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Read Board: Nanowrimo

Re: So who made it?
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #663812 by TheRK
Dec 21, 2011 10:42am
Thread Board (disabled)
Note that I didn't say it was a lucrative career...yet. However, it is moving in that direction. Here are the bare bones of my experience, YMMV.

In 2000, my partner and I won a writing contest where the prize was a contract to publish as audio book. We got some money, but more grief, as the company involved did a very nice job of publishing our book then ripping us off. However, our eyes were open to the possibility of writing commercially rather than just as a hobby. At that point we had three very rough, unfinished manuscripts.

In 2001 we each resubmitted individually to the same contest and took second and third place. We then began serious development of one of the stories from that resubmission into a fourth novel.

In 2006 our AQ friend Brandy dragged us kicking and screaming into nanowrimo. Now we had six rough novels. We began looking for an agent.

In 2007, we spent half of November on a dream vacation in England, but by the end of the 2008 nano we had eight manuscripts and no agent.

In 2008, we had nine usable manuscripts and still no agent. However, we noticed that nano winners would get a free proof copy from CreateSpace. We had disdained self-publishing as being "for writers who can't get a contract" and also as "way out of our budget". Both of those had been changing while we were not looking, and we knew that what we were writing was as good as anything that was getting published. I looked into CreateSpace as a very remote possibility, but I liked what I saw.

In 2009, we published Tanella's Flight and Fabric of the World through CreateSpace. Sales were slow and erratic. I started reading everything I could on self-publishing and promoting my books.

In 2010, we made both books into ebooks, published Clues to Food in print and ebook, I went back to school as a full-time student, and we wrote two more novels during nano. Sales remained slow and erratic.

In 2011, we published Deadly Gamble, A Heart Full of Diamonds, Assignment to Earth, and a reading sampler in print and ebook, made new, better covers for Tanella's Flight, Fabric of the World and Clues to Food, and wrote one usable novel during nano. Sales remain slow, but are becoming consistent...we have sold books in every month since May, and have been paid by at least one of our various vendors every month since May, with the exception of July. I understand that the "key" is to write good books, take up as much "shelf-space" as possible at Amazon, and have good covers. I believe I am getting there. We have calculated that out of all the readers in the world, if we can get a mere 10,000 to like our writing enough to buy everything we write, and if we publish two books per year (which will be easy once I graduate in May), we will replace my partner's salary at her day job. We're not looking to get rich.

In 2012, our plans are to publish Inherit My Heart in January, Graduate from college in May, publish The Mom's Place in about June, publish The Siege of Kwennjurat around October, and write two more usable manuscripts in November.

Advice? Write. Write. Write. Edit. Edit. Write. Write. Learn to make your own covers. Learn to market your own books. Self-publish in print and ebook. Learn to do your own formatting for both. Write some more. make sure everything you publish is well-edited and looks professional.

Romana / A M Jenner
Camp Nanowrimo
Board: Nanowrimo
May 31, 2012 11:05am
Thread Board (disabled)
What am I thinking?! Camp Nano starts tomorrow and I just signed up. I have no idea what I am going to write and I think I may be crazy. Anyone else going to camp?
Re: Camp Nanowrimo
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #704859 by Alaska hsm
May 31, 2012 12:15pm
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I'm thinking about going to camp in august...

Romana
Re: Camp Nanowrimo
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #704859 by Alaska hsm
Jun 4, 2012 6:55am
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I'm going to be away for the last 10 days of the month and probably not going to be able to carve out much writing time, so I'll have to wait until November. :)
Re: Camp Nanowrimo
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #705749 by Brandy
Jun 4, 2012 9:30am
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they also have camp in august...
Re: Camp Nanowrimo
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #705778 by Romana
Jun 4, 2012 9:38am
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might do this... :-) even though I'm camping in August for a LB thing. :-D
Last years madness
Board: Nanowrimo
Aug 29, 2012 4:17pm
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Has anyone done anything with their stories from last years Nov. Nano?

Also, are you going to participate again this year? I keep going back and forth on it.
Mumble
Re: Last years madness
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #726746 by mumble
Aug 29, 2012 5:18pm
Thread Board (disabled)
I got maybe 20 pages in and that's it. Haven't had time to get back to it since. (maybe that was 2 years ago.)

I was going to do the August Camp thing but didn't.

I've got no other commitments this year in November so I'm going to give it another try. And I can't figure out if i want to be a planer or not. :-D

Infin~T
Re: Last years madness
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #726746 by mumble
Aug 30, 2012 7:13am
Thread Board (disabled)
Due to school and this strange desire to get decent grades, I haven't been able to do NaNo for two years.

However, my 2006 novel (Fabric of the World) is published, and my 2009 novel (Working title: Mind Touch) is scheduled to be published in October 2013.

I finished a new novel (Working title: Crown of Tears) in August's camp, and am already thinking about what I will write this November.

Romana
Re: Last years madness
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #726841 by Romana
Aug 30, 2012 7:18am
Thread Board (disabled)
I start off good & get about halfway through some & then I loose direction. How do you do it? I feel like I'm just retelling someone else's story whenever I write. Like I have no original ideas. :-(

I have high hopes for November... but I'm also a tad concerned I'm going to suck at this one too.
Re: Last years madness
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #726842 by Infin-T
Aug 31, 2012 9:51am
Thread Board (disabled)
I make a plan for where I think the characters are going. I start off good and get about halfway through, and then, if I am lucky, the characters take over and I lose the direction I have begun in. I try very hard to be retelling the character's story, the way it "actually happened to them", as though I am simply recording their lives.

In the story I just finished, for example, I had planned for princess A to be a little bit of a brat but eventually to grow up and die heroically, princess B to fall in love with a groom and suffer a great amount of angst because she can't marry a commoner, and princess C to fall in love with a foriegn prince, marry him, and never come home from their quest, all while the quest is successfully completed. Instead, the characters hijacked the story halfway through. Princess A was much brattier and ended up exhibiting some non-fatal self-destructive tendancies, and doing things altogether unplanned for. Princess B hired the groom, then ignored him and fell in love with someone else who was intended to be a minor character. The minor character was supposed to stay home on his island and instead, he caught a boat and tracked the princesses down, pushing in where he was definitely not invited by the author. Princess C actually followed the plan I had given her.

As far as feeling like you're plagarizing someone else's story, unless you're stealing their words, don't worry about it. I have a book written in 18th century france called "The 38 dramatic situations". Ihave also often heard that there are only something like 7 or 8 different plots - the rest is all just our own window dressing and twists to keep it interesting. It's like watching a favorite TV show, when you've gone to a commercial and left the hero in a bad situation. You don't worry about him too much because you know they can't kill off the hero, but you stick with the show to find out how he gets out of it. It's the character you care about, not the actual plot. Make the characters your own unique creation, bring them to life, then get out of the way and write down their life the way they tell you it happened.

Romana
Re: Last years madness
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #727105 by Romana
Aug 31, 2012 4:34pm
Thread Board (disabled)
OMG thank you so much for putting it that way. I totally see it. I have characters that I haven't finished their stories but I love them so much I can't just leave them. Problem is tracking down their stories to finish them. :-)

I'd totally read your Princess story. Got to love that unexpected change of minor character to more involved one.
Re: Last years madness
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #727172 by Infin-T
Sep 1, 2012 2:00am
Thread Board (disabled)
It's not likely to be published for a couple of years, at least. My partner and I both write a new manuscript during Nano. Then we send them to the bottom of the list, because editing is easier after you let the manuscript sit for a while and you can look at it with new eyes. It takes approximately seven months to take a manuscript from rough draft to published. We overlap that a little bit, and aim to publish two books per year. However, we have a small backlog built up, and are working on that first. Make sense?

The very tentative and self-imposed publication schedule goes something like this:

10/24/12 The Siege of Kwennjurat (Fantasy; sequal to Tanella's Flight)
4/15/13 Words Can Never Hurt Me (Suspense; contemporary sf/political thriller)
10/1/13 Mind Touch (Fantasy; involves telepaths)
Stories without firm dates:
The Castle Project (Suspense; I think it involves a serial killer)
Sirens in Her Heart (Romance; contemporary, involving an ambulance attendant)
Bits and Bites: Fun Size Stories (Short story collection, everything from sf to romance to horror)
Crown of Tears (Fantasy; this is the one I just finished writing)
Killer Stamps (Suspense; involving letterboxing)

Also, these are the working titles; the only one that is definite is The Siege of Kwennjurat.

Romana
Re: Last years madness
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #727230 by Romana
Sep 1, 2012 2:24pm
Thread Board (disabled)
it does make sense. I'm inspired to finish a story now & possibly go back & finish/re-write a few more. I found one I wrote in 6th grade in a binder of stuff when I moved. Kind of funny.

From the sounds of it (our conversation) you seem to kind of plan your stories. I haven't done that & wonder if it would help get me from start to end.

I've been adjusting my email notifications on all of my log ins & recently updated my NaNoWriMo login & stuff. Was reading some of their stuff & I'm excited for November.
NANO is coming!!!!
Board: Nanowrimo
Oct 19, 2012 9:54am
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Just had to get that out. Carry on.
Re: NANO is coming!!!!
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #738680 by Alaska hsm
Oct 19, 2012 10:05am
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I'm ready to start writing!
Re: NANO is coming!!!!
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #738680 by Alaska hsm
Oct 23, 2012 6:58am
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Can't wait!! I have three novels that are outlined! Now I just have to pick one to start in on!!!
How's it going?
Board: Nanowrimo
Nov 12, 2012 10:27am
Thread Board (disabled)
Nearly halfway! How is everyone doing? I just got to 30K this past weekend! Phew, I might actually do it this year!!
Re: How's it going?
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #743540 by TheRK
Nov 12, 2012 10:35am
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I just reached 10K, after having been derailed and stumped for a full week! However, my story will now be all right, I think, and I have hopes to finish on time.

Romana
Re: How's it going?
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #743540 by TheRK
Nov 23, 2012 11:36pm
Thread Board (disabled)
You know, I completely forgot about it this month. =) But admittedly, I've never participated even when I did remember. But at least I always felt guilty about that in previous years!

HOWEVER..... I have been typing up a whole lot of blog entries from my Camino hike! =) I have blog posts all the way through the end of this year and into January already set up! And I hope to get the rest of them done by the end of the month. *nodding*

-- Ryan
Re: How's it going?
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #745754 by Green Tortuga
Nov 24, 2012 6:48am
Thread Board (disabled)
It's not too late to sign up for Nano. Add up all your posts by dumping them into a single document. I bet you have close to 50K. When you get them all posted on your blog and in a single document, I'll be more than happy to edit for you, and you will have a second hiking book! And a Nano win!

Romana
Re: How's it going?
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #745771 by Romana
Dec 5, 2012 1:51am
Thread Board (disabled)
It's not too late to sign up for Nano.

It is when you only read this board every couple of weeks. =)

When you get them all posted on your blog and in a single document, I'll be more than happy to edit for you

Oh, you wouldn't want to do that. I suppose technically speaking, correcting spelling and grammar mistakes wouldn't take too terribly long, but frankly, to be a book quality, I think every single sentence pretty much needs to be rewritten from scratch!

But you are right about one thing.... I did probably write 50K in words for my blog. I'd pretty much blogged almost every single day in November and now have posts set to go through the end of January. =)

-- Ryan
Re: How's it going?
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #747539 by Green Tortuga
Dec 5, 2012 8:21am
Thread Board (disabled)
I really wouldn't mind editing for you, and reading the blog, there's not a lot that would need to be rewritten. certainly not
every single sentence pretty much needs to be rewritten from scratch!

You have a wonderfully engaging writing style, and if you do too much rewriting from scratch, you'll lose the awesome feeling of immediacy that takes your readers down the trail with you on your adventure.

Romana
2013?
Board: Nanowrimo
Oct 19, 2013 11:07pm
Thread Board (disabled)
Anyone writing this year? It'll be my ninth so far.
Re: 2013?
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #811333 by redcurl
Oct 20, 2013 3:24am
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Me!!!

I'll be writing the third novel in the Kwennjurat Chronicles.

Romana
Re: 2013?
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #811333 by redcurl
Oct 20, 2013 12:03pm
Thread Board (disabled)
Me me. And I am mling too. Can't wait is it November yet?
Re: 2013?
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #811333 by redcurl
Oct 20, 2013 5:03pm
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I will be! 3rd year! Hopefully it'll be my second win!!
Re: 2013?
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #811469 by TheRK
Oct 21, 2013 7:27pm
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This will be my 8th nano. So far I have five wins in 7 tries - one non win was the year I spent more than half of November in England, the other was when I discovered that college students already write more per day than nano-ers, and didn't have time for homework and nano. I got A's though...

Romana
Re: 2013?
Board: Nanowrimo
Reply to: #811333 by redcurl
Oct 29, 2013 3:48pm
Thread Board (disabled)
All three of us here (FlowerWind, Doodlepaws, and myself) will be writing this year. I'll be working on the sequel to Stone Song. Doodlepaws is working on a sequel as well. FlowerWind has no idea what to write, but that will come too.

As a side note: Doodlepaws is currently working with an illustrator for her first story. I'll post an update when it's ready.
Quinn Novel
Board: Nanowrimo
Apr 1, 2015 10:59am
Thread Board (disabled)
Okay I was told this is the place I could go and tell you all. Yay I'm published. I was also told I could cross post to the reading group and the nano group.

So I got picked up by the Electric Scroll (Romana's publishing company) and I have my first book out.

Here is what it is about.
Quinn: The travelers book 1
Quinn Brooks woke in a hospital room with no memory of how she got there; she only knows she must escape or die. Fortunately Samantha Woods was willing to pick up hitchhikers, and the two women became friends.

As they travel across Alaska, Canada, and into the lower 48, Quinn ‘Travels’ uncontrollably in time.

Pursued in the present and shot at in the past, can Quinn find the answers she needs before time runs out?

If you would like to buy it you can buy it directly from the publisher http://www.electric-scroll.com/index.php?content=book&id=13 or from Amazon. It's available in both paperback and e-book.

Some of you told me to tell you when it came out so that is why I am posting. The second book is scheduled to be out in November. Also this was a Nano book.