Thus Far in Noxumbra Manor...

Hello bloggy friends!

I would apologize for not posting in a while, but I'm in the middle of National Novel Writing Month, and honestly it comes before food and sleep on my priorities list.

If you want to follow my word count progress, I've got a neat little widget over there --> that has my word count on it.  It's at 20k something right now.  You can find my NaNo profiles here (adult site) and here (young writers program).

This NaNoWriMo has challenged me in new ways.  It's been a test of endurance, patience, and not-giving-up-ness. (There has to be a better word for that...)  Last November was incredibly slow, life wise, and this November has so far been the complete opposite (though it could be worse).  This month my family is digging giant pits of despair (bonus points if you get the reference) on two sides of our house so we can pour a new foundation, my grandma is moving, and we have two fiber/art shows as well.  Also my sister's birthday is on Thursday, and she has strictly forbidden me from writing anything on that day.  It would have been really easy to give up before now, and just help dig and move and sell stuff, but I've kept going, and I will continue to do so. It's hard, because sometimes I feel guilty for writing and not helping, but I gave the world 335 days notice that I would be doing NaNo this year, and I am holding myself to that. I will persevere to the end of this thing no matter what life throws at me.

There are a few things I am hoping to practice and get better at with this NaNo:
- description
- internal narritive
- not using humongous blocks of dialogue
- humor
- character development

I've had my good moments with all, but I'd like to be better. And, like, um, not forget to describe things like all the characters and places this year. Cross your fingers.

That's pretty much all I have to say for now.  I may not post again until December first. Until then, please enjoy this parody on the Christmas song "It's the most wonderful time of the year," I wrote for NaNo.  Feel free to comment and add a stanza or twelve.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year,
With the keyboards a-clicking
And writers all saying “it’s finally here”
It’s the most wonderful time of the year.

It’s the happiest season of all,
With those insulting greetings and secretive meetings,
When foes come to call
It’s the happiest season of all.

There’ll be parties for hosting
And strange meat for roasting
And battling out in the snow
There’ll be scary ghost stories
And tales of the glories of
Victories long, long ago.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year,
There’ll be dragons for riding
And orphans a-hiding when villains are near.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year.