Thread: Mini NaNoWriMo?

Is there, or is it possible to start, some kind of writing commitment thread on this forum? Like a Mini NaNoWriMo?

Sorry, I'm putting the question very badly. It's late where I am, and I'm a college student as well as a writer. Overheated brain.

What I mean is, I hold myself to writing a minimum of 3 pages daily. If there are people with similar requirements for themselves, maybe we could have a thread to give each other mutual support? I did it today, but it'd help to have somebody to answer to regarding "deadlines," so to speak.

We don't have to post what we've written, just that we met the minimum--or how close we got.

Anybody interested?

I don't see why that would be a problem provided that there is said interest. I'd be interested in such a thing, but I'm more or less doing that anyway, working on my current novel in order to clear the decks for nano. Maybe some others are too.
What kind of writing are you doing? Is it classwork, or creative writing?

I was talking about doing the commitment thread for creative writing. I wouldn't bore you guys with my schoolwork I'm already holding myself to a daily minimum for my novel, too, but I thought having mutual support would help. Hopefully, there will be sufficient interest...

I could use some motivation. I write about once a week if I'm lucky, and while I don't know for a fact that this would keep me honest, it couldn't hurt to try.

Well, we have three. It's a start. I've done @3k today. The middle of an article about psychedelic rock (trust me, it's creative writing), a section of my blognovel, a stab at a new short story that Hawke talked me into talking myself into writing. May still do a blogpost, or maybe tomorrow-my goal is 3k per day, but I don't have a job or school or anything like that to stop me right now.
Anyway, this is as good a place for the thread as anywhere, so congratulations, threadstarter. You now have a thread.

Three's company! I did four pages+ yesterday, though my goal is only three. I was so happy. Still am, because I've had a beautiful day today, thanks to some wonderful news and really getting outdoors again for the first time in way too long, so please excuse my liberality with the emoticons. Today, I've gotten three done, but not all in the same sequence, like yesterday.

moderan, I applaud you for holding yourself to 3K words! That's a tall order for me, but well worth the time if you have it.

P.S. Forgot to add what I worked on: yesterday, four consecutive pages in Vol I of my novel; today, three pages in random spots in Volumes I and IV of same novel. I'm only working on the one project. It's long, has seen too many setbacks, and I'm very keen on finishing it ASAP.

(Just because.)

Very likely the reason why I never became a professional writer is my inability to do one project at a time. Though I'm organized, I'm incurably overcommitted writing-wise and always will be. I like to start things and sometimes then leave them for years.
That said, I worked some on a novel that I began almost 30 years ago (I've kept the plot and the major characters and setting in my head), as the events in that continuity are finally finding their place in my overall scenario. The sequence I'm working on looks to have the possibility of functioning as a standalone, and it's been a very long time since I did a round of submissions.

Only wrote 550 words tonight, but it was more than I'd done at all in the past few weeks. A crucial gap was filled in one of my chapters, and now there's just one update left before it's finished.

Well, call it quality over quantity.

Gamer, congrats, at least you filled that important gap. I've had times when I never got anything done, either. Part of why I wanted this thread, hopefully it will give us all that needed motivation.

moderan, WOW. I used to have trouble finishing things, too, but I can't rest until this story's finished. Partly because it's been derailed so many times, so there's a defiant element in my determination, but also because it means so much to me and I just have such high hopes for it.

Is the novel you're working on now part of a larger scenario in the same universe? That's what I gathered from its events finding their place in your overall scenario. Are you planning to write the companion stories, even though it could function as a standalone?

BTW, how far along are you guys on your projects? Since I'm re-writing, I'm only in the first part of Volume 1 in an 8 volume series. Part of why I'm in such a hurry. I mean, I jump around, even to different volumes, but I don't have much of the puzzle put together yet--there are huge gaps between the little finished spots.

Originally Posted by Sunflower

BTW, how far along are you guys on your projects? Since I'm re-writing, I'm only in the first part of Volume 1 in an 8 volume series. Part of why I'm in such a hurry. I mean, I jump around, even to different volumes, but I don't have much of the puzzle put together yet--there are huge gaps between the little finished spots.

I've fully completed 20 chapters of 32, or about 120,000 words of an estimated 200,000. I'm on the brink of concluding another three chapters, and all but one of the remaining ones are either up to halfway done or at least outlined.

How long are your volumes going to be? I know there are some fantasy series that have a dozen volumes of 1000 pages each, but I can't even comprehend writing that much, much less reading it. If they're going to be long, be VERY careful of just writing filler. Why take 8000 pages to tell a story that only needs 4000, right?

Originally Posted by Sunflower

moderan, WOW. I used to have trouble finishing things, too, but I can't rest until this story's finished. Partly because it's been derailed so many times, so there's a defiant element in my determination, but also because it means so much to me and I just have such high hopes for it.

Is the novel you're working on now part of a larger scenario in the same universe? That's what I gathered from its events finding their place in your overall scenario. Are you planning to write the companion stories, even though it could function as a standalone?

BTW, how far along are you guys on your projects? Since I'm re-writing, I'm only in the first part of Volume 1 in an 8 volume series. Part of why I'm in such a hurry. I mean, I jump around, even to different volumes, but I don't have much of the puzzle put together yet--there are huge gaps between the little finished spots.

It isn't so much that I have trouble finishing as that I have dozens of projects. I can finish fine given sufficient impetus.
All of my work takes place in the same "universe"-it's a "metaversal" sort of concept. The novel I'm working on now is the first volume of the series-the event that doesn't take place is the initial difference between my worlds and the "real worlds" that we live in. The section I'm working on can function as a standalone short-almost any piece can. It's only when they are put together that you can see the jigsaw marks.
So far the series is @3 million words. 12 1/2 novels, a horde of shorter stories. A decent edit would cut that down to 2 million.

Originally Posted by Gamer_2k4

How long are your volumes going to be? I know there are some fantasy series that have a dozen volumes of 1000 pages each, but I can't even comprehend writing that much, much less reading it. If they're going to be long, be VERY careful of just writing filler. Why take 8000 pages to tell a story that only needs 4000, right?

Yes, I realize this is an issue. The volumes vary in length, but I'm going to try to keep most in the 300-500 range. However, the first may be longer, because I've got to set the scence properly. Previously, it was over a 100 pages and I'd only just introduced the MC properly (he's a mysterious fellow, so there was quite a build up). However, I'm still in the rough draft stage, so hopefully I can make it a little leaner with a good edit. Plus, my universe is rather peculiar (in that I don't have anything to compare it to; the science is neither science nor magic...) so I need to do a solid set up to make it real. At least, I feel like I do.

How long did it take you to write the 20 chapters? Is the story basically how you want it or do you think you'll need several more drafts?

moderan...WOW. That is a lot of words. But then, if I like the storyline, universe, characters, I can stick with one such scenario a long time (as a reader as well as a writer--probably why I'm writing a saga instead of a few shorts in the same universe). And if they can function all right as standalones, even better. The concept sounds cool. Alternate histories tend to be real page-turners for me, though it's been a while since I read good ones. Have you read Finity? By John Barnes, I think. That takes a more humorous view of things.

Originally Posted by Sunflower

How long did it take you to write the 20 chapters? Is the story basically how you want it or do you think you'll need several more drafts?

It's been two and half years since I finished the first chapter, but that number is deceiving on two counts. First, it's misleading because I spent two years designing and planning my story prior to doing any actual writing (in other words, the project has been going on for nearly five years total). Secondly, THAT number is also misleading because this hasn't been a constant effort for me. This is my only project, but sometimes I'll go weeks without giving it any attention. My original quota was one chapter every month, but it's been 33 months and I've only written 20 chapters.

However, that long development cycle has paid off from a rewriting perspective. The plot and characters have changed drastically from their original plans, but those changes have largely only affected unwritten portions of my story. Now, I'm finally satisfied with what I have, and all that remains is for me to write it out. I've known for nearly a year and a half how many chapters I would have and what each would contain. All that's left is converting the outlines to prose.

Originally Posted by moderan

So far the series is @3 million words. 12 1/2 novels, a horde of shorter stories. A decent edit would cut that down to 2 million.

I agree with Sunflower; that's just nuts. With all that work, have you given any thought to publishing? That you still have a million's words worth of editing remaining (I can't believe that statement isn't hyperbole, wow) would suggest that that's for the distant future, if at all, but it seems like a shame to have sunk so much time into something that only a few people will ever know about.