NaNoWriMo Announced!

It's that magical time of year again luvies, NANOWRIMO! (Dun-dun-dun-duuuuuuuuuuuuunnnnnnnnnnnnn!)

*Official Explanation: National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo as many know it, is a annual internet-based dare, to write a full length novel in the span of a month. The official month is in November but they also include summer months such as June and August. Standard length for the novel is 50,000 words, around 1500 words a day. Click the following nonsensical sentences to learn more.
NaNoWriMo: Hello, my name is Mustache McFerguson and if you have never been to space then how can you know whether the chicken came before the egg or vice versa?
NaNo's Young Writers Program (For those under eighteen): Did you know that 43% of all jokes end in Popsicles?
Camp NaNoWriMo: Gluing earplugs to your cheeks are a great way to avoid catching your hair on fire.

"Butt Bec-uh, why u b doin' nam-mo-wiii-mo? Ain't u supposed 2 b doin' the college things?"~Love, a Monkey

-Shut up, go back to your corner.

Yes, I am still going to try NaNo this year, even though I'm super busy with college stuf. After three years of participating I still contend that losing is just as fun as winning in NaNo. So no, I do not expect to win. But to be able to get my idea off the ground and try new things is enough to give it a shot anyway. Besides, I can't resist. I just love NaNo, with all my heart and soul. Plus, I'm pretty sure it's in the bible. In fact, I'll look it up. Let's see here, *shuffles through pages in bible*, Ah! Here it is. 1 Opinions 3:28=Doing NaNoWriMo makes Jesus happy. See? There you have it. NaNoWriMo.

Wanna see the synopsis? Here it is!

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Mandy was a country hick, or so she felt when she first left Feay, Mississippi. But with nothing but a duffle full of essentials and a full ride to Columbia University she made her way in New York. Now the head writer for a critically acclaimed sitcom and New York Time's Number One Bestseller for her much beloved Fairy Tales, Mandy feels like she finally belongs in the city. But now that city loves her, will she ever be taken back by the country? And does she even want it too?

Dewy has never been the brightest kid. But along side his best friend Aaron and his older sister Mandy it never seemed to matter. However, since Mandy left for the city nothing's been right, and Dewy struggles to hold onto what little he has left. It's not easy though, with his parents all but disowning Mandy and Aaron growing more and more distant with every passing day. And now that Jane moved into town, what once was friendship is now a war to see who gets the girl. And if Dewy doesn't wise up, he's going to lose his sister, best friend and new-found crush.

Aaron doesn't want to admit it, but the city is calling his name. Ever since his best friend Dewy's older sister Mandy left, he's grown bored with the sleepy town of Feay. And the more adventures he hears from his grandpa, the more things he reads about Mandy's exploits in New York, the more he dreams about leaving the country. And when Jane shows up in town, with her ocean hair and her electric eyes, Aaron can't deny it any longer, even if it means abandoning his best friend and hometown in the process. 

In a series of letters, find out how Mandy Dewy and Aaron discover what it means to follow their dreams, no matter what the price.

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By the way, I want you to be a part of this too. No, I don't mean that you need to write a whole dang book with me, I'm only forcing Princess Faith  too do that. (By the way, I am not giving you all permission to go and troll her blog, forcing her to do NaNoWriMo, but at the same time I'm not your mother so I can't control what you do. Even with subliminal messaging or reverse psychology.) What I mean is that I want you to be able to reap the benefits of a story in a month without having to do any of the work. What can I say? I'm a giving soul. So I'll be posting the letters that will make up the story on a separate blog I'm starting, http://mandyinthecity.blogspot.com/. So follow along if you so desire.

UPDATE: THE BLOG FOR LETTERS TO MANDY IS OFFICIALLY DOWN. SORRY PEEPS.

Well, I'm not going to hold you here any longer. Go forth and prosper. Happy NaNo everyone!

Stats of the Week

Song: Funeral by To Kill A King

Book: Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis

Word: Manipulation

Quote:  "Princess Faith should do NaNoWriMo."
-Jesus and Han Solo

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How Too Not Be Boring And Other Important Things To Remember When Conversing

Most people would think that introverts don't know how to converse properly, that we're all socially awkward. Unrelated fact, most people are dumb. Only the most noticeable of the sunlight-challenged stumble upon their words. Most of us, we live among you. We look like you. We talk like you. We walk like you. But we are not you. And yet you don't even know we are there. To you, we are one in a crowd.....

(Dear Pittacus Lore, please don't sue me. Show some love for someone else that's hiding from alien overlords. ~Love Becca)

As a writer: nay, as an introvert; nay, as a person who is easily bored and irritated; NAY as a person slowly turning into a horse right now, it continually astounds me that the majority of people I meet aren't capable of holding up a conversation of any substance. Saddens me, even. Perhaps this is because I am only meeting people my own age these days (and let's face it, as a whole, us newly made adults leave much to be desired) but it seems to me that at this point in their lives they should have the basics of courtesy and the ability to be the smallest bit interesting. So, before they ship me off to the glue factor, I shall endeavor to teach the world (or at least my generation) what our mothers seemed to fail to do.

1) Be engaged.

I put this first because this is the biggest problem I see and, coincidentally, my biggest pet peeve. People aren't engaging in a conversation. No, I don't mean interesting. I mean invested. We as a whole have seemed to forgotten that a conversation is a two-way street. And, let's admit it, we love hearing the sound of our own voices. Me, I think mine has a bit of a blue-jay song quality to it. So we use talking to others as a way soundboard the particular going-ons of our lives without giving any interest to the person we're going too. But do not be fooled, monkeys, for this is not a conversation. It's barely a step up from talking to a mirror. Actually, it's more like a step down. At least when you talk to a mirror it doesn't think your a snob. It thinks something along the lines of Oh dear lord, do I really have that many zits on my pane? I told mom windex would make it worse, but did she-Oh. Wait. That's the person standing in front of me. Never mind ma, you rock. 

Mirrors and their zit problems aside, I can tell you nothing is more annoying then someone who does not contribute to a conversation. Like they end each sentence with a statement about themselves. Example.
A: Ugh, seems like it's going to rain today. Isn't rain the worst?
B: One time it rained where I used to live.
A: Got a busy day ahead of me. You got any plans?
B: Yeah, one time a had a busy day too. It was the busiest. But don't tell me about what you were going to say because I don't care.
A: Making mac and cheese tonight. Want any?
B: Yeah I had mac and cheese once. It was yummy.

JUST SHUT UP ALREADY!

My point is this, when in a conversation, remember that you are not the only one standing there. Take interest in what the person your talking to has to say. Perhaps if they take a question, you might ask them one back. Or maybe if they are telling you a story, ask them about details. For the love of God, at least act like you care what they say.

2) Take a breath every once in a while, before you suffocate and die. 

We all know that one person whom we wished had an off switch. And whether it be because of lack of filter, lack of volume control, or lack of a pause button, we find ourselves exhausted after these encounters with little to show for it. This one kinda ties into the last one, but why don't you watch what you say and how you say it? Now, I'm no supporter of censorship, but when it comes to conversation somethings are down right distasteful and cruel at times. Or perhaps you're telling us things about yourself that we'd rather not know. It's also possible that we are concerned for your well being seeing as you haven't stopped talking for the past ten consecutive minutes and your face is turning a bit purple. Or maybe, just maybe, you're causing permanent damage to our ear drums because YOU CAN'T SEEM TO LOWER YOUR VOICE A COUPLE OF NOTCHES AND WHILE WE'RE ON THE SUBJECT THERE'S THESE COOL THINGS CALL MINTS NOW A DAYS, THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO FRESHEN YOUR BREATH. MAYBE YOU SHOULD LOOK INTO THAT.

3) Act friendly. 

Last but not least, let's dive into the topic of people that always seemed annoyed that you share relative space with them. There are these people out in the world, let's call them "people with issues", and they generally give off the vibe as hating all living things that grow under God's blue sky. When you acknowledge them, they glare at you. When you speak to them, they reply in word worded answers that come with a bit of a bite. When they walk by babies, the babies start crying. I have the pleasure of knowing a number of people like this, so I have something to say to both parities involved in this dilemma. First, to those with a bit more cheerful disposition. Be patient, these people simply do not know how to communicate properly. Behind the scowl and the eyes of the tundra, they are probably thinking about unicorns. And to those without the cheerful disposition, I hate to be the one to inform you of this, but we are all scared of you. That may seem cool now, but in the end, your probably going to die alone because of it. Might I suggest cracking a smile or even mustering a head-nod every once in a while to at least starve off this morbid fate of yours? At the very least, turn up the heaters behind your eyelids, your frozen stare is literally giving me a cold. (P.S. Ignoring me will not get rid of me. I live here too.)

That's what I got for you this time folks. Hope it helps. Now if you'll excuse me, my roommate will not stop glaring at me so I think I'm going to get the snow boot out of the closet.

Stats of the Week

Song:  Seven Devils by Florence And The Machine

Book: The Code Of The Zombie Pirate by Scott Kenemore

Word: Exchange

Quote:  "Keep living Ed...It's only the pages that stop here."
-Markus Zusak, I Am The Messenger

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A Letter to Whoever I Become

Dear Whoever I Become,

To you I disclose the thoughts of the future. It's my hope that this letter find you well, that Whoever you are is someone I want to be. But even if not, to your credit you survived, and I could only dream that you are the type who would keep surviving. 

I must confess I face you with fear, there being no set in stone guarantee that my ambitions should succeed. I'm all too aware of the fact that there's a real possibility my life would take a turn for the worse, my blessings coming with the aftertaste of the knowledge that I could lose them. 

All the same I excite myself with who you may be. You could very well be weaker then me, but you could very well be stronger as well. And whatever happiness I find is happiness I look forward too, I only hope you recognized it when it came. 

Perhaps I idealize you. Maybe I have a specific picture of you in my head. But that picture is mine and mine alone, and I think I wish that you would actually not be that picture. I want to be surprised, I want to see if maybe what I'm doing now is only leading me to what you do. Maybe I'm starting the journey you've already finished. 

But these thoughts of you are trivial, not worth the energy I put into them. Whatever will be will be, and I need to let this obsession go. So I write you this letter in good health and hope to be done with you until such a time where I will be you. 

Yours Truly 

Who You Used To Be