By now you have to know about #NaNoWriMo. If you don't, go here. If you're too lazy to do even that (wow), keep reading and I'll give you the broad overview.
Basically, every November writers everywhere challenge themselves to write a 50,000 word story between November 1st and November 30th. To give you some idea how long that is, according to Wiki, the word count for Twilight is 118,975. According to Yahoo, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is 76,944. Also per Yahoo, the reported word count for The Color Purple is around 66,000.
Do they win some sort of prize for doing it? Not really. Does it guarantee a publishing contract with some great company? Not even close to it. So why?
The Challenge.
William Frederick Halsey, Jr. said "There are no great people in this world, only great challenges which ordinary people rise to meet." Truth be told, I hate writing long stories. They're just not my forte yet. I prefer writing books less than 30K in length, but every November I do my damnedest to hit that 50K mark. I'm as ordinary as you get. As of this moment I'm about 3K short of my daily word count, but that won't stop me. I'll persevere and try to beat 50K by midnight on November 30th.
Maybe writing isn't your thing. Maybe your challenge is just being nice to the ass in the next cubicle over. Maybe your challenge is saving $1000 for the vacation trip to Disney your family's been wanting for years now. It doesn't matter what your challenge is, so long as you do challenge yourself.
So tell me. What's your challenge?
All the best,
Dee
http://www.deecarney.com
Friday, November 20, 2009
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Win books on your wish list
Book lovers will want to take advantage of this announcement from All Romance Ebooks/ OmniLit.
Want to win all the books on your wish list?
ARe turns 3 in November and we'll celebrate by making your wishes come true!
Every day in November we will choose a winner at random from that day's purchasers and buy them the books they have on their wish list. *
To get a head start simply fill your account wish list with books you'd like to read (be sure to log in first) and then every day that you make a purchase during the month of November, you'll be eligible to win.
So what are you waiting for? Log in to your All Romance/OmniLit account and start making out your wish list. We want to make your wishes come true!
*up to $100.00 per customer, check back here for a list of winners
Monday, October 26, 2009
Halloween Week!
Wow I seriously cannot believe it's Halloween week already. Where has this month gone?
I just returned from the Authors After Dark Paranormal weekend in NY and that was loads of fun. So many great authors and readers getting together and getting to know each other. It's very exciting to sit down with readers and hear their passion for what they like about books. Very good for the creative juices.
I know I will definitely be going again next year and hope all of you will as well. For my brief recap of the event you can read that on the Authors After Dark blog.
Now i've got to finish preparing for Halloween and NaNo. For halloween that means more decorations. (time to get the scary stuff out) Also, need to consider menus for parties. My daughter wants the kitty litter cake again. The reactions to a cake that truly does look exactly like a dirty cat box are priceless every time. LOL
For NaNo, i've got to get some writing done on a story, revisions and edits done and then some more planning on what i'm writing. I have more than one WIP that needs to get done in the month of November. Should be interesting.
Take care and have a great Halloween!
Eliza
I just returned from the Authors After Dark Paranormal weekend in NY and that was loads of fun. So many great authors and readers getting together and getting to know each other. It's very exciting to sit down with readers and hear their passion for what they like about books. Very good for the creative juices.
I know I will definitely be going again next year and hope all of you will as well. For my brief recap of the event you can read that on the Authors After Dark blog.
Now i've got to finish preparing for Halloween and NaNo. For halloween that means more decorations. (time to get the scary stuff out) Also, need to consider menus for parties. My daughter wants the kitty litter cake again. The reactions to a cake that truly does look exactly like a dirty cat box are priceless every time. LOL
For NaNo, i've got to get some writing done on a story, revisions and edits done and then some more planning on what i'm writing. I have more than one WIP that needs to get done in the month of November. Should be interesting.
Take care and have a great Halloween!
Eliza
Friday, October 16, 2009
Zombies? Really??
Am I the only person scared shitless by zombies? I mean, it's not even funny how much they wig me out. Take a vampire, for example. Fairly easy to kill off. Some holy water, a cross or a stake and it's as good as gone. Werewolves? Easy peasy. Silver. Goblins, witches, trolls...it doesn't matter. All of them have some sort of weakness that's convenient to exploit.
Not zombies.
Zombies are like a plague. They just keep coming and coming. And they--oh my God--breed! Even if you manage to off one, another four are ready to take its place. Also, how do you kill a zombie? You have to blow its brains out, behead it or otherwise smoosh it to smithereens. (Meanwhile, the others are creating even more zombies.) At the end of the day, the only thing you can do in a zombie attack is run.
Run?
Seriously. Is that the best defense you've got for me? Movies like Resident Evil, Sean of the Dead (yes, I realize it's comedy, but still), Dawn of the Dead, 28 Days Later, etc. all pretty much have the same ending. In it, humans don't win. Zombies do. See what I mean now? Zombies are evil and totally worth peeing myself over.
So tell me, now that Halloween is fast approaching, what creature of the night completely makes your skin crawl?
*shivering*
Dee
http://www.deecarney.com
Not zombies.
Zombies are like a plague. They just keep coming and coming. And they--oh my God--breed! Even if you manage to off one, another four are ready to take its place. Also, how do you kill a zombie? You have to blow its brains out, behead it or otherwise smoosh it to smithereens. (Meanwhile, the others are creating even more zombies.) At the end of the day, the only thing you can do in a zombie attack is run.
Run?
Seriously. Is that the best defense you've got for me? Movies like Resident Evil, Sean of the Dead (yes, I realize it's comedy, but still), Dawn of the Dead, 28 Days Later, etc. all pretty much have the same ending. In it, humans don't win. Zombies do. See what I mean now? Zombies are evil and totally worth peeing myself over.
So tell me, now that Halloween is fast approaching, what creature of the night completely makes your skin crawl?
*shivering*
Dee
http://www.deecarney.com
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Ready to BICHOK?
Here's a little quote to get you started today:
Action is the foundational key to all success.
Pablo Picasso
Action, in our case, is writing. So put your hands on the keyboard and just do it! And when you're done, get back here and tell us all about it.
~Selena
Action is the foundational key to all success.
Pablo Picasso
Action, in our case, is writing. So put your hands on the keyboard and just do it! And when you're done, get back here and tell us all about it.
~Selena
Friday, October 2, 2009
BIAW (at the starting gate)
It's Friday. Do you know where your WIP is?
My work in progress is open and ready to run. That's right, its Book In A Week time! No more delays, no more putting it off. If your goal is 500 words a day or 100,000 in the week, now is the time to say that out loud and be ready to put your words where your mouth is.
STEP ONE in the process, make a pack with yourself and make it public before your peers. I'll start with my promise to write 20,000 words during this challenge. For me this is not only a big goal, but a HUGE one. But I also know that if I don't let my head get in the way it is achievable. My goal will take my current WIP from beginning to end but leaves the fluffing/fleshing/expanding for the edit. I'll be working on the third Tascryn Royals story titled, Blood Justice.
I've done mine. Now it's your turn. Post your commitment as a comment below.
Shannon
www.lshannon.net
My work in progress is open and ready to run. That's right, its Book In A Week time! No more delays, no more putting it off. If your goal is 500 words a day or 100,000 in the week, now is the time to say that out loud and be ready to put your words where your mouth is.
STEP ONE in the process, make a pack with yourself and make it public before your peers. I'll start with my promise to write 20,000 words during this challenge. For me this is not only a big goal, but a HUGE one. But I also know that if I don't let my head get in the way it is achievable. My goal will take my current WIP from beginning to end but leaves the fluffing/fleshing/expanding for the edit. I'll be working on the third Tascryn Royals story titled, Blood Justice.
I've done mine. Now it's your turn. Post your commitment as a comment below.
Shannon
www.lshannon.net
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
JPW BIAW CHALLENGE!
A Just Plain Wicked Book in a Week Challenge!
What is a BIAW?
Well BIAW is all about pushing yourself to reach a goal you think is just out of reach. The "B" might sound intimidating but really it is should be a "G" for goal. Now my goal happens to be 20,000 words written during the challenge and also is most of one novella. But someone else's goal might be 5000 words, or 100,000 words. The goal is something you pick that will push you to do just a little bit more than you think you can.
Why does it work?
Writing is a lonely business. And most writers (if you're like I am) get pretty deep in your own head and worn down by doubt. BIAW is all about production. The push shouldn't leave enough time to worry about doubts or fears. With other writers all facing the same challenge it helps drive away the solitude of writing and foster the right atmosphere to be productive.
How does it work?
Our BIAW includes three parts.
#1 Set a goal and make it public. By doing so you are signing a contract with yourself to do everything in your power to reach that goal.
#2 Get together and support each other. We use the yahoo conference rooms to get a group together to write in sprints. Many of us call it Word Warring or WWing. It's social and supportive but also very structured and best of all it kills excuses. Ever heard BICHOK? (Butt In Chair, Hands on Keyboard)? Yes writing really is that simple. Good writing comes later with editing. LOL
#3 confess your sins. Every round or at least every day, post your word counts. Not only does this force you to track your productivity, but it helps show what works for you and what doesn't. During the sprints we share our success or failure after every round. Here on the blog we'll share every day.
This BIAW will run Friday October 2, 2009 until Sunday October 9, 2009. Yep, it will be a long week. Start and stop times if you worry about such things will be midnight (midnight where is up to you, lol)
BIAW... are you in? If you'd like to give it a shot, post your goals here as comments. You can also send me an email at lshannon@hotmail.com for more information or to be added to the word warring call outs.
Shannon
www.lshannon.net
What is a BIAW?
Well BIAW is all about pushing yourself to reach a goal you think is just out of reach. The "B" might sound intimidating but really it is should be a "G" for goal. Now my goal happens to be 20,000 words written during the challenge and also is most of one novella. But someone else's goal might be 5000 words, or 100,000 words. The goal is something you pick that will push you to do just a little bit more than you think you can.
Why does it work?
Writing is a lonely business. And most writers (if you're like I am) get pretty deep in your own head and worn down by doubt. BIAW is all about production. The push shouldn't leave enough time to worry about doubts or fears. With other writers all facing the same challenge it helps drive away the solitude of writing and foster the right atmosphere to be productive.
How does it work?
Our BIAW includes three parts.
#1 Set a goal and make it public. By doing so you are signing a contract with yourself to do everything in your power to reach that goal.
#2 Get together and support each other. We use the yahoo conference rooms to get a group together to write in sprints. Many of us call it Word Warring or WWing. It's social and supportive but also very structured and best of all it kills excuses. Ever heard BICHOK? (Butt In Chair, Hands on Keyboard)? Yes writing really is that simple. Good writing comes later with editing. LOL
#3 confess your sins. Every round or at least every day, post your word counts. Not only does this force you to track your productivity, but it helps show what works for you and what doesn't. During the sprints we share our success or failure after every round. Here on the blog we'll share every day.
This BIAW will run Friday October 2, 2009 until Sunday October 9, 2009. Yep, it will be a long week. Start and stop times if you worry about such things will be midnight (midnight where is up to you, lol)
BIAW... are you in? If you'd like to give it a shot, post your goals here as comments. You can also send me an email at lshannon@hotmail.com for more information or to be added to the word warring call outs.
Shannon
www.lshannon.net
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