Hello and Happy November!! Today is the day for the monthly meeting of The Insecure Writer's Support Group, founded by our Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh. To view list members and this month's co-hosts, visit the IWSG page here.
Each month the IWSG team asks a question for participants to answer if desired. This month's question is: Win or not, do you usually finish your NaNo project? Have any of them gone on to be published?
I've only participated in NaNo twice and I finished once and didn't even make it through the first week the second time. The novel I finished went on to be published as The Ghosts of Aquinnah. Last year I signed up determined to work on my story inspired by my trip to France called A Window Box in Paris. That went nowhere, to say the least.
Now I'm participating a third time and I'm once again planning to write A Window Box in Paris. But I think I will have very different results this year as the story is totally different! Only the title and two characters remain from last year's ideas. I was never totally sold on the story I was trying to write last year but this one feels like it wants to be written.
And, I got a wonderful surprise and a burst of inspiration when I won the Encouragement Award for the October WEP challenge!! 🙌😃 My story, The Apartment, was connected to A Window Box in Paris and featured one of the main characters as a child. I never intended to write anything about the character's childhood until I started trying to think of ideas for the October hop. The way the piece came together makes me think the full story is meant to be told.
So I'm excited for NaNo and feeling confident that I'll have a repeat of my first experience instead of my second one.
Best of luck to everyone else who is participating! 😃😄
I've only participated in NaNo twice and I finished once and didn't even make it through the first week the second time. The novel I finished went on to be published as The Ghosts of Aquinnah. Last year I signed up determined to work on my story inspired by my trip to France called A Window Box in Paris. That went nowhere, to say the least.
Now I'm participating a third time and I'm once again planning to write A Window Box in Paris. But I think I will have very different results this year as the story is totally different! Only the title and two characters remain from last year's ideas. I was never totally sold on the story I was trying to write last year but this one feels like it wants to be written.
And, I got a wonderful surprise and a burst of inspiration when I won the Encouragement Award for the October WEP challenge!! 🙌😃 My story, The Apartment, was connected to A Window Box in Paris and featured one of the main characters as a child. I never intended to write anything about the character's childhood until I started trying to think of ideas for the October hop. The way the piece came together makes me think the full story is meant to be told.
So I'm excited for NaNo and feeling confident that I'll have a repeat of my first experience instead of my second one.
Best of luck to everyone else who is participating! 😃😄
That's awesome! Take it as a good sign for your NaNo project. Funny, when I wrote my first book, the only things that survived were the two main characters and the title as well.
ReplyDeleteGlad you're excited and confident. Those are two feelings you need for success. And whatever you get done is going to be a great accomplishment.
ReplyDeleteYou can do it! Hang in there. I read your story for the October WEP and it was great. Once again, congratulations!
ReplyDeleteShalom aleichem,
Pat G @ EverythingMustChange
I sounds like you have a solid plan and outline this year, Julie. I'm wishing you much luck to persevere!!!!
ReplyDeleteYou can do it! I'll be cheering you on. And congrats on the award.
ReplyDeleteBest of luck with NaNo. Wahoo on the reward.
ReplyDeleteJuneta @ Writer's Gambit
I loved that story! Congrats on the award and good luck with Nano.
ReplyDeleteMany congrats on the award! And how exciting that you'll be working on A Window Box in Paris for NaNo this year. Can't help but be thoroughly intrigued by this project after reading your companion piece to it. Best of luck with it!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the award! It sounds like you're ready to succeed. I know how the "story is ready" thing feels because that's what I feel like this year, too.
ReplyDeleteBest wishes on your writing, Julie! Hoping for a win for each of us!
Good luck with the NaNo this year! (Ithinkyoucan, Ithinkyoucan...)
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the award for your WEP story. You definitely deserved it.
Ooh. I just read your story, and wow!!! I loved it and want to read more. I hope he solves the mystery and helps find the resolution those voices need.
ReplyDeleteBest of luck with NaNoWriMo! And The Apartment was a fantastic story—I'm excited to read anything that is a companion to that. Also, I love that The Ghosts of Aquinnah was a NaNo project once.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your award and doing NaNoWriMo! You are a busy writer!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your WEP Encouragement Award!
ReplyDeleteAs I mentioned before, I'm looking forward to A Window Box in Paris. I LOVE stories set in Paris!
Good luck with NaNoWriMo!
Happy IWSG Day!
I'm ready to write! I think the excitement helps build momentum, and when November first rolls around, we hold nothing back. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on all your achievements so far, Julie. Fab job!! Good luck with NaNo and have lots of fun.
ReplyDeleteSounds like you and NaNoWriMo are a good fit. Congrats on getting a published book from it. Good luck this year.
ReplyDeleteThanks, all!! As usual you guys rock. :)
ReplyDeleteSo good to hear you are inspired to dive into NaNo again this year with a new idea but keeping the same title. (It is a great title too!). Hope all goes well and the words flow.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, and good luck with NaNo! It sounds like you are much better prepared this time, so I predict success!
ReplyDelete—Rebecca
My IWSG Post
I've never officially signed up, but I have used the month and the challenge as motivation.
ReplyDeleteGood luck!!!
Sounds like the timing is right now, Julie! Good luck!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the award - awesome! That was a really good story. :)
ReplyDeleteSee you in the NaNo trenches!
Congratulations on your award, Julie. I was off wandering around and couldn't participate this time out. I'll have to see what stories are out there.
ReplyDeleteMy new digs online are here: http://www.cleemckenziebooks.com/ Decided to move out of Blogger.
Loving the story you're gonna write makes a huge, huge, difference. Good luck with NaNo. Not that you'll need it. :-)
ReplyDeleteAnna from elements of emaginette
Sending you lots of virtual support for your NaNo project. Sounds great just hearing you talk about it. Happy November!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, Julie! And it sounds like you're in a better place conceptually this year, more excited about the project, so here's to a great NaNo!
ReplyDeleteCongrats! I'd say that's a sign the story's time has come. Definitely a nice boost as you head into this busy month.
ReplyDeleteThanks again, all!! :) :)
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the award! Good luck with NaNo - it sounds like this time around you've got a better perspective of your Paris novel. Sometimes the stories just need to percolate.
ReplyDeleteYou can do it! I'm having doubts about finishing this year. It's not that I haven't been preparing. It's that I still have outstanding interviews and research. My outline isn't finished. Bah! We'll see. :) http://www.raimeygallant.com
ReplyDeleteHi Julie - I loved Pierre's story or the start of his story ... it's great you'll be continuing it - the Encouragement Award was duly deserved. Good luck with NaNo ... all the best - cheers Hilary
ReplyDeletei'm ready to read the window box book. If you need a beta...
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the award and good luck with NaNo. You've had success with it before, so I'm betting success will come again.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the award and good luck with NaNo!
ReplyDeleteBreak a pen! I'm always rooting for you!
ReplyDeleteYay to the prize! It sounds like it was the perfect kick to continue. Sometimes a story just needs to stew before it can be written. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteJulie, congratulations again! It's wonderful when an inspiration for a hop becomes part of a bigger story. It's happened to me so many times. So, we're both writing stories set in Paris. Mine's nearly ready to submit, then back to a previous story which languishes at 25,000 words. Such fun, isn't it? Perhaps we can encourage each other to reach the finish line.:-)
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, Julie. It's wonderful to read good news. What a boost to your confidence. Best wishes with NaNo.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the award. Best of luck with NaNo. You can do it!
ReplyDeleteWoot on the award, and best of luck in NaNo! (And sorry for the really late visit.)
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the award. I really enjoyed The Apartment. You did a fantastic job with it! It's no wonder you won, it was well deserved!!
ReplyDeleteHave a beachy week!
Elsie
I hope NaNo is going well for you. I had no idea that The Ghosts of Aquinnah was a past NaNo project!!!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the award - I loved that story. Looking forward to the novel, whenever it appears :-) I'm very intrigued by the fact the story is completely different - that sounds like my current WIP!
ReplyDeleteSomehow NaNo doesn't work for me. I only tried it once, and dropped out within days. It just paralyzed my writing. But it seems to really work for so many. I do hear success stories, where someone got a completed draft out of it that went on to become a completed book. Hats off to these winners!
ReplyDeleteHappy November to you too! NaNo never works for me, but I greatly respect people who do it:)
ReplyDeleteI think I remember you talking about that one last year. I'm excited to see what comes of it this time around, because you're going to rock it! =)
ReplyDelete
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