Right after I recorded our November 1 vidcast saying I was in for Nanowrimo, I decided to pass on Nanowrimo this year in order to get my last year’s novel into the world as a podcast novel. Today I released Episode 1 of the Time for the Fair Podcast. I will be releaseing a half hour (ish) episode weekly for the next five months or so. I am also considering using bandcamp to sell full versions of the audiobook, as well as ebook versions. Stay tuned for more about that. You can subscribe to it at http://feeds.feedburner.com/TimeForTheFairPodcastFeed
OK, here’s the thing. It’s November 1. Nanowrimo starts today. I’ve got nothing. No story idea. Zilch, nada, bubkus, nothing at all. My daughter and I are planning on doing Nanowrimo again this year but I’ve got nothing to say.
I’m still slowly working my way through editing the text and audio for last year’s story, Time for the Fair. This summer I recorded the whole story, with the intention of having an audio podcast of the book in progress before this November, but the best laid plans…
Last week, my vice-principal started up team at our school for Movember, where men grow moustaches to raise money and awareness for men’s health issues. Now, I like the idea of being a part of a team doing something wacky like growing hair for charity, but you have to start Movember clean shaven. I’ve been bearded for my whole adult life, except for one season 15 years ago when I raffled my beard off to raise funds for the music program at my school. Until yesterday, my daughter had never even seen my chin.
Anyway, here I am. November first. Clean shaven. Feeling naked, both facially and creatively. I know that as the month progresses my hair will grow back. I’m thinking of growing a mustache and crazy sideburns. But it doesn’t take much creative effort to grow hair. The trick will be to grow a story, starting from scratch, with no particular shiny ideas that are calling to me.
At this moment, I’m in, but I’m not really invested either. I’m at a crossroads where I could write a new story, or I could invest November and completing last year’s story and getting the podcast and ebook up and running. Whatever happens, I will take some time every day in November to make something, and in Movember to grow something.
Last night, SJ finished the first draft of her Nanowrimo Novel, Perfect?, topping off at 28,284 words. Hooray! Considering that her original goal was 10000 words, this is fantastic. In the vidcast, I say that I have 42000 or 43000 words. I just checked and it’s about 44400.
On November 16, I got to perform at the Toronto Nanowrimo Halfway Party and Geeky Book Swap. About 70 people were there sharing nanowrimo stories, swapping geek books (Bring a book, Take a Book. We brought about a dozen geeky books and came back at about par. SJ really likes her new Zombie Apocolypse Survival Guide). There were about 7 different geeky musical acts performing including:
On a chilly dark Halloween night
Turn in early and turn out the lights
It doesn`t much matter
If you`re a pantser or planner.
Tomorrow we all start to write.
Morning coffee and tea by the pot
As we wrestle with setting and plot.
Your hero’s in the middle of a confounding riddle,
Who’s answer you once knew but forgot.
Words, Words, Words,
We need fifty thousands words
We write all the time-o
Cause it’s Nano-Wrimo
Our efforts may seem quite absurd.
Buddy have you heard,
Everyone has a pile of words
Will mine be a New York Times
Best selling novel
or a steaming pile of… (Words, words, words)
The garbage is starting to reek
I haven’t showered in nearly a week,
We’re down to one nighty and a pair of tighty whiteys
And the dishes are piled in the seenk.
The story is coming together,
Haven’t noticed the change in the weather,
I’ve not read the news, or heard Rob Ford’s Blues
till I came to the halfway gettogether.
Words, Words, Words,
We need fifty thousands words
We write all the time-o
Cause it’s Nano-Wrimo
Our efforts may seem quite absurd.
Buddy have you heard,
Everyone has a pile of words
Will mine be a New York Times
Best selling novel
or a steaming pile of… (Words, words, words)
In which we discuss our weekend with Sean’s Birthday Party, the Toronto Geeky Book Swap/ Nanowrimo halfway party, SJ’s Tornoto Nano teen write-in at a Starbucks on Yonge Street, and our progress with our novels.
SJ and I had did a vidcast talking about our progress so far with our stories on the halfway day of nanowrimo. Oh, and I`ve been adding variety to our word wars by using some of the novelty classroom timers at online-stopwatch.com.
Unfortunately, life consists of more than just writing time. It can be challenging to use your time well, but fear not! Today, participant Daniela McVicker shares some great practical tools to help with effective time management: We all face the issue of spending too much time on straightforward tasks, which is why time management is such […]
Diversity makes stories better, plain and simple. This year, we’ve partnered with the good folks at Writing With Color to get some advice on how to write stories populated with people of all racial and ethnic backgrounds. In the second part of her sub-series “Properly Coded,” Alexa White discusses how to create backstories for characters of […]
