So, two updates in three days...I may be up to writing a novel after all.

First of all, I'm kind of annoyed at the lack of widgets going on in our side panel. NaNo always provides nifty little calendars and word counters to track the progress of its participants, and they've done so again, but this time they just aren't working. I've uploaded them several times but to no avail. I suppose I'll have to wait until November begins to see if I can add them in. For now, Jackie and I will just have to update you ourselves. (Or you can check out "Read Up" where it links to our NaNo profiles for that information - and more!) 

Secondly, I really want to thank Jackie for the adorable NaNo badges she sent me in the mail recently. They are 10, with one each for NaNo Socializing, Word-Count Padding, Procrastination, Caffeine Abuse, Secret Noveling, Creative Nonfiction, Rally Day, the Eureka Moment, Random Ending, and 50,000-Word Victory (see below). 

 

Let me share a little bit about what the Office of Letters and Light has to say about these guys:

1. NaNo Socializing - Earned for dragging a family member or friend into NaNo (None of my friends seem into it, but my mom is considering joining me this month) OR taking part in a word war with an online buddy (I'm counting Jackie as an online buddy since technically we won't be seeing each other in person this upcoming month) OR attending NaNo events (I'll be honest, probably not happening)

2. Caffeine Abuse - Pretty self-explanatory and I'm confident I can earn this one too...I just found a shop that will has a cocoa/cappuccino shop just like BJs at good old IC and am a little more than excited about it

3. Procrastination - Earned for skipping writing for more than 3 days in a row (let's not shoot for that one!) OR spending over 30 cumulative hours on the NaNo forums (hasn't happened yet) OR cleaning your home instead of working on your novel (I'd like to say it won't happen, but sometimes cleaning helps me think)

4. Word-count Padding - Earned by quoting song lyrics/other books in your novel OR having a stuttering or triple-named character OR writing out contractions OR introducing unneeded dream sequences or hallucinations (DEFINITELY guilty)

5. The Rally - Earned by having a 5000 word day (here's hoping!!) OR overcoming a 10000 word deficits (let's hope it's not necessary, but IF it is, this would be an AWESOME accomplishment)

6. Secret Noveling - I think it's safe to say noveling while I'm supposed to be doing something else is something that won't be hard to do

7. Creative Nonfiction - Earned by plundering overheard dialogue and real-life events for novel material (mm hmm) OR placing barely disguised friends and family members into your novel as characters (no comment)

8. Eureka Moment - Earned by those lucky ones that experience that "aha!" moment when a major plot point is resolved or your novel starts coming together (I can only hope)

9. Random Ending - Writing a gleefully left-field or completely nonsensical ending

10. NaNoWriMo Victory - Writing 50,000 words in 30 days (GOAL!)

So, I think based on an early assessment, I can easily earn 9 of these badges...I'm not one for nonsensical endings, but I have had some nonsensical chapters in the past, perhaps that's enough? Anyways, I'm excited to start earning something for all of my hard work. These badges are certainly a fun way to mark the milestones.

Wow, less than a week now.