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There is only one rule for writing memoir: You have to be honest. There are no templates, no blueprints, no other instructions. Unfortunately, this doesn't make it any easier. Here we will discuss with each other the difficult but exhilarating process of writing memoir—the worries we have, the obstacles we face, both real and imagined, and the pleasures of digging deep to find the story. There will be new assignments every month to jog memories loose, and to help banish self-consciousness, the scourge of all writers. I hope we will discover that the process of writing memoir is as valuable and important as the finished thing because of what we learn along the way. I hope we will share our concerns and our work with each other.
I will jump in and out of the discussions at least once a month. Given my limited availability online, I'm not always able to respond to personal messages. But I look forward to interacting with you all in this creative workshop of ours. Start writing.
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NaNoWriMo--National Novel Writing Month--anyone in?
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justbetsy said:
on October 26, 2009 12:33 PM ET
Nov. 1-30 is the NaNo challenge--write 50,000 words in 30 days. Details at http://www.nanowrimo.org |
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Okay it's 2 a.m. (for the second time tonight), and I've passed the daily quota of 1,667 words (I've done 1,793 so far) before going to bed. I hope to write way more in the daylight hours to build up a buffer for the work week.
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Okay, it's 2 a.m. (for the second time tonight) and I've hit 1,793 words, so I'm going to bed. (The average # of words you need to write per day is 1,667). So I've made the quota before going to bed, but the day is not over, so I hope I can build up a bigger buffer during the daylight hours.
I first mis-understood.( Hence the mystery book question.) I have keept the page in my Favorites and will study it more. Thanks , Anna
We kick off Saturday at midnight! If anyone else from here is competing and wants a writing buddy--my username over there is justBetsy. I think I've got my brother talked into competing also.
GREAT JOB!!!! And that was with only 7 minutes to create -- thanks for sharing.
OK, here's the "in the style of Poe" piece I wrote in seven minutes (I do intend to work on it more, but this is what I did within the time limits):
I was simply walking
when a feeling of a stalking
had my legs and feet both balking
and it started me a gawking
till a snake on the path I see
On a tree limb it was looping
I could not pass without stooping
ever lower it was drooping
from the limb it fell a swooping
the snake on the path with me
My breath turned into wheezing
from its gaze my blood was freezing
and the feeling was not pleasing
there was no chance of appeasing
the snake on the path with me
As it stared into my eyes
I could sense, to my surprise
that it had another guise
I could feel the knowledge rise
that the snake on the path was me
c. 10/28/09, B. Riley
I think everyone else wrote prose, because the organizers called it "flash fiction", but I think more of Poe's poetry--especially when the time is so short.
Hey - that was great news on the honorable mention -- good job! Are you going to post it here?
and of course Murphy's law reigns--today at work they assigned me a big report due at the end of November! My challenge is getting more challenging all the time.
But I won honorable mention (an extra prize they added) at the flash writing contest tonight (7 minutes to write something in the style of Poe).
