NaNoWriMo Changed My Life (Or, How Did I Get Into This Mess Again?)

[cybermathwitch]

NaNoWriMo does strange things to the soul.

The first time that I delved into it's exhilarating, frightening, unknown waters (and if you've never done it, it really is a bit like diving off a pier at midnight into a body of water you've never seen) was probably around 2000. I think that I wrote maybe 1000 words, if that much on a very random whim without really understanding a thing about what I was trying to do. At the time, I had no sense of the actual scope of the thing, or of the idea of pacing myself and therefore I also didn't really put myself into it.

In 2003, I revisited the idea, this time with a plot bunny I'd gotten from a friend of mine. By that time, I'd moved on from college and was working at a 40-hour a week job, and was coming down from a several-week-long panic attack (bordering on nervous breakdown). That's the year I really think of as my first foray into the actual heart of the project, and while I made a bunch of the beginner mistakes (like not sticking to a daily word count) I also managed about 40,000 of the cherished 50,000 word goal.

I think in 2004 I suffered from a total lack of any inspiration, and in 2005 I was between jobs, inspiration-less, and in the middle of having problems with mental illness that sapped any creative energy I possessed. But 2006? 2006 was the year I discovered Battlestar Galactica, and had my fandom muses renewed. It was also the first year that I made it to 50,000 words (some of which got written in a fugue state that had me going back later and thinking "when did I write that?!" but in a good way.)

It was still a solitary endeavor (complete with askance looks from friends and family at ever mention of it). In 2007, I managed to coerce kadollan into participating with me, and we both wrote Harry Potter fic. Because the word count goal in and of itself was no longer challenge enough, I decided that I should attempt (for the first time ever in my life) to exert some self-discipline and stick to the daily prescribed word count of 1667 words. I actively bribed myself with the promise of silk yarn from Blue Moon Fiber Arts and kept pictures of both said yarn and Luna Lovegood (my central character and newly discovered muse) on my desktop at work. And you know what? I did it. I absolutely did.

So last year, it was Harry Potter again, only it wasn't at first because the_disco_fairy tried to talk me into original fiction. That failed like a fail-y thing, because I caught kadollan's HP Next-Gen bug, but I tried to do two at once for awhile, because I was unemployed again, and why not? I ended up with an unholy (and really awfully close to cheating) union of the two by the end of things (along with a 60,000+ word count).

So at some point, I got to be the sort of writer who says "15,000 words? That's easy!" and means it. It's a realization I had going into the hermionebigbang this year. The hell? I can see how I got there, but it's still a surprise, kind of.

And all those fics that I've written for NaNo that have never seen the light of day? I'm using the ginnybigbang and harrypotterbang as an excuse to get them finished, edited, and posted.

The startrekbigbang and polybigbang are going to be new endeavors, like the hermionebigbang is. And I think that the hermionebigbang just might be what's leading into this year's NaNo storyline.

Comments

[njborba.livejournal.com]

When I did my first NaNo, I honestly didn't know what it would be like either. But I did hit the 50K goal the first time out of the gate, mostly because I hate losing. Not that these writing endeavors should be about winning/losing, but that's kind of how I have to treat it to motivate myself. There were times during that first one where I was just throwing whatever I could into people's back stories. It was fun. In a way, I think NaNo and now JulNo are easier for me if I do original fic. In fan fic you have to keep to the prescribed characters. In original fic you can just start writing whatever you want and toss in new characters willy-nilly.

Anyhow, I tend to think of 15K as pretty easy now too. What I really need to focus on is finishing all my NaNo, and now JulNo challenge fics. Thanks for sharing your experiences here, it was great to read.

[cybermathwitch.livejournal.com]

I've never really felt restricted by the character parameters I have to work with in fanfiction - I think for me, it makes it easier to just write because I already "know" them and can therefore better anticipate how they react. Also, my writing tends to do quite a bit with introspection, and much less with outward action and plot. It's like my character understanding skills are pretty excellent, but my character creation skills are on the crap side. Which is definitely something I need to work on.

I'm glad you enjoyed it though. :)

[njborba.livejournal.com]

That's good that you don't feel restricted with fan fic characters. I usually like to write fan fic too, because the characters are so familiar and established. But sometimes I feel that the direction I want to take fic characters is too far removed from what other people want to read. So, original fic is a nice outlet for doing whatever I want. It is hard to create new characters, some days I feel like mine are all over the place. :)

[kadollan.livejournal.com]

I still can't believe that in 2007 I decided to do NaNo on Oct. 31 (with neither intention nor plot in mind before hand) and then I ACTUALLY DID IT. I totally believe that having you there as a NaNo buddy is directly responsible for the fact that I did it.

Now... I've written 50K words during Nov. twice now...but I have yet to actually finish a story. So while I technically won, I still sort of feel like it was a cheat.

[cybermathwitch.livejournal.com]

:) I don't think it's a cheat to not "finish" because it's not the point of the endeavour. The point is to, quite bluntly, write something. You totally did that. Which is not to say that I don't think you should finish the fics you started, because you totally should. But it's not a cheat.

[the-disco-fairy.livejournal.com]

You are so cool!

-wishes she had more stick-to-it-ness-

[cybermathwitch.livejournal.com]

You're doing pretty well yourself, hon. You've been writing a lot lately.

[terravayne.livejournal.com]

Brilliant! I think NaNoWriMo was made to be turned into BBs. I'm going to be attempting my GBB for NaNo this year. It'll be my first NaNo, so I'm super excited (and anxious). That'a amazing that ou've managed to do it year after year. That's resolve, I tell you. ;)

[cybermathwitch.livejournal.com]

I highly recommend picking up "No Plot No Problem" by Chris Baty and reading it either now or at least by October. There's also a "kit" that can be loads of fun, if that kind of thing appeals, but definitely get the book. Also, I've found that sticking with the daily word count is one of my best tools - also writing more the day before taking a day off rather than taking a day off and trying to play catch-up.

But the biggest thing? Recruit friends. Seriously - and preferrably at least a few offline as well as on. Check out any local write-ins that may be scheduled. (They're loads of fun if you've got a good regional liason.) I dragged my best friend in kicking and wibbling and it was really an awesome boost and incentive to get stuff done.

Let me know what your screenname is on NaNo when you sign up and I'll be sure to add you to my buddy list there as well. :)

[terravayne.livejournal.com]

That sounds like very sage advice. I'll have to pick up that book for sure. Haha, yeah, when I sign up, I'll let you know and we can suffer together! ;)

[cybermathwitch.livejournal.com]

Yay! :)