NaNoWriMo here I come!

Ah, insanity. Such a wonderful thing.

It sets upon you without a moment's notice... then, before you're quite aware of the fact, you have succumbed and have no more chances of survival. Except.... it's rather nice. You struggle at first and fight back with the flimsy sword of 'logic'. Then, just when you seem to be driving it back, you realize that you don't really want to win the fight. You immediately cast aside your silly logic and embrace insanity.

Which happens to be a very good hugger.

I had such an episode today. You see, yesterday I went out to dinner with my dad before my piano lesson, just like every other Wednesday. On the way, I noted a used book store in Manassas that I hadn't been to before. My inner bibliophile (which is not buried deep) called and we immediately made a U-turn. Once there, I immediately vanished into the isles, finding cheap copies of Orson Scott Card books and and Asimov title I almost bought.

But I didn't. I had this feeling; my intuition was telling me that today was not a day for pleasure book buying. I wasn't exactly sure why, but I listened. My dad was calling for me to go, we still hadn't eaten dinner, but I went to the front counter anyway and asked where they kept books on writing fiction.

Aisle 5, target lock, fire. There, on the cheap plywood shelves found in most used book stores, was a small section on fiction writing. I quickly browsed the dozen available titles, I had little time left. My eye alighted on "No Plot? No Problem!"

The handbook for National Novel Writers Month

This is when insanity strolled and stumbled onto the battlefield and pretended not to be challenging me. I bought it for $8 and left. I hadn't actually been planning on doing NaNo. No plans to do so. I'd bought the book because I opened it randomly and it was talking about non-edible writing supplies.

But today, as I was reading in class, insanity jumped me from behind and started beating against my logic. It was a quick fight; I wasn't really resisting. I had lost the battle before lunch and made a promise to myself in the midst of. Before lunch had ended I had enthusiastically approached 3 different acquaintances, telling them about NaNoWriMo and asking them if they were interested. I'm going to try and win another over tomorrow, but I'm essentially going it alone.

"But NaNo is officially in November," you're saying. Yes. I know. But I can't wait.

I'm starting MINE in three days. March 1st - March 31st, 2009.

I've been doing worldbuilding, chara-sketching, and other endless prewriting stuff for about two months now. If left to my own devices, I could be building Quaeth (the world in which my novel is set) for the next year.

HA! Not anymore! I'm gonna finish a 50,000 word first draft of TheNovelInQuaethThatIsUnnamedAsOfYet by midnight, EST, March 31st, 2009.

I'm starting in three days! I got my mother on board with me (she's been thinking about writing a novel too, not sure if she'll follow through) and 2 people willing to do me some bodily harm for motivation.

I may plan something forever, but once I commit to something like this I'm unstoppable. Watch out, I'm coming!