My NaNoWriMo 2014 Journal

On October 31, I was asked if I would be doing this. I'd never done it before, but I decided to go for it (keeping in mind that I have a retail job with different hours from day to day, stuff to watch, and various other misc. things that eat up my free time). I set up an account on NaNoWriMo and came up with a novel idea before going to bed.

November 1:

After work (during which I mentally worked out some of the story), my first order of business was watching episode 9 of "Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal" (after reading the corresponding Act 9 of the original manga). I didn't get around to actually writing under after 10:00 PM. This is my first time pantsing a story. I came up with my two MCs' names on the spot.

Total word count: 905 (Nano officially says 907)

Ron Juckett said:

Good luck!

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Thanks!

November 2:

Church, breakfast with mom at Burger King, and work. Then she wanted to watch episode 8 of "Gilmore Girls" on Netflix. Internet videos and "Once Upon a Time" followed. I didn't start writing until just after 9:30 PM and went for two hours (around forty minutes more than yesterday).

Total word count: 2030 (NaNo: 2036)

November 3:

Work, news, Big Bang Theory. I started writing shortly after 7:30 PM and continued for four hours(!) - all of it part of the same dinner scene that I started yesterday in which one of the MCs exposits about her world.

Total word count: 3381 (NaNo: 3390 but can't validate tonight due to errors)

chompers said:

Very nice!

Btw, you can't validate until like the last week of Nano. The validation is for the whole novel.

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No, I mean under "Edit Novel" and "Check my official word count". After I had pasted the text and hit Validate, nothing happened. When I hit Cancel, my official word count was updated, but, when I tried to hit Save, it said there was an error.

November 4:

I had the day off, so, other than watching episodes 9 and 10 of "Gilmore Girls" with mom and also watching the news, I had three separate writing sessions, totaling seven hours and thirty minutes.

Total word count: 5730 (NaNo: 5742)

November 5:

Work, dinner, news, Big Bang Theory. I wrote for nearly three hours, the centerpiece being a sex scene between two girls that are AU versions of each other.

Total word count: 7205 (NaNo: 7218)

November 6:

I had the day off, but I had to run errands around the county. Then there was dinner, Internet videos, news, and Big Bang Theory. I did manage to get four hours of writing in: mostly more sex and talking but also some plot advancement.

Total word count: 8565 (NaNo: 8581)

November 7:

I wrote before and after work for a total of a little over 2.5 hours.

Total word count: 10124 (NaNo: 10141)

Having the day off today, I hope to get caught up. I even plan to make a minute-by-minute chart of word-count goals before I start.

November 8:

In between chores, lunch, church, dinner, and Sailor Moon, I had four separate writing sessions, totaling just over five hours. I have managed to get caught up and even write a little bit more on top of that, lowering my daily word-count goal slightly for the rest of the month.

Total word count: 13455 (NaNo: 13473)

November 9:

I had a short shift, but mom wanted to watch episode 11 of "Gilmore Girls". Also, there was news and "Once Upon a Time" for me. Finally, I had go to bed earlier than usual due to an early shift on the 10th (which I wouldn't do if I was living on my own; I'd go to bed at my usual time and then show up to work half-asleep).

Anyway, I managed to get a little over half of my now-shortened daily goal done.

Total word count: 14378 (NaNo: 14396)

November 10:

Long shift plus plus early bedtime due to another early shift on the 11th meant not much writing got done.

Total word count: 15572 (NaNo: 15590)

November 11:

Long shift at work, dinner, news, 2 eps of BBT, and S.H.I.E.L.D.. I wrote during the commercial breaks. A little over five hours of writing - minus all of the shows mentioned. I managed to get very close to my daily quota, but, since I'm behind, that meant finishing up the 10th's quota and only getting started on the 11th's.

Total word count: 17104 (NaNo: 17122)

Huh, it seems I forgot to make an entry for November 12:

Long shift at work. I got just two hours of writing done.

Total word count: 17826 (NaNo: ?)

November 13:

I had the day off, but I also had to go out for a bit and do yardwork. I also watched the news and four episodes of Big Bang Theory. All told, I got over 7.5 hours of writing done (though those include working between commercial breaks of the news and three of the four BBT eps). I managed to get caught up and even do a bit more, slightly lowering my daily goal for the rest of the month.

Total word count: 22080 (NaNo: 22104)

November 14:

Between watching episode 12 of "Gilmore Girls" with mom and a short, late shift at work, I got over half of my daily goal done, so I've got a bit of catching up to do.

Total word count: 22904 (NaNo: 22928)

November 15:

Long shift, episode 10 of Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal, and episode 13 of Gilmore Girls. After that, I got over 2.5 hours of writing done, finishing up the 14th's goal and getting over a third of the way through the 15th's.

Total word count: 24280 (NaNo: 24305)

November 16:

Long shift at work followed by a 2-hour Once Upon a Time event. I got a little over an hour of writing in, but I was also tired, so I simply finished one scene and did a little bit of the next. Very unproductive. Fortunately, I have both the 17th and the 18th off.

Total word count: 24545 (NaNo: 24570)

November 17:

I had the day off but also chores, and then a thunderstorm started. I couldn't get entirely caught up, but I made a lot of progress in just under seven hours of writing.

Total word count: 27717 (NaNo: forgot to check before I added today's)

November 18:

My second day off from work in a row. I did watch some other stuff (started on Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist and watched various Internet videos and episode 14 of Gilmore Girls), but I mostly tried to write. Not only did I get caught up, but I pulled a bit ahead, lowering my daily goal for the rest of the month.

I took on a lengthy flashback scene this time (after finishing the scene that I'd been on). My MCs don't appear. Instead, it primarily deals with a secondary character, but I wanted to show the backstory of my first MC's world, which occurs at a time after she'd been conceived but before she'd been born.

Total word count: 30870 (NaNo: 30902)

November 19:

A long shift at work, and then I was in a Sailor Moon mood after, so I watched some videos and listened to some songs. I didn't get a whole lot of writing done.

Total word count: 31302 (NaNo: 31334)

November 20:

A long shift plus ducking around on the Internet before and after meant I didn't get much writing done.

Total word count: 31851

NaNo will no longer check my word count, since the "I am ready to validate my novel" button has taken its place.

November 21:

A medium-length shift at work, but then one of my mom's friends/coworkers came by with her laptop to get me to help her sign into her e-mail (I had to end up resetting her password, because she'd screwed stuff up with her multiple attempts). Then I watched an Internet video, and there was some Indiegogo drama where I contributed to a new book called "The Incredible Untold Story of Sailor Moon" but selected the audiobook perk, thinking I'd also get the print version (which I likely wouldn't), so I quickly contributed again to get the print version before the campaign ended and contacted the owner to cancel the audiobook and refund my donation for that (which I have yet to hear back about). Anyway, I finally got to writing, but I'm still behind. Fortunately, I have at least two more scheduled days off from work this month.

Total word count: 32832

November 22:

A medium-length shift at work and an episode of Big Bang Theory. I got nearly three hours of writing done but didn't meet even one daily goal - to say nothing of catching up.

Total word count: 34065