web stuff 4 writers

It’s midway through November and its associated writing challenges.  NaNoWriMo writers who are on track to finish on the 31st, should have written over 25,000 words by now.  NaBloPoMo participants should be on their 17th blog entry. 

I’m afraid that my novel writing hasn’t recovered from my trip to Oxford last weekend for the Society of Young Publishers’ careers conference, with the word-count of the new version still languishing at around 12,000.  And while this is my 17th blog entry, it’s going to have to be another short one, as I’ve got so many other writing and web projects to get on with this weekend.

Your thoughts

If you’re doing NaNoWriMo or NaBloPoMo or any other writing challenge this month, how’s it going for you?  Are you finding it easier or more difficult than expected?

Tags: Finding inspiration by Natasha
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Sixty seconds of fame has come the way of web stuff 4 writers this week with the site being mentioned on Mur Laffety’s I Should Be Writing podcast.

I Should Be Writing is billed as ‘the podcast for wanna-be fiction writers, by a wanna-be fiction writer’. It’s a show that was recommended to me in the comments on my first postcasting post and I’ve been a subscriber for about a month now. Over that time, I’ve enjoyed Mur’s commentary on her own writing and her advice to other writers so much that I’ve also downloaded a number of her back episodes.

In her most recent episode (ISBW#79 – Feedback episode), Mur responds to questions from listeners, talking about what to do when you lose interesting in your characters, world building and the perils of combining alcohol and writing. Then, about 20 minutes in, Mur says that she’s received an email from Caitlin, letting her know about web stuff 4 writers.

So thanks to Caitlin for sending the email; thanks to Mur for the mention; and welcome to any first-time viewers to this blog. Please leave a comment below, and let us know who you are, what you write, and how you’re using the web.

Tags: Finding inspiration, General by Natasha
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Well, it’s November 1, which means National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) and National Blog Posting Month (NaBloPoMo) have begun.

If you’ve somehow missed all the recent hype, here’s a summary of the two challenges.

NaNoWriMo

In NaNoWriMo, participants attempt to write a 50,000 word novel during November. The focus is on quantity over quality (there’s always National Novel Editing Month next year), and the frantic writers can seek support and inspiration from local groups, or the official NaNoWriMo forums and podcast. If you’re taking up the challenge, you might want to check out my earlier post, Five must-have resources for NaNoWriMo.

NaBloPoMo

Participants in NaBloPoMo are attempting to write a blog post every day in November. Again, if you need support, there are forums and groups that you can join. Those who manage the entry-a-day, are entered in the draw for a range of prizes.

Your thoughts

Are you participating in NaNoWriMo or NaBloPoMo this year? If so, are you working to a particular theme or idea, or are you going to make it up as you go along?

Tags: Blogging, Finding inspiration by Natasha
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So sad to read in the Guardian that Dina Rabinovitch died this morning.

I discovered Dina’s blog earlier this year and was touched by the honest way she talked about her experiences with cancer.  Those who read her Guardian columns and her book, Take Off Your Party Dress, were similarly impressed.  I was inspired too, by the way she used her blog and her JustGiving page to raise almost £70,000 so far for cancer research.  In a blog entry, Dina writes about how she’s raised this money from writing.

My thoughts tonight are with Dina’s family, and all who knew her.

Tags: Blogging, Finding inspiration by Natasha
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This morning, I finished Yann Martel’s novel, Life of Pi. Early this morning. It was one of those books where I woke up at 4.30, and couldn’t go back to sleep until I’d read the last 30 pages.

Life of Pi is the Guardian’s Book Club book for October, so – as is usually the case, it seems – the Guardian has published weekly articles about the book this month, as well as a podcasted interview between Yann Martell and professor of English, John Mullan.

I found it very interesting to hear Martell talk about the Life of Pi – his book about a boy and a tiger and a lifeboat – and the way he worked on creating realistic details so that he could convince the reader to suspend their disbelief. He also talked about how the writer’s impression of a book can be ‘very, very different’ from the reader’s impression, giving examples of questions he’s been asked and theories he’s been told at various literary events.

Previous Book Club interviews with authors such as Ian Rankin, Joyce Carol Oates, Ruth Rendell and DBC Pierre have also been published in mp3 format on the Guardian website, although the earliest links, to interviews with Zadie Smith and Rachel Cusk no longer seem to work.

The Guardian also publishes a whole range of book-related podcasts. More information and the feed URL can be found on their podcast page here.

Your thoughts

As a reader/writer, do you enjoy listening to other writers talk about their work? Do you think it adds anything to the experience, or would you rather let the work stand on its own?

Tags: Finding inspiration by Natasha
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