Interest Check: National Novel Writing Month

[[FnG] Rotten_Emu]

WOOHOO 50000 words in 30 days! I'm so happy! (even though the story is far from finished). I will continue working on it in December and hopefully I can give you a satisfactory ending somewhere in early January! So yeah I wasn't able to write "The End" at the end but I got the words (also it says nothing about not finishing the book, I beat the challenge!)



yay me

[[FDG]Sundae]

Congratulations, Emu! YAAAAAAAAAAAAY!

[[FnG] Hanno]

Well done Emu.

I did even get off the starting block, Novemeber is the month I feel most depressed because of SAD
plus I was ill at the beginning of the month with Shingles.

[[FnG] 7uh]

Nice job E-MOOOO!

I too got nothing done on this. An annual-report project came up that had to be designed, approved and sent to the printer in about a week and a half, which ended up shooting the month of November up to Thanksgiving. By that time, I was too shot to think about writing.

[[FDG]Sundae]

84K has been reached - probably only 9-11K more to completion of the story. Wooo!

[[FDG]Sundae]

I'm done!!


90,573 words for the first draft. Time to go pass out for a while.

[[FDG]Sundae]

Cross-posting from the Fudge Forums...

Okay - it's time to revisit this thread.

I have an offer for people who are willing to help me with editing.


Currently, I am at page 122 out of 318. It takes a while, I must admit. I plan to hit 150ish by this afternoon. This will put me at about the 1/2-way point, at which point I can go to the document and actually fill in the edits, and then the first half is good for people to read.

I am looking for people who are willing to give this a critical read. This means going chapter by chapter, writing down your comments (use "Track changes" and "Comments" in MS Word or OpenOffice, please). It means paying more attention to content than grammar, per sé (fix grammar if you see it, of course, but that's not the point ). The reader should be focusing on the actual story, character development, etc etc. If something stinks, I expect to be told it stinks. I'm not going to be offended. I also expect to be told why or how it stinks. It can be as simple as "this character would never dream of doing that, at least based on my read of the character," or "hey, just so you know, the dialogue sounds really really forced here."

I'll provide a set of questions I have at the end of each section of chapters (about every three chapters for the first half) regarding issues I may think the story has, and I'd like your input on them.

This will probably involve three go-arounds. (First half, second half, re-read of full thing with changes incorporated.) The re-read will go quicker, really.

WHAT YOU GET:

You get to read the story.

You'll receive e-mailed word documents with Track Changes turned on. Track any changes you make, please, and please use comments liberally.

You'll receive the Sundae Scroll of Acquirement - using this scroll buys you your choice of one video game (platform of your choice, standard editions - no $150 collector editions please) in the next two years. GW2? All yours. D3? Done. MW2 on XBox360? Sold. Tell me an address and it'll get ordered and mailed to you. Alternatively, link me to a spot where you are ordering it, and I'll paypal you the funds if you'd prefer to not give me your address.

What I expect in return:

Critical analysis of the story.
Complaints if you have them.
Reasonable turn-around on it. Let's say 45 days per half of the story?
Detailed explanations of things you think are good or bad in the story.
Answers to questions about things in the story. (Example question: Describe character X please. What do you see this person as looking like? Who is the main character and why do you think this?) That last question sounds like something from a literature class, I know, but it's actually very helpful for me. It tells me whether I've put emphasis on the right characters at the right times, whether I've given anyone too much page-time or too little, etc.


If you're interested in doing this, please respond here. It'll be a good amount of reading, which is why I'm offering the games in exchange. It wouldn't be fair of me to expect it for nothing.

I can have the first half to you by tomorrow evening.

Post if you're interested - I won't need *everybody*, but will take a few if they're interested. Game offer still stands.

[[FnG] Rotten_Emu]

I would love to help you out with this Sundae (not in the least bit because of the game-offer). I'm told I can give great feedback on articles and products (at school), I am liberal with the use of Comments and give suggestions (rather than saying 'this stinks' and 'that sucks'). With the travel times, free time, I have on my hands and the availability of laptops all around me I can also abide by the 45 day period. If it's an interesting read I'll probably be a lot quicker

So holler if you need my help!

Also thanks for dragging me into and through NaNoWriMo. The small words of encouragement and the actual knowledge that a realistic person could make it made me sure I could do it too, and I made it even though I haven't finished my story yet!

[[FnG] JinX-D]

I'd be willing to help as well, I'm always in for a good read, maybe having me, as a casual reader will help as well And plus the fact that John and I live in the same house, we can always discuss things with each other and make the end result even better
And I have the time, I can be on the computer for hours and not actually doing all that much

[[FDG]Sundae]

Okay, thanks you two! I'm going to give it one more day for join-ins, if anyone else thinks they'd like to help, and then I'll send the first half.

[The Phantom]

I'm told I can give great feedback on articles and products (at school)

+1, He does.

[[FDG]Sundae]

Going to go with:

Bakey
Pop
Rotten_Emu
JinX-D
Sublime.

That should be enough readers for a single round of edits.

Could you PM me an e-mail address please, so that I can add you all to one list for forwarding edits, ideas, etc?

It's going to be broken down into smaller sections to start - about 4 chapters at a time for the first half after all, and then the second half will be one lump unit. This is due to the way the plot is structured. It'll be better to evaluate it in 'intro' sections per character for the first half, and then a larger section when they've all met.


Again, no distributing any of this. Thanks!

~S

[[FDG]Sundae]

Sent to both of you! Thanks!

[[FDG]Sundae]

Rotten / JinxD -- Did you guys receive chapters 5-9? Also, I'm still waiting on Rotten's comments on Ch 1-4.

Thanks!

[[FnG] JinX-D]

Yeah, I received them, I just didn't around to read them yet, will do so, this weekend