Introduce yourself to the region!

Hello!

My name is Kelly, I'm 22, and this is my first time doing Nanowrimo. I actually hadn't planned on doing it at all but I heard so much about it in previous years from John Green (I'm a nerdfighter wahey!) and I feel as if it stewed subconsciously until today when I suddenly started writing and couldn't stop. Here I am, staring at a story that is supposed to be a page and has now turned into three... how could I not flesh it out all the way and have fun doing it? I'm a unemployed bum so I might as well be doing SOMETHING in between cover letters. :D

You might see me at a write in sometime :)

I am thegrinch and an expert procrastinator. I have started on what I think I am going to write, a mystery/suspense novel and people die. Most of what I write has dead people, don't why but I am not a serial killer so you are safe (from me at least). I have almost 100 words and now debating if I go to the store hoping to snag some marked down Halloween candy or not. Aside from my personal procrastinator skills I have a Psychodog that wants most of my attention when I write. This is my 5th year at doing this. I have hit 50K the first 2 years (once at 11:35PM on 11/30), and not that far the other 3. This was to be the year when I got an outline and character bios done before November 1st, but to stay true to my procrastination...

Okay, I have stalled the last 30 min or so reading posts, etc.

Merry Nano to all and to all a good type. [Sounds better in my head than typed out.]

Hi, I'm Jodi,

This is my first NaNo. I'm super excited to participate this year and am determined to finish even if I write the worst book in the world. This experience will certainly be a challenge for me since I'm also a full-time worker bee and in Grad school. Anyway, after NaNo I will probably never bat an eye at writing a 10 page paper for finals again.

Good luck everyone, may the force be with you!

Hi, I'm Paige and this is my second year participating in NaNoWriMo. I had a great time last year and wrote close to 100,000 words (far surpassing my expectations). This year I am hoping to do the same, although I am not as prepared and don't have much of an outline. I also don't have my writing buddy, my 10 year old daughter, who participated in the Young Writer's Program last year and attended the write-ins with me.

Keeping my fingers crossed that I reach my goal. Good luck everyone!

Hello!

I am Jessi, from Downers Grove. This is my fourth attempt at Nano. I have never won. Yet.

I didn't have an idea for my novel until last night, when I went online and played with some random generators. We'll see if the idea I had will hold out for 50k words! Huzzah for lack of planning!

The basic story is about a girl who lives with her native, nomadic desert tribe, although the planetary society as a whole is relatively technologically advanced. She discovers she has a rare (and what some think is obsolete) talent for finding water. Unfortunately certain draconian tactics by the urban majority cause her to be taken from her family and placed in a reeducation facility in the coastal cities, where her waterseeking talent is not only useless, but mocked. She finds, however, that the talent has a side effect that may help save the planet. Woo hoo!

Hello,
I am LC. I have been thinking of doing the nano for some years now and this year unlike the previous times I have actually started writing. I have no set plot and I am not sure how my story is going to turn out and ....as long as it's 50,000 words long ...I don't even care. My only plan, so far, is to write and keep writing and save the editing and judging for next month. I am unemployed, by choice - retired, I like to think - so I have time during the day when the kids are at school in-between laundry, cleaning and getting dinner. I also run, but somehow I don't think my story will have anything to do with running. I am an expert procrastinator. That's how I thought of doing the nano for several years and didn't do anything until now.

I can't remember if I introduced myself already, but, if I did, I'm doing it again so I can be on the word count graph. Hi, I'm Sophie. Sixteen. Trying to write 50K on top of AP classes and fall play, and thriving with the stress. I'd love to writing buddies with any and all of you!

'Ello everyone. I'm Alex, and this is my first year at NaNo, though I've heard a lot about it and I'm looking forward to attempting to finish this. I think it's a great challenge!
I'm also looking forward to meeting many of fellow writers. Though never published, I'm my own greatest fan (which sounds a lot worse than it should). Heh.
I come in unprepared and I will come out the same. I tip my hat to everyone here, and hope that you'll all succeed!

Well, I wish everyone good luck
and for their well of creativity to be full year-long, not just this month.

I'm Kathy. I've done 5 NaNos and finished all. This is NaNo 6 for me. (And Tim, I know I said I was done, but my best bud in Alabama is an ML this year, as you know, so this time I"m in both this region and in that one.) I've done them starting a week late, one despite a 4-hour (total) commute and full-time job, and one when my mom died on Day 4. If you've tried and haven't finished before, know that it's do-able. It's not about Nobel-worthy art, it's about word count, so do what you have to do: throw in a dream sequence, have your character read his/her mail, detail a phone conversation or driving directions for the character. Whatever gets you over the finish line, it all counts! Good luck everyone!

I'm Mike, and this is my sixth NaNo. My previous NaNo-winning novels were Variation Seven, Strange Times, Living in the Future, Dying in the Past, and Travelers' Tales. This novel, still untitled, continues the story I started five years ago.

Hello everyone, I am Jenni, I live in Montgomery (between Aurora and Oswego, I have lots of experience with shorter works and have had a couple things published. This will be my first long piece, it is a story I started a little while ago and am rehashing into a full piece. This is my first NaNo and since I have no self discipline whatsoever, this deadline is what I am hoping kicks my but into gear. I love to write, but often struggle with completing pieces...so here goes something.

Hello! I'm Jieshan, and this is my sixth attempt at NaNoWriMo. I still haven't won yet, but this year will be the first time I'm attempting it whilst being unemployed (I've been a housewife ever since we moved to Chicagoland several months ago for my husband's job), so maybe that will help. By contrast, last November, I was in my final semester of library school, working full-time, and doing an internship on top of that, which didn't leave me much in the way of time to write.

I'm writing Torchwood fanfiction this year, because I've learned by experience that I am far more motivated to follow through with that kind of thing than original fiction... why fight it?

Hi, everyone,

I'm Trish. I've been trying to write a novel for years and thought NaNo might be a good way to build momentum. So far, so good!

I missed all the prep parties, but hope to make a few events this month.

Hi!
I'm MarthaJoy coming back for the 2011 November madness. I wrote my 2009 romance novel Patience by the "seat of my pants." The novel needs a massive rewrite job. I haven't done this as I've been finishing up my non fiction history of the West Chicago fire department. This year I followed the advice of Larry Brooks on his storyfix.com website and did some preplanning. What a relief! I now have a direction for my story. I'm writing about Tommy Tiger Cat and how he finds a home.

Hey! Can I claim forum posts in my word count?
I didn't think so. :(
I'm Tomster, from Arlington Heights. I trek to Naperville every November because it's the best region in Illinois. Don't tell that to those snobs from Chicago. We might find our tires slashed. Seriously, this is my fourth Nano with 2 wins under my belt and I owe it all to this region and to write-in's and Starbucks coffee, and maybe donuts.

My stories are contemporary fiction and are relationship driven. This year will be a challenge because I'm less prepared than usual and I'm traveling on business more than I'd like. If I can catch up by the start of week 4 on word count winning will be a cinch. If I don't than all those donuts will have been wasted.

In September of 2006 my daughter challenged me to stop talking about writing a science fiction novel but to sign up for National Novel Writing Month and actually write on. I did and started writing my Legacy Rising series completing 75,000 words on Legacys Gift.

I followed this with Legacys Dawn (2007), Legacys Longing (2008) and Legacys Challenge (2009). Last year I took a break and wrote The Unclocked Door (2010), which although in the same universe and my Legacy Rising series is not directly related to the others. In the last four years I have completed 100,000 words during Nano and hope to reach at least that many in 2011 when I work on The Legacy Conflict.

In 2010 I experience a major life challenge when my mother died on November 1st and much of the first week of November was a blur of travel to Florida for the funeral. Although I had uneven motivation I did come back, reach my goal and complete my novel.

Id like to publish, but none of my works are fully edited yet where I would be willing to market them.

I have three adult children and two grandchildren and look forward to passing on a literary legacy born from these annual thirty days and nights of literary abandon.

Hello, I'm Charlotte and I'm excited to be a first time NaNo writer. So far it is a lot of fun!

Hello, everyone! I'm Sarah, a 15 year old student (Sophomore in High School), and I'm the biggest fan of writing, it's my passion, it's as simple as that :) Currently I'm writing a book based off of one that I wrote back in seventh grade, I took the characters and the basic idea and changed literally everything else about it. It's going great so far :)
Writing is all that I have been doing for the past four days, heck, I already have almost twenty thousand words. I plan to try to go to at least one or two write in's in the future. :) It's a pleasure to meet all of you. Don't' be afraid to talk to me, although, I do warn you, I'm a little quirky, I like to quote Shakespeare and am literally obsessed with books, that's almost all I talk about (Or martial arts).
I hope to see you all soon! :)

Well, I guess I should introduce myself this year. I'm Carly, I slave away in my retail job, in my spare time I make and sell handmade journals on Etsy and at the One Strange Bird boutique in the Humboldt Park neighborhood downtown, and obviously since i'm here, I write.

This year, I'm writing a prequel/sequel to last years NaNovel. Or, well, I'm rebelling and FINISHING them.

I think I did this introduction last year, but I never showed my blessed face at any of our regional events, so I thought it might be a good idea to say hello again. This year I plan on making a write in or jabber, even if it means I only manage a drive by mooning. You'll prefer seeing my face, I guarantee you.

I managed to make it over 30K last year, a story I really was jazzed over, but not only lost what was saved to my laptop but also lost the backup due to a zapped thumb drive. There are a few excerpts left that I shared with a blog group. This year, I bought a new laptop, threw away the fifty pound dinosaur I used last year, and am uploading the entire NaNo to my blog. This one will not go away.

This year I am sticking to 1700 words a day and trying to stay ahead. My story is very simple, not all that original -- it's drawn from personal experience with the theme being a man, like myself, who has been fortunate to be granted a one year sabbatical to write the novel he has always wanted to write. He parks himself in a local Panera Bread to write, with his novel eventually turning to what happens as he gets to know the regulars and workers. It shouldn't be a surprise that you will be able to find me writing my NaNo most early mornings at a Panera on Butterfield in Wheaton! Stop by if you want.

I'm a Warrenvillian.

Best wishes to all.

Steve