Yay, progress!

Before Today:
Cum Word Count Goal: 8,000
Actual Word Count: 3,642
Status: Short 4,358

Today:
Words to Type Today Goal: 2,000
Cum Word Count Goal: 10,000
Actual Words Today: 2,284
Actual Cum Words: 5,926
Status: +284 on the day; -4,074 total.

I'm not caught up yet, but I'm getting closer!

Posted by: Ogre at 07:44 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
Post contains 56 words, total size 1 kb.

1 Uh Ogre... cum counts??? BWAHAHAH

Posted by: Raven at November 08, 2007 01:30 PM (Vvbj+)

2 Get your mind out of the gutter! Geez. Some people...

Posted by: Ogre at November 08, 2007 02:01 PM (oifEm)

3 >

Posted by: Raven at November 08, 2007 04:41 PM (Vvbj+)

4 Don't feel bad Raven, though common sense told me it was a special acronym I don't know about... I laughed when I saw it too! LOL!!! Now I'll go shake the gutter crumbs off my mind!

Posted by: HoosierArmyMom at November 08, 2007 05:27 PM (eaqGd)

5 I nevah shake them crumbs off. EVAH!! LOL!!!

Posted by: Raven at November 08, 2007 09:31 PM (5xw89)

6 At least they're just crumbs...

Posted by: Ogre at November 09, 2007 02:11 PM (oifEm)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

Oh, things are not good.

In the past, once I get going, the story usually writes itself. Last year, when writing about the group that went through the fairy door, they just kept going and having adventures. This year I'm trying to write a suspense novel about intrigue and spying, but it's just not there. I keep plodding ahead, but the characters are pretty boring. They're just not doing anything. Ugh.

Well, I've only 1,053 words today, and I wanted to write 2,000 today. Overall I'm at 3,133 and on pace should have me at 8,000. All my data for actual vs. projected are in the negative numbers. Someone feed the muse! I'll keep trying, I think once something interesting happens, these wooden characters will get up and DO something...

Posted by: Ogre at 09:04 PM | Comments (10) | Add Comment
Post contains 134 words, total size 1 kb.

Okay, officially half of one day is complete. Here's my progress:

Geez. Well, it's started. Only 1,400 or so words to go for today. And I'm going with Raven's idea of a Marine...

Posted by: Ogre at 05:33 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 37 words, total size 1 kb.

National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30.

Valuing enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft, NaNoWriMo is a novel-writing program for everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved.

Because of the limited writing window, the ONLY thing that matters in NaNoWriMo is output. It's all about quantity, not quality. The kamikaze approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, and write on the fly.

Make no mistake: You will be writing a lot of crap. And that's a good thing. By forcing yourself to write so intensely, you are giving yourself permission to make mistakes. To forgo the endless tweaking and editing and just create. To build without tearing down.

As you spend November writing, you can draw comfort from the fact that, all around the world, other National Novel Writing Month participants are going through the same joys and sorrows of producing the Great Frantic Novel. Wrimos meet throughout the month to offer encouragement, commiseration, and—when the thing is done—the kind of raucous celebrations that tend to frighten animals and small children.

In 2006, we had over 79,000 participants. Nearly 13,000 of them crossed the 50k finish line by the midnight deadline, entering into the annals of NaNoWriMo superstardom forever. They started the month as auto mechanics, out-of-work actors, and middle school English teachers. They walked away novelists.

So, to recap:

What: Writing one 50,000-word novel from scratch in a month's time.

Who: You! We can't do this unless we have some other people trying it as well. Let's write laughably awful yet lengthy prose together.

Why: The reasons are endless! To actively participate in one of our era's most enchanting art forms! To write without having to obsess over quality. To be able to make obscure references to passages from our novels at parties. To be able to mock real novelists who dawdle on and on, taking far longer than 30 days to produce their work.

When: Sign-ups begin October 1, 2007. Writing begins November 1. To be added to the official list of winners, you must reach the 50,000-word mark by November 30 at midnight. Once your novel has been verified by our web-based team of robotic word counters, the partying begins.

This year there's over 90,000 people signed up! Join in today and get writing!

Posted by: Ogre at 08:05 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 423 words, total size 3 kb.

Here it comes...

Once again it's almost time for National Novel Writing Month! This will be my fourth year trying this strange event. If you have ever wanted to try and write a novel, this is the way to get going! It doesn't matter if you're not ready. It REALLY doesn't matter if you don't have the time (I know I sure don't). What matters is that you want to write a novel and this way WILL help you get going. Come on, you blossoming writers, join up!

Posted by: Ogre at 06:06 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
Post contains 92 words, total size 1 kb.

1 Wow...that time again?? I remember last yr- I copied your novel blog onto my computer. I still have that. LOL

Posted by: Raven at October 30, 2007 09:39 PM (ohnld)

2 Heh. I'm way behind. I have two days to go and I don't know what I'm going to write about. I went to set up the novel blog again, and I couldn't even come up with a name...

Posted by: Ogre at October 30, 2007 09:46 PM (2WD8n)

3 Hi! Just wanted to let you know the Valour-IT fundraiser has started again this year and we'd be excited to have you on the Marine Corps team once again! (can't find an email addy for you on your blog) You can learn more at my blog. Please let me know if you have any questions! All the best, ~Holly Aho

Posted by: Holly at October 30, 2007 09:57 PM (KMpke)

4 Thanks for reminding me, I'll get that set up!

Posted by: Ogre at October 31, 2007 11:47 AM (oifEm)

5 MARINES. Boot camp! Write a fictional account of Paris Island. Life during boot camp! The trials and tribulations of a Marine Recruit. LOL!!

Posted by: Raven at October 31, 2007 01:00 PM (9vjyS)

6 Fictional? I'm not sure I could make stuff up about that...

Posted by: Ogre at October 31, 2007 01:05 PM (oifEm)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

It's almost here! NaNoWriMo 2007 is getting ready to start. If you've EVER wanted to, or thought about writing a novel, this is the time and place to get started!

National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30.

Valuing enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft, NaNoWriMo is a novel-writing program for everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved.

Posted by: Ogre at 08:05 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 134 words, total size 1 kb.

Hey. Didya notice? Yep, with one day left in NaNoWriMo, I actually did it. 50,000 words in 29 days. And heck, I didn't even write on the weekends. Nice.

Now I have two things left to do -- First I have to actually finish the story. I have just the epilogue to go, but I haven't decided what's going to happen in it. For those interested, you can read the last chapter and see where I'm left. Without a deadline looming over me, I hope I actually finish the story!

Next, if I get it done, I need to go back and fix the darn thing. There's all sorts of editorial problems. Heck, in the first draft, one of the people was given a vial, but by the time he needed to use it, I needed it to be a string. And no, I didn't go back and edit, that's the whole point of NaNoWriMo.

So hey, if you like writing and always wanted to write a book, why not join us crazy people come next November and write your own? I know you don't have time, neither did I...

Posted by: Ogre at 11:07 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
Post contains 192 words, total size 1 kb.

I think I'm going to make it. 48,124 words down with 2-1/2 days to go! And to think, I was worried I was going to run out of story before I got to 50K. I'm only now at the climax of the story, so I think this may not run out of steam until near 60,000. Hooray writing! The latest chapters aren't posted yet, but if anyone wants to read really rough draft, it's there for you.

Posted by: Ogre at 08:02 PM | Comments (8) | Add Comment
Post contains 79 words, total size 1 kb.

Hey folks, I'm almost there! Today I crossed the 40,000-word mark with the NaNoWriMo challenge. In case you missed it, this is a challenge to write a 50,000-word novel in just one month. You can see how I've progressed, and if you're interested in some light, COMPLETELY unedited reading, I've put most of what I've done online. With only 10,000 words to go, now it really feels like it's going downhill and I can see the end. Now I just have to make sure there's enough story left to make it to the end!

Posted by: Ogre at 08:04 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
Post contains 100 words, total size 1 kb.

Since NaNoWriMo has started, posting may be a little bit slower for the next week as I adjust to a new schedule of doing "stuff." I've got a huge post about liberty and freedom floating around in my head right now -- and maybe that will get incorporated into the novel, we'll see.

But be sure to stop by each afternoon, as reviews of the Carolina Renaissance Festival will continue all week.

Posted by: Ogre at 03:48 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 74 words, total size 1 kb.

ONE DAY LEFT! Yes, NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) starts TOMORROW! Sign up today! Come on, if you don't have time, that's half the fun!

National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30.

Valuing enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft, NaNoWriMo is a novel-writing program for everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved.

Posted by: Ogre at 05:04 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
Post contains 96 words, total size 1 kb.

1 Good Luck!

Posted by: michele at November 01, 2006 02:59 PM (cV7Xy)

2 Shhh! I'm writing!

Posted by: Ogre at November 01, 2006 03:25 PM (oifEm)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

There's still time to join up! 11 days until National Novel Writing Month begins.

National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30.

Valuing enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft, NaNoWriMo is a novel-writing program for everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved.

And you can even make donations and help build children's libraries in Vietnam. Oh, and my novel, as I write it, will appear here.

Posted by: Ogre at 04:08 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
Post contains 160 words, total size 1 kb.

It's time once again! Yes, it's time to prepare yourselves for NaNoWriMo, 2006. If you've been reading here a long time, you know that the Ogre always joins in this effort. Way down the left sidebar, you can see my previous awards. In 2004, I won (with this), but in 2005, I didn't finish and only got the participant badge.

Well, I plan on giving it a shot again this year. It's fun. Oh, what is NaNoWriMo, you ask? It's National Novel Writing Month (and unlike most of the US government and schools, it does not discriminate based on skin color or sexual preference). It's a month that people who write attempt to write a 50,000-word novel...completely during the month of November.

Sure, it's hard, but it's loads of fun. There's no worrying about grammar or spelling, you're just trying to get the words on the paper. And yes, it's also for a good cause, as the organizers raise money each year for libraries. So head on over and read all about it.

Oh, and one last thing -- I KNOW you don't have time to write a novel. But that's half the fun of trying to write 50,000 words in one month!

Posted by: Ogre at 05:02 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
Post contains 207 words, total size 1 kb.

It's time! Well, it's almost time. Once again this year, as it has been for the past six years, November is National Novel Writing Month -- or for those who like acronyms, it's NaNoWriMo.

What's that? From the web site:

National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30.

Valuing enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft, NaNoWriMo is a novel-writing program for everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved.

If you have ever dreamed of writing a novel -- and I know many bloggers have -- this is the time to sit down and force yourself to do it. I participated last year and wrote about a Wizard's Adventure. I won (wrote the required number of words), but the story wasn't done.

So if you follow that link above to read the story, you'll get a decent story (not much proofreading, etc.), but it ends rather suddenly. I haven't decided yet this year if I'll continue that story or start a whole new one. I'm leaning towards just starting a new story all over again.

So if you think you want to write, check that site out. Let me know if you join up, we can harass one another to ensure we all finish what we start!

Posted by: Ogre at 02:03 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
Post contains 254 words, total size 2 kb.

1 Writing a novel -- I've written four and am about to finish my fifth -- is not fun. It's a bit like root canal without anesthesia. The only reason to do it is that not doing it would hurt even worse.

Posted by: Francis W. Porretto at October 07, 2005 03:54 PM (PzL/5)

2 For me, novel-writing is a supreme catharsis that I (most of the time) enjoy immensely. I'm glad to find another NaNoer!

Posted by: Anders Bruce at October 07, 2005 05:28 PM (C6ihx)

3 Interesting position, Francis, interesting. Thanks for stopping by, both of you! Anders I LOVE the writing, I just can't find the time. That's why I tried NaNoWriMo last year, to FORCE me to find the time. And I did!

Posted by: Ogre at October 08, 2005 07:54 AM (iJFc9)

4 Ogre: forced subjugation to da muse, that's what you have to do. But I'm gonna pass, tempting as it is. What would I have to give up? Hmmm... letssee: blogging, playing with the kids, noogie with the Significant OtherHunter, chorus practice, blogging, sleeping, Thanksgiving holiday, a good bit of work, blogging... I fancied myself an amateur writer in my college and grad school years; wrote several short stories and had a novel going. But being too much of a perfectionist, it became torturous for me. So what did I end up doing instead? I became an editor for my profession! (Go figure.) Now blogging is my catharsis. Power to you, bud! I know you'll win this year too! (And, hope you caught some fish!)

Posted by: The MaryHunter at October 08, 2005 09:53 AM (SRaIZ)

5 I cannot imagine being able to write a novel. I'm not creative at all. I can only write what I see. I can weave a tale from my past or surroundings, but nothing made up. My brain just doesn't think that way.

Posted by: Bou at October 08, 2005 10:02 PM (5JHEt)

6 TMH, I was surprised at how little I actually had to give up. I found time all over the place that I was just wasting. I'm sure it helps that the words are already in my mind, I just have to get them to paper (computer) -- and since I type pretty darn fast, in an hour I'd get around 3-5,000 words written. Bou, you need that book, "No Plot, No Problem."

Posted by: Ogre at October 09, 2005 06:27 PM (iJFc9)

Hide Comments | Add Comment