Category: Writing Stuff

NaNoWriMo

Are All NaNoWriMo People Crazy?

Karen

I don’t know. Would you call someone crazy if she ate a whole package of sugar cookies over the course of two days?

Oh hush you. It was a rhetorical question anyway.

Yes. To answer the title question – we’re all just a little crazy … about writing, that is. Myself included. But it’s a good crazy, I think. We want to write and when we have the chance to write, we don’t know what to write – it’s a never ending battle, trust me. I want to participate in NaNoWriMo this year, but I’m not sure I can take another year of FAILING at it.

You know what bugs me? Setting up my NaNoWriMo profile for this year and not being able to say that I participated, let alone won, the 2010 challenge.

I couldn’t tick 2010. Because even though I had PLANNED on participating, I didn’t. So of course, I didn’t WIN it.

That bugs me.

That space. That void. That FAILURE.

AAARGH.

You know what else bugs me?? I didn’t even ACCESS my NaNoWriMo profile until Saturday. In years past, I would haunt the site on September 30th, refreshing every few seconds so that when registration went live, I would be one of the first to sign up. What has happened to me?!?

I don’t know what was wrong with me last year – I just COULDN’T get motivated enough to write anything.

But this year. THIS YEAR, I will do better.

Maybe.

http://twitter.com/#!/writefromkaren/status/128183738470367234

I don’t know, man. I have a lot LESS time to do NaNoWriMo this year than I did last year. Last year, I wasn’t even freaking working. Now? I am. Full time. And it’s one of those jobs that SUCKS the life force right out of your body so that you get home, pale, shaking and desperately trying to control the tick in your left eye.

Fine. You caught me. I can make the time. I mean, how many posts have I written scolding whiny people complaining that they didn’t have the time for NaNoWriMo? Too many to mention here, that’s for sure. So yes. I can make time. I will get up earlier, or stay up later, or forego a blog post or two, or ignore my family … but yes, I can make the time.

My BIGGEST problem is finding the mental energy. Right now? I have just enough left over to formulate a sentence or two – but only a few. If anyone asks me anything deeper than “hey mom, what’s for dinner,” I may spontaneously combust from the sheer effort it takes my brain to fire what little synapses I have left.

In short? I will implode.

All of this to say, I still don’t know if I will attempt NaNoWriMo this year.

I guess I better decide something, the challenge starts in just seven short days!!

Listen to the audio version.

Prompt Fiction, Saturday Stuff

An Overgrown Garden

Karen

Carmen tried not to look guilty. “I planted a little story seed …” she held up two fingers, very close together, to illustrate her point.

“You mean you lied,” I shot back.

“I didn’t lie, per se,” she swallowed, “I just didn’t tell him the whole truth.”

“You’re an idiot. What do you think lying is??”

“Oh, shut up.”

“That’s like saying, ‘you’re a little pregnant.’ Either you are, or you aren’t. Either you’re honest or you’re not.”

“I like story seed – it sounds better.”

“Seed my foot. You have a full-blown garden.”

“Pass the hoe,” she giggled.

“You need a backhoe,” I snorted.

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Listen to the audio version.

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Write up to 100 words, fact or fiction….

This is a themed writing meme hosted by Jenny Matlock. The goal is to write something that does not exceed 100 words (not including said prompt). The prompt is in bold.

Prompt Fiction, Saturday Stuff

Desperate Measures

Karen

“What do you think of this beauty?” Lorna held the flimsy, red teddy up to her body and modeled it in front of the mirror.

“I think that sharing everything with your best friend is overrated. I’m drawing the line at lingerie.”

Lorna laughed.

“And,” her friend continued, “you better buy some spray-on tan cause you’re going to glow in the dark with that number.”

“I’m desperate! I’m losing Max’s attention and I need to do something drastic.”

“What do you mean, ‘losing his attention?’”

“He only has eyes for one thing,” Lorna replied with a grimace.

“What’s her name?”

“Friday night football.”

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Write up to 100 words, fact or fiction….

This is a themed writing meme hosted by Jenny Matlock. The goal is to write something that does not exceed 100 words (not including said prompt). The prompt is in italics.

Prompt Fiction, Saturday Stuff

Such a Killjoy

Karen

“We are so busted.’

“We’re not gonna get caught. Unless you give us away with your ‘Guilty as charged’ look. Think about clouds – anything. Wipe that expression off your face.”

“I can’t help it. I’ve never used a fake ID and snuck into a bar before.’

“Shh! Why don’t you broadcast that a little louder? I don’t think the cops heard you.”

“This is so lame. I can’t believe you talked me into this.”

“I can’t believe I brought you. Do you ever loosen up?”

“I’m a fun person. I just get a little uptight when my BFF makes me do something wacked.”

“Oh my God, that guy is so hot.”

“FOCUS”

“I’m focu– oh my God, did you see that girl’s shoes?”

“My parents are not gonna let me out of their sight after tonight.”

“Relax! Sheesh. Such a killjoy.”

“Are you seriously ordering another martini?? We are so dead.”

“You have money, right?”

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Write up to 150 words, fact or fiction….

This is a themed writing meme hosted by Jenny Matlock. The goal is to write something that does not exceed 150 words (not including said prompt). The prompt is in italics.

Prompt Fiction

Writing What You (Don’t) Know

Karen

Mary thought he looked a little like Tom Selleck, only with blonde hair. She pressed her face a little closer to the knothole in the fence to spy on him.

She thought he had a great chest – all hairy and hard.

Mary thought it would be nice to run her fingers through all of that hair.

She thought …

Laura stopped typing. “Mary, you think too much,” she mumbled taking a moment to proofread her work.

“This is the worse romance story EVER,” she snarled while pounding on the delete key.

She placed her head in her hands and cried.

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Write up to 100 words, fact or fiction….

This is a themed writing meme hosted by The Head’s Office. The goal is to write something that does not exceed 100 words. The prompt this week is in bold.

Monday Stuff, Prompt Fiction

Craving Freedom

Karen

Freedom threw her favorite sweater into her suitcase at the last minute. She hurriedly closed the lid, but was careful not to make a sound. She was sitting on top, trying to make it close that last half inch when the alarm went off.

“CRAP!” she hissed. She had totally forgotten about the automatic setting on her alarm clock. Sweat dotted her upper lip as she frantically worked to close the case.

“Freedom! Time to get up!” her mother yelled from down the hallway.

She sighed with relief as it finally clicked. Grabbing the case, she ran toward the window.

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Write up to 100 words, fact or fiction….

This is a themed writing meme hosted by The Head’s Office. The goal is to write something that does not exceed 100 words. The prompt this week is in italic.

Writing Stuff

The Point is to Write it Down

Karen

Life – from the pencil’s point of view.

Point from Victoria Harding on Vimeo.

Sort of makes me want to write, old school.

Now, to just find a #2 pencil.

*scribble-scribble*

*scribble-scribble*

*scribble-scribble*

*scribble-scribble*

UGH. This thing is driving me nuts. It’s too slow. It can’t keep up with my thoughts.

Never mind. I’m over it. Where’s my laptop?!?

“The point,” of course, is there is never an excuse NOT to write it down – whether it’s your thoughts, your doodles, your life, or your grocery list.

Leave a little of YOU behind – write it down.

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I spent a long time Saturday trying to reload WordPress on my karenmaxwell.com domain. However, the servers on our web host are not updated and I couldn’t get it to work.

I simply don’t have the energy (or the desire) to contact my web host and go through the process of making it work, especially since the last time I self-hosted I had nothing but problems and my blog was down most of the time.

(This blog, and my writing blog, are hosted on the wordpress.com servers. I don’t have as much control over the blogs as I would have using a self-host, but I have a lot less headaches – which is totally worth it for me).

I reserved the karenmaxwell.com domain for my writing – so I revamped an existing blog, re-routed the domain name and now when you type in karenmaxwell.com, it takes you to my “writing” blog. I’m loosely calling it my writing blog because I haven’t updated it in quite some time.

I’d like to fix that. (Ha! “Fix”. Get it??) So, I will try and post a writing prompt every week, something that sounds fun and challenging, and then write one story, every week, using that prompt. I will likely post an excerpt here, but the full story will be at my writing blog.

It’s time to step away from the Twitter stream and get serious about my writing.

AGAIN.

*sigh*