Live Big Bang: The Organic Writing Experience -- A BIG MESSY IDEA

[keiramarcos]

I have this idea to host a site... for a NANO experiment in November. I guess it would kind of be an "organic" Multifandom Big Bang -- where all the writers involved would post their daily production throughout the month. Of course, due to the nature of NANO -- no editing and no beta would be feasible so it has the potential to be a bit messy but it could also be fun if writers were interested instant feedback on what they were doing and if they they wanted plot suggestions for the next part.

It could provide a lot of interaction for fandom but on the other hand it could frustrate the holy hell out of some readers who can't stand to get near WIP and the whole nature of this site would pay homage to the organic writing process which boils down to the words: JUST WRITE

I guess I'm curious as to how many people would be interested in participating in this experiment with me. The daily word count goal would be around 1700 words as the NANO goal is 50,000 words in a single month.

Also, at the end we could put all the fics into BETA and then offer them in an Omnibus Ebook Version as a thank you to all the readers that participated.

THOUGHTS?

FYI
*NANO stands for National Novel Writing Month and it takes place every November.

Comments

the messier the merrier

[justalurkr.livejournal.com]

I've been planning to do NaNoWriMo for years. This will be the first of those years that I'm not on vacation for 2 weeks, which means I'm far more likely to do it, since vacations for me mean parents' house in California and a very high expectation of interactivity.

[welfycat.livejournal.com]

I've done NaNo for four years now, completed three of them, and wasn't planning to take part this year because it's kinda done what it could for me.

However, this twist does very much interest me.

I'm curious how the specifics would work. Typically when I do NaNo I write 3-4k on some days and not at all on some others, would that be a problem? What about people who start over a few (or 10) days in (I almost always start over at least once)?

And, I'm interested to see how you would suggest coordinating this in a way that would make for coherent reading. Would it be hosted as an LJ community, with a separate post for each person each day in order to link the parts together?

In other words, I'm very intrigued but not 100% committed to participating.

[keiramarcos]

I'd definitely use a wordpress blog. I can't see making it work on LJ. But in wordpress it would be a piece of cake to be honest to organize by genre, author, fandom, and even post series so everything stays in order.

[welfycat.livejournal.com]

Very cool. I've never used wordpress, and I'm not really sure how it works, but it sounds like you have thoughts on how to keep things organized and under control.

[the_proofreader]

I'd take part in something like that. I couldn't promise to reply if there was lots of feedback on the WiP, but it'd keep me writing daily, which I need.

[keiramarcos]

I think that I would probably discourage authors from replying to every single comment. It could take up a lot of time potentially.

[joidianne4eva.livejournal.com]

I've never done something on this scale but the idea is one that I'd love to try

[anneruane.livejournal.com]

I'd participate. It might actually help me finish for once!

[azurehart.livejournal.com]

My health makes it difficult to concentrate enough to write very much, but I do like the idea. I'd be glad to dust off my pom-poms and cheer on those that actually take up the challenge though.

[ohhdarkstoned11.livejournal.com]

That sounds like a lot of fun, I've made it about half way three times now on nano, I think this would add a little bit more motivation to the whole process, and I would enjoy reading other wip. c:

[goddess47]

Couple of random thoughts:

If it's not too much work, for the newbies let them do a mini-NaNo... commit to a word count and they can work toward that. I've not done a full nano but I've happily done major pieces during November. I did 35K last year and might even nudge that 50K this year. But if you only have 'serious' NaNo writers, you're leaving out the semi-prolific types. Not right or wrong, just a choice.

I use NaNo time to write my SGA_SecretSanta (assuming it runs again this year). The assignments usually come out just about the end of October so November is perfect for head's-down writing and it lets me churn out a pretty long fic. There's usually just enough time in December to get the editing in... but since it's a 'secret' fic exchange, I wouldn't want to put my fic on a public site.... If Santa doesn't run, then I might be very interested... anything public helps me write more.

But sounds like fun!

[keiramarcos]

I think a mini-Nano would encourage authors to join in and not be pressured by the huge word count. I like that idea. We could have levels of participation and call them fun/horrible/probably dirty names. LOL.

Like:

Virgin - 25,000
Semi-Professional - 35,000
Word Whore - 50,000

LMAO

Okay, maybe not but it did make me laugh my ass off to write it.

[welfycat.livejournal.com]

I would not object to being called a word whore :D

[goddess47]

::snicker::

[i-cant-talk-now.livejournal.com]

I would definitely jump in as a reader, can I volunteer for that now?

Even though I am not a writer, those word counts still look big to me. Can you make something smaller, like 10k? Call it A One Night Stand?

[keiramarcos]

LOL.

Well it is National NOVEL writing month. ;-)

I really don't know what I'd do for rules but 10k seems very light to me -- especially since we have 30 days. That's only a few hundred words a day which would make for a really frustrating reading experience.

[melonbutterfly.livejournal.com]

Not to brag or anything, but what about someone who writes 100,000? I usually write (and finish) two stories during NaNo, have for the past three years.
Something like Crack Whore? lol

[keiramarcos]

Yeah, I believe Crack Whore would apply. LOL.

[tygtig.livejournal.com]

I do SO feel a nano virgin, despite my attempt last year that was completely run over by my life.

IF i could be a virgin I would love the idea of this. (Could we have a warning tag for "horribly bad writing but happy to try anyway"?)

[xocoatldreams.livejournal.com]

I'd definitely do it. Or try. I haven't managed to finish all the NaNo's I've participated in.

[adafrog.livejournal.com]

Sounds very intriguing. I, however, would just cheerlead. I'm more of a wrisomifu girl. ;)

[smileyboblucky.livejournal.com]

I would love to sign up but what about non-fandom stories?

[keiramarcos]

Well,

One of the reasons why I specificed fandom stories is because I would suspect that most writers writing original work might want to be published one day with the material. Since this would be public -- it would exhaust first print rights on an original work and some publishers wouldn't like that at all.

Still, I'd be very opening to original fic writers too.

[rinkafic.livejournal.com]

An interesting idea. I'm doing Nano either way, it might be fun to participate.

[trinaward.livejournal.com]

I'm not a writer,but I'd love to read whatever's posted!

[oleandr.livejournal.com]

I might actually try this as I've been meaning to finally throw myself into the deep end of the fic pool for a while now instead of hoarding all my unfinished crap on my laptop and never ever sharing it with anyone. I also have enough free time right now that I could actually participate. It would also help me to actually finish a story as there would be at least one person reading it and yelling at me to do so. I work best under pressure. The real problem for me would be picking a damn fandom to write in. I like the idea though :)

[admiralandrea.livejournal.com]

I usually sign up for the Mini Nano LJ comm, which is a commitment of 100 words minimum and you just post your word count, rather than your content, each day (though you can link to your content).

I tend to write short fic with it, as I can't manage super-long stuff. So, if you had an option like that, I'd sign up, so long as you didn't expect work to be exclusive to your site.

[schniki.livejournal.com]

I'm definitely in!!!

This will be my fourth time round, and I'm 2/3 for winning so far!! I had thought of originally bumping up the word count this year to 60k, but perhaps instead I might do my normal original Nano fic and a Mini-Nano fic with this!! I'd be very interested in participating!!

Sigh... and now I've got the bunny for it too...

[hab318princess.livejournal.com]

I'd not thought about NaNo this year yet... but this would give me enough time to start preparing - plotting... working full time it could be a challenge to hit the wordage, but I did it once in a June event... so yeah, could be a great idea#

I think my rambling comes down to: I'm in!

[oceanandspace]

I didn't intent to participate this year, but this idea of yours does sound good! I never used wordpress though, how would it work? (the postings I mean)

[keiramarcos]

Wordpress posting isn't all that different from LJ. There is a dashboard and each author would have their own category to click so they could post in the right place. We can also arrange postings by series. All participants would get a user guide for the process. ;-)

[melonbutterfly.livejournal.com]

I really like that idea! It sounds like it would increase the pressure to meet the daily wordcount, what with people actually giving active and direct advice, and I like that a lot. (Sometimes I feel like I write more during NaNo than I do during the whole rest of the year, simply because I want to have a HIGHER WORDCOUNT THAN EVERYBODY ELSE HAHAHA.) Not to mention that interaction with readers is always a plus.
Though I imagine that some people might feel a bit self-conscious about someone reading their totally raw, produced-under-pressure-and-in-a-rush work.

and... I think I just beat the metaphor into a coma.

[insanityoutlet.livejournal.com]

I want to do this.
I've not written anything non-commercial (ie *FUN*) for years now... block of epic proportions.
Now I'd like to try - but in keeping with the theme does being a blocked Word Whore make me Frigid? (Composition Interruptus?)

Re: and... I think I just beat the metaphor into a coma.

[keiramarcos]

Snort.

Re: and... I think I just beat the metaphor into a coma.

[ravenmoonart.livejournal.com]

So, just to kick it while its down already...

Does that make us non-writers who plan to read and encourage "Voyeurs"?

Re: and... I think I just beat the metaphor into a coma.

[keiramarcos]

Yes. I believe it does. (nods)

[nufaciel.livejournal.com]

I think it would be interesting, and it would give me incentive to work on a story for my AU universe that my 100k supernova is in. I actually ended up *finally* getting an idea for it just this morning and have been writing down notes off and on all day, lol.

[luna-altyerre.livejournal.com]

Sadly, November is exam season - so no writing for me.
I do think I could manage a bit of FB for all the authors who try out though.

[jessiecross.livejournal.com]

I managed to get 2 weeks of holiday in November, oh well; lazy days can be such an inspiration for work… And i would like to give it a go!
I will be happy to feel as a virgin again!
The only drawback could be that I know I am a horrible writer/speller/grammar retard etc… I wonder, though if the world is prepared for that kind of evil?

[tamstercmt.livejournal.com]

It sounds like a lot of fun. Wow, I would be a virgin - can't remember the last time I was! LOL

I will have a lot going on in November to really try writing a good story, but I am more than happy to be a fan girl. And I only give positive comments because it takes a lot of courage to put yourself out there, and a lot of us aren't as snarky (and that's a compliment)like Keira.

[vampiric-mcd.livejournal.com]

It's a very interesting idea and I've been tempted to try my hand at Nano, but at the same time the commitment of having to post every day seems daunting. I'm the kind of person that can write for two days straight and then nothing for a while followed by another day of writing.

Perhaps having it structured would help manage the insanity that is my life during writing binges, but still I wonder if occasional days off are "allowed" as it were.

[caliadragon.livejournal.com]

I like this idea, I would definately be interested in doing something like this. Though, that depends on making sure my health stays enough for me to participate.

[tdancinghands.livejournal.com]

Chiming in late here, but what about jumping in with a 1/3 - 1/2 completed work that currently stands at around 60,000 words, and will likely end up being more that 100,000? I'd love to see it done before the end of the year, but mostly I'd just like to turbo up my writing a bit, and setting daily goals in a community setting would be a kick.

I've never done NaNoWriMo before, cuz I've always got something already underway, and I seldom finish anything that fast, but I've been tempted often, and this could be just the thing for me.

[keiramarcos]

No, that really wouldn't work for the challenge. The idea is for everyone to start on the same page. Having someone come in with a huge word count already under their belt would be discouraging to other participants.

[tdancinghands.livejournal.com]

Fair enuf. I suppose I'll jut have to motivate myself, but I'll definitely check in on doings here.