Playlist I made to listen to while I'm NaNoWriMo-ing...

Na-No-Wri-Mo. Hmm. I'm going to get tired of saying that all month.

"It's NaNoWriMo. NaNoWriMo. NaNoWriMo."

I've told lots of people that I"m doing it; maybe it's just me. I know it's taken some people more than once to get the whole name right.

I feel good right now; maybe because I'm done with my Nanoing for the day, or because that I'm listening to a good song, or about to go eat candy and watch something or another with Dad. All of that, probably. Today didn't come as easy as yesterday; this one character that I do not want to give me trouble is giving me trouble. Drat her! However, Dex is being extremely easy and compliant.

"Good boy, Dex."

-Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow

Anyway, I think she's shaping up some. I thought of an excellent background that makes a lot more sense...just an extra thread that gets her onto the spaceship in a more reasonable way. I just like it better. I had to wing it, though! Even though when I first came up with the character, she had this thread...in fact, it was a main thread...I forgot about it, until a few minutes ago when I was getting desperate. anyway. Yahoo for me, I made it work! and now I'm tired. :)

I watched most of Batman Forever....I'm watching the series backwards, apparently. I watched Batman and Robin... I think the last time I got sick. (Wonderful movie to watch when sick, because: it's full of weirdness, corniness, Tim Burton-ness and neon colors, and after sleeping all day, I was already in the Twilight Zone.)

So, if I continue watching backwards, I should watch Batman Returns.
I liked Batman Forever, except that some of the humor was annoying, it was extremely corny (although entertaining) and Robin could have been a little more of a...hero? I like the ones that suffer a little bit. He just didn't seem to suffer enough. *Shrugs*

It was still fun to see him introduced to the story and see Jim Carrey as the Riddler. That may have been the best part. Heh heh. Enough of this rambling. G'Night!
Anna

An Excerpt from The Great Elation

He didn't like going to his destination. It was always painful. But it was only fair. Sometimes you just had to do things. And it wouldn't be right for no one to know that he was leaving. He would just have to suck it up.

It took him about thirty minutes to walk there. The streets were pretty calm, nearly empty. A few late walkers like himself strolled by; a few of them looked homeless, but one or two had briefcases and nice clothes, keys clinking together in their pockets. Lucky beasts.

A few cars drove past. The headlights made Dex happy. It reminded him of Christmas time. It wasn't that far off, Christmas. Just a few months, but he wouldn't be on Earth. He would be up in space somewhere, with billions of lights surrounding him constantly. Stars!

Dex turned off a brightly lit street into a dark alley that most other people would have veered away from. It didn't bother Dex. This was his world. He had never mugged anyone, or hid in an alley waiting to attack anybody, but he had hid in an alley so that he wouldn't be attacked. Or caught. Dark alleys didn't bother him. Besides, this alley wasn't the greatest for people to be hiding in, waiting to snag an innocent pedestrian. There weren't any dumpsters in it, and it was right next to an active home, that was always in and out, dumping garbage into trash barrels. Trash barrels, not dumpsters. He shivered a little. He was walking into the wind now; and tiny ice-cold drops of water were in the air, hitting him in the face. It felt like minuscule needles, the wind was blowing so hard, but it felt good, too. Why did anybody ever where scarves over their ears and noses?

It was just silly. You couldn't feel the wind and the icy gusts of wind that way. Of course, this made his nose run worse, and even made it a little red, but he didn't care. It felt like spearmint gum washing over him, without the taste or smell. Just the ice.

He turned onto another street, and then jogged down two alleys, and then onto a street again. There was an apartment building there, the windows and door shining with bright lights from within. He took a deep breath.

Now or never, he thought.

Ugh! He didn't want to do this. Jamie was always nice, but Dad? Ugh. No. It would just be torture to go in...it would hurt both of them, that he was leaving the planet. Neither would appreciate it. Dex recapped. No, Dad wouldn't care. Dad didn't miss him when he was gone, and he wouldn't miss him when he was gone for good either. Jamie might care though, and it was only fair that he give her an explanation for his sudden disappearance. He took a deep breath and climbed the seven steps to the door and knocked loudly, wincing as his dry knuckles cracked.

He heard Jamie say something, and then, "I've got it, dear."

He waited patiently, enjoying the cold, and then Jamie opened the door. Her face lit up.

"Dex! What are you doing here? Come in, come inside before you make yourself sick!"

You had to love Jamie.

"Hey, Jamie," Dex said, smiling.

"It is so good to see you! Oh, gosh, you have grown. I thought you quit doing that."

"Guess not," said Dex.

"No, no, guess not, guess not. What brings you this way?"

"I just came to...visit some," said Dex, turning serious.

Jamie's face fell and grew dark.

"You're okay, aren't you?" she asked, her voice wavering a little. "You're not - "

"No," said Dex quickly.

"Oh, good. Don't scare me like that Dex. I nearly had a heart attack. Mercy, your face is so cold!"

Dex realized that Jamie was holding his face between her hands. She's the sweetest person I know, Dex thought. She had wide, green eyes and dark brown hair that was loosely curled. She didn't seem old enough to be Dex's stepmother. But she was; she was the same age as his father. She was one of those people that just didn't age much. The kind that looked fifteen years younger than they actually were.

Dex smiled to reassure her and then looked beyond the dark hall.

"Um...is Dad here?"

She nodded. "Yeah!"

"Mmm. I might go talk to him a minute. But - I would like to talk to you too and have a brownie before I leave."

She smiled. "Definitely! Take your time. He's in there listening to the radio and reading the newspaper."

That is so typical Dad. Dex thought.

"Okay." Dex walked down the dark entryway until he reached a door and then he turned into it, bumping into the wall with his shoulder as he passed.

His Dad was sitting there, his thinning light brown hair glowing in the soft lamp light. He turned when he heard Dex enter the room. He had light gray eyes, the same color as Dex's.

Awkwardly, Dex walked around the old recliner and sat down on the couch opposite it. "Hey Dad."

"Son," said Ray Marshall, coolly. The thing about Ray; he tried to be warm. He really did. He just couldn't do it. Dex rolled his eyes.

Same 'ole, same 'ole.

"Dad..."

"I don't know what's wrong with calling you 'son.' Fathers say that to their sons, and you are my son."

Dex sighed and looked away from those piercing gray eyes. Same color, different story. One of Dex's greatest fears was that he had that same hard look on his face. He never wanted to look that way.

"You're alright, then? I thought I heard Jamie say something about it in the hall."

"Yeah, Dad, I'm fine. I just came by to talk."

"Well, that's a first," said Ray, folding up his newspaper and setting it on the floor next to his chair.

Title, Genre and Summary

I've decided on a working title and summary for my NaNoWriMo novel. (Drumroll, please...)


Title: The Great Elation
Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy

Summary:

It's the year 2033, five years after the worst stock market crash in the history of the United States, topping even the Wall Street Crash of 1929. Computers are nearly impossible to find, internet even harder. Half of the once secure world has plunged into a lifestyle almost identical to the lifestyle of the First Great Depression's victims. With the whole world starving and scavenging for clothes, the talents of a writer, a greaser, an aviator, a special agent, a wolf, and a book publisher aren't very well appreciated. Extraordinary circumstances bring all of them together when they accept positions on a ship bound for another world...another land....it could almost be another time. Friendships will be built, enemies made, but most of all, each of the members aboard the ship Danger will go on an adventure that changes their very core...the way they view the world...it might even change their lives.


My comments:

On the title:

I'm sorry, I can't tell you anything about the title. It would completely give away important parts of the novel.

On the genre and summary:

This I can tell you about. It's science fiction because I'm taking some liberties with science (like science fiction does) and it's fantasy because there are lots of things in this book that couldn't actually happen. Probably. I'm sort of introducing you to an alternate reality, but you have to accept it as the reality in the book. You never know what might happen in the future. ;) You probably picked up from the summary that it is a futuristic novel, and you might have also noticed something about the greatest stock market crash ever. The book is futuristic because it takes place in the future, but it's historical because a lot of things in the future have changed to resemble the past, including lifestyle, fashion, and entertainment forms.

On the cast of characters and the ship, you'll just have to wait. Thanks for reading!
Anna

More NaNoWriMo Stuff:

Okay, so in case no one has figured it out yet, I'm offering up lots of stuff that I think is interesting or cool or helpful about NaNoWriMo this year.

I was messing around some on the website today (I even updated my Novel Information...finally) and a few minutes ago I went to find the Young Writer's Program.

Wow.

I still count as a Young Writer, but I wasn't aware that the Young Writer's sight was so much cooler than the regular one, so I just signed up on the main site. Those of you who are going to do NaNoWriMo and haven't signed up yet (and are 17 or younger) should totally sign up on the Young Writer's sight. It has a bunch of cool stuff (including help books you can read for free online from elementary to high school age ...I was looking at the high school one, and even if you're past high school, it has a lot of helpful stuff in it. Some of it even seems more fun and interesting than the more professional No Plot? No Problem! Handbook.) and a Dare Machine which dares you to do something or other in your book when you get stuck. It even has a game, which I can't play because I'm signed up on the main site. :( anyway, it is definitely worth checking out. Explore it! Enjoy it, even if you're not signed up there. The free handbooks are a goodie that should be taken advantage of!
Anna

Fast and Furious

November is approaching. Which mean NaNoWriMo is speeding toward us participating writers, fast and furiously. Ooooh. *shivers of anticipation*

I'm very excited! But I am beginning to wonder if I have my mind set...am I ready for 2000 words a day on a novel I hardly know for thirty days? A very busy thirty days, I might add. Let's hope so. This fall stuff just keeps piling on. My art bug is back. My writing bug is always around (plus I have writing classes now) and would you believe it? My music bug showed up! How dare it! But it did, and now I have to deal with it. I bought new strings for Teddy (that's my violin. Theodore. :D ) and I need to get him restrung...unfortunately I don't know how to do that, but I know people that do, or I can go have it restrung by professionals, or my brothers might could help me figure it out.

I'm reading Chris Baty's NaNoWriMo help book (No Plot? No Problem!) but it's about to be shoved aside for the weekend, because I'm going to start Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer later this afternoon after I finish school. :D Soon I'll post book and movie reviews, possibly music reviews, and during November you may get writing snippets and/or excerpts from the products of Writing Workshop, my NaNoWriMo Novel, or Rhetoric Assignments. No promises, though. I've never posted anything on this blog....and I really don't know how many people actually read it. Not many, I don't think, at least, not any more. No one comments much, these days!
Anna

Setting a Timer

I cannot remember the name of the lady that suggested setting a timer for fifteen minutes and cleaning until it went off. But it's a good idea. You can get a whole lot done in fifteen minutes - more than you would probably think. Just setting aside time is the trick.

I've thought about how useful this would be for short writing increments during the day. Even five minutes. This blog post from Write A Better Novel is really helpful.

The Short Sentence

Reading Twilight, Harry Potter, The Circle Trilogy, and A Writer Writes...Sometimes makes me realize that a short sentence can be extremely powerful when I'm writing. Not that I never use them...it's just something to think about. I write a lot of sentences to get my point across, often wordy. I don't think they're too bad, but a lot of the time, I'll say the same thing several times in a row to make sure I get the point across the way I want it to be taken, (even though most people don't get to see much of my book while I'm working on it...I've only shared a few pages thus far) I'm writing like it's going to be read, sometime. Of course, long sentences can be useful to. Are all you NaNoWriMo participants getting pumped? Cause I am!