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Camp NaNo April 2023



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Sat Mar 18, 2023 9:08 pm
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PlanBot says...



Camp NaNo April 2023



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Welcome back to the first NaNo event of 2023ǃ Alongside the one true NaNo which happens every year in November, we also run a few mini-NaNos called Camp NaNos. (NaNo is a short form for 'National Novel Writing Month'). Whilst the goal in November is to write 50,000 words, the aim of Camp NaNo is up to youː you set your own prose writing goal, and you work to achieve it.

Stepsː

1. Set your goalː do you want to write 20,000 words? Or 50,000? Do you want to revise something, or maybe plan a new novel? It's up to youǃ

2. Make your threadː make a thread to keep track of your progress in the Camp NaNo Forums. Just like in NaNo, you report your daily/weekly progress in this thread and maybe share snippets if you like.

3. Participate in the Journal Challengeː if your goal involves writing a draft, maybe you might want a challenge to do some planning beforehand. The PlanMo Journal Challenge is available in this thread from now and all throughout April in case you need a bit of inspo (there are some shiny badges up for grabs too).

4. Visit other people's threads and spread encouragementː unless someone says 'no comments please', do pop in to like people's updates, say 'Great goingǃ' or 'I love that snippet you sharedǃ', because it really does help motivate people.

5. When Camp NaNo starts (April 1st) start updating your threadː you can give your daily wordcount, or just mention some parts of your planning you completed - this depends on your goal. It's up to you what you share and when!

6. Have funǃ (This part is mandatory I'm afraid)


The Official NaNoWriMo site, though not linked to YWS, is a good resource to use. It can help you keep track of your wordcount if you have a wordcount goal.

Don't forget also that April is National Poetry Writing Monthǃ Find out more about that here.

We'll hopefully be having some write-ins throughout the month where you can work on NaPo, Camp NaNo or both. Subscribe to this thread also, as we'll post further events and hashtags to do with Camp NaNo here!

Sample Camp NaNo Threads for Inspo


carlito's Camp NaNo 22: A Roadtrip Romance
Spearmint's July 2021: Sort-of Superpowered
Are you gearing up for Camp NaNo in April?
Join us with the PlanMo Journal Challenge to prepare (and earn some shiny badges)!




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Sat Mar 18, 2023 9:10 pm
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PlanBot says...



PlanMo 2023



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Hello, hello, and welcome to Planning Month (PlanMo)! This month is the time to prepare for Camp NaNo in April, and whilst the goal doesn't have to be 50k words, we hope the activities we have this month will help you achieve whatever goal you set for yourself.

In the PlanMo club, you can start your own thread. In your thread, record your responses to the challenges, so you can refer back to them when writing later. You can work through the following challenges at your own time and pace. Feel free to do as many or as few of them as you want.

(There's also some badges up for grabs for those that complete the challenges!)

If you'd prefer, you can also log these in your personal NaNo thread, just make sure to link us to where you've completed the challenges so we can award badges correctly!

Here are the challenges for the month (you can complete these in March ahead of Camp NaNo, or continue working on them through April).

Main Challenges

Elevator pitch

An elevator pitch, elevator speech, or elevator statement is a short description of an idea, product, or company that explains the concept in a way such that any listener can understand it in a short period of time. Describe your novel as though it were an elevator pitch.

Character tweets

Character tweets. How would your characters introduce themselves to social media? Write their first tweet. You can do one for as many of your characters as you like, but remember you only have 280 characters.

Character Motivations/Goals

Write a few paragraphs about a tangible thing your main character wants before the book begins. Why do they want this? What will getting/achieving this thing mean to them? What do they think it will say about them? What is your main character's biggest fear keeping them from getting what they want? What is their misbelief about the world that fuels their fear?

Story arc
What kind of story arc does your novel follow? Is it a classic rags to riches, a redemption arc? How do your character's fortunes rise and fall throughout the story?
If you need some extra inspiration for this one, check out our most recent Gen Lit Clinc where we looked at all kinds of different parts of a story arc including how to add conflict, balancing progression of a character vs plot and lots of other thought provoking things!

The stakes
To keep your story interesting, you want your reader to be invested in the outcome. What will happen if everything doesn't work out? What do your characters have to lose?

Most challenging character

Describe which character you think will be the most challenging to write. Plan how you will rise to that challenge! Do they need extra research? How might you tackle the scenes they are in differently to other scenes?

Question & answer

Questions! Post two (or more) questions in your entry, then, go round other threads answering questions with your thoughts. This month is likely to lead to different realisations for different people, or maybe some people are more experienced with NaNo than others. Either way, we are sure that if you ask a question of the YWS hivemind, the YWS hivemind will answer.

Extra Challenges

Use the media code to put in a song that will inspire you to write this story when the going gets tough.

It could be the something that reminds you of the location your story takes place, one of your characters or just a good motivational song!

Code: Select all
[media][/media]


Character & location List

List down all the characters and locations that will or might appear in the story. Include some that seem unlikely, but might for example be a cool setting to add to a scene that needs some spice. You could also include some names or general descriptions for supporting/ background characters that you might need in a hurry.

Character questionnaire

Fill out the following (condensed) questionnaire from the NaNo site about at least one of your side characters, though the more you do the more prepared you will be.

Spoiler! :

Name:
Age:
Height:
Eye colour:
Physical appearance:
Strange or unique physical attributes:
Favourite clothing style/outfit:
Where does he/she live? What is it like there?
Pet peeves:
Hobbies/interests:
Insecurities:
Quirks/eccentricities:
Temperament:
Negative traits:
Family (describe):
Other people's opinions of this character:
Favourite bands/songs/types of music:
Favourite movies/TV shows/books:
Favourite foods:
Dream holiday:
Any pets? --
Best thing that has ever happened to this character:
Worst thing that has ever happened to this character:
Three words to describe this character:
If a song played every time this character walked into a room, what song would it be?


Our wonderful @Spearmint is also drawing characters for the first five people to complete the character profile questionnaire!
Are you gearing up for Camp NaNo in April?
Join us with the PlanMo Journal Challenge to prepare (and earn some shiny badges)!




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Sat Mar 18, 2023 9:11 pm
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PlanBot says...



Badges



*beep boop* Hello! There are a variety of badges you can earn from participating in PlanMo and CampNaNo. You can see them below!

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Here is what you need to do to get each of them. Remember to create a post in this thread to track your achievements and claim the badge! Badges can be claimed for doing any of these throughout the month of April (and for PlanMo badges, in late March as well). All links should be added by May 8th.

Camp NaNo April '23 Pantser

1-4 PlanMo Challenges complete (and link in a post below.)


Camp NaNo April '23 Plantser

5-9 PlanMo Challenges complete (and link in a post below.)


Camp NaNo April '23 Planner

10 PlanMo Challenges complete (and link in a post below.)


Camp NaNo April '23 Cheerleader

Post 10 encouraging posts on other Camp NaNoers threads and link them in a post below.


Camp NaNo April '23 Finisher

Log your progress each day of CampNaNo, meet your goal (and link your thread here!)


Camp NaNo April '23 Reflections

Make a post responding to the end of the month questions (you can respond in this thread, or in your own but make sure to link here - you know the drill!)
1. Did you meet your month's goal?
2. Did you manage to write every day?
3. Which was your favourite scene to write?
4. Who was the most difficult character to write?
5. What would you do differently next NaNo?
Last edited by PlanBot on Tue May 02, 2023 8:57 am, edited 1 time in total.
Are you gearing up for Camp NaNo in April?
Join us with the PlanMo Journal Challenge to prepare (and earn some shiny badges)!




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Mon Mar 20, 2023 8:05 am
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Liminality says...



Claiming a spot as well!

Camp NaNo April '23 Plantser

1. Elevator Pitch
2. Character Motivations/ Goals
3. The stakes
4. Story arc
5. Most Challenging Character

Camp NaNo April '23 Cheerleader

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.


Camp NaNo April '23 Finisher
Camp April 23 - Miscreants

Camp NaNo April '23 Reflections
Camp April 23 - Miscreants
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EternalRain says...



Claiming a spot :)

Camp NaNo April '23 Plantser
8 challenges complete:
Camp April 23: The Traveling Tea Party

Camp NaNo April '23 Cheerleader


Camp NaNo April '23 Finisher


Camp NaNo April '23 Reflections
Last edited by EternalRain on Tue Mar 28, 2023 4:58 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Tue Mar 21, 2023 7:09 pm
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BluesClues says...



Claiming a spot!

I'll be completing challenges over in NettieWIP, but I'll link individual posts here in spoilers as relevant. JK TURNS OUT I COMPLETED MOST OF MY CHALLENGES RIGHT HERE IN THIS THREAD. So. There will either be a link or an answer to each prompt below.

Plantser Badge


Elevator pitch.
Spoiler! :
A nice query blurb, but if you want a one-line elevator pitch, here it is:

A grumpy old lesbian witch must solve a small-town murder before she's next.


Character tweets.
Spoiler! :
Trick question, Nettie does not tweet. One of her found-family kids makes her a Twitter, she never uses it, and this is what it looks like:

nettie's twitter profile.png


Character motivation/goals.
Spoiler! :
Okay well BEFORE the book begins, Nettie wants to be left alone. She's recently widowed (six months) and her neighbors will not stop offering sympathy.

(And casseroles. So many casseroles.)

She thinks it'll be easier if everyone leaves her alone - but of course what really happens when everyone leaves her alone is that she gets lonely. It's fine, because obviously she's going to get some found family as the story progresses and a love interest in book 2.

Once the story starts, she's focused on solving Helen's murder: she and Helen may have hated each other, but she found it oddly comforting that Helen didn't treat her any different or hate her any less after she was widowed.


Story arc.
Spoiler! :
It's a cozy fantasy murder mystery, so basically:

- setup of the world/introduction to select characters
- murder discovered
- police bumble, Nettie starts investigating
- main action is the investigation and found family
- confrontation with the murderer
- resolution


Stakes.
Spoiler! :
There's a murderer running around. And especially after a second person is murdered, seems like anyone could be next! Which is not actually great for stakes, but whatever, we're working on it.


Most challenging character.
Spoiler! :
Honestly right now I think it's a toss-up because...somehow I have to write characters who are trying to hide information so as not to implicate themselves in a murder, yet also they have to communicate enough information to let Nettie and El figure out who the murderer is? U g h . So I guess basically all the potential suspects lol. Everyone except Nettie and El.


Question & answer.
Spoiler! :
This is where my questions would go...if I had any!!!


Extra challenges.
Spoiler! :
phpBB [media]

I'm kidding...sort of.
I really do keep singing to myself "little town, it's a quiet MURDER."


Character & location list.
Spoiler! :
Character list.
Location description, but not so much a list since cozy mysteries take place in one usually-closed-off setting and this is no exception. Some places around the village I know they'll go: Nettie's house, the village square, Helen's house, the café, various suspects' homes, and Silvius's office at the nearby university where he teaches magical theory.


Character questionnaire.
Spoiler! :
Name: Nettie Harris
Age: Late fifties or early sixties
Height: Short
Eye colour: Brown
Physical appearance: Short and stout, with muscular arms and tanned skin and a long, thick, salt-and-pepper braid trailing over her shoulder.
Strange or unique physical attributes: None you'd notice, but she's had a spasm in her back since her mid-forties.
Favourite clothing style/outfit: Favors function and comfort over style. Generally wears a flannel shirt, a long skirt with pockets, and an apron.
Where does he/she live? What is it like there? Godfrey's Hollow, a countryside village of witches and the witch-adjacent. Quaint, cute, gossipy as all heck. Everyone's in everyone's business at all times. People are nice on the surface, but a thousand papercuts sting underneath.
Pet peeves: Gossip and nosy neighbors. Unfortunately, she lives in Godfrey's Hollow.
Hobbies/interests: More businesses than hobbies, but she does legitimately love her bees and gardens.
Insecurities: Can't see why anyone would like her, since she's well aware she doesn't make it easy to do so.
Quirks/eccentricities: The folks of Godfrey's Hollow would consider it eccentric (at best) that she doesn't prefer to socialize.
Temperament: Gruff but kind.
Negative traits: Grumpy, prickly, taciturn, at times flat-out rude, stubborn, refuses to ask for or accept help or even admit she needs it.
Family (describe): Only child to a single mother who taught her all the witchy ways; no clue who her father is and frankly doesn't care; mother died when Nettie was in her forties. Other family is far-flung and remote in an emotional sense as well.
Other people's opinions of this character: Most folks don't care much for her and are kind to her either out of a sense of social currency/niceties or out of respect for her wife, who was a favorite in the village. Nettie is too prickly, grumpy, and unsociable; most folks don't notice that she's also deeply kind. Cal, however, grew up with her and has always recognized that she's mostly just uncomfortable around people, and El is going to be instantly soft for her when she does something kind for him despite the fact that he's practically a stranger at that point.
Favourite bands/songs/types of music: Big band jazz, classical, and folk (either traditional or contemporary).
Favourite movies/TV shows/books: Secretly binges Only Murders in the Building; mostly reads nonfiction books on practical witchery, gardening, and beekeeping.
Favourite foods: Fresh bread, excellent roasted potatoes, and vanilla ice cream.
Dream holiday: A staycation, but all her neighbors are on holiday elsewhere, so she's left alone for a solid week.
Any pets? She keeps bees.
Best thing that has ever happened to this character: Marrying her wife.
Worst thing that has ever happened to this character: Losing her wife.
Three words to describe this character: Taciturn, kind, snarky.
If a song played every time this character walked into a room, what song would it be? All I've Ever Known from Hadestown
phpBB [media]


Reflections Badge


1. Did you meet your month's goal?
Spoiler! :
My month's goal was wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey, but it was basically just to add to NettieWIP. No amount specified. Just please write a bit this month lol. And I did! I wrote a whole 3,513 words toward NettieWIP in April, woooooo.

2. Did you manage to write every day?
Spoiler! :
Lol nope not even a little. It was debut month, so I spent a lot of time prepping for events, attending events, or recovering from events, and also doing a lot of marketing on social media.

3. Which was your favourite scene to write?
Spoiler! :
I've really been enjoying the initial interrogation scene, where Nettie has discovered the first murder victim and gets hauled off to the station by the incompetent police before meeting her son I mean the competent detective from two towns over.

4. Who was the most difficult character to write?
Spoiler! :
No one so far, but it's early lol.

5. What would you do differently next NaNo?
Spoiler! :
...I would not have a book coming out while doing line edits on a second book while attempting to draft a third book.
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Sun Apr 02, 2023 6:31 am
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soundofmind says...



Camp NaNo April '23 Pantser
1+2. Camp Nano '23: The Lost Dragon

Camp NaNo April '23 Finisher
Pants are an illusion. And so is death.





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RandomTalks says...



Totally forgot about this!

Camp Nano '23 Planster: PlanMo Challenges (8)

Camp NaNo Cheerleader:
1. Camp NaNo '23: SSED Revisions
2. Camp April 23 - Miscreants
3. Camp April 23: The Travelling Tea Party
4. Camp NaNo April 2023: Angel Astrid
5. Camp April 23: Book People (WIP)
6. Camp NaNo 2023: NettieWIP (?)
7. Camp NaNo '23: The Last Conqueror
8. CampNaNo 2023: Untitled Fantasy Academia WIP
9. Camp NaNo '23: SSED Revisions
10. Camp April 23 - Miscreants

Camp NaNo '23 Finisher: Camp NaNo '23: A Winter's Funeral

Camp NaNo '23 Reflections: Camp NaNo '23 Reflections
“Life’s under no obligation to give us what we expect. We take what we get and are thankful it’s no worse than it is.”

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Tue May 02, 2023 9:29 am
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IcyFlame says...



Friendly prod to get your badge list/reflections up to date by the 8th May!







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