It's September! That means that NaNo is not too far away. Time to begin preparations for the Big Write...

Hello!

I'm Tim, akaNewMexicoKid, one of the fourMLs for theNaperville regionalong with Sam (samcadams), Jenny (GwenTolios) and Sara (paperlanterns). We're volunteers who are here to help you succeed in your NaNoWriMo adventure. Jenny and Sara are new this year, stepping in to take over forMelinda, who has moved on to warmer climes.

Welcome! We havea full slate of eventsplanned for this NaNoWriMo season, starting with fourpreparatory workshops that I'll post about in a different thread. We will be handing out this year's version of thehipster PDAat thepreparatory workshops. You can use your hipster PDA to collect the library cards at the many write-ins at this year'sLibrary Crawl(Sarah/sarahk06 is coordinating); the collected cards will be good for raffle chances for prizes at the TGIO.

I typically write fantasy or science fiction (though for NaNo, because of the complexity of SF, I have mostly stuck with fantasy). My novel this fall is a fantasy story about a girl with some special powers who was stolenwhen very young by someone who seeks to grow and protect their pocket world. This person has taken a number of special children from different universes, but their past catches up with them and a group known as the Collective comes to steal the heart of the pocket world. It is then up to my main character to protect the only family sheknows and to find a way to restore their home before it collapses.

Feel free to post questions in this forum or send NaNoMail to any of us MLs. Welcome! Please use this thread to introduce yourself! What genres do you write? I know it is very early, but how are you doing in your preparations for this year's NaNo?

--Tim

Hey, Wrimos!

Super excited to be an ML this year. We've got lots of good things planned for you all.

Despite writing SFF year after year, one of my bubbling ideas is a rom-com fake relationshipstory. We'll see if I actually go with that, I also have a few ideas of modern tech as magic conduits, space sirens, and turning sea chanties into airship stories. Who knows. I've got two months. ^_~

Hello everyone. It is I Daniel McCullough also know as The Original DJRM. I write science fiction and fantasy. I don't know which I will be working on this year. I am taking a step back from my main work The God Factor to focus on things I know I can finish and therefore sell.

Anyone know how much longer we have before they clear out the forums for the new year?

We were told in a few weeks. Early Oct like.

Hi I'm Vicki. First timer. Working on my novel for five years now. Nothing to show for it as I'm starting from scratch. But since the characters remain the same, and the plot is more defined, I feel I am ready to write my 50,000 words in November! Looking forward to this group and coming to some of the write-ins:))

Also, where do you post the write in locations? Thanks,

Vicki

Hi, I'm Elaine Fisher (fishmama) and I'm glad to be back. This is my 5th year and am hoping to "win" again!

I'll be continuing my YA historical fantasy series called 'The Dream Travelers" about two teenage girls, one from the Old West and one from the present, who exchange places through the help of an ancient race of birdpeople called the Avians. I find it fascinating researching the history behind the time period I'm writing about that takes place in two fictional towns in two parallel worlds near Waco TX. Book 1 is the set-up for the rest of series bringing the Old West alive in 1895 comparing and contrasting the hardships but also a simpler time to the the modern comforts of today's busy world of technology. In last year's Book 2, set in 1896, there is the spectacular crashing of two steam locomotives for promotional purposes of the railroad...people came from all over to witness this...unbelieveably true! So I have my main characters interacting with real people and events during this period of time.

Now it's time for this year's Nano novel. After doing research, I uncovered UFO sightings in Aurora, TX during the three years that my story is set in. Articles from respectable newpapers during this time tell of the crash of an "airship" in Aurora, TX in 1897. An "alien" pilot is supposedly buried in the town's cemetery. How cool is that... Roswell in the Old West!. I have an ancient race of birdpeople who have settled on Earth ...maybe have left a dying planet? ...so now need to tie it all together....but it's a series...so I have time!

eon1888 wrote:Also, where do you post the write in locations? Thanks, Vicki

You can find our google calendar both on this site and also at naperwrimo.org/events-- these event entries should contain locations of each write-in.

It hasn't been updated yet, but the Library Crawl information will be at naperwrimo.org/crawl

Cheers,

--Tim

Welcome to the Naperville region for NanoWriMo 2017. My name isSam McAdams, and I'm honored to once again be helping you through the Nano seasonas one of your regional Municipal Liaisons (ML).For the third year in a row it will be my privilege to be working alongside NaNo legend and our fearless leader, Tim Yao (NewMexicoKid). I'm also thrilled to joined by two first year MLs,Jenny (GwenTolios) and Sara (paperlanterns). We have a ton of events planned. The Library Crawl will be back for a fourth straight year. You'll be able to find a write-in nearly every day in November. We also have a couple of other write-in events up our sleeves. Keep an eye on the forums.

I typically write comedic superhero/science fiction, which usually includetalking animals. This year will be no different, as I plan to write new sections for my BarnYard Heroes story written from the cat's perspective titled "The Power of Steel Wool."

Hello, My name is Ann and this is my first year writing consistently, and my first year in Nano. I write fantasy and my first novel is in revisions and is shaping up to be a series. In November I am planning to write a novel set in the same world my first novel is in, but with different characters who might one day actually meet the characters from my first story. Ah, the webs we weave....

I hope to make it to some of the write-ins. I will see how it goes later. Looking forward to November. :)

NewMexicoKid wrote:. This person has taken a number of special children from different universes, but their past catches up with them and a group known as the Collective comes to steal the heart of the pocket world.

Hi! My name is Tanya, and this is my 4th Nano!!!

I am so excited to do it again this year, and more so because I am now a 75% stay at home mom (with a now 8mo old) and it means i can devote SO much more time to Nano (i hope...Nano with a baby...WE SHALL SEE! "No baby! Don't spit up on my keyboard I NEED THAT TO WRITE!").

I plan to continue last year's novel...as I continued onward with it during the camp nano's, setting reasonable goals so I could write. The ideas keep swiming in my head and won't go away, so I might as well continue with this story, since I have lost interest in my other past nano novels. Plus, no real desire to re-read 10 chapters just to remember what I wrote.

My novel is about...about...um. Geeze...I am bad at synopsis stuff. My main character gets transported into a different realm/universe...that has laws and rules different from our own (such as magic, and spells and other ) and has to find their way home, during which adventure, they uncover secrets about grandmother's past...meets interesting characters, evil villians and a love that can never be because...you know...living in different universes....I am also excited to write this novel because my main character is an ultimate nerd and i can't WAIT to write in so many nerd references...dooooweeeeoooooo

"What the actual HELL?" Harley gasped as the screw driver lit up "The thing ACTUALLY works in this realm? Holy Shit...but can it do wood?" Harley questioned, pointing the screwdriver at the door. Harley grimaced. Nothing.

"Damn it! It STILL doesn't do wood!"

I am excited to join as many write ins as I can, excited to meet new people and re-visit with old...and excited to possibly win another "honorary nano winner" at the TGIO since i write so much on the forums anyway. I should REALLY count this toward my word goal! HA!

My name is Brian and I've now done Nano enough times that I almost don't remember a time before Nano anymore.

This is the third time I'm planning on breaking the rules of Nano. Instead of revising a novel this year like the last couple times, I am going to write new material, but instead of writing a novel I plan to write 6-10 short stories, and probably around 30,000 words instead of 50,000 because I anticipate it will be more difficult to write that many different short stories. But maybe I'll get to 50k, I don't know.

Reason I decided to go the short story route this year is I've been participating in the Journey short story anthologies for awhile, and I'm starting to get the hang of writing short stories I think, and thought that maybe I've generated enough that I could take a stab at creating a solo mini-anthology. I've written down ideas for stories for the past six months, so I should have enough to get started (more than I've had in previous Nanos, at any rate).

Anyway, I develop websites and phone systems for my job, and the past couple of years I've started diving into the world of designing and making board games. It's an exciting time to get into it since they've seen such a surge in popularity the past ten years, and there's a lot of cool people I've met in the industry already. If you are interested in playtesting sometime, let me know. I design a lot of games with fairly simple rules, but can be pretty thinky if you want to make the best moves.

I'm back! My name is Paige. I haven't been around much (if at all) the last 2 years. I was having a rough pregnancy, with some concerns and on strict limitations 2 years ago. Thankfully things turned out well and last year I was stressed and still adjusting to life with 2 kids.

This year I am back and more motivated than ever.
My goal for this year is to finally finish my NaNo from 2012. It is a romance novel and I think I'm about 63K words. I am editing what I have right now so I can remind myself of the story and fix up the stuff I didn't like.

So about me on a personal note, I'm a mom of 2, married for 9 years and am a graphic designer as my "full time" job. I also sell KEEP Collective jewelry and LOVE that. I read well over 200 books a year and will have to cut down on that number to finally finish my novel. ha. I know I'm missing lots about me but I've got to get to work entering some edits. I'm so happy to be back!

Hi, my name is Debbie Kollar and the more you immerse yourself into this group, the more fun you'll have! I mainly write inspirational humor, but I like to write in many genres. In fact, I only know two I do not (or can't) write: Westerns and romances. Somehow it would turn into a humorous Western romance with Loretta, the barmaid, who wears a rifle in her petticoat and carries a shot glass of whiskey in her hand, telling a bunch of cowboys who venture into the sinful saloon, "Let me drink this here and y'all will start looking good." Yep, that's about as romantic as I know how to write!

Last year, I tried to write a literary novel for NaNo. I realized it is a little too complex and it's best to stick with the writing style that comes easy to you. It's the only way to get so many words written. This year, my humorous novel will be about a writing club that meets in the basement of a library among the numerous book stacks the hoarding library director simply can't get rid of like Richard Simmon's Dancing to the Oldies VCR tapes and out-of-date cookbooks with faded photos of strawberry Jello molds and carrot raisin salad.

The main character is Ezzie Pound, a young girl who is about to enter the prestigious college where her big-headed prize-winning author dad (she hasn't seen in several years) directs the writing program. She joins her town's local library writing club and meets a quirky cast of characters: Cookie, the 300-pound phone sex worker by day, romance writer by night--who really just wants to be loved; the two elderly Jewish brothers who were young children in Poland in WWII, the eldest writes poetry of all those he lost and the youngest flirts with everyone who moves including (because he has bad eyesight), another member; Shawn/Shawna. There's the facilitator of the group who loves anything Jane Austen and feels one day she'll find her perfect Mr. Darcy. There's the religious writer who swears Cookie (the phone sex worker) is going to hell. There is another guy who writes horror, wears black T-shirts and smells like Chinese food who has stories that always start with a blonde female (large breasted of course) running away from some killer, tripping in the woods and dying. (The rest hope he's not a serial killer.) And Maggie, the married mother, dying of breast cancer and writing her memoir to her two surviving little children so they'll know her. In the end, it becomes much more than a writing club. Ezzie finds out, a family doesn't have to be what you are born into.

As for me, I am a married mother of two children. Olivia (11) and Noah (5) I call him my little Oprah. If there was a talking contest, I would enter him. He once talked for 2 1/2 hours straight from Chicago to South Bend, IN. I adore animals, dislike pretentious people, love chocolate and hope that I finish this year so I can be a real "WINNER" instead of a half winner.

My name is Jen and this will be my 7th consecutive NaNo (although the last two years have been kind of a wash). I miss coming to Journey meetings now that I work every Saturday, but even more than that I miss writing, so I am determined to use NaNo to kick me in the butt to get going again. I spent a few years working myself into a pretty decent panic about a writing career that I don't actually have yet, and have decided that what I need to do instead is spend some time remembering why writing is fun.

I haven't decided what I'm writing yet (that's on tomorrow's prep schedule) but based on the list of possibilities I have (from yesterday's prep schedule), there's about a 60% chance it's gonna be fanfiction of some kind. If it's not that, it'll be space opera of some description. (Who says science fiction has to be complicated? You just add IN SPACE to whatever you start with. Renaissance Venice IN SPACE. Star-crossed lovers IN SPACE. Human/Zombie cultural literacy IN SPACE. At least, that's my philosophy.)

In real life I'm a librarian, so I always have more books around than I have time to read. (I can't properly host the write-ins at the Warrenville library this year, but I'll be around!) I'm also a chronic over-planner, which usually works to my advantage in NaNo, when I can get going in October and hit the ground running in November. Hope to see some of you at the write-ins!

Hi. I'm Karen (Zora5128). I write contempo/historical-mystery (aka dual timeline). This is my 3rd Nano but I've never won. Usually get distracted too soon. This time I will win and I'm doing lots of prep to make sure I'm in the zone.

I'll be working on a WIP that I started 10 years ago about an Anglo-Saxon woman in 10th century England and a modern day Archivist for the British Library who stumbles on an old family secret. Murder mayhem and worlds collide in this Mystery of historical significance that only the young archivist can solve, or loose everything, including her life.

I live in Sugar Grove with my husband and 2 cats (Zora & Lilput) I am self employed, and a mother of 5 now adult children, and soon to be a grandmother.

Good luck to all and hope to see you around at an NANO event or 2

Greetings:

I'm Neil, I write noir mystery thrillers. This is my second attempt at NaNoWriMo and I'm pretty [expletive] determined this time. To make it easier to follow through I'm using November to re-write my first novel and get it polished for querying. I have three active WIP; Murder Ballad (the one I'm doing for NaNo), Bishop Church (sitting half done on my google drive waiting for attention) and Malcolm Karma: Cold Turkey which started out as a writer's block exercise, then became a fun twitter game and is now a full on WIP updated regularly on my website.

I'm a writer so I'm not generally very social unless I drink. I noticed that a lot of the events are at Libraries and they always seem to kick me out when I pour my first bourbon, so I'm not sure how many events I'll attend, but I DO like meeting other writers so I will give it a shot at least once.

That's about it. I'm on twitter A LOT (@writegavingayle). I love the writing community and the writing # games and I play at least one of them almost every day.

Hey everyone!

I'm Julia, 15, and a high school sophomore. This is my first year writing for nanowrimo, so i'm working hard on planning everything out and getting a solid schedule down!! I mainly write fantasy/scifi/dystopian things (if anyone has tips on keeping my dystopian pieces from falling into the same boring tropes it would be greatly appreciated!).

Aside from writing i'm an avid Marvel fan, and I love to read poetry and draw and paint! I'm fairly quiet, but I'd love to try to make some friends through this, so feel free to come talk to me here or hmu on twitter @sun_sappho!

Hey, all!

I had to bow out last year while I was prepping for my Master's Thesis, but I'm back this year and outlining like mad to get ready for November 1st. I'll miss out on the Oct 28th party because I'll be in Cincinnati getting ready for commencement, but I'll be back in plenty of time for day 1. It will be interesting this year because my current commute requires 11-12 hours per week just sitting in the car. But at least we have libraries all around the area that are on board with writing events!

I also roped my hubby into signing up this year, so expect to see an intro soon from Tom Tolios. We'll be at one of the write-ins on Nov 1st, probably Plainfield.

Which reminds me - do we have Bolingbrook on board this year? I know they were starting to dabble last year for NaNo (or was it Camp NaNo?), but I don't know if they were affiliated with any particular group or if they were just advertising some space for participants. It wasn't much at the time, just space set aside for the first and last days if I remember correctly...

Cheers! (^_^)

Kiela Starcatcher wrote:Which reminds me - do we have Bolingbrook on board this year? I know they were starting to dabble last year for NaNo (or was it Camp NaNo?), but I don't know if they were affiliated with any particular group or if they were just advertising some space for participants. It wasn't much at the time, just space set aside for the first and last days if I remember correctly... Cheers! (^_^)

Hi, Kiela,

Fountainside (Bolingbrook) is participating in the NaperWriMo Library Crawl this year. See the Library Crawl brochureor our events calendar.

Cheers,

--Tim

And the forums are cleared. We can all start posting fresh now. So far I have been posting about stuff unrelated to what I will be working on.

I decided I am going to be working on The Chronicles of Tareth again but I need titles for the individual parts.

julia jessen wrote:Hey everyone! I'm Julia, 15, and a high school sophomore. This is my first year writing for nanowrimo, so i'm working hard on planning everything out and getting a solid schedule down!! I mainly write fantasy/scifi/dystopian things (if anyone has tips on keeping my dystopian pieces from falling into the same boring tropes it would be greatly appreciated!). Aside from writing i'm an avid Marvel fan, and I love to read poetry and draw and paint! I'm fairly quiet, but I'd love to try to make some friends through this, so feel free to come talk to me here or hmu on twitter @sun_sappho!

Hello again everyone,

My name is Lisa and this is my fifth year with the Naperville Region. I've won the last three years and that is mainly due to attending write-ins with you fine folks.

I'll be writing a sequel to my 2016 YA sci-fi adventure. I'm super excited to get going on it.

Thanks to all the ML's for their hard work supporting our region!

Hi, everyone. I'm Fay, and this is my first November NaNo. I participated in both camps this year and they were fun so I figured I'd keep going. I'm dipping my toe into YA fantasy this time around, though my previous projects were more paranormal than anything. I might show up at the crawl, haven't decided. I'm shy.

Yooo, I'm doing a short story collection tooo! (Also we need to end up at some of the same write-ins together. Or have another game night, in an entirely un-writing related turn of events.) Miss you, man!

Hi-ho! It's me! The prodigal Squid has returned. <3

I'm going to be doing my best to finish NaNo this year with a new game plan. Namely, instead of a bigger project like a novel that I know I'll never go back and edit, I'm going for a collection of six (possibly five) short stories that'll be of some decent length. Aiming to hit around 15k for each, but I'm not stuck on the number, just going to use however many words I need to tell the story!

I've been doing NaNo for too long and have taken a number of breaks in between years because I work like it's going out of style. As it is, I'll be attempting this year with a work schedule of well over ~60 hours a week and we'll see how it turns out, haha. I hope to see some people at Saturday write-ins and, if I've got the energy, some evening ones during the week! Should I find the time, this may actually be the year I make some baked goods and bring them around to share. Here's to hoping~

My stories this year are all going to be collected and focus on six main Greek gods. Namely, Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, and their female counterparts. (However, because Poseidon's counterpart basically became known as just THE SEA in some stories, I may not include her and that's why the story collection could either be 5 or 6.) So these five (or six) suckers are heads of fraternities / sororities and wrestle with normal daily things and each collection of couples will be linked more than the overall stories but still all together. ANYWAY, I have ideas and could ramble, but we'll save that for other places.

CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOU GUYS!

Hiii! I'm Jillian and this is.... idk, probably my 8th time doing Nano? That doesn't seem right. This will hopefully be my second time finishing it. However, I'm not so confident on that fact yet because I have yet to decide what I'm writing about. It will either be a continuation of my newest project--a serial horror story that I'm posting on a blog as I write. The problem with this idea is it's already started and I don't think it's going to be long enough to push me through Nano. The other idea is a rewrite of the novel I won with back in 2014, which is about a time travelling Victorian Lit professor who ends up in Victorian England. The problem with this idea is it's a rewrite and might get boring. I'm just not sure if I want to commit to a new, fresh project when I have these other ones dangling in front of me. Let's find out when November happens. :) It was fun meeting people at the prep workshop today, hope to keep going to the other ones this month.

Hi everyone. I'm Anna. This will be my third NaNo, and hopefully my third win!

I am going to be working on the same project I've done for the past two NaNos, but sooooo many of the details have changed, it's practically a new story. The first attempt was like pulling teeth, because I didn't know my characters and their motivations well enough. Last year was fun, but I didn't get very far in the story because I didn't have a good sense of the story conflicts. This year, I know my characters better and have developed a new antagonist, and I'm hoping that will be enough to make significant progress this year!It is a fantasy romance that is inspired by (but not at all based on) some elements of Norse mythology. It will be dual POV with the two romantic leads.

I presented the first NaNo prep workshop yesterday on worldbuilding and character, and it was great! I loved hearing the ideas everyone came up with and I totally want to read all those books! Thanks to everyone who made it, and if you weren't able to go, Tim has posted the materials on the NaperWriMo website here. :)

Neil,

Keep an eye on the forums and the calendar. We do have a couple of non-library events and will look to do more. Here are some of the events we have planned so far:

• Saturday the 4th - Dueling Trains where writers will meet at two different Metra stations and see which group will have the most words write-in by the time they get to Chicago. They don't kick you off the train for drinking bourbon, but the event does start at 10:30am, which is a little early for me to start drinking on the train, unless I'm going to a Cub game.
• Friday, the 10th - Write-in at Two Brothers Roundhouse in Aurora. I just added this event to the calendar. They have a nice coffee and beer cafe area where we can gather and write.
• Sunday the 12th - we have a Cafe & Pub Write-in crawl where we'll write at a number of locations in Downers Grove.The exact locations and times have not been finalized, but we will end up a Bailydoyle's at 5pm to the Whiskey Brothers, which includes a long time NaperWrimo member.

If you have a favorite establishment, let me know and I can help plan an event there.

My name is Joe, and just reloacted back to the Naperville area, after living in the south for the past seven years. I'm new to Nano, but been wanting to do it for the past few years, I just lack self confidence in my writing.

I don't expect to complete a novel in a month, with life in the way and such, but my goal is to start one.

Any events going to happen at the Plainfield library?

OddSoul wrote: I presented the first NaNo prep workshop yesterday on worldbuilding and character, and it was great! I loved hearing the ideas everyone came up with and I totally want to read all those books! Thanks to everyone who made it, and if you weren't able to go, Tim has posted the materials on the NaperWriMo website here. :)

Man! I saw the pics on the blog and wish I had gone!! I totally had the time but i was just feeling lazy, but upon looking at the slides...i could have benefited greatly from going!!! I definitely plan to go this coming weekend if my husband gets home in time to watch the baby!

No worries! "Feeling lazy" is my natural state, so I 100% relate, lol. If you want more info, check out the "Sources" document! And if you have any questions, let me know! I love talking about writing (to a nerdy degree), so I am always happy to answer questions.:)

Hi all, my name is Dominique! This will be my third year doing NaNo but my first year in this region. I was in Iowa City for school but have since moved back home to Schaumburg! I hope to hit the daily goal for at least half of the days because i have a bad habit of playing catch up and writing 6,000 words in one day. Not a bad thing but not a good habit to get into. So I wish you all luck on your novels!

Live Long, May the Force be With you and Happy Writing!

I saw all those on the calendar and I'm intrigued, although have you ever tried toactuallywrite on a train. Spoilers, it doesn't work so well. It's like trying to write while sitting in the middle of a bounce house at an eight year old's birthday party. Besides, you're right, 10am is a little early for bourbon. Before noon you stick with Gin.

I'll be in Glen Ellyn this Saturday for the workshop for sure and we'll see how that goes. If I don't end up balled up in the corner shaking and gnawing my own finger tips off we'll call it a success.

I'm KatherineWriting and despite some sensible writing in recent years, people persist in expecting me to have a crazy word count. Unlikely this year since I'm starting November by being out of town and have actually scheduled things in November in addition to hosting Thanksgiving. But I do plan on writing about 2,000 words a day until I get to 50,000. More words if I don't have my outline done by that point.

My plan is work on my detailed outline for book four in my French series, write a couple of short stories, maybe a few things for pbdd.org, and possibly draft a few scenes for the novel. My goal used to be to finish the first draft of a novel (or novels), but not this year, so Idoubt I'll have a huge word count. Note, last year I had 52,354 words. The year before it was 53,378. It's been five years since I had a crazy word count, people. Honest, I'm reformed.

Sam, wish I could make the train writein, but I'll be out of town. But the Two Brothers and the one ending at Ballydoyle sound great. Both those places have been ones I've wanted to write at. Thanks for all the great work our fabulous MLs do.

Good thing I'm a gin drinker and often write on the train. (Essentially, that write in is my jam.)

But also, if you're looking to schedule any drink-based write-ins, I'll do my best to be in attendance because it sounds like it's right up my alley. A few years back I did some write-ins at Penrose in Geneva, which works well if you're a fan of beer. (They don't have hard liquor but they allow outside food so you can bring something to snack on while writing.)

I'm going to do my best to be at Two Brothers too! (Since it's close to home and is a great place to write at, honestly. I do that throughout the year sometimes. But I look forward to seeing you again this year!

Squiddish wrote:I'm going to do my best to be at Two Brothers too! (Since it's close to home and is a great place to write at, honestly. I do that throughout the year sometimes. But I look forward to seeing you again this year!

There ya go! Dry martinis, 9am at Union Station! THAT'S a write in!

Write ins at bars will certainly earn my attendance, but I'll try and show up to the library ones too, and I'll put in a modicum of effort to do so sober.

I'll take the gin, hold the martini. I like mine straight up, please.

Joe

There are a number of Write-Ins scheduled at the Plainfield library. You can all of the planned write-ins on our Naperwrimo calendar at:http://www.naperwrimo.org/wiki/index.php?title=2017_Events

Ello my lovelies! This is Jade!

I'm not technically in the Naperville group anymore since my husband and I moved to the Seattle area. But you guys still feel like home, so I'm here to say hi! (And hi to Squid!!!)

I think I'm going to try for 50k again this year but right now I have no clue what I want to write about. Exciting! This will be just like 2012. LOL.

Jaaade! I saw your comment on one of the other threads and felt all nostalgic. <3 Miss you! Come back and visit sometime. ;)

Evening all. Nano newbie and very excited. Transplanted Napervillian? Hoping this rain stops so I've got time to build the ark for a write-in. Trying my hand at some potentially apocalyptic, survival, scifi, romance comedy... ok, not really. But, maybe? ;^P

Best of luck to all this year!

Squiiiiiid!!! I will let you know if I'm back in town and we can do coffee and writing just like old times. I feel so devoid of writing friends over here since Carly moved to Kansas City over the summer. Hoping to make some new ones this year since I joined the local region.

Miss you too! <3

Hey Everyone!

My name's Hamza, I'm a 20 year old with a bit of an overactive imagination and an aspiring writer.

Kinda new to this area, but I have done NaNo once in Chicago and I loved it. Didn't get to finish in the subsequent years due to school and stuff, but I hope things change this time around. As for what I'm trying to write, I'm mostly interested in writing fantasy stories, but I've been intrigued by horror as of late. I hope I can talk with you guys more about my novel, since consulting my annoying inner editor just brings more problems for me.

Hi, I'm Kathryn! Trying NaNo for the second time (the first one was oh, ages ago, and I didn't get very far). This year I'll be testing the theory that NaNo actually works out better when you're crazy-busy and squeezing it in as item #1,000,001 on your list.

I have absolutely no idea what I'm going to write about. At all. It worries me.

Greetings! I've participated in Nano three times, never won it though. This year, I probably won't win again since I'll be in Orlando for eight days and probably NOT writing--will be vacationing with hubby and our three adult children. But I want to write as much as I can.

I guess you can call me a NaNo rebel since I'll be working on the traditional mystery novel that I started two years ago in which two women with very different personalities team up to solve a murder. I'll be spending the next two weeks getting what I have in shape so I can add to it starting November 1.

Good luck to all. I'm happy to be here and looking forward to attending several of the events.

bring a journal with you...and a few pens...and a few minutes before bed, sit under comfy sheets and write some ideas or story. pool side? write...while waiting in line at a theme park? write!

Hi, everyone! I feel a bit bashful coming into the forum here, but, um...I've moved to New York! I moved over the summer when I found a job here. This has been my dream for quite some time, and I was excited to make it happen this year. Sorry that I didn't get the chance to say goodbye in person!

Anyway, despite my busy schedule, I'm going to attempt NaNo this year. And despite my distance from dear 'ol Naperville, I'll be keeping it as my home region, so as to lend my word count to your overall total.

Happy writing, folks! :)

Greetings strangers but soon to be family. I have been on this planet for almost 23 years (that will be the case mid-November). Chicago has been my home for all of them. I feel the need to write some sci-fi soon, but my novel for November will be fantasy. I've dreamed of finishing a novel since fifth grade. I trust Nanowrimo will help me accomplish that dream. I'm first and foremost a writer, but am currently in between jobs. However, I always can identify as the ADHD introverted nerd that I am. When I'm not working on writing, you'll have good chances of finding me gaming, watching a variety of TV shows (serial killers, anime, Bob Ross...), spending time with my dog that I kind of wish was a cat, volunteering with my church's youth group, eating, sleeping, trying to figure out how being human works...etc. I hope we'll be friends. Hello. My name is Josh.

Hi all! My name is Chrissy. I'm 34, and a lifelong Chicago suburbanite, currently living in Wheaton with my husband. This my second go at NaNo...the first time I tried, I got swamped at work and quit super early on. This year, I've taken time off from corporate America to chase my dreams and write a few things down. I've got a silly little blog that I love and a proclivity for ridiculousness in 140 characters (@quirky_chrissy). My project is a dark and devious modernized fairytale that's been gnawing at me for years, and I'm stoked to put it in writing.

MaryK171 wrote:Hi, everyone! I feel a bit bashful coming into the forum here, but, um...I've moved to New York! I moved over the summer when I found a job here. This has been my dream for quite some time, and I was excited to make it happen this year. Sorry that I didn't get the chance to say goodbye in person! Anyway, despite my busy schedule, I'm going to attempt NaNo this year. And despite my distance from dear 'ol Naperville, I'll be keeping it as my home region, so as to lend my word count to your overall total. Happy writing, folks! :)

I can't believe you left without letting us take you out to say good-bye! :-(

But congratulations on achieving your dream, Mary! Hopefully we can chat sometime in a virtual write-in.

--Tim

High five to ADHD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! High five too "wtf am i doing" and "why can't i concentrate" and "where the hell did i put the damn remote i had 30 seconds ago...oh...right. it's in my hands" and "wtf, i just cleaned my desk 3 days ago how the hell did it get trashed again?!?!" and "SHUT UP BRAIN I AM TRYING TO GO TO SLEEP!"

and high five to my meds that make me function like a normal human being...somewhat

I'm Alex, this is my 6th year doing Nanowrimo. I'm trying to finish my previous novel and write 2 new screenplays.

I know, I'm sorry!! As you might imagine, it was a very busy beginning of the year.

Yes, I will certainly try to make it to some virtual write-ins!

MaryK171 wrote:I know, I'm sorry!! As you might imagine, it was a very busy beginning of the year. Yes, I will certainly try to make it to some virtual write-ins!

When we do write ins on sundays...do what I did last year...being pregnant...i didn't feel up to going...so i just went in the chat...and a friend of mine went...and she would just tell me when the word wars were...and i'd add to the excel sheet!

Hello,

I'm using Nanowrimo to focus on writing a non-fiction book. I have spent several years acquiring sources and researching, so I'm looking forward to putting my concepts and information down on paper. The goal to sit down and write everyday will really help move my project along.

Thanks,

Debs

Yo! I'm Alyssa aka LushiaKyobi. I've been developing "Vael," my fantasy novel for the past 7+ years, and plan to write it this year for NaNo... or next year. I want it to be good.

Vael is about Lushia, a half-Moonish girl learning how to handle her strong emotions and powers that come with being Moonish. She discovers her true nature after a close "friend" steals her moon charm that normally (unknown to her) suppresses this nature. Her journey leads her to other Moon Folk like her, and many different perspectives on what it means to be Moonish.

Not everyone is fond of the Moon Folk. Lushia discovers a group that secretly wants to eliminate Moon Folk under the guise of curing the Shadow Mark (physical/mental disease akin to mental illness). This is because the Moon Folk most commonly harbor this disease.

Others simply see the Moon Folk as odd, and others see their true value and place in society. Lushia aims to make sense of it all as she helps to find a real cure for the Shadow Mark that does not harm her people.

The world itself has many inspirations. The story was inspired by my experiences of being Neurodivergent (Asperger's) and witnessing the complexities of the autism community.

For more info on Vael, check out my writing blog: http://world-of-vael.blogspot.com/?m=1

My Asperger's documentary: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2TSlti5bioQ

My Asperger's blog:http://www.life-of-an-aspie.com/?m=1

Never stop writing!

Hi! My name is Mary and this is my third time attempting NANO, but I have never been able to finish before, due to silly things like being in college/grad school. I'm hoping this is the year I can make it happen! I get road blocked with long, extended plots, so I am actually going to try a series of short stories connected on a central theme for this year's NANO. I'm excited!

I'm in Winfield, so I might try to get out to an event if time permits!

HEY, BOO, HEY. <3

Hello! I'm Stephanie. This is will be my 7th Nano--I started in 2010 but missed 2011. Last year was the first year I didn't finish, but I walked away with the start of a novel I'll be self-publishing soon! My debut novel came out last December (thus the not finishing Nano, it was a busy time). It's a young adult book called Alterations with an imprint from Bloomsbury. I'm working hard to get another book sold, so I'm ready to work this November! I'm actually revising a Nano project from 2015 right now. #alwaysrevising

I'm hoping to go to a couple of write-ins this year.

Hi, I'm Dave Dean and this is my 12th Nano. I look forward to participating this year but don't know how many events I'll get to during November. My wife has shoulder surgery on Nov 2 and will need someone close most of the month.

I write Sci Fi and look forward to adding another story in my series.

TRRDEDEAN

AKA Dave

Hi! I'm Julie. This is my 8th year doing Nano. I've only finished twice, but I'm feeling hopeful about this year.

I'm planning to write a dystopian novel that is using some characters from one of my previous unfinished novels. I'm hoping to make it to a few write-ins this year.

This is my 13th year of Nano and it almost didn't happen. I've got a billion projects to work on, so my friends think I'm nuts to add another book to my workload. Ah, well. I'll be writing (trying to) the 5th book in my Blood Martyr series, hopefully ending it so I can finally move on to something else. Unfortunately, I won't be able to make it to any write-ins because I'm located in China, but definitely some virtual ones, for sure.

Hey all!

I'm Abby and this is my second year doing Nano. I finished last year and I'm hoping to do so again this year! I'll befinishing a sci-fi alien invasion novel that I've been working on for about 8 years. It has about 50K words left, and I'm so excited for it to be finished! I'm hoping to make it to a few write-ins.

Hi!

My name is Karen and I've been signed up for NaNo for at least 7 years, but I do believe this is my first time actually posting anything in the regional forum. I have extreme procrastinatory skills and though I've attempted over the last 7 years to complete the NaNo challenge and get myself out of massive writer's block, it wasn't until last year that I really pushed myself to complete the challenge. I maybe got a 1/3 of the way through the challenge and proceeded to let life and work to distract me from accomplishing my goal.

I've decided to take a different approach this year and be more of a participant with the workshops and write-ins put on in our region. I'm very excited to put my all into this year's NaNo and get this story out of my head and on paper (or the digital screen). The story I'm working on is a fantasy novel dealing with the myth of the Phoenix and how its fate intertwines with that of a young girl. I'm looking forward to reaching the end of November and seeing where this story takes me : )

Sea of Tranquility (aka Karen)

Hi, my name is Annerose. I am not yet excited about NaNo this year (more like paralyzed). November comes surprisingly early this year ...
I write YA Science Fiction and this is my 5th NaNo (I can't believe it). I'm going to write another book (this will be the third) about my genetically-messed-with-twins and their adventures, maybe I'll put them on Puerto Rico after the hurricane and give them a hard case to crack ... will see - so yeah, no, I am not prepared at all :-(

If you want a PR setting - I was there in June and my sister got evacuated right before Irma and has a beat on things going down there.

Hi, my name is Tim. I am a Civil Engineer by trade and a husband and father of four (kids). This is my tenth year doing NaNo, a fact which is hard for me to believe. This year my novel is a sequel to my year 1 novel. I hope to get to some write-ins this year, it has been a couple of years since I made one, but I still recall how enjoyable and productive they are. However, it is a challenge with work and family schedule and, regrettably, family scheduling conflicts will prevent me from attending the Kick-Off meeting tomorrow.

I always get excited at the start of NaNo, about the possibilities and adventures that await discovery. I am also optimistic that this will finally be the year the daily writing discipline I develop during NaNo sticks through the rest of the year! Good Luck to Everyone!

I'm Paula! Although I typically write in fantasy worlds, this year I'll be redoing my lame attempt from last year.

A guy has spent his entire life saying that he would do things when his baseball team won the World Series (which they hadn't done in years). Well, they won, and the story start the next morning when his best friend shows up and announces that she's going to hold him to everything he said he'd do when they won.

If anyone has any suggestions for things he now has to do that'd help a lot...

Hi, I'm Mike, also known as horatio, and this is my twelfth NaNoWriMo. The first eight years, I wrote a series of novels about a group of time travelers called the Traveler Series, and I wrapped it up in 2013 with a novel that I imagined had neatly tied up all the dangling plot threads that I had created. I left that series to start a new series set in space aboard a generation ship bound for Tau Ceti, and created, for the next three NaNoWriMos, Century Day, Century War, and Century Empire. But I need to take a break from the Century Series this year, and so I'm going back to write a follow-up to the Traveler Series to try and tie up the biggest dangling plot thread of them all, a novel called The Timeband Designers.

I'm a retired classroom teacher, actor, director, and Civil War reenactor. This will likely be my last NaNoWriMo that I'll participate in Illinois, as my wife and I are preparing a move from Bolingbrook to Tucson, Arizona.

*Wakes up. Looks around.* Crap, it's almost November, isn't it? Guess I better get started on my novel, huh?

I'm IcicleFerret, also known as Sarah to a few people. I've started many novels but finished exactly 0 of them. Hopefully this year will be different. This year I started a YouTube channel about video games, so that will be an additional distraction from my novel. I'm also dealing with a few personal problems this year, so I haven't been as involved in NaNo as usual, but I'm still hoping to participate and, with any luck, succeed.

Hi. I'm Melissa. This is going to be my 8th nano and my first after skipping last year. I've won 6 times and usually write fantasy or scifi. This year is a fantasy year.

Hi, I am Brian. This will be my 4th Nanowrimo, having won once. I am back this year after havingmissing 2016.

My novel this year will be a humorous story about members of a role playing group getting sucked into their own game world, and are immediately mistaken for the characters that they play. Conversely, their characters are brought out into the real world, mistaken for their real life counterparts and proceed to wreak havoc on their alter egos lives.

Katherine, I think we met at a romance writers weekend workshop earlier this year with Barbara Samuel. Was that you? Your fitbit prowess was inspiring!

I missed seeing a write in at Two Brothers. When is that? and Ballydoyle?

Greetings!

My name is Gabby (aka Gabbycakes212) and after SIX years of telling myself I'll participate in NaNoWriMo, I'm finallydoing it! (hopefully.) My goal is to write a Fictional YA Novel, I'm looking forward to being a part of such a massive event and I truly hope a novel can come out of this. I do write fairly/rarely/somewhat regularly on my blogwhich I'll admit could use some TLC, but I'm hoping that if nothing else comes out of my first NaNo, I hope to at least develop a habit to write for my blog more frequently.

Looking forward to this mayhem, sort of.

-G.

Hi!

I'm a returning NaNoWriMo participant... I hope to have enough coffee to put all my ideas in my novel. I'm writing a suspense novel about the disappearance of many girls and the indifference of their town.

This is my first suspense novel!!

Tisha