Q's seeking answers for NaNoWriMo Novel

I've started novels several times and got stuck so this is my first time to plow through and keep on going on.

I've just had the oddest experience writing my quota today for my NaNoWriMo novel. I'm writing a romance, told my inner critic to go on vacation, and have been going along in a fairly straightforward way from point A to point B so far.

Tonight I felt tired and bored and so the MC's talked it over and decided to have some hot sex. I was camping it up, having a lot of fun with it, but I felt disappointed in myself and that's my question to you. I felt that I had let the characters down. I wasn't taking them or the book seriously. Have you ever had anything like that happen?

I resolved it by having the characters talk it over, deciding it was fun, but that they would go back to the story line in the morning.

It was really strange though. I have a fairly traditional story with a mystery involving some old journals and a mysterious crate left by the female MC's grandfather. It could definitely be one of those small romance novels, but I'd like to have a dragon pop in or have the male MC have to take up a broadsword and fight off pirates on the way to his pick-up. Something!

I'm also at about 21,000 words so I'm getting the mid-book crazies. This is way beyond what I've written before.

I think I've been too stuffy. It was a lot more fun to let loose and I think it might be a way to tap some creativity that I haven't let loose. Hot sex in the little romance books is mandatory, but I was camping it up with a lot of purple prose which wouldn't be ok.

I really want to write novels and think it would be a lot of fun. I'm confused about what's going on right now. Is it the mid-book crazies? Have you ever had this happen? Aaagh!

What kind of realizations and experiences are you having in your journey?

Hi Sage and Soccer Mom,

I'm with you on just writing whatever comes to mind and keep on going. I definitely appreciate the advice to bring chocolate -- that's probably what was missing.

I've never gotten this far in a novel so I'm kind of fascinated with the interaction that seems to go on with the characters. Sometimes it's as if the characters are deciding what they want to do. I might have an idea of what would go in the story, but it doesn't fit them and there's almost an interaction as if I'm fleshing out a person that really exists. It's a really fun process -- like I'm building a world when I write.

that's more what I was wondering about -- how you feel about your characters. I realized this evening that I care about them. I was just so surprised about the feeling I had of disappointing them and myself because I was camping it up.

I'm in new territory here in writing a novel so I'm not even sure what I am asking, but I'm just curious to hear if others have feelings about their story or character. Do you feel like you are interacting with them when you write a novel?

Also, I'm procrastinating...but that's an entirely different and totally unrelated story with vast amounts of purple prose involved.

smiley10000 said:

Write what your character want you to write. Listen to the internal writer in you. He's the one sitting on the bound and gagged internal editor. 10000

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LOL. I loved your comment about the internal writer sitting on the bound and gagged internal editor. I think my internal editor was definitely trying to get loose yesterday.

My background is counseling so I tend to be interested in processing thoughts and feelings. I'm pretty darn sure that it would be best for me to go with the flow and not analyze too much -- that would take the fun and the creativity out of it, but still...it's so interesting.

And so, I'll see what happens today in It was a Dark and Stormy Night, a tale of swept-away passion and gut-wrenching intrigue that you think will never end.

Soccer Mom said:

I'm pretty attached to my characters. I've got one who is about ready to cross over (she's dead and needs to get on with it.) But I'm having trouble letting go. *Sigh* I'm a dork.

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I'm relieved to hear that you get attached to your characters. I am, too, and sometimes I even write them telling me what they want to do. I like doing that, it makes them more real to me, but it also seemed a little strange.

I'm not ready to lose any characters yet, although there is someone sinister lurking in the fringes. He has heavy equipment in his warehouse so all I can say is that he better be careful walking around in there.
Many sympathies on the loss of one of your beloved characters. That did give me an idea though, I was just thinking that we could have a whole line of Hallmark cards for writers. Sympathy: "A good character doesn't really die, she just joins a different storyline."

Soccer Mom advises that we bring chocolate.

I asked the same question, Larry. Soccer Mom gave me a quick answer. You right click on the icon you want and copy it. Go to User CP, then Edit Signature, paste, then save.

Pomagranate gave me this answer which we could use for other icons:

Sue -- I think you have to right click on the icon, save it on your desktop. Then you have to find someplace to host the image like photobucket or flicker or a personal website, then insert a link to the image in your sig file. If you've already done that, the problem might be that you've used HTML instead of PHP code in your sig.

And Smiley10000 gave me this advice:

go to Photobucket.com and sign up for an account. (it's free)

once you have an account, upload the icon to the photobucket website.

Once it is uploaded it will then show up with the URL below it.

copy the URL into the image prompt in your sig.

I used the copy and paste option and it worked fine. I'm going to check out the photobucket site to see how that works. Good luck!

Nice winner's certificate!! Have fun partying, Larry.

larrypotter said:

To celebrate, I wrote and sent two queries to magazines (not related to my novel). Let's keep writing everyone!

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I like your spirit, Larry. I was so motivated after NaNo finished and I've been writing in my blog, writing emails to friends, but not really writing if you get my drift.

Today I started on a poem I've had in mind and I'm also outlining a non-fiction book I'd like to write and have the beginning. I'll also do the year long NaNo starting in January. It's just so much fun. I really enjoy writing.

Hi Larry,

I created a Live Journal account yesterday and looked at the year long NaNo post. The folks running the joint are not for me so I won't be doing that project.

But, I like the idea of deadlines, too. So this morning I have a plan. December is for a poem I'm working on, a non-fiction book, and research for a novel I want to write starting January 2007. I've already started on all three.

I wrote my NaNo novel without research and had notes like [find out a famous engineer in 1887]. I just plowed straight through without stopping to research. This time I'd like to have more concrete information in mind. It will make the first draft more colorful anyway.

I've set a goal of words to write on a novel each month in 2007, and I'm going to include some months in there just for editing and research so I don't burn out.

And your post inspired me. I'm going to include submitting one of my novels as part of my 2007 writing plan. This NaNo novel was my first, but by next year I should have a couple more completed.

Whoohoo! Moving forward indeed....

Hey Larry,

I was looking at myself as a first time novelist and that I would need to write a couple more novels and edit meticulously and finally learn grammar and all KINDS of stuff before I submitted one to a publisher. Somewhere waaay down the road.

You definitely inspired me. You made me realize that even my first NaNo novel has a lot more possibilities than I was thinking. The plot is sound and I like it. I can see editing it into something I could have beta readers give feedback about and then submit. I know I have to do the work, but it's seems more accessible now. I like putting it in my plan for 2007.

The NaNo realizations continue: It's not only that to be a writer I have to write. It's to be published...I have to submit it. Me?!? Yes!!!

I know it's obvious, but I'm a newbie at this...so sue me!!

Thanks for the encouragement, TheIt!