The NaNoWriMo Chronicles: Winner!

Man that was hard!

Hello people, fellow Wrimos everywhere.

It’s the day before last, and I just hit the long awaited for 50K 🙂

There were many days this month I was worried I might have to accept that this year November had just came at the wrong time. That the writing just came so hard.

But as hard as NaNo this year had come, I and many courageous winner and participant novelists, had manged to do it. I finished my poor, most terrible thing I ever wrote, of a novel and I have a long hard path before me, to make into something readable.

I really hope to revise this one and get to open the file some day next year and find a finished story before my eyes.

What about you? How are you feeling at these last moments of NaNo?

The NaNoWriMo Chronicles: 40K!

Hi guys;

Another slow day at the lab, probably the silence before the storm, so I took advantage and managed some 4K.

This way I am a couple of days ahead at 41K 🙂

I feel like I’ve written too much monologue. I certainly will have to fix that in the revisions, maybe stop sending the MC towards the climax of the story as a lone wolf.

Anyway, I think things are coming along for the near ending, hopefully I will get my much coveted 4th NaNo win after all.

Don’t tell my supervisor that I’ve written no thesis words these two weeks though :p

What about you?

Ahead, behind?

The NaNoWriMo Chronicles: Week Three Panic

Hello everyone;

It’s the end of week three, and with the last week of NaNo around the corner, it’s time for the panic to set in.

Unlike some people, I do better with a bit of panic in life 😉

So, I tried a three 25min writing sessions and managed to get ahead of today’s word count at 37K. That’s 3K before the 40K milestone which I hope to hit tomorrow.

What about you?

Feeling the panic? Enjoying a smooth ride towards the last part of your novel?

The NaNoWriMo Chronicles: Third Weekend

Hi guys;

How’s your weekend going?

Mine is on a spiral between trying to get ahead on the word count, and lazing in bed with a movie (or ten) :p

I finally got back on track with a 34K word count, and hoping to get down to another writing session before bed.

Going through the second act had been really hard, because I haven’t really thought through all the characters’ background stories or goals. Most of them just jumped in and joined the ride and now must either be left behind to die, or given a good reason to fight for/against the MC.

How was your NaNo this weekend? Any fun? Any winners?

NaNoWriMo Chronicles: Goodbye Two, Welcome Three

Hello People! Any Wrimos in the house?

So day 16, 26K and counting.

Week two was slightly better than week one for me, but just as hard. I got my MC back on track and she just met her newest alley. Unfortunately for her, it’s not gonna last 😉

What about you? Any progress?

The NaNoWriMo Chronicles: Back-up!

Yo!

It’s day 14 of NaNoWriMo, and the calendar says: Back-up Your Novel!

Of course, I’d advise that you back up every day, or at least every couple of days. Because every word counts, and loosing even a day’s work will leave you frustrated and not wanting to write.

To help with that, I wanted to share with you some free tools that allow you to back up to a robust server while writing.

So, here are my top 3 backup plans for your digital NaNo novel, or any other files:

3- OneDrive from Microsoft: Windows, Mac, Android and iOS

This one comes with your Windows OS, or you can download it free from the Microsoft website. All you’ll need is disk space for the install and a Microsoft mail account. I’ve had mine for years, and still have files on it I thought I’d lost forever.

It comes with a free plan of 5GB, but has the disadvantage that you’ll have to create a new Microsoft account, if you didn’t have one to use it. Moreover, on my Win 8, I have to sign in the whole computer to my Microsoft account to launch it, which I don’t want to do. It’s a great deal if you’re already a Microsoft account user (including live and outlook).

2-Google Drive: Windows, Mac, Android and iOS

This kiddo comes right out from the giant’s mouth, and has the storage space to show for it.

It has the largest capacity on the list with a wonderful 15GB shared between all Google tools (Gmail, Docs, etc…). If like me you have more than one account, you’ll get 15 GB of free cloud storage space for each of your accounts, but you can only sync with one at the time.

I use Drive to backup my novels, and books and plenty of other larger files. It’s only second because it can disconnect at random times, and behaves a bit erratically when the connection is slow. Other than that, a great tool.

1- Dropbox: Windows, Mac,Linux,  Android and iOS

My number one tool is Dropbox. Even with it’s small free plan storage space at only 2GB, it is still the best to me. Their apps, across all devices, are stable, and deal with weak WiFi days in a wonderful way.

I usually use it for school-related items, and the small more crucial files. They even have a Linux client for my Ubuntu, which Google Drive doesn’t have yet.

These three can be equally beneficial for the NaNo novelist. All you have to do is download and install. For each you get a folder with their name in your hard drive. Then you copy your novel, and write on that copy. Whenever you save the file, it is automatically backed up to your account.

You’ll have it safe and sound on trusted servers, and across most of your devices for mobile access.

Don’t forget the old fashioned USB drive (I dislike them for the high possibility of corrupted sectors and Virus infections, personally), or an external drive (same issues).

If you’re writing by hand, try taking pictures of your pages and uploading them to one of these accounts. Worst case scenario? Just print them out 🙂

Bottom line: Back up your novel 🙂

The NaNoWriMo Chronicles: Days 10, 12 and 13

Morning guys!

It’s another Monday, happy new week for ya’ll 🙂

At 22K, I finally caught up with my word count in the last few minutes of the 13th, yesterday.

One thing to say about these three days, they were hard. Eventually, I had to unstuck myself by rewriting a few scenes and sending my MC down a more scary path of realizations, and meeting some of her deadly enemies.

Hoping to get her into much more trouble by the end of today, I’ll see ya later.

By the way, how have your weekend gone by? Enjoyed the second Weekend of NaNo? Or like me, you struggled to get the words out?

The NaNoWriMo Chronicles: Days 9 and 10

Hi guys!

So I didn’t get the chance to update on the novel progress yesterday. Not that there was that much to update on. It was a very busy day at the lab, and at home, so I only managed some 400 words.

Today I took a day off, and caught up with my word count goals.

So now I’m over 17K, and not sure where the hell am I going with my story. My MC is surely starting, if slowly, to take charge and showing what she’s really made of. The best part is getting to know her, one word at the time.

What about you?

The NaNoWriMo Chronicles: Day 8

So what’s up guys!

Another update from today’s writing.

It seems week two is looking up, or it might be just fool’s luck.

So I hit 15K, still a long way to go. Not to mention I have no idea how I’ll ever get to fix this loop of nonsense mess that I’m writing.

But it’s all about the journey, right?

How’s your day been?

The NaNoWriMo Chronicles: Week One Overview

God that was hard!

Hello 🙂

So it’s the first few minutes of Nov. 8th. This means a whole week had gone by since NaNo began.

Overall it was a hard week. The hardest among all NaNo first weeks I ever encountered (since 2013). It was however, enjoyable in that I had went through it despite the agony the Inner-Editor and general laziness had put me through.

My Heroine is about to discover her true quest, and that things can get uglier still. Maybe that’ll make writing much easier.

For now, I am happy with reaching 14K. As bad and unusable as they might turn out to be in Dec. They are there and that’s all I that matters for now.

See ya later, and Good night for those it is night, have a nice day for those the midday is high 😉