's writing time. Bring dinner to my desk.  It's Nano time! 
3. Join a group. There are Nano groups all over the country that will meet and write together. No one understands your Nanowrimo like another Nano person. They know they pitfalls, they know the challenge and they understand that thing inside you that drives your Nano compulsion. You can go to the national Nanowritmo and find one in your area. 
4. Find a nearby Nano writer to help keep you on point. Report your word count, talk about your plot, work through those little niggling details. Most of all encourage each other to keep writing. 
5. Stay true to Nanowrimo and remember missing a day or two won't kill your Nano challenge. Jump back on the Nano wagon and know you're not done until the end of the month. 

See you at the finish line. GO NANOWRIMO! 

The Dreaded 2nd Draft

Writing that second draft is a killer. The story is all there, inside your head but now you have to do it over and over and over until it's polished to perfection.

I think my mind has gone numb. I know what happens next, I've read and reread all 125, 331 words until they've become tattooed on my brain. I want to move on. I want to be free to write the next story.

There's another big D word out there and it's what I need to exercise now; discipline.  That thing that makes us do what we should do and not what we really want to do.

No wonder Hemingway drank. It was probably due to that second draft.

I'm on chapter 3 for the 2nd or maybe it's the 3rd round. Then it goes on the shelf for a bit... not intentionally! Then I bring it back out and start over.

 Ok, NANOWRIMO is fast approaching so it's either finish it now or it might push into next year. The first time I pushed a book through to the finish line I scheduled it. Up at 6 am every morning and right to my desk. Write till 7 or 7:30 and then work that full time job. So, it's time to straighten up, put writing back on the schedule block and just do it.

First I have to clean off my desk. It's always best to have that writing spot to go to where the world doesn't intrude.

Second make a tracker. Visual aids always help. When you can look up and see that progress it helps to see how far you've come and how close the finish line is. Anything here works from a calendar to just a list with dates.
Third? Is there a third?

What do you do to get through the polishing process and ready for publication?

Oh Nano.... so sorry to say...

Barely 3000 words. Blah! Another Nano come and gone.
Not in a balanced place right now. Not sad, not anything. Just need to claim some space for myself.

Anyone else like that? Need that one room, no matter the size, that can be just my stuff. My brain settles better when I'm all alone with my desk, my manuscripts and my pens. Sometimes in silence, sometimes with music or TV in the background.

I do my best and most productive writing in that environment.

Now? I'm missing that little room as we still work to find our footing in this new state. Working towards it, but why does it take so freakin' long???

I think this personal writing space is a thing only other writers will understand. I picture Stephen King who wrote in the laundry room with a typewriter on his knees and wonder if I can fit a chair into that little laundry room in the hall.

A Holiday Writing Plan

With NANOWRIMO behind me (no where near the 50,000 words -guess my heart wasn't in it) I need a plan to keep writing over the holidays.

First priority is my WIP. I mean the WIP before the NANO-WIP.  The one that's lying in piles all over my desk. The one where I really wanted to be working on instead of NANO. For this I'm going to set up a few things.

Timeline; I've set this aside for over a month now so I really want to see a timeline of events so I don't change the facts mid story. My secret wish here is to paint one wall in my office like a chalk board so I can have a giant wall of notes. Wouldn't that be great? Everything on the wall at a quick glance. Or maybe I could use that white board paint. Then once it's wiped, it just looks like a white wall. Hmmm...might visit Lowe's today. (See what happens when my husband leaves me alone for a day? Mwahahaha!)

Space heater; My office is in in the back of the house and it gets chilly. Maybe I'll get that shrink wrap for the windows, too. Hello winter in the Northeast! Sometimes I think about going back to work and would rather stay by the wood stove in the family room. Of course, it's harder to work there.

Fact sheet; I guess this goes with the timeline wall. The story is a little complicated so I want to keep the little things straight. I hate when I read a book and things like descriptions, places, etc change half way through the story. I always flip back to double check and think, "How could the writer have missed that?" Well I know how the writer could miss it. Writing a book can take months, years in some cases (Harry Potter) and it morphs and grows as it's being worked on so there's always room for change.

Okay, that's my plan. Are you ready for this crazy holiday season? Any special plans for your WIP?