Category: NaNoWriMo

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goals NaNoWriMo

A New Month, New Goals

I was unable to meet the deadlines for a few contests and literary magazines last month. Oh well, try again next time. However, I have discovered a few others that I am sure to enter these next two months. More time now due to less travels.

Did some goal setting yesterday. Realized a few things about myself that I was afraid of addressing before. It helps to address my values and really think hard about concrete goals. I was using lululemon’s Goal Tender website and it talked about long-term goals (10 years in advance) as well. It was frightening for me to think that far in advance, but I suppose I should prepare nonetheless. The future comes rather quickly anyway.

So far, September has been off to a healthy, fit start. I hope to have more walks and gym time this month. The summertime was rather erratic with scheduling time for friends and walks since I was working on classes all summer. My priorities must shift now since there aren’t any classes to fret about.

Also, NaNoWriMo is less than two months away now. This year I will participate again and I will make it a point to complete my draft. I still have two unfinished novel drafts to work on; 2009 was a good year for writing, but spurts of time messed up the rhythm. This year I’ve focused more on short stories, which is probably a good thing for me so I’m at least writing and not stuck.

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holiday NaNoWriMo Novel 1 travel

Nearing the End of a Tumultuous Month

Well, November was certainly more than I expected yet also more than I did not expect. I’ve been away on travels for the past ten days, visiting various bookstores in Montana with my sisters and enjoying a classic Thanksgiving in all-American style.

For more of November, though, I’ve been working on various projects for work and little time to focus on NaNoWriMo, sadly. I only began participating in NaNoWriMo in 2007, but somehow this year, November has been a little crazier than in the previous two years.

In the past, I know I would have felt a little more upset over the idea of not winning NaNoWriMo on time. But I understand that, well, life happens. This year’s novel idea has been a little half-baked anyway, and although I do like where the plot is going, I just have not felt inspired enough to work on it every day. Well, it’s okay; nobody’s perfect, and I’ll keep this in mind for next time.

I have been thinking more and more how I need to get back to my first novel and begin rewriting it; out of all the novel drafts I have produced over the past two years, that first one has the best storyline so far. Of course, I’ll go back and fix up the second and third novels after the first one has been rewritten. Now I understand why it takes so long to get novels into presentable form: life just keeps coming around!

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featured My San Francisco Chronicles NaNoWriMo television

Featured on Bay Area Local Television–

In high spirits this evening; earlier today, I got the chance to participate in a television audience for the first time. The “View from the Bay” show is a local talk-show, featuring food and local cultural outlooks for mid-day viewers to watch. I initially wanted to be in the audience because of Jaden Hair being a guest on the show; however, I also got the opportunity to submit a question to the consumer reporter on the show and ask the question on-air. Exciting!

In NaNoWriMo news, looks like the Muse is picking up a little speed, at least for now. Still behind on that daily word-count, but I’ll just keep chugging along. Thanks to my friends on Twitter, I have momentum to keep me going. Looking forward to the rest of the month!

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NaNoWriMo photography

Falling into NaNoWriMo

I was pretty hyped up for NaNoWriMo, earlier than in the past two years…but events from over the weekend made me lose momentum and motivation. My word count has been lagging behind, and really, my plot hasn’t been as inspired as the previous two years.

I’ve considered dropping out already (despite it being only Day 3), but I feel like, for my own sake, I should keep doing this and see the project through the end of the month.

I find that it’s easier to focus on projects like NaNoWriMo when I know I’m doing it to avoid unpleasant things. I hate the feeling of waiting around with nothing to pass the time.

The picture above was one of my favorite shots from my Halloween walk on the weekend. It made me think about Romeo & Juliet, naturally, but that dummy mummy up there makes the picture evermore mysterious/ominous.

I suppose I should go and add more to my word count now. Just checking in briefly on the blog. Best of luck to those who are participating in NaNoWriMo.

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NaNoWriMo quotation

Tea Bag Wisdom

Every week, when I visit my friend, I look forward to drinking a cup of Good Earth Tea, which always has a quotation attached to the tea bag. It’s almost like opening up a fortune cookie, the anticipation of looking inside to see what words have come to me by chance.

I had written an entry during the middle of summer how one of these particular quotations struck me in a way that really opened my eyes up. To this day, I still have that quotation tucked away in my wallet to remind me that I really do not need to feel like I must do everything all at once. One thing at a time will do.

In other news, it’s less than a week until NaNoWriMo, and I honestly don’t have anything really brewing in my head in terms of a plot/storyline. I have been brainstorming, sure, but nothing seems to be accumulating into something captivating. I suppose that’s the point though: I just need to be writing something, period. Despite not being surrounded by other participants physically, I feel like the energy I feel from the forums really feeds my motivation. It’s too bad I can’t go to the Write-A-Thon this year, but I suppose I can have my own private Write-A-Thon sometime this next month.

Well, onward!