NaNoWriMo in the playground 2014

[Duck999]

That's okay, I was trying to go with animals that were quite different to the ones you had already picked out, and was bearing in mind that with water covering as much of the planet as it does, aquatic creatures are an awful lot more prevalent than we like to think.

Absolutely true. It's just that most stories, this one included, take place on land. Many do take place in water, but I think more don't than do. Aquatic animals have almost no use out of water. I guess you could crush somebody with your whale, but that seems like an awfully bad idea... Maybe I will use that in my story. :small amused:

I think land walkers will be most common on land, so I will have mostly those.

[Mercenary Pen]

Absolutely true. It's just that most stories, this one included, take place on land. Many do take place in water, but I think more don't than do. Aquatic animals have almost no use out of water. I guess you could crush somebody with your whale, but that seems like an awfully bad idea... Maybe I will use that in my story. :small amused:

I think land walkers will be most common on land, so I will have mostly those.

Could go with a toad instead- for a little extra land utility.

[Duck999]

Could go with a toad instead- for a little extra land utility.

An amphibian could be useful, but maybe not a toad. Or maybe a toad because amphibian options are really limited. Unless I wanted a newt. That way I could do Monty Python jokes. When the ring turns into the newt the summoner yells "I turned it into a newt!" And when it is reverted to a ring, the guys says "It got better."

[Helanna]

Well, today I decided I would give NaNoWriMo a try this year. I didn't even realize I was considering the option, but apparently I was.

Lately I've been feeling like I want to write. I used to write all the time, I used to love it. But a few years ago I just stopped. I stopped during NaNo actually - I suddenly realized that I wasn't having any fun and I actively didn't want to write. So I dropped my story and haven't written anything since.

But I sort of have an idea for a story now. Well, not even for a story. More like the idea for a setting. Well, okay, not even a setting, I just have a vague idea for a magic system that I really want to try. So now I've got ten days to finish figuring out my setting, my characters, and my entire plot before plunging in and sacrificing all of my free time to the story gods while wincing at my awkward, horrible, out-of-practice writing. Now it feels like old times!

[Talanic]

I wound up writing a short story over the past few weeks. Posted it on a forum (not this one, but once it's done I may crosspost it here) as I did so. 7,000 words (probably 8,000 when I finish it off)...and as it's drawing to a close I think I could make a decent series out of the protagonist's further adventures. The mythology-bending setting that sprang into being wound up being a lot of fun.

I've never really tried to do a Nanowrimo project, so this might be the opportune time to do so.

[YoshiBoy13]

Second attempt - nervous.
My first attempt started horrifically when I only discovered NaNoWriMo eight days after it started and then lost all internet after the 20th. So no word count updating then.
And for this attempt, I'm not sure whether I'll be able to finish my first idea before it starts. Most likely, I'll just spin off into a fantasy/D&D/Runescape/Generic-Fantasy-With-Dragons-And-Magic-Stuff type story. It will be my first attempt at a full November contest, so fingers crossed!

[asdflove]

Oh! NaNo thread! Hi! Another place to talk about NaNo is always good!
This will be my third time doing NaNo. I failed miserably last November, petering out at only 5000 words, but I won Camp NaNo in July! I have high hope going into this NaNo!
I'm writing a (sort of romance) gaslamp fantasy story that'll be mostly character driven.

[Duck999]

My NaNoWriMo story is this:
A utopian world, or so it seems. Man has overthrown gods, but they have become corrupt. One person, who's village was burnt, is cast into the wild, and discovers humanity's true nature. He goes on a quest for 8 magic rings, hoping that he will be able to redeem the world with their power. The animals for the rings are: Falcon, snake, mouse, whale, monkey, frog/toad, rabbit, and I need one more. Any ideas?

[Grinner]

Any ideas?

Is there any particular theme you're going after?

Edit: What about beetles? Or maybe some other sort of insect?

[Duck999]

Is there any particular theme you're going after?

Edit: What about beetles? Or maybe some other sort of insect?

Insects or other bugs may have a small amount of use as spies, but some other animals can be used for that. No specific theme, but no extinct animals. Also, they should be slightly useful in some way. Also, no wolves. They have a special place.

[Grinner]

Insects or other bugs may have a small amount of use as spies, but some other animals can be used for that. No specific theme, but no extinct animals. Also, they should be slightly useful in some way. Also, no wolves. They have a special place.

I had been thinking more that insects tend to be incredibly strong for their size...What about bears?

[Sunfall]

Second Grinner. Methinks there's a mammalian predator missing, something good for self-defense, maybe. And bears are really rich in tribal lore. If not a bear, probably a lynx or mountain lion? Or, if you want to stay small, maybe a stoat or something like that…

(Great, now I hear the BraveStarr theme in my head…)

[Dallas-Dakota]

After 6 years of not participating...(Has it really been that long? ah..yea..)I'l try my hand at it again.

Title: Audioblast.

[Durkoala]

I was inspired by the coulrophobia thread (in friendly banter) to make a story about a vampire hunter who is also a clown. The trouble is, I don't know much about Clowns. Does anybody have any good links or videos about clowning to share?

[Duck999]

Bear sounds good. I'll use that. Size matter not, after all, there is a whale. I will find an entertaining way to make a ninja use a whale.
He will be a very sneaky ninja who as running away summons a whale and everyone is surprised.

[FinnLassie]

Blaargh. I feel like my challenge is going to be writing about personal experiences without getting... too personal. Like, I think I'm going to lean towards a sort of fictionalised version of myself, twisting a lot of the stories with their details, but... At the same time I want to write crudely about everything, exactly like they were.

[Grinner]

Blaargh. I feel like my challenge is going to be writing about personal experiences without getting... too personal. Like, I think I'm going to lean towards a sort of fictionalised version of myself, twisting a lot of the stories with their details, but... At the same time I want to write crudely about everything, exactly like they were.

No one ever said it couldn't be an autobiography.

Moreover, since the only thing the website doohickey cares about is word count, you can simply set fire to your hard drive when all's said and done, and no one will be any wiser about it.

[FinnLassie]

Hmm. I'll probably work on writing things as they are for starters. I mean, this whole process will be a first draft. After November I will likely push it under the bed for a while and then edit the crap out of it.

[Alent]

Blaargh. I feel like my challenge is going to be writing about personal experiences without getting... too personal. Like, I think I'm going to lean towards a sort of fictionalised version of myself, twisting a lot of the stories with their details, but... At the same time I want to write crudely about everything, exactly like they were.

This is a big challenge when personal issues start to become so strong they overflow from their container. The best thing to do is put it down and sort through things.

[Remmirath]

One week of October left. Hopefully I'll have time to finish that outline. I think it's been a problem that I'm trying to work on the outline for both this book and the sequel at one time, so I'll concentrate on this one for now.

I was inspired by the coulrophobia thread (in friendly banter) to make a story about a vampire hunter who is also a clown. The trouble is, I don't know much about Clowns. Does anybody have any good links or videos about clowning to share?

Most of what I have is in book form, but I'll see what I can do. A basic explanation would be that, aside from the clown character/persona (and somewhat including that), clowning has a fair amount in common with both stage magic and with comedy in general, especially more physical or slapstick comedy. The Wikipedia article isn't a bad place to start, if you haven't already looked at it.

Here are some links I found that might be useful for you:

All About Clowns website (not the best laid out website, but if you dig there's information)
Clown Forum.com (a forum, so again, would have to dig for specific information)
A .pdf which seems aimed at teaching kids basic things, but could help

I did clowning for a year or so, as my theatre had a clown troupe associated with it for quite some time and I wanted to give it a shot, but it really wasn't a good fit for my personality (I'm generally rather shy and introverted, and distinctly uneasy in crowds). I might be able to answer more specific questions if you have any, though.

[ShadowFireLance]

I'm going all in this year as the second time, after (I think, can't remember) skipping last year. Mine is a Space opera, set in the world of my novel but not actually in it.
Basically, Mass effect meets 40k. It's going to be sort of Generic but with my personal twists and now I'm rambling.

ANYWAYS. I have a sacrifice volunteer to bother me each day I don't send them something to read for that day, so I hope to actually complete it. And now on to the point, I forget how to do that little sig thingie you guys do with the word count, how does that happen?

[TheEmerged]

Well, I think I've nailed down my concept - and just like the first year, it comes from merging two existing ones. I'm going to be combining the "Multipath" and "Gamer" concepts. The witty title is still pending, though. And I'm committing to this enough I haven't purchased CIV:BE yet

The gamer is sitting down at his computer trying to decide what to play first for a planned three-day weekend gaming binge when he is struck by Movie Lightning(tm) and finds himself IN the games - plural. Adventure, romance, danger, and hijinks ensue - until the worlds start colliding (I'm thinking more metaphorical than literal). It seems only one of them can be the "real" him. Which is it going to be, and/or can "reality" win out? I don't know either, yet

Next on the agenda will be hammering out which games it is going to be. Since this is just for my own amusement I don't think I'm going to bother with more than one-offing the games in question - to the point my notes read NotQuiteSkyrim, NotQuiteMajesty, and so forth. I'm thinking there will be six or seven of them (out in front right now is "Six with the possibility that the original reality is in fact NotQuiteTheSims").

[Sunfall]

@Duck999: Heh, whale shapeshifter. Reminds me of way back when we used to template all kinds of shapeshifters for (I think it was) Shadowrun (yeah, we were young and we had plenty of time to waste). We used to joke around with a shifter changing to Blue Whale form while engaging in combat with his enemies - in a small room. Splat.

Good times

@ShadowFireLance: There is an entry called "Word-Count Helpers" under the "Inspiration" category in your Nano portal. There, you'll find quite a few nifty Word-Count Widgets that you can embed here. You'll have to play around a bit with the HTML tags, though, until they're displayed properly (at least I had to).

@TheEmerged: Love that idea! It's like "Choose Your Own Adventure" meets Tron! That could turn out really funny, while still being suspenseful and containing at least a bit of find-yourself wisdom. And you can include oodles of Shout-outs and Lampshades

[Duck999]

@Duck999: Heh, whale shapeshifter. Reminds me of way back when we used to template all kinds of shapeshifters for (I think it was) Shadowrun (yeah, we were young and we had plenty of time to waste). We used to joke around with a shifter changing to Blue Whale form while engaging in combat with his enemies - in a small room. Splat.

Good times

Huh? Where did that ninja go? SPLASH! Found him! And a whale...

[Alent]

@Duck999: Heh, whale shapeshifter. Reminds me of way back when we used to template all kinds of shapeshifters for (I think it was) Shadowrun (yeah, we were young and we had plenty of time to waste). We used to joke around with a shifter changing to Blue Whale form while engaging in combat with his enemies - in a small room. Splat.

This completely reminds me of Summon Bigger Fish.

I'm still trying to decide what I want to write- I can't believe the end of the month is looming on the horizon already.

[Zrak]

I was thinking of doing a fairly caustic satire whose Pynchonian conspiracy pileup centers around a possible covert alien invasion. The only forms of preparation I'm allowing myself are pretending going to corn mazes counts as "research" and watching a bunch of movies about alien infiltration. My list so far sub-genre staples like Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Body Snatchers, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, and The Invasion, along with a few movies not named some variation on "Invasion of the Body Snatchers," like They Live, The Thing, The Stuff, and Slither. Any other suggestions?

[Grinner]

Any other suggestions?

Nothing specifically relating to aliens, but the Coen Brothers' films seem thematically relevant, yes?

[Talanic]

I wound up making my synopsis today. Tried to aim for a back-of-the-book style blurb, since there's no guidance or apparent judging on what it's for.

Most rough weekends don't wind up making you immortal.

Sam's weirdest Saturday ever saw her slip from the woods of Wisconsin to an ancient Sumerian giantslayer's enchanted home. A few new friends and a dead enemy later, she limps away as the newest of the Heroes of the Ancient Ways: the immortal guardians of humanity.

Her powers - absorbed from her first kill - are just barely beginning to grow, and she's not even sure what she's going to become - or if she'll have the opportunity to try. Sam's now a mystical beacon in the mortal world, drawing attention from anything that slips in from the other realms - because for the first year, anything that kills her will steal her newfound power.

On top of that, the end of her mortal existence doesn't mean her life has stopped. She just has to juggle her training with her job.

In the end, all she can do is hang on. It should get better - they've assured her, the first century is usually the worst.

[Sunfall]

@Zrak: Man, it's been ages since I saw They Live... That's the ultimate alien infiltration movie - should be all you need That and the brain slug episode of Futurama, perhaps.

[ShadowFireLance]

Actually really happy I found a title for my novel; "The Stars are Old". It's weird being happy about such a small detail.