NaNoWriMo 2018

Here we go again.
What am I thinking doing this again?

Not going to make it

I'm not going to win NaNoWriMo again this year. I had a very solid start, I thought this would be my year, but then life came along and expected me to do things other than write. I was nodding off at my computer, not hitting my words for the day, and as this state of affairs wore on, the finish line not getting any closer, I knew I had too much to make up to be able to get there.

Now, the wonderful thing about NaNoWriMo, and the reason I keep doing it year after year, after year despite losing almost always, is that even thought I'm going to 'lose', I have 28,453 words written as of today. I hope to at least get over 30,000 by the end. My normal monthly word count is probably 1/10th of that. That's nothing to be upset about.

From pushing myself to write more each day, I've learned what a comfortable amount of writing is for me in a sitting, and in a day, and it is much more than I've been doing prior to NaNo. I'll report in in another month, but I have a new system I'm going to try out for myself to make my writing more consistent based on what I've discovered about my process and what I think works for me and what does not.

Basically, I think daily, or at least almost every day daily writing does work better for me than letting days and days go by with nothing. I get more excited about my story, it stays in my head, and new ideas pop up when it stays in my head. However, forcing myself to write while exhausted, or drained from a hectic day produces stupid writing that is also tired and dull. So while I need to push myself, I need to stop short of force.

That's how NaNo went for me.

NaNoWriMoing with yWriter for PC and Android

I wrote before about my little Samsung laptop that is probably eight years old now is slowing down. It takes so long to power on lately, I was concerned it was getting ready to die. Since NaNoWriMo is upon me, I wanted to make sure I had a reliable way to write when I'm not at home. Buying a new, or even a used replacement laptop was a bigger expense than I could make right now, so I bought a bluetooth keyboard and planned to use it with my phone.

I originally thought I would type in Google Docs because I know I can use that on both my desktop at home, and on my phone, but before November began, I decided to just research if there might be a better option. I found yWriter, and decided to give that a try.

I'm glad I played around with both the PC and android app versions of yWriter in advance of NaNoWriMo starting because it took me a few days to figure out how to sync the two versions. Being able to write on my phone while out, then continue on my PC when I was home was key to my whole plan of living without my laptop, so it was the most important feature to me.

yWriter still actually does (or can, there are other methods too) use Google docs to sync between devices. Both the PC version and the android app save to Google docs. They do so in slightly different ways, and since I'm not super tech savvy, it took me a little while to figure out how to get them to do so. Now that I have, however, it works great.

There are lots of bells and whistles in yWriter that I'm not using. There are outlining tools, and scene breakdowns, and character lists, etc. I already had my outline ready to go for November, and didn't want the extra work of putting it all into yWriter, but looking around in the program, there are some things I'm looking forward to trying out with other books down the road.

Even better, the PC version of yWriter is free, and the android app only cost $4.99. So far, I have to say it was money well spent.

Today on our weekly library trip, my kids finished looking for books and found me typing away on my phone with my snazzy new keyboard and both commented how 'cool' the setup was. Considering all the tech these kids have grown up with, I took that as a huge compliment.  

NaNoWriMoing with my New Bluetooth Keyboard and my Phone

I think I mentioned in my last post that my laptop was dying, and instead of spending a lot of money I don't have to buy a new one, I was just going to write on my phone.

This is the bluetooth keyboard I got, because it had great reviews and was super affordable. I bought the white one because it was a dollar cheaper at the time, and I don't care about color. It looks like both the black and white keyboards are the same price now though.

So far it's wonderful. It's actually easier to use out and about than my tiny laptop was. I'm trying to write on my lunch breaks, or when the kids are in a class or something. Before, if I was sitting in the car trying to write, it was scrunched and uncomfortable because the open screen of the laptop hit the steering wheel, so I had to keep the keyboard uncomfortably close to my body to have it open at all.
With my new bluetooth keyboard, I put my phone in the hands free holder on my dash, and only the keyboard itself is in my lap, so I have more freedom to adjust it to a nice position.

The keyboard is very light. Probably less than a third the weight of my laptop, and I had one of those tiny laptops - it was no more than 10 inches wide. So carrying it around in my bag is much nicer.

There were other keyboards that came with a case, and I was a little worried that this one didn't have one as I know it would be in my bag a lot and I wanted it protected. I figured I'd sew a little quilted pouch for it to live in. With NaNoWriMo in full swing I don't have a lot of free time for sewing, so I've just been keeping the keyboard in the little box it came in and that has worked dandy. The box just fits the keyboard so there isn't a lot of other space or padding or anything to take up more room. Eventually I'd still like to make it a cute quilted bag, but this will work for November.

I'm not exactly a tech person. I love tech, but I'm not especially good at it, and I had this keyboard synced to my phone and up and running on the first try. I was a little confused because the power light doesn't stay on, it just flashes when you first turn it on, then it goes out again. I thought that meant it wasn't still on, or my batteries were bad or something, but it's just they way it's supposed to work to conserve batteries. Types just fine with no light on.

So if you are in a similar position of not wanting to invest in a new laptop, but wanting a portable way to write, I highly recommend this system of using a bluetooth keyboard with your phone. I also bought the yWriter app to write with on my phone, and I'll talk about how that part is going in my next post, but there are other online word processors for you to pick from if you'd rather.

NanoWriMo 2017 starting in 2 days

I'm NaNoWriMo-ing again this year. National Novel Writing Month for those unfamiliar with the term) I haven't won in a very long time, and I really, REALLY want to win this year. Yet I'm no less overwhelmed and overscheduled than I usually am, so we'll see how things go.

This year I'm writing with an outline. As my novel revisions are going very well so far, my NaNo novel will be the sequel to that one. The story so far is fresh in my mind, and I'm excited to continue it. I already know the characters fairly well (although new characters will be introduced). So all this is to my benefit I think, as far as quick word counts go.

Logistically, I'm also trying some new things. My laptop has been slowly dying for awhile now. It takes ages to power on, an off, and is just old and sad. Since I'm too broke to just go get a new laptop, and I have a wonderful pocket computer anyway (aka a smart phone) I decided to get a bluetooth keyboard and write on my phone.

I'm trying out the program yWriter, but so far can't quite figure out how to use it both on my phone and on my desktop. It seems like there is something to do with saving to Google Drive, but I can't figure out how to do that yet. So I have two days to get my learning curve finished with this program, or I guess I'll just use Google docs.

Wish me luck!

Stopping C25K, Starting Camp NaNoWriMo

Just because it's become sort a running (pun intended) gag to post about C25K and NaNoWriMo in the same post - here we go:

I've recovered enough from my cold to breathe well enough to start C25K (Couch to 5K) back up again - but - I'm having other symptoms that make jogging very uncomfortable. I have another doctor appointment to find out more specifically what's going on, but in the meanwhile I will report that I'm apparently having further complications to my earlier colectomy and illeostomy reversal surgeries. There is very likely another surgery in my future. While I am not technically restricted by my doctors from running, it doesn't feel good, so I'm going to stick with walking and biking for now. There will more to report on this front soon I'm sure.

Camp NaNoWriMo started at the beginning of April. The difference between the camps and the official November event is that for the camps (in April, and I think July?) you set your own word count goal, or you can set a different type of goal, like for editing or some-such.  I've been preoccupied with taxes and lots of doctor appointments so I've written almost nothing toward the goal of 12,000 words I've set for myself. This week is technically spring break for our charter so I hope I can get in extra writing time since the girls will not need me for teaching as much. However, we still have a lot of group events and outside classes that will take up time, so I'm not going to get too excited about how much free time I'll end up with.

There we are.

NaNoWriMo failure. Again.

I'm not going to make my word count for NaNoWriMo. I'm disappointed, but this has been visible in the distance for awhile now. I just couldn't keep up. I started out so strong, but I couldn't keep going on a sleep deficit and I got sick, and couldn't kick it - it kept coming back. Still, I know it was doable, I just made a choice not to sacrifice to the level I would have needed to to hit the 50,000. And I'm good with that choice still.
While I don't have as many words as I might like, I'm very happy with the words I have. At month's end (I am going to keep writing until the end even if I can't hit my words) I will switch gears to revising the previous book. I've been doing a lot of exercises on character, and I think I can use what I've learned to help significantly in the revision process.
The plus side of not pushing myself into burnout is that nearing the end of November I'm still excited about writing and my story, and not sick to death of it. I'm calling it a win. Not an official NaNoWriMo type win, but a win in my progress and growth as a writer.

Preparing for NaNoWriMo 2016

This is the first year I'm heading into NaNoWriMo with an outline. In the past I usually knew the premise and a few characters from the story I planned to write, but not much more than that. I've been experimenting with outlining recently, and I think it is working for me.

This NaNo novel will be a sequel to the one I finished up a couple months ago and am now revising. The timing worked out well for me, which is unusual. I generally suck at timing.

So, if you're participating in NaNoWriMo this year and need a writing buddy - I'm karabu on the NaNoWriMo site. Let's go!

I Didn't Mean for it to Become a Trend

I'm six weeks post-surgery now, so I'm allowed to start exercising and doing things again. So I've started up my Couch to 5K running training program. Today, I was looking over my outline as I prepare for NaNoWriMo. Then I realized I had linked these two events together yet again.

http://karabucreations.blogspot.com/2016/03/couch-to-5k-is-my-fitness-nanowrimo.html
http://karabucreations.blogspot.com/2016/06/couch-to-5k-and-nanowrimo-again-and.html

When I wrote those two previous posts, I'd thought it was sort of a humorous coincidence, and I liked the similarity in the determination and self -discipline I needed for both activities. I didn't mean to forever attach them to each other.

I'd really love to believe this is the last year they will be attached. Not because I don't love them both. I just hope to stay well enough to not need to restart Couch to 5K from the beginning again. The other times, I knew I wouldn't be able to finish the program due to health restrictions. Now, however - I hope I remain hale and hearty and running well past the end of the program. If anything, maybe I'll be looking into a program to take me from 5 to 10 K next year. A girl can dream.

I do plan to keep participating in NaNoWriMo ever year because - why not?

Couch to 5k and NaNoWriMo Again, and Again. . . and again. . .and. . .

This is basically a repeat of my previous post "Couch to 5K is My Fitness NaNoWriMo", except I think this will be attempt 5 now? Maybe? I've lost count, but it doesn't really matter.

In that last post I said I hoped this try would be the one to hit the finish line, but I'm not sure it will be. My colon hasn't finished being persnickety even though the trouble making part is gone. It's taking its sweet time to heal, so my ileostomy reversal won't happen until August at the earliest.  There is nothing particularly tragic about this. It's only relevant in that I have a second abdominal surgery to look forward to with a second recovery and therefore a second (fifth? sixth?) interruption to my 5k training program.

Still, in the meanwhile, I'm running the program. I ran week 2, day 1 tonight and it went well. Maybe I'll have time to finish the whole program before surgery, maybe I won't. It doesn't matter though. I'll probably need to restart after recovery anyway. Maybe I'm not a 5k runner. Maybe I'm someone to just tries. A lot.

And connecting these two events for me again - I just learned there is another camp NaNoWriMo in July. I'm outlining right now - something new to me so it's slow going. I also have some other writing projects I want to move forward right now, but July will be a perfect goal time for getting the novel going. So far I think the outlining process will help me. Some complain that outlining takes the fun and spontaneity out of their writing but that doesn't seem to be happening to me. Instead it's making me excited about the story. It has a purpose - a meaning. It isn't lost and meandering the way it felt. I think I've been an outliner trapped in a pantser all this time.

Couch to 5k is my Fitness NaNoWriMo

I participate in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month for the theoretical person out there who doesn't know) every year, even when I know I don't have the time or the energy to win. I just like to play. Mostly, I don't hit my word goal.

Couch to 5K (or C25K since we all like to use the lingo, right?) is a running program that takes someone from not being a runner, to being able to run a 5K. I completed the program years ago and was so proud of myself. Then I hurt my foot and stopped running. Last year, when I was fed up with feeling crappy all the time I decided to start up again.

Things were much tougher for me then. I was very overweight and out of shape. After the first couple weeks of the program I had difficulty progressing, so I did each week twice before I felt strong enough to move one. I ran super slow. Most people could probably walk at the pace I was 'running'. But I was still proud of myself.

Then I got lazy, and we went on vacation, and I generally neglected my running. Still, I wanted to do it, so I started over. That time I did better and got really close to finishing the program. . . and then I thought I had the flu, but actually had a perforated colon and got to spend some time in the hospital. It took longer than I expected to gain any strength back, but when I did, I started C25K all over again. My colon responded by acting back up again. Stupid colon.

Now I'm on the week 3 runs - for the fourth time in the past year, even though this time I knew going in that I would not be able to finish the program. That trouble-making colon is coming out in a couple weeks so I won't be running for a bit as I recover.

So why bother restarting the training? The same reason I can't not do NaNoWriMo. It makes me feel good. I'm proud of myself when I do it. Even though my efforts and results are not exciting compared to what I see others doing, they are pretty great for me. So after surgery, when my doctor says it's safe - I'll be starting my fifth attempt to get through the Couch to 5K program. Hopefully that will be the one I finish.

Oh - and, I'm signed up for Camp NaNoWriMo 2016 in April. I'm 'karabu' over there. Camp NaNoWriMo is similar to the November event, except you set your own word goal, and it doesn't have to be all on one novel; any project is fine. Stop by and say Hi if you're writing too!

I'm A guest with LK Hunsaker Thoughts and Sketches

LK Hunsaker invited me to write a guest post for her blog Thoughts and Sketches. She's doing a series of guest posts on the subject of NaNoWriMo. At first I didn't think I had anything worthwhile to add to a discussion of NaNo. I've failed every year I tried it after all. But as I thought about those failing years, and the fact that, even so, here I was, back at it again, I began to see that I actually did have an opinion or two on the subject.

So a big "Thank You" to LK for the push to do some deep thinking about my NaNo journey. Also, she's a terrific author. I've enjoyed every book I've read from her, and am reading Off the Moon right now. I highly encourage you to poke around her website and pick up one of her published novels if you get the chance.

Kara's NaNoWRiMo guest blog post.

National Novel Writing Month Starting this Saturday!

It's almost National Novel Writing Month again (or NaNoWriMo as it's affectionately known.) Despite being more overwhelmed in my personal life than ever before, I'm tempting fate (and major burnout) by participating again this year.

I don't actually care if I reach 50,000 words or not, so that may be part of the reason I'm going for it again this year despite a complete lack of time. I guess that's a bad attitude for NaNoWriMo, but it's the best I can do right now.

So if I don't care, why bother at all you may ask. Fair enough. Well, I've learned enough in the last two NaNos that I've participated in that there is lot I can learn, both about writing, and about myself, even if I don't hit that 50,000 word mark. It's good to push yourself in pursuit of something wonderful and creative that will very likely never amount to anything at all just to see if you can. Or rather if I can.

Again, my novel will be Sci-Fi. I had a dream last year during NaNoWriMo that I thought would make a great story. I wrote a summary of the dream in a notebook because it was complex and I didn't want to forget an important detail. Well, I lost that notebook. That notebook had a lot of writing in it that was important to me, and I still get upset about it's loss. So I may end up having to make up a lot of the story without my notes (although, I guess technically, I already made it up in my dream, so who cares, right?) It's a post apocalyptic, war, romance, time-travel kind of thing. Hope it turns out.

If you ever wanted to try to write a novel. Now's your chance!
Here's my profile at the official NaNoWriMo site, if you want to learn more about this whole crazy idea:
Karabu Writes a Novel

NaNoWriMo

I've been MIA from my blog, so I thought I'd drop in and tell you why.

I decided to join the National Novel Writing Month this November. It's something I've always wanted to do, but never thought I had the time. This year I realised that I won't ever feel like I 'have the time' to write a novel. No one does. That's why NaNoWriMo exists in the first place.

The goal is to write at least 50,000 words in a novel during the month of November. That works out to be 1,667 words a day. So for someone with an already full life - a very lot of writing! I'm getting some pretty late bedtimes so far this week.

Here's my NaNo profile on the website if you'd like to learn more about it:
http://www.nanowrimo.org/user/204442

Now so far when I tell people I'm doing this, they ask about my novel. The short version is that it's a Sci-Fi novel about a ship of 1000 people going off to colonise a new planet. It's a story I was supposed to write 2 years ago. I joined an anthology contest on writing.com about 10 ships that left earth in search of new planets. We wrote a story proposal about what happened to one ship. My story got picked, and I began writing the full story. Then life got in the way and I basically stopped.
Now I'm starting over and using it for my NaNo novel. I don't think I really want the finial version to be 50,000 or more words long, but I'm writing a lot of background and more in depth character stuff that I probably don't really need, so when November is over, I hope to have enough material to edit it down to 20-30,000 words worth of good stuff.

That's the plan.

If you've ever Nano-ed, or are Nano-ing now, let me know! Share your tips for getting through the month - and tell me about your novel!