Some of my pals are going to give NaNoWriMo a shot ('National Novel Writing Month', in November). I'm not super-interested in attempting to write fiction, but I may go along for the ride and crank out a dungeon mini-setting worth sharing at the end.
I know there have been some Adventure-Writing-Month successes (usually in the Spring?), but I figure now's the time to give it a shot.
Anybody else ever do NaNoWriMo, or attempting it this year? 50,000 words is the goal by the end of November. That's a pretty sizeable adventure (even if I count each map as a thousand words... ;) ).
Quote from: VectorSigma;486942Some of my pals are going to give NaNoWriMo a shot ('National Novel Writing Month', in November). I'm not super-interested in attempting to write fiction, but I may go along for the ride and crank out a dungeon mini-setting worth sharing at the end.
I know there have been some Adventure-Writing-Month successes (usually in the Spring?), but I figure now's the time to give it a shot.
Anybody else ever do NaNoWriMo, or attempting it this year? 50,000 words is the goal by the end of November. That's a pretty sizeable adventure (even if I count each map as a thousand words... ;) ).
I did it a couple of years ago and it was tons of fun. The thing is you are not supposed to write as if it is for publication or a masterpiece, you are just supposed to write. Just focus on hitting 50k within the month (I think mine ended at 60-70k). There is an old saying for writers that goes: if you want to write a decent book, write four and throw them out, then you'll be ready to write something passable (not exact quote but general idea). This kinds of goes with that. You learn a lot doing it.
50k for and aventure is pretty big. Our rule books are all 45-55,000 words and run 110 pages or so. Our adventures run 16 to 34,000 or so. I think the key is to outline. If you outline the document well, hitting 50,000 shouldn't be much of a problem.
Oh, yeah, 50K is freaking huge. But I like the idea of having a goal that's perhaps beyond my reach. (cue "Don't Stop Believin'")
I was doing some outlining last night - of both the adventure and a writing plan - and it's absolutely appalling to see written down how little 'free time' an adult actually has. Monday night is running D&D, Tuesday is Cub Scouts...so I basically have Weds-Sun containing chunks of time to write.
The current plan is to attack the outline one chunk at a time, out-of-order possibly, and only work on one section at a time; no jumping around like I would normally do.
Anyway, Accursed Citadel of the Fish-Men is supposed to be a group of adventure sites for Labyrinth Lord or Mutant Future dealing with an underwater city of the ancients now populated by the eponymous fish-men and other foul denizens. And by 'underwater city', I mean the sort of thing projected by 'Popular Science' back in the fifties, with crazy domes and fish-farms and all of it running in perpetuity on geothermal power and governed by a (probably mad) AI. :D Flooded levels, dry levels, sub-basements, caverns, and more.
Sounds like a cool adventure.
I find waking up early and writing for an hour or two helps. You'd be surpised how many words you can do if you stick to a schedule.
I've done it a few times. I'm batting .500 so far. I'm going to go hard at it this year and see what happens.
I decided to do it this year. I'm writing a gonzo RPG that I have been one the fence about doing for a couple years. I just saw both Heavy Metal and Wizards last week and said what the hell.
I've written 3 novels so far...one published. The other two have just been brick walls for me, though at some point I'll likely get off my butt and self-publish them, for all the good it will do.
The quickest novel took me 3 months to write, around 80k words. I dunno how folks can do a credible novel in a month, kudos to those that try!
In one month, a dedicated writer could do a 50k rough draft, then additional months for rewrites and editing.
Quote from: Spinachcat;487147I decided to do it this year. I'm writing a gonzo RPG that I have been one the fence about doing for a couple years. I just saw both Heavy Metal and Wizards last week and said what the hell.
I miss the midnite movies . . .
I'm participating for something like the ninth year in a row. It doesn't have a ton of utility for me anymore, I just do it for fun and to enjoy the community of people who get together every November for this.
Well, no better time than the present - I've wanted to write a book for years, may as well see if I can do it in a month.
Too busy with my own writing. :)
Quote from: Benoist;487534Too busy with my own writing. :)
Same here. In 2010, I wrote, illustrated and published 2 games, each of over 500 pages. I write for a living, then I go home and write more for fun. I have no talent or inclination for writing fiction, though. I used to hire people to write fiction for my games, then stopped including any game fiction at all - it just makes gamers' eyes glaze and gorges rise.
-clash
Quote from: flyingmice;487542Same here. In 2010, I wrote, illustrated and published 2 games, each of over 500 pages. I write for a living, then I go home and write more for fun. I have no talent or inclination for writing fiction, though. I used to hire people to write fiction for my games, then stopped including any game fiction at all - it just makes gamers' eyes glaze and gorges rise.
-clash
I guess it depends on the game we're talking about, and the length of said fiction. I was just reading (the excellent)
Mekhet: Shadows in the Dark, for instance, and the fact that the biggest part of the clan book is written from a first person, in-character perspective helps to understand some of the concepts no amount of rules or dissociated explanations could have approached with the same clarity.
So I think it all depends what the aims of the RPG book you are trying to write are, exactly. If fiction there is, I think this fiction's aim should be to approach concepts useful for the game you're going to run after reading it, rather than just be a piece of fiction for the sake of it, because "fiction is cool" or whatever other deluded idea one might have when going about it from other standpoints.
Additionally, if you can't help but write pages upon pages of fiction to pass on these concepts you were trying to explain, then maybe you're not such a good fiction writer after all, or should have written a novel instead of a RPG book...
How is everyone doing on this?
I just broke 12k words tonight, which puts me about 1300 words behind the eightball to make the goal. I was crazy busy over the weekend and missed two days so I'm scrambling now.
I'm at 12,282. My page is http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/participants/danbuter
I'm currently at 16, 453 words. Things are moving along, and I've barely scratched the main plot. I've been setting up a secondary plot for the last chapter or so. :D
My progress on the adventure is slow, but I've made some advances in getting the (workable, not pretty) maps done.
I finished at 15.5 k yesterday, and now that I've prepped dinner and done my workout, I'm just about to get started on today's slog.
@vectorsigma
So far I've resisted the urge to do a map, but I think i might do one tonight after I'm done writing.
I tried to put off the maps, but I guess I'm a visual thinker. Lack of map was impeding my thought processes.
And I've never tried to map a retro-sci-fi underwater habitat before, so it took a couple of tries to get something with which I was even vaguely satisfied.
Quote from: VectorSigma;489218I tried to put off the maps, but I guess I'm a visual thinker. Lack of map was impeding my thought processes.
Just remember that a picture is only worth 1,000 words.
Now at 17,338, which is seriously falling behind. Why did Skyrim have to get released right in the middle of Nano? I wrote nothing yesterday, just played that video game. I need to get 3,000 today, or I'll be way behind. I'm at 880 so far.
You'll catch up, Dan - and y'know, even if you don't, so long as you're plunging ever-forward, you're accomplishing the goal.
I'm getting sucked into a kiddie birthday party this afternoon which is splitting up my day...and Cub Scout fishing tomorrow morning? Guess I'll be up late tonight. Good thing my wife's out of town!
I'm at 17330. I need to make up some time this weekend.
I'm behind, but I've had lots of things come up. Spending time with friends/family. Of course I'm totally writing my worst attempt at a novel ever. (Yay, bipolar/anxious character with folklore/gaming lore goes to help werewolf girl fight demons--completely sucks at it because he's completely normal guy in every way, i.e Mary Sue self insertion alternate world. Of course he's the sidekick...)
19193.
Aaaaargh!
23075, I am once again on track to finish in November, and over the last two days the plot of the novel has resolved itself. based on where I am now, I'm thinking it will be between 150-200k words complete.
Here's a bit of the purple for you to wince at:
As one, the warworms rose up and pounced on Ash. For a moment, his world contracted down to cold wriggling flesh, clenching, sucking mouthparts and an unimaginably foul stink. He spent desperate struggling seconds dodging teeth, before he got his sword arm free from the slimy press. The creatures tangled around each other as much as they did him. He lopped the head off one and then another. A third clamped its mouth down on his sword arm, swallowing it up to the elbow, sword and all. Ash drove the fist of his free hand through its eye mound; it did not release. Screaming in rage and pain, he whipped the thing around, smashing it into another worm, sending this one end over end into the boiling pool. It released an unsettling, infant-like scream as it died.
That last line was originally "it screamed like a bitch as it died." I hated to change it but it just didn't fit with the context.
I want stats for 'warworms' right this goddamn instant, Aos. No fair teasing like that.
Well they're riding animals, that should tell you something about the strength of the guy fighting them.
Actually, though, I've been thinking of sitting down and writing up character sheets for all the major figures in the story. I think it could be useful and fun to embrace my rpg heritage.
I'm stu2000 on the NaNo--we can be writing buddies! :)
I'm caught up so far, but this manuscript is going to go 90K at least. I'm going to have to figure out how it ends pretty soon, I think.
I haven't tried to write anything this length since my kids were little. Lots of concentration. My brain is tired at night.
I'm The Dead Earth, I'll zip over there now and see if i can figure ou the buddy system.
And yeah, I'm tired as hell by the end of the day too, and my attention span is shot.
Way to go Stu, you're over 30k words with a more than a two weeks to go!
Anyone else that wants to "buddy" with me feel free.
How is everyone doing?
I'm scheduled to finish on the 28th. The holiday will likely screw that up, though.
I'm really getting a lot out of this. I think the pace is just about right for me, although I'll probably cut it down to 1500 words after the end of the month. One thing I would advise is to limit your looks back over what you've done. Save that shit for later. when you have a complete draft.
Precisely so. Draft. Let it get weird. Finish. Revise. Publish and repeat.
What are you thinking in terms of publishing? I'm thinking of releasing a cheap kindle edition if i manage to make something halfway coherent.
I'll try first to get it published on paper. But barring that, I'm absolutely not too proud to put it up somewhere as an e-book. People caught up in the whole aspiring writer thing will tell you to avoid it in all cases as a trap, but I disagree. A piece finds its market one way or another.
Just be aware that what you're doing--even if it seems sort of silly to you--has value to folks out there and don't sell it short. By all means, sell it, though.
Quote from: stu2000;491043I'll try first to get it published on paper. But barring that, I'm absolutely not too proud to put it up somewhere as an e-book. People caught up in the whole aspiring writer thing will tell you to avoid it in all cases as a trap, but I disagree. A piece finds its market one way or another.
At one time, I was caught up in the whole aspiring writer thing; if ever there was a trap, that's one. After having done so in the past, I can't think of a single compelling reason to deal with a traditional publisher.
The advice to avoid vanity press is old-fashioned.
The only reason to deal with a publisher is the presumed cache. But if it gets exasperating, or they don't seem to be getting the job done, you have alternatives. No one really knows the best way to squeeze the most money out of the alternatives, but that will come with time. I just try to remember that although publishing isn't always the main reason to write, it is part of the process.
Weirdly, although my NaNoWriMo project is stalled, I've gotten lots of other 'little' things knocked out in the past few weeks.
Only 3K to go here, and I'll have a decent first draft. Lots of revision ahead, then I'll probably self-pub sometime next year.
2.5k left to hit 50k here. that will be about 60% of the first 1/3 of the novel. I'm going to take a week off and then get back on it. I've set myself a deadline of March 1st for the first draft of the whole thing.
I have almost 70K. I met the goal, but I'm still a pretty good ways away from a finished first draft. And after that, I have more substantial revision to do than I usually have for a project.
It's been fun doing this this year.
I made it.
Congratulations!
About half of my virtual classroom made it. Combined, we did about 110,000 words. I guess everyone altogether did over 3 billion words. Holy Smokes.
It horrifies and intrigues me.
Quote from: Aos;492950I made it.
Me too.