It's coming...

With November less than a month away, it is time to prepare for that month long event that many aspiring writers attempt in some form or another. I am of course speaking of NaNoWriMo (incidentally, does to 'No' stand for 'novel' or 'November'?). For those unacquainted with NaNoWriMo, it goes like this: a writer challenges him or herself to write a novel of more than 50,000 word in the month of November. The prize is as simple as the challenge: you get to say you've written a novel. The challenge of that much constant writing (more than 1600 words per day...) is daunting to many would-be authors, leading to some unfinished works...

Now, this author is taking it in a slightly different vein (I do have to be me...). As I am not exactly in novel writing mode these days, I am going to use NaNoWriMo for a unique writing challenge: I am going to write one comic book issue per day for the month of November. This will include dialogue and coherent notes for the artist. I will also be giving said issues for editting to those who care and aren't doing NaNoWriMo (Hi Jon, Jesse, Brian, etc...). However, per the rules of NaNoWriMo, I will not change anything of each issue until December 1...

This task is extremely daunting, and I'll tell you why. If one is writing a typical, run-of-the-mill novel, it will have a few characters that stay the focus of the project. This means you can travel with said characters as the story grows around them. Not so with comic book issues. I don't intend to write 30 issues of one character. The way I handle characters and stories these days, I need a break and/or write about something else. So I don't have the luxury to rest up between sessions; I just have to keep plugging along...

So, all that being said, here's what I'm doing to prepare myself:
- No actual issue writing until November 1...
- Keeping track of my various ideas I brainstorm...
- Work on other projects until NaNoWriMo starts...
- Catch up on my single issue reading to set the mood...
- Unearth other possible stories written and forgotten...

With all else going on (job hunting, back-to-schooling, vague wedding plans, household duties, puppy watch...), it's been a challenge just finding enough time to pump myself up for this. I can only imagine it will get harder next month when I put ink to paper. Oh yeah; I'm doing it old school, pencil and paper style mostly for NaNoWriMo. I know that some of my compatriots have been trying to ween me off of it (sorry Crash 'n Klein guys...), but I'm not there yet. Wish me luck...