tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222Sun, 14 Feb 2010 23:58:53 +0000Update weblog for Nanowrimo and Script Frenzyhttp://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/updates.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)Blogger435125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-8498136073987533809Wed, 02 Dec 2009 02:59:00 +00002009-12-01T19:00:58.424-08:00Goodbye, Year NineWell, that's it. For this year at any rate. If anyone is wondering what I'm doing whenever it's not November, check out my main blog. For the Nanowrimo obsessed, you can either meander around this site to read my novels from this year and previous years or check out my links page for other people's Nanowrimo novels and weblogs.At the moment, I'm working on a short story http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/12/goodbye-year-nine-well-thats-it.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-4563274152751465483Mon, 30 Nov 2009 23:10:00 +00002009-11-30T15:11:40.697-08:00Ode to the EndI just realized: Beethoven, a secondary character in this year's Nanowrimo novel, wrote nine complete symphonies. Winter on a Watch Glass is my ninth Nanowrimo novel. I wonder if the choice of Beethoven over other composers was partially based on the unconscious recognition of this coincidence.It is the last day of November and I am sure many people are cramming in those last http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/11/ode-to-end-i-just-realized-beethoven.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-8194086061764694886Thu, 26 Nov 2009 03:12:00 +00002009-11-25T19:17:03.622-08:00Small MusingsIs it really proper to advertise your own writing group at another writing group?For those of you who are in the Moscow area and have been attending the write-ins or looking at the Moscow forums with any sort of scrutiny, you probably know what I'm talking about. I will give another example of something similar happening--I once attended a dinner for people who wanted to discuss http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/11/small-musings-is-it-really-proper-to.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-4856099587947402750Sun, 22 Nov 2009 05:46:00 +00002009-11-21T21:46:35.690-08:00Breaking 50kSo yay! I got over 50k tonight at a little before 9:30 PM.Let's see the dates on which I broke 50k in the previous years:2009: November 212008: November 292007: November 222006: November 242005: November 232004: November 272003: November 232002: November 252001: November 25So it looks like it's my fastest time so far, but it is not so different from, say, 2007 when I reached 50k on http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/11/breaking-50k-so-yay-i-got-over-50k.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-2630600850832603612Thu, 19 Nov 2009 07:43:00 +00002009-11-18T23:43:35.582-08:00Word Sprints and Musings about Word CountYes, I know I've been remiss about updating this weblog of late. But, well, here's an entry!As I'm writing this, I've just gotten back from the local write-in. I've been really pleased this year about the steady number of people that have been coming to the write-ins. In previous years, there were maybe two or three other people who came to some http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/11/word-sprints-and-musings-about-word.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-8943711392042875355Sun, 15 Nov 2009 06:51:00 +00002009-11-14T22:51:51.372-08:00Who Needs Practical Reasons Anyway?Well, I'm quite a bit ahead in terms of word count at this point. In terms of plot, however, I'm way behind. I do not think the story will end at 50k, but even if I do reach that point, I'm going to keep writing until the bitter end.Lately, I've been thinking about perspectives on participating in National Novel Writing Month--particularly my own perspective.http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/11/who-needs-practical-reasons-anyway-well.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-4843798502387510058Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:45:00 +00002009-11-04T08:48:50.995-08:00Some Disjointed ThoughtsLast night, I was pretty tired and only managed a little over a hundred words. Soon, I'll be taking off to the airport and I'm not sure if I'll be able to access the internet at all while I'm gone, so don't expect any updates for the next couple of days.I am aiming to introduce some real historical figures in the next chapter. Beethoven and his long suffering nephew, http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/11/some-disjointed-thoughts-last-night-i.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-3453536238606733323Tue, 03 Nov 2009 02:04:00 +00002009-11-02T18:05:07.826-08:00First Day StatsFor the curious, here's how I did on the first day of Nanowrimo this year and the eight previous years. As you can see, there is no trend.2009: 51122008: 24722007: 8902006: 11782005: 19092004: 32192003: 34962002: 12552001: 2896http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/11/first-day-stats-for-curious-heres-how-i.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-9216529738120985826Sat, 31 Oct 2009 17:59:00 +00002009-10-31T11:02:22.250-07:00Writing Through Unforeseen CircumstancesIt's easy to say that there is no excuse to not write if you've never had anything traumatic happen during October or November. Being on a busy schedule is one thing. Having something unexpected throwing a wrench into things is another.For the past eight years, I have participated in Nanowrimo through university exams, school work, grad school http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/10/writing-through-unforeseen.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-7862500149808414780Tue, 27 Oct 2009 03:30:00 +00002009-10-26T20:35:10.602-07:00Busy Is RelativeI've been reading two threads: Giggling at the College Kids (written by Nano-ers in their 30s and 40s) and We're being mocked! (a reply by Nano-ers in their 20s). As a disclaimer: I am in my late twenties, so my view may be biased.I can't help think that how busy you are is relative. Some people will believe their entire day is already blown if they have to take one class. http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/10/busy-is-relative-ive-been-reading-two.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-3934243608326261502Mon, 26 Oct 2009 04:17:00 +00002009-10-25T21:18:51.203-07:00DoubtEarlier this weekend, I had serious doubts about my story idea. Serious enough that I had started contemplating alternative genres and plots. I had looked at the scant notes that I had so far and thought, "How the heck am I going to fit all these elements together?" Because the way I had originally set it up, a lot of it wasn't going to make any sense.Was I going to throw out the notes andhttp://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/10/doubt-earlier-this-weekend-i-had.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-4665073456911532464Fri, 23 Oct 2009 04:10:00 +00002009-10-22T21:18:49.438-07:00About Those "Fade-To-Black" ScenesI love the fantasy forum on the Nanowrimo boards. It's lively and crazy, although often you will get something rather clueless like "How long should elves live?", "Can a demon do crocheting in his spare time?", or "Should I put an eight-legged banana in my Lovecraftian steampunk super-duper planetary romance orc-slash epic?" The answer is always: do whatever thehttp://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/10/about-those-fade-to-black-scenes-i-love.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-1767675429750651758Thu, 22 Oct 2009 03:59:00 +00002009-10-21T21:03:47.501-07:00What Originality?A Nanowrimo participant on the forums asks: What makes your novel different?To that, I laugh like a loon. Different? Different? The only thing that's different is that I'm writing it. I have so many cliches and well worn tropes that it's probably not funny any more. And the other stuff that might be original is questionable. Here's a list of stuff I am seriously consideringhttp://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/10/what-originality-nanowrimo-participant.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-9012367846649210997Sun, 18 Oct 2009 18:35:00 +00002009-10-18T11:39:00.398-07:00A Synopsis (Sort Of)After seeing the Nanowrimo blog post about 30 Covers, 30 Days, I thought: maybe I should work on my "synopsis". In this case, I'm interpreting "synopsis" as "blurb"--a real synopsis of a novel would probably end up around two or three pages long with every plot point, plot twist, and the ending revealed. An agent or editor would want all the spoilers so that they could http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/10/synopsis-sort-of-after-seeing-nanowrimo.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-5437960766328404549Thu, 15 Oct 2009 03:32:00 +00002009-10-14T20:34:00.210-07:00Two Links and Some BrainstormingI found a blog post titled Tips for NaNoWriMo written by someone who appears to have participated in Nano for as long as I have, yet has only "won" once. There's some good advice in there although I've never tried Q10 so I can't say one way or the other on that particular point. Frankly, I think people will find her more helpful than say, me, since I have won http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/10/two-links-and-some-brainstorming-i.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-7061380474604315412Tue, 13 Oct 2009 15:40:00 +00002009-10-13T08:41:17.158-07:00Things That May Make A ReappearanceI keep telling myself that I'm doing something different each year, but in some ways, I think I'm telling the same story over and over again. After all, there are similar motifs that keep popping up. So what similarities do your nanos have?Some motifs that I can come up with at the top of my head:1. I always have two main characters, one male and one female. http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/10/things-that-may-make-reappearance-i.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-5064666258447122194Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:36:00 +00002009-10-12T08:37:56.203-07:00Updates on Prep Work, Etc.Aside from the posts on this weblog, I've gotten around to adding a few things to this site. I now have a summary of the Nanowrimo idea for this year and I've updated my links page with all the blog links that Nanowrimo participants have willingly posted to the forums.And I've also updated the prep work page with additional excerpts from my writing journal (up to http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/10/updates-on-prep-work-etc.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-431412360987852784Mon, 12 Oct 2009 03:49:00 +00002009-10-11T20:50:13.341-07:00And Now, For Something SillySometimes, I'm very amused by threads in the forums, like Who's hotter, your villain or your hero(ine)? On the face of it, it's just harmless fun. But I wonder if all of this isn't just some sort of wish-fulfillment on the part of the writers. I mean, these are characters from someone's imagination, and if they're from your imagination, what's to prevent one from http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/10/and-now-for-something-silly-sometimes.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-480983456728944024Fri, 09 Oct 2009 05:11:00 +00002009-10-08T22:12:25.504-07:00Start of OutliningWhile I have the opening scene and the reasons of why the opening scene is unfolding as it will be sketched out, the rest of the story is coming very slowly to me. Others might say that their characters are being stubborn or their muses being recalcitrant, but I do not subscribe to the concept that any of these ideas are out of my control. My problem is that I have yet to findhttp://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/10/start-of-outlining-while-i-have-opening.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-8790175948503150223Thu, 08 Oct 2009 04:44:00 +00002009-10-07T21:44:58.752-07:00Slinking AroundThis writer's rant reminds me of why I don't tell others in detail about my own ideas. I'm a stubborn control freak when it comes to writing fiction. Because my thought is this: if you want the plot to go one way, then why don't you write your own story?Storytelling, I think, is an inherently selfish art as the storyteller is imposing his or her interpretation and viewpoint onto http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/10/slinking-around-this-writers-rant.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-4419732369486273852Wed, 30 Sep 2009 23:48:00 +00002009-09-30T16:49:14.567-07:00A More Moderate ViewI came across a blog post that purports that Nanowrimo is fundamentally flawed. In that author's viewpoint, this opinion is valid--but I would not generalize this to everyone. Certainly, Chris Baty's rhetoric and the hodge-podge of the forums strongly lend a particular impression, but this is merely how the most vocal view this challenge. Everyone seems hung up on the http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/09/more-moderate-view-i-came-across-blog.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-8736580694281117522Tue, 29 Sep 2009 04:01:00 +00002009-09-28T21:03:17.935-07:00Fleakers and Serious PlanningLast week, in terms of planning for the upcoming Nanowrimo novel, was mostly an exercise in frustration. Imagine working on a jigsaw puzzle but being thwarted on putting any of the pieces together. That's how I felt. I had a bunch of interesting elements jotted down or in my head, but I had no idea how I was to put them together into a coherent narrative. And thenhttp://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/09/fleakers-and-serious-planning-last-week.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-4478517039253306865Tue, 08 Sep 2009 15:11:00 +00002009-09-08T08:40:11.417-07:00Thoughts on the 3 Day Novel ContestOn Friday, September 4, I realized that the 3-Day Novel Contest was going to start soon. As in really soon. Next day soon. The last time I seriously did this was back in 2006 with a story about the Eater of the Dead going on a cruise that ended up being hijacked by Lovecraftian beasties. Which pretty much meant, not exactly seriously at all. Although I had http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/09/thoughts-on-3-day-novel-contest-on.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-2400111738836198528Sat, 29 Aug 2009 03:32:00 +00002009-08-28T20:36:47.713-07:00Mapping for ClarityAlthough I've left all of my Nanowrimo efforts online ever since I began participating in 2001, I've only had substantial comments to two of the novels: A Snake Among the Roses and Foxfire. Whether these are the best or the worst, objectively, I have no idea--although I'd like to think that I've improved during the intervening years. However, one comment about my 2001 work http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/08/mapping-for-clarity-although-ive-left.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882222.post-2608374691315825678Sun, 16 Aug 2009 04:40:00 +00002009-08-15T21:41:10.735-07:00Post-It Notes Are CheaperSomeone had posted in the Nanowrimo forums about an expensive piece of novel writing software, seemingly convinced that it was essential for writing the Great American novel. Without even trying this piece of software, I can say with absolute conviction that it is not necessary for writing any novel let alone a great one. I'm pretty sure John Steinbeck didn't use http://www.gamalei.net/nano/2009/2009/08/post-it-notes-are-cheaper-someone-had.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sya)0