Creative Writing

NaNoWriMo

On November 2, 2004 I decided to take up the NaNoWriMo challenge. NaNoWriMo is short for National Novel Writing Month. Write a 50,000-word novel between November 1 and November 30, upload it to the NaNoWriMo website for word count verification, and you win. Emphasis on quantity, not quality. Simple.

That year, in light of my other commitments it was pretty much insane. But a week-long vacation gave me the time to formulate the plot, and grim determination on weekday evenings helped. Things looked bleak the weekend before Thanksgiving – I had just twenty-thousand words. But then something clicked and I wrote nine-thousand more on Monday (ahem, after work, of course). One week later, on November twenty-ninth, I submitted my novel for official word counting and was certified a "winner." The only problem is, the novel wasn't finished.

In 2005 I set out to write a serious, first person tale of family tragedy and emotional growth. I struggled through the month and got to 50,000 words, but was not at all happy with the result. Enough said.

Flash forward to 2006. In the summer I resolved to finish my 2004 novel before November, and write the sequel for 2006. A few people who'd read the partial work on my website had urged me to complete it. I failed in thie first goal, but completed the more important second one. The (also unfinished) sequel to Seekng Exile, Trouble in Paradise, will be posted here soon.

Fan Fiction

Fan fiction is written by fans of television shows, movies, books, and even comics and music. Although it has been around for decades, the Internet has provided a venue for fans to share their work with a wider audience. Google any pop culture topic and you'll find fan fiction web sites dedicated to it (even, I suppose although I don't care to look, Britney Spears).

I take satisfaction from picking up where a favorite cancelled TV show left off and resolving the unfinished storyline. I hope that fans of the nmid-1990s science fiction show Earth2 and of the 1960s British spy show The Avengers will enjoy my stories.