30+ "Urgent" Matters That Keep Me From My Writing

Do you know who I am? I am the maniac that likes to work under pressure. I am the one who rarely finishes anything early, not merely because I have procrastinated doing it, but because every other thing in life seemed exceedingly urgent.

Now, my definition of "urgent matters" and your definition of urgent matters may differ wildly. Here are some things that, depending on the circumstance, could be deemed as an urgent matter:

1. BBCAmerica is showing an episode of Doctor Who I have only seen once before.
2. I told myself I was going to write a particular post for my blog.
3. There is a conversation going on on Twitter that I believe I can contribute to.
4. There is a book next to me, in my bag or on my nightstand that I have not yet finished.
5. My dog is looking at me.
6. I haven't looked at my gecko in a little while.
7. I require chocolate.
8. I forgot to take my medicine.
9. Tonight is the opening night of some movie.
10. My brother is on the phone.
11. I've decided today is going to be mega-clean-up day.
12. I've decided today is going to be the day where I teach myself about some new social media tool I know next to nothing about.
13. The neighbors found a dog roaming around the neighborhood and I've decided I am going to "hang on to it" until we figure out who the psycho dog belongs to (that was last Friday).
14. I'm going to research how to find bachelor mockingbirds some girlfriends so they don't have to chirp all night long outside our bedroom.
15. I'm going to figure out how to actually use my slow cooker.
16. I'm going to put all of life on hold to go to a ginormous book expo and simply forget that I am no where near healthy enough to do such a thing!
17. BBCAmerica is showing an episode of Doctor Who I have seen many times before.
18. Oh... wait a second... BBC America is showing Battlestar Galactica after Doctor Who and this happens every weekday from 4pm through 6pm?! Reschedule dinner time, this is extremely  urgent!!
19. Facebook needs an update.
20. Facebook has 20+ messages waiting for me.
21. I must check my e-mail. 
22. I must read more blogs.
23. I must go back and read blogs that I started reading a long time ago.
24. I must figure out a better way to read blogs.
25. Very urgent! Check in on foursquare! Don't let that guy steal your one and only mayorship again!
26. Feed the dogs. 
27. Is it garbage day? If so, get everything out of the house!! If not, ignore everything and wait for garbage day.
28. I bet those weeds are growing back in the backyard... Get outside.
29. Qdoba opened up right up the block! MUST go try it!
30. Mother-in-law invites us for dinner. Never saying no to that!
31. I'm feeling pretty weak. I should probably do some more bicep curls with that large salsa jar.
32. Husband is lingering near the laundry... better get some of that done.
33. I must watch all the YouTube channels I am subscribed to, otherwise, why bother to subscribe?
34. I'll convert my china cabinet into a bookcase (sure Mom and Dad are both flipping in their graves over that one!).
35. I will engage the telemarketer, survey person, or whoever else randomly calls my house (particularly if they ask for one or both of my deceased parents) in a long winded conversation.
36. I will give my gecko a bath.
37. What I really need to do is write a really long list of all of the things that keep me from revising and editing my novel!

There are more, I am sure, but, for now, each of these things has kept me, in some way shape or form, from completing my novel. Since Camp NaNoWriMo and JuNoWriMo started at the beginning of this month, I told myself I would use this month to work on it, however, this has not happened. Every day, the "urgent matters" (and yes, some of them are actually pretty valid, like my health kicking my @$$) keep creeping up and stealing my time. Every night I go to bed asking myself Why didn't I write today? Then I got this tweet today:

@riverand How's the writing going?
— Susan Sipal (@HP4Writers) June 13, 2012

In the instant I read it, I thought, Oh no... I have no excuse! You see, Susan and I trade tweets maybe every month or so. I recall her asking me the same question last time we tweeted and I remember having big plans... As I started to write back, I stumbled upon my solution:

It's getting overwhelmed by blogging & reading.I'm going to have to give myself a deadlineRT @hp4writers: @riverand How's the writing going?
— Nicole Rivera (@riverand) June 13, 2012

A deadline. So simple, even if it is completely made up and has nothing behind it but my word. Because, as I said at the beginning of this post: I am the maniac that likes to work under pressure. Unfortunately, in this writing life, right now, there is no one to apply that pressure but me! Susan's response?

@riverand Without deadlines, I'd get nothing done - even if the deadline is an artificial one that I've set.
— Susan Sipal (@HP4Writers) June 13, 2012

So glad I'm not alone...

Image Source

The deadline is set. Are you ready? My obscure date is August 17, 2012. On that day I will be done with my revisions and editing. I think that means I'll be done with beta readers, too. I want to be able to jump into the rejection pool (query time) by this Fall. I have set up a countdown on my iGoogle homepage to remind me every time I open up my computer (adding that pressure!), it looks like this:

 

I have 65 days. Is it enough? I. have. no. idea. But this is the only way I am going to find out, right?

Here's what I need from you guys:

• Support, cheerleading, etc.
• A good butt kicking every now and again.
• A simple "@riverand How's the writing going? #deadline" tweet, to keep me accountable (or embarrassed!)
• Volunteer beta readers for a contemporary YA novel. I'm looking for more critique over grammar/spell check - if you think you might want in, let me know!

For now, I'll just have to protect myself...

see more Failbook

 

Writing A Novel - Now I Understand

Until recently, the thought of seeing the deleted scenes from a finished movie meant only one thing to me: lots of laughs! I would look to these clips for the bloopers, the pranks, the sneak peeks of the actors I admired behaving out of character and maybe, just maybe, a little more like themselves. It was with this expectation that I entered into viewing the deleted scenes of The Muppets about a month ago. I was not ready for the incredible writer's "A-Ha! Moment" I would receive from watching all that did not make it into one of my favorite movies of 2011.

It goes without saying that many of the scenes were funny and that some were bloopers (human and muppet alike!), however, having sat through every single scene on the "Play All" feature right after watching the full length film, I was surprised by how many of the scenes had nothing to do with the movie at all! Let me rephrase that, they could have had something to do with the movie, but not the way it turned out. These scenes were not just cut from the film, their omission either resulted in, or from, a major rewrite of the script.

O-M-G!

I know, I know, you're reading this and saying, "Duh, Nicole! What's the big deal?!"

The big deal is that it was that Muppet moment, for some reason, that my rose-tinted glasses were finally smashed. Slowly some thoughts crept into the corners of my mind,  

When Jason Segel and Nick Stoller wrote "The Muppets," they didn't think it was perfect, was the first thought...

Then slowly (sometimes I'm a bit dense...), They must've looked at it and thought that the only way it could be fixed was if they rewrote pieces...

And then here's where the BIG connect comes in, I bet if I rewrite pieces of my novel I can fix it!

Having read Stephen King, Anne Lamott and Marion Roach Smith's books on writing since finishing my first draft, as well as being a part of writing communities and chatting it up with numerous new writing friends, this is a fact I knew, but (I can now see) did not understand. There is an enormous gap between knowing something and understanding something; I am incredibly grateful that I have finally bridged it.

Here is what I understand: 

• I understand that it is not my weakness as a writer or my amateur status in this role that accounts for the state my novel is in; it is the fact that it has not been cared for since first being splashed on the page.
• I understand that getting the story out is only part of the work and that the other part, the editing part, is much more than correcting typos, spelling, grammar and fluidity of sentences.
• I understand that I will have to "kill my darlings" even though there is no death scene in my novel, nor shall there be cause for one.
• I understand that writing is an art, in the same way my teaching was: a beautiful, fun effortless-looking output from countless unspoken sleepless nights spent researching, creating, rewriting, perfecting but filled with giddy excitement every step of the way.
• I understand that I am new to this, that I am learning, but I can do this.

I'm looking forward to the weeks ahead. While I've been extra sick as of late (thank you very much stealthy kidney stone no one asked for!), I am hoping the worst of it is behind me and that I can bumble back to my sloth-like existence of pseudo-healthy (two chronic diseases I can handle!) and truly hit the books. I'm taking part in a Savvy Authors online workshop on constructive criticism that I hope will help me in my own writing as well as my participation in the StoryDam community. It should be fun (read: *absolutely terrifying*) to share some of my chapters with people in my class to get constructive criticism on them: WISH ME LUCK!

Hoping everyone else in ROW80 is doing well with their writing goals this round.
 

Realizing This is My Cocoon to Eat

It occurred to me this week that I am stuck. Just like a butterfly in a cocoon, I have made it through the beginning stages of my metamorphosis, then wrapped myself up really tight and secure for the final transformation and have been unable to budge since.

To become a butterfly, there are four stages of life. First there is an egg, then the larva (what I typically call the caterpillar), the chrysallis (the cocoon) and then, finally, there is a butterfly.

Writing can be looked at in the same four stage process. We begin with an idea, which, much like an egg, has the potential for life if protected and handled with care. Then there is the outpouring of the idea, which Anne Lamott calls "the shitty first draft" and which Marion Roach Smith calls "the vomit draft," whoever you talk to it's icky, sticky and not unlike a caterpillar; it eats everything in sight, it's alive, but only beautiful to those who have unique vision; it is unfinished. After the outpouring comes the hardest work of all - the true metamorphosis - the editing phase. At this point of writing it is often advised that you pack away your work, let it be for a while and then return to tear it asunder. I can't help but think of that caterpillar sleeping in that cocoon, hidden from the world and then eating his way out of the cocoon bit by bit just to see the light of day again.

But when he does, he is something beautiful, something majestic and he can fly. This is the same thing with my writing. It will fly once it gets out of its cocoon.

The only problem is it seems I was waiting for help. Have you ever read the story of the butterfly who received help with getting out of his cocoon? He never finished developing. He couldn't fly. It is heartbreaking.

So, for Round 2 of ROW 80, I have one simple goal: I must edit my novel. I must take the time necessary to transform it from caterpillar to butterfly. Will I be done by the end of this round? I have no idea, but if I am not don't you dare try to pull me out of this cocoon before I am done!


Click here to support the rest of the writers in Round 2 of ROW80.

THE END [NaNoWriMo]

I am happy to say I am officially a 2011 winner of NaNoWriMo. I wrote 50,000 words within the month of November, but I told you that already. What I did not tell you, what I could not tell you was that I finished the novel. I am pleased to say, that tonight, at just over 70,000 words I reached THE END.

This is merely a first draft. I have not reread anything I have written all month (Lord help me!), so I have no idea what the future holds for these 70K words of mine, but I feel pleased that I have come this far. The plan now, as difficult as it is to even think of, is to walk away from these words and not look at them until January. At that point I will sit down, read (armed with some sort of editing device), and rip my darling to pieces.

In the interim, it is back to blogging, reading and writing short stuff.

If you are curious as to how my month of writing fell out, below is a picture of the stats so meticulously gathered by the NaNoWriMo website. You can see there was a lot of sporadic writing. There were good days, bad days, healthy days, pained days, and some serious marathon sessions of writing. It was quite an experience overall and I hope to participate again.

total words written is less than 70K, because I was not permitted to update after midnight on 12/1/11.

I'm looking forward to reconnecting with the world now that November is over!

NaNoWriMo: 15 Things I Learned From My First 50K

Somehow, incredibly, I did it. At somewhere around 10:30 PM EST on November 14, 2011 I had written my 50,000th word in my NaNoWriMo novel. Was it the story complete? No. Is it done now? Of course not. But I have "won" the NaNoWriMo Challenge on my first try within fourteen days.

The prize? An education.

Here are the fifteen things I learned from writing my first 50,000 words:


1. I can write.

I don't mean this one in the sense of, "Oooo everyone! Look at me! I'm so cool! I can totally write!" I mean I can actually, physically do it. My diseases did not take a sudden vacation during November - I definitely got my butt kicked a number of times, but I wrote around it. On the 14th, the day I passed 50K, I was stuck in bed up until about 4pm, maybe even five. It was not what anyone would consider a "good day," but I still got words in. I wrote after dinner. I stayed up a little later than my husband. I worked around my symptoms... writing is flexible like that. That's what I mean when I say I can write.

2. Characters honestly and truly come to life.

This completely and utterly freaked me out. I have heard authors say this before, but I kind of thought this was some broad strokes way of describing some inexplicable thing that all writers understood. I did not realize it meant that these crazy, fictitious creations would start making decisions for themselves, develop their own personalities and be so damn stubborn. It did not happen right away, but when it did, when my protagonist became Rachel and started to play out her own story in my head before the words were typed on the screen, or before I had a chance to feel as though I consciously conjured up such actions, that's when the writing became a brand new experience for me. It was like some sort of reading/movie-watching experience happening for just me in my head and it became my job to try to describe it for everyone else. THAT WAS SO COOL!

3. Write-Ins are fun.

I didn't think I was gong to be able to participate in any write-ins this year. With my health, inability to drive and lack of funding I had too many reasons (more like excuses...) not to trek out to Manhattan for a write-in. However, when a group of Staten Islanders got together in the NaNoWriMo forum to organize one UP THE BLOCK from me at the Barnes & Noble, I was fresh out of excuses. We have a small group and everyone's writing something dramatically different, but it's neat to take five in between writing spurts to just chat about books, writing, name choices or just plain old "regular people" talk. I anticipate going to all the write-ins throughout November even though I have passed my 50K (I still have to finish this book!).

4. Plot outlines are disposable.

Remember a little while ago when I told you I learned that characters really do come to life? Well, I believe one of their hobbies is to chew up any plot designs you may have thought were good ideas and spit them out. On the Monday of week 2 in NaNoWriMo, I was completely stymied. I had no idea what to do. I looked at what was coming up next in my plot outline (I think it was something sadly early on like PLOT POINT 3 out of 46!!) and I realized there was simply no way my character was going down that path. I looked at the rest of the outline and discovered I was doomed. You have to remember, this is my first time doing NaNoWriMo, my first time ever writing anything so long and I thought having a plot outline (and sticking to it) was the only way to find my way to the end. Luckily, I was wrong. I haven't looked at the plot outline since and I don't know if I would write such a detailed one again. I was terrified to chuck the outline, but once I did, I was liberated and my story came back to life.

5. Chocolate is awesome.

Brownies (gluten-free, of course), dark chocolate from Trader Joe's, Lindt Dark Chocolate Bar with a Touch of Sea Salt, and chocolate almond milk... I consumed more of this food group than any other. Add a dash of Coca-Cola to my typically soda-free body and you'll understand how I stayed up for well over 30 hours on Day 3 into Day 4 writing. Chocolate is awesome. I think some sort of caffeine is necessary at some point and, in my case, a nice boost of sugary goodness with it. I just don't do coffee, for many WriMos that is the answer.

6. Headphones are indispensable.

I have these super fancy Shure Sound Isolating Earphones (a worthy investment made years ago) that are incredible. Not only do they provide me with musical accompaniment, but even when the tunes become too distracting, the headphones themselves do a great job of blocking out the ambient sounds of the room around me - like the suddenly deafening snoring of my dogs on the couch, or the cacophony coming from the ticking grandfather clock! Some days I needed them, some days I didn't. For some reason, on Sunday I was able to write with ears unblocked in the Barnes & Noble Cafe even with the hustle and bustle of the weekend crowd and the endless looping music from Frank Sinatra, Elvis Prestley, and some other greats that I typically sing along to.

7. Scrivener is so much more than I imagined.

Before starting NaNoWriMo I had never looked into program designed for writers. I pretty much thought it would be MS Word, Pages on my MacBook or, my old faithful, Google Docs. Then one fellow blogger recommended OmmWriter and my eyes were opened! The program was created for writers and helped me tune out the world. It was simple, served it's purpose of tuning out all screen distractions and left me with nothing but my words. It intrigued me. When I got to the NaNoWriMo site I saw more programs geared not just for word processing, but for creative writers. Scrivener was one and it was being offered as a free trial during November. I figured I'd give it a shot to see if it was worth the December investment. It has been amazing and I'm still learning new things every day! By Day 3, my major motivator to finishing the 50K before November 30th was getting my discount on Scrivener (50% off for those who pass 50K, 20% for any NaNoWriMo participants)! I've been able to write in scenes, organize them into chapters, make notes, keep files on all of characters, places and research all in one place and then Scrivener "Compile"s the whole manuscript in the end making it the one huge connected piece it is! Love it!!

8. Holding back my inner editor can lead to massive productivity.

When I blog, which has consumed most of my writing consciousness in the past couple of years, I edit as I go. I write with a critical eye and I slowly select the words that I present. I write, then reread and reread again. One of the unwritten rules of NaNoWriMo is "November is not for editing." This frightened me at first. I hadn't written like that since I wrote volumes of poetry in high school and college. I'm not going to say it's been easy. In fact, not editing might be part of the catalyst that is driving me through the story so quickly - I need to get to the end so I can go back to the beginning! In addition, letting go of my critic/my editor, opened the flood gates of creativity - I allowed myself to write as quickly as the characters dictated, no slowing down for pretty word choices, rewriting dialogue, finding all my missing "e"s (I still haven't had my sticky key fixed!). This is a first draft, all that fun rewriting and editing stuff can come later! It's a whole new way of writing for me and it was productive (I mentioned I wrote 50K words in 14 days, didn't I?!).

9. My sticky "e" key is incredibly annoying.

I think I just alluded to this, but I feel it should get it's own spotlight here as well. Having any keyboard issues when trying to write like a maniac is annoying, but when that key happens to represent the letter that is so common the good folks at Wheel of Fortune just give it away in their bonus round, then it can be maddening. When you think you typed the word "were" and instead see "wr" or every "the" becomes a "th"you can imagin, I mean you can imagine how that can get to you! So, I did edit sometimes, but mostly just when I was in between word sprints and the little red lines of word processor confusion called my attention to the non-words I had typed. I imagine, when I get to edits/rewrites I will find hundreds more!

10. Twitter can actually help me focus and be inspiring!

In the days leading up to November I started crawling around the NaNoWriMo site collecting twitter handles and following everyone I could find, then I created a NaNoWriMo stream on my HootSuite account. I had three streams open at once, never my "Home Feed" just NaNoWriMo, my list of NaNoWriMo friends and Mentions (so I could see if anyone wrote directly to me). This was incredible. Everyone was talking about writing 90% of the time. The NaNoWordSprints were running seemingly 24/7 from all over the place. And, while I did not actually follow along with the sprints I read them and their challenges, often hilarious, actually inspired me to add some interesting details to my characters, story and settings.

11. Naming characters can be both fun and frustrating.

I don't have any kids of my own, so before this the only experience I've had in naming things has been in naming pets (Chewy, Meow, Buffy, Geek... these are pet names I can claim credit for). Giving a name to a character - a first and last name is something that, perhaps, I take entirely too seriously. I researched name meanings, thought about what these things said about my characters before I even got to know them, and even examined initials. I enjoyed it, but I was frustrated when some names just didn't click right away. Some were easier than others, and, who knows, maybe some will still change!

12. I owe my dogs some extra attention.

My two dogs are lazy lumps. I didn't think they would really notice if I was writing all day instead of hanging out next to them, petting them and talking to them (yep. I talk to my dogs... it's just us all day, every day, what do you expect?). Well, I think they noticed. I got a couple of leg scratches, lots of sad eyes and cries of desperate joy on our less frequent walks. I also had two escape attempts from the backyard while I was writing. I suppose they figured they could go out on the town without me noticing! (They were almost right!).

13. I have an understanding and supportive husband.

This is cheating. I knew this long before NaNoWriMo, but it was a lesson that was reinforced. I wrote all day when my husband was at work and then I continued, many days, even after he got home. I plugged in my headphones and tuned him out. I rambled on to him about fictitious characters and how they were driving me crazy, how they wouldn't listen to me anymore. I attacked him with questions he couldn't possibly know the answers to and, on a couple of nights, stayed up writing sending him to an empty bed. His response to all of these things? "I am so proud of you." Really? Am I that lucky? Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I'm that lucky and more so!

14. Writing can be good company.

Last weekend my husband did a favor for a coworker... a really big favor... he gave up his three day weekend to chaperone an out of town school trip. This left me alone for three whole days, not just during the work hours, but over night as well. That can get super lonely, but I learned this past weekend I had a whole slew of characters to keep me company. We had a lot to discuss, do and transcribe over the three days. I won't say I didn't miss my hubby, but I wasn't desperately awaiting calls all day and night!

15. I am still a work-a-holic.

When I was hospitalized in June 2009, I was positive I had put myself there. After eleven years of being so obsessed with my work and unable to find an appropriate balance between work and life, I believed I had finally unhinged all the functions of my system. The thing is, I count myself as lucky that I truly loved my work - while working it always seemed worth all of the time, effort and expense (whether financial or physical). A huge part of my recovery at home has been trying to find a way to live without it. Writing has filled in this hole for me. I feel productive again, not in the same way, of course, but productive all the same. Taking my writing to this *new* level reawakened that love of work inside me. It feels good. I know my limitations now, but I can't deny that I love to work. I've been reading Stephen King's On Writing, and early in the day on November 14th, I read my own thoughts in his book, "For me, not working is the real work." So, so true, Mr. King. And so I feel life might get a little bit easier now, because I found work I can do. Just as when I was teaching I could distract myself in the in betweens with thinking about what to teach next, how to teach it, what questions to ask and what problems to pose, now, in between my writing I can be thinking about what to write next, who to write next and what situations they'll be in. And while there is no joy in being a starving artist (or a starving anything!), at this point, the work itself is a personal compensation I am grateful for.

I'm sure there have been more lessons learned on this journey, and many, many more to come, but these are the ones that stand out and demand an audience. If you are a fellow WriMo, I wish you well, or, as they say May the words be with you! If you are not a fellow WriMo, but are curious about the adventure, nervous to take part and came here wondering what could be gained from it, then I say: WRITE. Start your own National Novel Writing Month right now - challenge yourself and wonder at what it wakes inside you. You have nothing to lose - no one has to read your words until you choose to let them see them!

Have you ever participated in NaNoWriMo?

If so, what did you learn?

As a reader, what makes a character come to life for you?

What snacks, settings and people help you to be productive?

My November with NaNoWriMo

I know you were probably expecting a post about Halloween. A couple of weeks ago, I would have thought the same thing, but then I learned about NaNoWriMo and my life changed in an instant.

What is NaNoWriMo??

Simply put NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month. It takes place from November 1st - November 30th of each year and is open to anyone who wants to take the leap. The leap being that in that space of time you write 50,000 words of a novel.


I was sitting in my doctor's office waiting room when I read all about it. I was just sitting there... I was just waiting and when I saw the description I thought, "This is EXACTLY what I've been waiting for!"

I signed up right then and there using my iPhone and felt an excitement in my bones I haven't felt in a long, long time.

That was eleven days ago.

24 hours from now I will be feverishly typing away just like I am now, except not for this blog.

I hope my hands can take it!!

OH NO! What Does This Mean for Rivera Runs Through It?!

Readers, you should not worry! Rivera Runs Through It is going to flow along just like normal (except that I might be light on posts during Thanksgiving week). Tomorrow you will get your What if prompt (one that I'm pretty excited about, in fact), Wednesday will give you yet another excerpt from my Reading Journals and by the end of this week you will know all my secrets about how to see Broadway shows for next to nothing!

The week after that will continue with our regular bloggy goodness as usual! The only thing that I think I might be a little light on this month will be my participation in the Write on Edge writing prompts for the obvious reason that I will be devoting all types of creative writing juices to my novel (OK... that sounds crazy to me! Awesome, but completely nuts!).

If Everything Is Going to Be Fine, Why Mention It At All?

Two days ago I received my first official e-mail from the NaNoWriMo group which laid out a sketch of what the month of November will look like. Here's what they had on the agenda for this week:

Warn your friends, family, neighbors, and pets about the upcoming challenge. The more people who know what you're working on, the more accountable you'll feel and the likelier you are to hit the 50,000-word goal. (And the family hamster will be a lot more understanding when you don't refresh his chlorophyll chips as regularly.)

So I'm warning you and I'm asking for your support.

Are There Any Cheerleaders Out There?

I am going to have to write 1,667 words per day for every single day of November if I want to make it. While I am all amped to do this right now, I am quite certain I will be hitting all types of walls during the month, so any words of encouragement either through e-mail, twitter, or on Facebook would be greatly appreciated. I'm pretty sure I can do this, but I'm not sure I can do it alone!

The Burning Question: What I'm Writing About

I really love my Sasquatch notebooks :)

In the last eleven days of planning I went through a number of outlines, characters, story ideas and scenarios until one finally stuck. It was funny, I thought it would be a struggle all the way through, but once I found the right idea for me right now things just started flowing - no, flooding - into my brain. The characters came to life, the story began to unravel itself into major plot points in my Sasquatch notebook.

I've had a really hard time writing a synopsis (mostly because I haven't written the novel yet!!!), but let's give it a go again...

I'm writing a YA (Young Adult) novel. This should come of no surprise to those of you who remember I am recently home from a 12 year stint as a high school Math Teacher. I know YA. I lived YA. I also happen to love reading YA novels myself.


In high school I always kept a diary. I also always used to write notes to my friends. I just wondered what if I wrote notes to someone I didn't even know... The working title for this novel is is Dear 302 inspired by the fact that a girl, Rachel, with locker number 302, keeps getting mysterious notes addressed in such a manner by the end of each day from an enigmatic character named "B." B doesn't know Rachel and Rachel, who just wants to fit in in her first year of high school, has no idea what's going on!

I don't want to say much more for fear of telling you the whole story before the details are even hashed out, but that's your teaser for the day! I hope it's enough to intrigue you for now!

Are you participating in NaNoWriMo this year?

If so, are you a newbie like me?

Do you have questions about Dear 302? Post them! They may inspire me to take a new plot turn, or be something that is already addressed!

What other types of Internet Challenges have you participated in?