I guess I was too distracted by growing a kick ass beard for No Shave November that I forgot there was another November tradition. Who is participating? Let’s hear your story ideas and sweet sweet word count updates. I’ve never done it, but I liked reading the other threads.
I’m in this year but off to a grindingly slow start.
I’ve been trying to write the same 2-3 stories every year for years now (with one notable and very successful exception), so this year I again decided to break free and do something new.
Unfortunately, this something new was “turn a scrap of a story idea I jotted down in a virtual notebook 4 years ago into a full-blown novel,” and I decided to do that at approxiatemly 12:04AM November 1 :)
In essence, it’s a gothic fantasy; it’s closest parallel in “feel” is probably Vampire Hunter D minus the weird scifi elements (no vampires in rockets here).
It’s a setting that’s somewhat reminiscent of D&D4E’s “Points of Light” concept mixed with the main city from Attack on Titan!: a number of large, fastidiously defended human city-states exist within the confines of enormous walls in a relatively small area of the world. They surround a capital city founded by the “High King,” who sojourned out into the untamed wilderness from a great human empire many ages ago (said empire is now assumed to be lost). He struck down many of the fell demonic creatures in said wilderness, carving out a small habitable area. His greatest lieutenants founded their own cities in the periphery of this “safe zone,” and since the King’s death many ages ago, people have been restricted to this bubble of light amid the darkness.
The nature of the horrors which surround them on all sides are now quasi-mythical. “Demons” stalk the darkness of the world, which was lost to sin and evil eons ago. People fear to leave their cities–even just to travel to the next-nearest human settlement–for monsters roam the wilderness; the further away from human cities you go, the more likely you are to die, the conventional wisdom goes.
The novel will pick up late in this period after corruption and ignorance have set in within most of the cities, wherein the leadership and/or the citizens have long forgotten their true origins, the true nature of the threats beyond their borders, and even their own cities’ histories. Some believe that the stories of demons are merely the inventions of the state religion, while others fear the true devils may have taken over long ago.
Of course, by this point I’m already like 6 days behind, so this is going really swell for me.
Best of luck Armando, I like the concept a lot.
Sounds like fun.
I started at the beginning of November but I’m taking it easy. I’ve got just over 11,000 words, lots to write, and no rush.
It started off with an idea: what if there was no Christ, and therefore no Christianity? What would the world look like? These are my background notes:
Rome falls 1167 AUC
Power vacuum: Europa balkanised, ruled by independent city-states descended from the Northern barbarians (Visgoths, etc. – names changed)
Mediterranean remnant of Roman Empire (just Roma) much smaller; with no unified government, much of Roma is continually sacked by roving bands of Goths
Relative peace and prosperity in Europa by 1300 AUC; Roma fallen into disrepair and not worth sacking any more. Latin used throughout Europa as aristocratic language. Not much happens: “dark ages” from 1300 to 2000
Mongol Empire invades around 2000 AUC; by 2050 AUC, rules from Pacific to Atlantic with no organised resistance. Brittania still free; much of the northern kingdoms also independent (Holy City of Uppsala, for instance, defended greatly by whoever’s up there; independent Icelanders)
Pressure from Mongol Empire inspires Norse settlers to move to North America around 1900 or so. (Fleeing from Mongolian presence; not religious persecution, but something akin to it). Slowly move across continent, but living peacefully with native nomads: the Norsemen divide into two groups, warbands and settlers. Warbands do fight somewhat with nomads but these are in the minority. Most are settlers.
Small families, do not take up much land, always move with permission of nomads (formation of warbands due to initial slaughter of settlers in 1909).
Mongol Empire breaks up by 2100 AUC, with great battle from unified tribes sweeping across Europa and pushing the Mongols back to Istanbul/Afghanistan. This done despite the technology of the Mongols and despite the underfed status of the Northmen; Mongol Empire largely symbolic, fell apart due to internal corruption. Core Mongol Empire back in Asia still very strong, but also feeling pressure from Confucians and Koreans. No Japan.
Uneasy peace between Unified North and Mongol Empire. Unified North making inroads in Vinland but mostly restricted to east coast; warbands and nomads join forces to harass and destroy Unified North settlers. Original settlers, now having lived away from Europa for a good three hundred years, no longer interested in European politics.
“Dark continent” made up of Aztec, Inca, Mayan, and Chibcha empires. Still in existence around 2400. War between Aztecs and Incans ended up with Incans as victors; Incans making inroads into Vinlandbut only as far as very south part of modern day New Mexico. Very little influence at this time aside from rumours from Blackfoot/Blood/Peigan nomads in story.
Story is around 2400 AUC. Two Norse-immigrant families, common ancestor, live close to each other. It’s a family drama with some light supernatural elements. I have no idea how much the backstory above will come into the actual plot of the book, but that’s the world in which it’s set. It’s been a lot of fun playing the “What if?” game but I really wanted to create a character-driven drama akin to Downton Abbey; my first three novels were very much plot-based, so I thought I’d change it up a bit for this one.
Once you’re finished your writing project, you should check out Kim Stanley Robinson’s “The Years of Rice and Salt”, which proceeds from a similar premise.
Oh, I’ve definitely read it: I very much enjoyed it, too! I finished reading “Shaman” by KSR just before I started, so perhaps that was a bit of an inspiration for my current project.
How will you be spending your November?
Hey, what about typing a lot?
Just a reminder that NaNoWriMo starts in less than 24 hours.
I’m doing it this year. Actually spent the last 3 weeks doing prep, mapping out beats, and creating a big scene list. I could use another couple of weeks, but my control over the calendar is limited and I’ll just have to plow forward. I’m hjmadigan on the official site if anyone wants to add me there.
Only a few more days till thousands of people start writing allegorical manuscripts about bear-shifters, Trump, and COVID.
The year is 2020, millions are cooped up at home with the people they are bound to by blood, but secretly can’t stand. And starting November 1st they’ll all start dabbling in a little escapism. I wonder what the folks here at Qt3 will be inspired to peck out.
If you’re wondering how to become the next James Joyce, William Golding, Dan Brown, or even a James Patterson ghost-writer, this might just have the answers you’re looking for. Even today there are those that say there would be no William Faulkner if it weren’t for his early dalliances writing romantic Sherlock Holmes & Watson fan-fiction for the first NaNoWriMo:
https://nanowrimo.uservoice.com/knowledgebase/articles/1956766-getting-started
I haven’t written in years and I won’t be participating in NaNoWriMo this year, but I did decide to revisit and re-read some of my entries from years past. While doing this a funny thing happened, I re-discovered the story I wrote for the 2014 NaNoWriMo. When I saw the name of the story I couldn’t for the life of me remember what it was about. I keep a log of every single story I write, how much time I spend writing per day, and the words written per session (as well as a ton of other stuff relating to stuff I read, write, or give feedback on). According to my logs I’d spent weeks on this sucker, and I just couldn’t remember a single thing about it.
So I went looking for it and found it archived with all the rest of my stuff, backed up on Google Drive. I sat down and started reading, and boy I couldn’t remember any of the details until I saw them on the page, but once I read a chapter I could finally remember writing the thing, but not before.
Anyway, I don’t have anything important to say here. It’s just such a strange experience digging into some old work and discovering things I, uh, couldn’t even remember forgetting.
As for the story, 50k words wasn’t enough to finish the arc I had going, and I never did get around to pushing it any further past the 50k NaNoWriMo victory requirement.
At least nothing is at stake.
Perhaps needless to say, generative AI benefits techbros, not working class people, and disempowers disabled people who do creative work. It’s gen AI itself that’s classist and ableist.
And it isn’t really that they defended it (which was bad) it was how they defended AI. Calling out anyone opposed as classist or ableist. Which is just bonkers.
Yeah, apartment one of the sponsors is an AI company, and NaNo is going kind of weird defending AI.
Also, apparently there was a former exec who was grooming people in the forums in recent years, leading to a pretty big overhaul…
Yeah that made me swear off NaNoWriMo as an organization. The AI stuff is icing on the cake. Here is Chuck Wendig’s spot on take:
Of course that you do not need that organization to participate in National Novel Writing Month. You just… write, and keep track of your writing, and don’t give that organization any money and stay away from their forums. And then write some more.
I didn’t even know there was an official organization with dues and stuff until this AI news. I always thought this was something people just challenged each other with and did on their own.