• NaNoWriMo 2012 - Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Edition
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In doing that I have neglected homework and now have 3 pieces to do tonight :suicide:
Alright, I've got 3 key ideas for what kind of novel to write. 1) A rather generic fantasy set in a world of my creation, got 4 main characters and some lore but not much else, struggling to think of a story beyond excuses to explain aspects of the inner workings of this universe. Possibly the one I've thought the most on really and fantasy is one of the genres I'm most familiar with. 2) A superhero story set in a world much like our own but becoming more "comic book-y", like if you woke up one day and Superman flew past your window (though less jarring than that). Got 2 main characters, a few ideas about other hero(ines)s, 1 villianess, ideas on a few more, and potentially 1 bigger bad depending on how I want the story to go. Superhero stuff is probably the genre that comes most naturally but typically is in comic book or "graphic novel" format. 3) Modern-day spy fiction, only the main character is developed in any sort of way(Dwarfy should know all too well who I'm talking about) with no idea about story or antagonist. Possibly the hardest idea for me to develop, though I'm not sure why. Perhaps it's the purpose I developed that character that's making it hard for me to think of other stuff of my own. Bare in mind I have bugger-all experience writing and the last time I read a book was the last Harry Potter one on release and A Game of Thrones a few days ago (which I've only reached page 39) after buying it on a flight of fancy.
I'm probably going to get so bored and/or have a novel so incredibly terrible and mistake-ridden that I'm going to give up, but eh, I'll give it a shot. Now all I need is an idea. [editline]4th November 2012[/editline] Ok screw it, I have some horrible Fahrenheit 451/Brave New World ripoff idea. [url=http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/participants/fhex]hi[/url]
Ugh, this is harder than I thought. I keep feeling like I write myself into a corner and have no idea how to explain the point further, but feel there still is SOMETHING needed. 2k words, though, plan on hitting 5k tonight. Whee~
Writing in 3rd person was probably a mistake, I find it really hard to convey the protagonist's development and character. Tips?
It inspired me to start writing up my own idea, so I'm at 800 words and don't think I'll finish for the month, but I will try to finish it in the end, a little every day. Here is a 300 word piece form the prologue: [quote]During my childhood, the person I looked up to the most was certainly my grandfather. There was a certain mysticism that he had about himself and a patient, kind aura that many people at the time lacked. There was little to hint at this from his appearance, to which the word ‘grey’ seemed to describe him best, as he seemed to be entirely made from shades of black and white; his hair started a dirty grey from the roots, expanding outwards to nearly white tips at the end and the same was present for the bushy moustache that veiled his upper lip. He wore a suit most times in the day, meticulously trying to look his best at all times, even more so when looking his best was not needed. I look back on it as quite peculiar, but back in 1956 when I had last seen him at the age of ten it had not come to mind. Besides the presence of some strange traits of his personality, he was quite a remarkable man. He was a Doctor of Science from the university of Cambridge, having achieved it in 1925, although he begged people not to use the title of ‘Dr.’ around him as he believed he should be treated equal to them in every way. He published several scientific papers I didn’t understand at the time, mostly on the grounds of physics and had a letter from when he had talked to Albert Einstein himself about his theory of relativity years ago framed on his wall. He was also a radio ham, having passed his test in 1938 and kitted his house out with the equipment over the years. In its final form an entire room was dedicated to various morse keys, transceivers and amplifiers and I can remember sitting on his lap as he communicated with people across Europe and even the Americas.[/quote] The writing style I'm using is... dated. I like to use styles in my writing and change them for each piece.
No help on my choices?
Since that last guy posted an excerpt, I mind as well post my WIP. [quote]It was a Friday night in the city of Miami, and everyone knew what that meant. It was time for the city to bounce and flash with all of its lights and glory, with funk and fever surrounding them like fog from the many smoke machines they have in The Palm, only one of the many clubs that dotted the lighted city. It was largely unremarkable from the others of its kind, but it drew in crowds of Miami's finest nonetheless. The drunked masses all flooded into the club and got into all kinds of debauchery, from snorting cocaine as the bouncers turned cheek for ten dollars to getting more than intimate in the stalls. Truly, it was Sodom by any other name. Tonight seemed no different to the many other Friday nights in The Palm. Kool and The Gang were drowning out sin with their music, while the men within played inside the devil's garden like they always did for a day out of the week. A stir in the air, though, smelled of brimstone. A limousine, blacker than the night itself, pulled to a stop in front of the nightclub's bright entrance. Out stepped four suited, muscular gentlemen carrying briefcases, irons the size of a gorilla's fist strapped to their hips. The bouncer inquisitively glared at them, but quickly remembered what he was told. Still, he kept up his persona to avoid catching the suspicion of any eyes that may be peaking out of shades. "Woah, I don't believe I can let you pass, sirs," the bouncer regurgitated, as he had the other hundred times he had said it before. "It's ok," one of the gentlemen said, "We have met Abraham." Reassured, the bouncer replied, "Oh, of course, come on in. Mr. Coy is in his office on the second floor." With that, the four gentlemen shoved their way past the hordes of brutes on the dance floor and made their way to the administrative level. Their intimidating aura was betrayed by a pallor of anxiety as they finally reached the office, but they succeeded in keeping themselves together, if only for appearances. "Mr. Coy, we're here," another gentleman said, as they were greeted to a bright blue room with a single desk and some scattered decorations, in contrast to the darker dance floor. "Stay right there," one of Mr. Coy's personal bodyguards snapped at the four gentlemen as he almost tried to show a sign of dominance over the indominable men, "Mr. Coy will be here shortly. First, let us see the goods." "We don't show you a fucking ioda of it until you show us the cash." another of the gentlemen retorted, giving evidence that his patience with the men was obviously growing short. "Ok, fine," the guard said, sighing and unsurprised as he dialed a phone on the desk nearby, "I'll get Mr. Coy." It was becoming more and more tense in the clastrophobic room, as the gentlemen and the bodyguards engaged in meager, empty small talk while the boss walked up from overseeing the dance floor. It was only a minute, but to the two groups that were eargerly awaiting to end this deal and relax it was more like an hour. But, even the longest ranges of times must come to an end at some point, as the boss walked in with a calmer deamenor, but not one entirely devoid of the anxiety and nervousness that engulfed the rest of the room. Still, he was able to put on the false mask of confidence and engage the deal. "Hello, my fair gentlemen, you wouldn't want a drink now, would you?" Mr. Coy started. "No, thank you. I'd rather we skip the hospitalites and get right into the deal," one of the gentlemen stated. "Ah, my friend Donato, you've always been one to skip right in the middle of business. I always liked that about you." Mr. Coy responded, "Ok, let's get into this thing. Where's my goods?" "Where's our cash?" Donato threw back. "I'd really like to see the goods first, my friend, don't make me impatient now." Sighing, Donato replied, "Very well. Alfonso, Martin, Angus, let's show Mr. Coy what we have." The three others nodded and revealed the white fog from within their mysterious briefcases. Each one had several kilos of cocaine, pure and uncut, but Mr. Coy was an industry expert and was obviously skeptical as he was with all the other deals he had with the drug suppliers that were undoubtfully more numerous in Miami than the nightclubs were. "Let me sample it," Mr. Coy asked. Donato and his gang of gentlemen slammed shut their briefcases, "Not until we see the money, Mr. Coy." "You're making me suspicious, my good friends. I could just as well send you off on your ways, but then I'd need to give you a... small parting gift." He flashed his pistol at the gang. "Just show us the money," Angus said with an almost uncharacteristic calmness, considering the appearance of the weapon. "Well... ok. Sure. Show our friends the cash." A bodyguard stepped from behind his boss and showed him another briefcase. A bonafide sea of green flowed from it. Millions of dollars in cash, unmarked bills. "Reminds me of Ireland," Martin quipped, with Angus letting out a brief chuckle which helped cut down on the anxiety in the room, "Let's let our friend sample our goods. With that, the briefcases once again showed the snow within, as Mr. Coy checked each one, as the room continued to be drowned in thoughts of doubt. What if the deal went sour? What would we do? Everyone in the room had these thoughts, although everyone in the room were disciplined thespians in the art of deception. Mr. Coy appeared to be satisified much to the relief of the rest of the men in the room, "Nice. Seems like this stuff is in order. I assume it's the same for the rest in the car outside." "Yessir, this is but a small drop of the rest of the ocean down in the limosine," Donato paused, "Your friends have unloaded it, have they not?" "Yes they have. I'll check on that shipment while my friend here fufills the other end of the deal. Nice working with you gentlemen. I'll bid you adieu," Mr. Coy ended, but then he recalled one last thought, "But, if the stuff in the car is... different from what you have up here, then let me reassure you that you're not going to have much more of a business in this town. In fact, you might not have much anything more than a void of black," He said, as he walked off towards the loading dock nearby. The faces of the gentlemen continued to look stoic and unemotional, but an air of sweat betrayed their true emotion. Nonetheless, Mr. Coy's goon gave the gentlemen the briefcase, and the four began to walk towards the entrance. It was a portal of light in the dark room, and it was their escape. The atmosphere became more and more tense as the four nudged inbetween dancing drunks as inaudiable and unfitting music continued to play. The four had dropped their masks of confidence and were anxiously racing to the exit. If they made it out, they were home free. If only it were that simple.[/quote] C&C, insults, or simply "lol" at how bad it is are all appreciated.
I got my cake today. It was all worth it. :dance:
Well, I'm back down to about 3000 words. I was trying to tie in several different sides of the story, but it got too convoluted, so I gutted it and decided to split it into two separate stories.
I'm still waiting for someone to help in my decision on what to even write about.
[QUOTE=DiscoInferno;38346432]I'm still waiting for someone to help in my decision on what to even write about.[/QUOTE] Just write about what you feel like you could write more about and word vomit it all out. Don't worry about much with sentence structure and such until you've 'won' My inner editor doesnt like me doing that though, and I always go back to fix simple errors instead of skipping them and just spell checking when I finished my word count for today. And here's an excerpt. Don't cringe too hard now [QUOTE=Highmist]A sliding sound interrupts my train of thought, the tankard gliding its way towards me. I stick my hand out and grab it, a little mead sloshing out onto my hand and on the bar. I stare into the liquid mirror before taking a sip. My dark fur gleams on my face from the torches, especially off of my wet nose. I was a Lycan, a 'permanent werewolf' as much of the people around here usually think of me. A curse brought upon me forcefully, transferred to me by its last victim. I towered over everyone, standing at around seven feet tall compared to the six feet that the average townsfolk stood. Very little was human about me, aside from my name, how I walked, and how I talked. Although rarely anyone called me by name, just preferring 'mutt', 'hound', or anything else with a negative tone of a dog. Dealing with it has gotten easier over time, but the soft pang of sadness I get with each derogatory blurb thrown at me is still there. I gulp down my new drink, and leave the payment on the bar, coins still clinking as I got up to leave. As I get to the door to open it, I feel something tap the back of my shoulder. It was a drunk man, short and tubby, who looked like he could barely stand on his two feet let alone speak. "Hey, pup!" He throws his half full tankard across the inn, almost hitting a patron before colliding with a wall and landing on the ground. "Go fetch boy! Come on, fetch!" His hardy laughter filled the room, much to my annoyance. I glared at him."I am not to be the plaything of some wasteful drunkard. If you don't mind, I would like to leave." "Come now, a proper doggy would not dare ignore his mashter, now would he? *hic* " He points toward where the tankard lay, its contents now spilled onto the wooden floor. "Now go fetch!" "I am not a proper dog, and I have no master. Now good eve to you, sir." I only just get out of the door before the sound of a knife leaving its scabbard catches my ear. I turn to see the drunk man has pulled the weapon. I'm surprised he didn't cut himself doing that for how completely smashed he is. "Ish my doggy ignoring ordersh? It looks like I'm going to have to punish him.." He lunges at me, or makes an attempt to do so. I take a step out of the way and watch him stumble onto the cobblestone streets, knocking himself unconscious as he hits the ground. Pathetic.[/QUOTE] Tell me what you think, mostly about paragraph size. Am I not explaining as much as I should?
Shit. I don't know if I should go write a damn novel or not. Given my somewhat low creativity, I'm worried I might produce something in the same level as the Twilight books. *shudders* ... You know what, fuck it. I'll give it a shot. Had an idea for a novel in my head for years, and now it's fine time to put it into writing.
[QUOTE=Highmist;38348772]Just write about what you feel like you could write more about and word vomit it all out. Don't worry about much with sentence structure and such until you've 'won' My inner editor doesnt like me doing that though, and I always go back to fix simple errors instead of skipping them and just spell checking when I finished my word count for today.[/QUOTE] But I don't know which of my three ideas I should go with.
[QUOTE=DiscoInferno;38349807]But I don't know which of my three ideas I should go with.[/QUOTE] since 1 is the more developed of your ideas, go with that one.
im writing incoherent bullshit and i probably can't even write enough incoherent bullshit
Well, I've got three sentences so far. I think this is really coming along! [quote]Pierce Drugov sat with a loaded AK-47 in his lap. “Death to America! Death to infidels!” Those chants were the only thing he’d heard for the past two weeks.[/quote]
So literally an hour ago I was inspired to start writing, and I have about 3 pages written, and I decided to hit up facepunch for a little bit, and saw this thread. I'm doin this shit. [editline]7th November 2012[/editline] [quote]A body fell into the entryway, with a thud and a slight squish. Something dark and fluid was staining his rather expensive attire, and he was clutching his left side with his right hand. Well that explains his timidity. It didn't take a seer to tell he had about as much life in him as a bag of rocks at this point. Dammit. I hate calling the cops. I made my way over to the phone, not without a bit of reluctance, and put in the three dreadful numbers (well actually it's a number and then another number twice). "911, what's your emergency?" "Dead man in my apartment. 8942 West Broker Street. Looks like he's been shot." We will dispatch a patrol car to your location momentarily. Please stay on the li-" I hate calling the cops. [/quote]
I dropped 10,000 last year in some insane super hardcore writing scheme to impress my girlfriend, I forgot to save, and accidentally deleted the backup in word because i thought i had saved it. Never writing a novel again. (in case you were wondering, we broke up)
[QUOTE=dj0wns;38362037]I dropped 10,000 last year in some insane super hardcore writing scheme to impress my girlfriend, I forgot to save, and accidentally deleted the backup in word because i thought i had saved it. Never writing a novel again. (in case you were wondering, we broke up)[/QUOTE] Oh my god, never use Word for a novel. Use Scrivener. (Costs $ but has a free trial.)
[QUOTE=ShaunOfTheLive;38362113]Oh my god, never use Word for a novel. Use Scrivener. (Costs $ but has a free trial.)[/QUOTE] I was young and stupid.
This may be just what I need to cure my writer's block, count me in!
I've been trying something rather different I think. I've often wondered why the heroic epic figures of grandeur are the center of novels and literature. That's when I got thinking, and writing, and I began an idea. I would take the life of a common man, a person like you or I, and yet have a grand and mystical world. It takes the best of us and the worst of us, the love we have, and the lust that grasps us. It tells the story of history, through the eyes of a common man, and the wrapping of all of our ordinary wonders. Here's the map if you guys are interested; note, this map is actually about 1,000 years into the future of this novel, as I do world build extensively and my original project was a bit different: [img]http://i.imgur.com/XjDq7.jpg[/img]
So, I'm not sure if this counts or not. I guess if people want me to remove it, I will. There's a nifty site for book serials I like. I have a story going on this, so I guess I'm participating? Here's the site: [url]http://jukepopserials.com/[/url] You guys should totally submit yours if you want.
Hey I'm doing this! :D Although I'm not keeping up very well, only just hitting 10K :(
I got so far behind when I restarted that I'm just now getting back up to 4000 words. I'm gonna work like hell this weekend, though, and get caught up! You're not gonna beat me this year!
i've got a friend doing this who's apparently already got 40,000 words down already the question of how good those words are is one i have yet to ask
[QUOTE=TMBGFan;38390851]i've got a friend doing this who's apparently already got 40,000 words down already the question of how good those words are is one i have yet to ask[/QUOTE] It is feasible for one to write 4,000 good words a day. Difficult, but feasible.
[img]https://pbs.twimg.com/media/A7tcGIWCYAEnNeJ.png:large[/img] whoops
Fuck it, I'll enter halfway through. Should only take 3334 words a day to make it work.
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