Lucky this is a nice looking winner badge otherwise I'd be pissed.
Yes, people, you heard it here second (I had to hit Twitter first with the news. Sorry.)
I hit the 50,000+ word mark of my NaNoWriMo novel at about 2:45 pm SBT (Standard Blogdramedy Time.)
The first most amazing thing? I got it done two days early. The second most amazing thing? I only gained three pounds over the past 28 days. The third most amazing thing? I read through the entire story and it actually makes some kind of sense…I think. Hmmm.
I am exhausted, a little stressed and I just noticed chocolate marks on the sofa. I have quite a bit to say about this insanity called NaNoWriMo but for now, it is time to peel my fingers off the keyboard and back away slowly from my laptop. Plus, I need a shower bad.
But, before I go, a few quick words to would-be writers out there. This creative writing shit is hard, at times it can be unforgiving but in the end, seeing your words form complete sentences (for the most part) and watching the page count climb…it’s like a really intense relationship only without the sex. At least that was my experience seeing as the Mister has been away for the past three weeks.
And the way your characters just take off in entirely new directions without letting you know? Very intense and kind of spooky.
Is it like that for everyone their first time? Ahem…the sexual references are becoming more blatant so before I do something you all may regret, I think I better hit publish.
Oh God, My Wife Is German
/ November 28, 2011HAW! Great post!
I will definitely follow your blog.
Blogdramedy
/ November 28, 2011Well hee-haw back at you. Thanks!
madtante
/ November 28, 2011I’d never written fiction before my 1st nano. I joined (unofficially–played on the website but didn’t “sign up” cos I didn’t want to be a poseur) with a friend who said she’d meant to do it the first couple of years (this was 2005??) but chickened out.
I had my first fugue state. CRAZY. A character told me what he wanted to be called, which freaked me out A LOT. I whispered to some writer friends (who’ve had fiction published) and they came back with, “Sha. Of course.” If you can get into that state, it’s amazing. With one of my characters on maybe my 4th or 5th story (counting screen plays cos the format is different but I “see” things the same way in my mind), I had to delve into something of my past. All I needed was a…foundation. The character is NOT “me” but I needed somebody who’d lived through a specific thing and that was ugly. I’ve heard actors talk about going to a dark place for a character and never wanting to revisit it.
I’m so proud of you! I’m sure your story is 500X anything I’ve written because you write fiction. I’ve read it here! You’re just stretching it.
Blogdramedy
/ November 28, 2011I am in awe of anyone who had done NaNo more than once. It was quite the ride and I’m not sure if I will ever get on that particular horse again. Only time will tell. Yes, it is strange about the whole character development thing. I tried to rein them back in but they just had to go where they wanted. When I pick up the novel, which I plan to do at some point, it will be interesting to see if any of them have changed.
Thanks for the kind words. I will agree that I have written fiction…with a lot of crap mixed in.
Are you joining us for BlogFestivus???
madtante
/ November 29, 2011Believe I responded to you on that previously…Yes/ no.
Blogdramedy
/ November 29, 2011Sad face.
Amy
/ November 28, 2011See, if my husband would leave town for 3 weeks I could probably write 50k words, too.
Congrats on finishing this daunting endeavor!
And yes, I love when my characters suddenly do or say things that I had not intended them to do. Sometimes, it’s like I just dictating what they are saying to me. It is very cool and kinda spooky, but I love it.
Blogdramedy
/ November 28, 2011I found out he was going to be away around the same time I heard about NaNo for the first time. It seemed very karmic and kissmatty so I signed up. If he had been around I don’t think I would have gotten past page one.
The whole character development thing is just plain weird. I’m a bit of a control freak so that is a bit challenging never mind just the effort of getting all those words down on paper.
W. R. Woolf
/ November 28, 2011Congratulations!
You have mastered the art of creating vast amounts of text! which is really much harder than it sounds
I finished NaNoWriMo two years ago, and I joined this year, but ended up writing short stories in stead…
Blogdramedy
/ November 28, 2011Thanks! It was bloody hard work and I’m not sure if I would do it again. This was my first attempt at creative writing in the longer form. I started doing short stories when I came up with BlogShorts back in June and I’ve done a few Friday Drabbles. If you like short stories, join us for BlogFestivus starting this Thursday. You can read about it here
Random
/ November 28, 2011I’ve attempted NaNoWriMo five or six times and “won” once. But every time, I’ve had my “characters just take off in entirely new directions” — which was weird, but also kind of cool. It’s like they were saying, “Well, that idea you had was all fine and good, but it was also wrong! Here’s what really happens…”
At its best, I find myself wanting to keep writing to see what happens next.
Congratulations on making it to 50,000+!
Blogdramedy
/ November 28, 2011Damn…five or six times? Impressive.
And, yes, when it’s good the writing seems to come much easier. When it’s bad…character assassination crosses my mind.
trailblazer1
/ November 28, 2011Braveheart, I bow to your accomplishment. I lam enamored with the way characters develop all on their own – almost naming themselves. I never use an outline, know where I will be in the middle or even how it will end. Drives my hubby, an engineer, nuts , of course it would.
Keep us inspired . . .
Blogdramedy
/ November 28, 2011Thanks! My Mister has an urban planning background so you can imagine it was probably for the best he’s been out of town during this process. Now it’s on to BlogFestivus…I hope I have something left.
shoutabyss
/ November 28, 2011Woot! Good job. Now we know you’re hardcore and, perhaps, just a little bit nuts. Guess what, though? I’d pay $24.99 to read that novel!
Blogdramedy
/ November 28, 2011Well hot damn, honey, now that’s what I call being supportive. I’m more than a little bit nuts (thanks for holding back) but hardcore? How about chronically stubborn?
trailblazer1
/ November 28, 2011I couldn’t find it on Amazon or eBay – what was that title again? Excuse the ignorance, what is BlogFestivus for the rest of us?
Blogdramedy
/ November 29, 2011No silly. It’s my next short story writing challenge. BlogFestivus — 12 days, 12 short stories, 12 Days of Christmas. Here’s the link: http://blogdramedy.wordpress.com/2011/11/16/12-reasons-why-you-should-do-this-writing-challenge/
shoutabyss
/ November 28, 2011I see you upgraded your image to “winner.” Do they have a “loser” variety for me?
Blogdramedy
/ November 29, 2011Yes, I upgraded. I’m quick when I want to be. On that loser badge? Check your email.
michaeljones909
/ November 29, 2011Congratulations!..50,000+ words in 30 days is a fantastic achievement…Of course there’s a bit more to it than simply putting text down,the process of characters developing themselves and “taking off without telling you” is intriguing!..well done it sounds like its been a great experience…
Blogdramedy
/ November 29, 2011It was an interesting experience. I did it mostly for the challenge and I’m stubborn…no way was I not going to hit that 50K mark! And now, I have a solid start on a novel and who knows where it will end up? Thanks for the congratulations!
jonnieboi
/ November 29, 2011CONGRATULATIONS! I am at 42K because I had real-life issues going on, but I will finish by tomorrow no problem. This past weekend, I’ve been writing four-thousand words a day. This is my third NaNo and I will be damned to make it my third win.
I am so proud of you. I know it was such a different experience for you, but I am sure you’ll get the bug next year, depending on the hectic-ness of life. Every year it comes around, I get an itch and I become extremely excited, ideas flying all over the place. Plus, I LOVE LOVE LOVE your idea. I can’t wait to read it, and yes I want to read it!
As for the sex insinuations, no those aren’t simply metaphors; it’s a fact for me. Writing is cathartic (if that’s even the word I want to use) for me, as is sex. It’s two beings (you and your inspiration) making love for those hours you’re sitting writing (either by keyboard or pen/paper) and the novel is your creation. Not necessarily a baby but a combining of you two giving birth in an almost spiritual sense.
Lady Gaga wrote a line in her song ‘Dance in the Dark’: “Find your freedom in the music; Find your Jesus; Find your Kubrick.” Music being our lives, I find freedom with writing. The creation is my Jesus, and my reign over the freedom (writing) is my Kubrick. BUT I am completely infatuated with Lady Gaga and I totally take things to the extreme by finding metaphors in her lyrics that compare to my life. So ignore my ramblings.
Again, congratulations on being amazing and finishing ahead of schedule!
Blogdramedy
/ November 29, 2011Thanks so much! Insightful words on the whole writing process.
I am almost 100 per cent sure I won’t do NaNo again. It was a perfect storm situation…light work projects and the Mister out of town. But I will never say never…never!
All the best with your writing. You can do it!
stevebetz
/ November 29, 2011Congratulations! I’ve read that creative writing — like any skill — is honed by practice, practice, practice.
Are you going to let it sit and gel for a little bit before going back to editing?
Blogdramedy
/ November 30, 2011Is that like location, location, location?
The novel-in-training is now on my flash drive on the shelf gathering dust. I’ll blow it off at some point. It’s needs about another 50,000 words and copious amounts of editing before I would ever call it a complete novel.
lisleman
/ November 29, 2011I see you hang with some writers here. I never gave this NaNo thing a thought, but I have come across it on many a blog.
Congrats on your creative commitment. What happens with your work now? You submit it to nanowrimo? Then what? I know too many questions that I could just investigate myself with a few clicks.
Hope the BlogFestivus goes well. I’m gearing up. The challenge of it has been interesting so far.
Blogdramedy
/ November 30, 2011I just discovered NaNo this year. Part of me wonders why I ever clicked on that particular link.
What happens now is it goes off in a corner by itself to think about what it wants to become. I’ll get back to it at some point and flesh it out and edit then I’m seriously thinking about trying to get it published. Maybe even an eBook?
If you’ve never done NaNo, I recommend you give it a try. Will I do it again? I don’t think so but it has gotten me interested in longer short fiction. I’m going to try to find some shorter writing challenges on line.
See you during BlogFestivus!
snagglewordz
/ November 30, 2011Haha, great post! Congratulations on being a NaNoWriMo winner – woop woop! Still hard to believe that I have actually written a novel…was it only 30 days ago we had nothing, nada?
Blogdramedy
/ November 30, 2011Only 30 days? ONLY 30 DAYS? Yes…I guess so.
Congrats on the novel! Would you do it again? Huh? Would ya?
snagglewordz
/ December 1, 2011Ooooh yeah, I’m-a-gonna do either Camp NaNoWriMo or JulNoWriMo next year. Yes, people do think I need my head examined.
Blogdramedy
/ December 1, 2011No more NaNo for me but I am considering Script Frenzy in April. The logo found its way to my blog so it must be true.
snagglewordz
/ December 1, 2011Lol. Gotta watch those logos, sneaky little suckers.
Blogdramedy
/ December 1, 2011Yeah…they just cling.
krudyard
/ November 30, 2011Well done! I was also a newbie. I signed up on an impulse after a friend said she was going to . Ironically she chickened out and I got to 50K in three weeks stunning myself and everyone else. My story isn’t finished so I’m going to continue until I come to some sort of satisfactory end. I really enjoyed the whole experience.
Blogdramedy
/ December 1, 2011Well done you! Nothing like hacking out 50,000 words to get the creative mojo working for you. Write on!