Day 27 - 50,650 Words
I won. I'm finished. I'm done. I did it. It's over. You can't believe how great I feel.
Sort of...
My friend reminds me that I have 3 days until I am "officially" done with the 30 day task. So, for the next 3 days, I will be working on getting a portion of my novel "ready" for you to read. Please stay tuned...it's not over quite yet.
xoxoxo
-Bethany

Day 26 - 48,022 Words
I really thought I was going to finish this today, but I'm too tired. Too tired even for red bull. I have the entire plot figured out now, so I think I'm going to make it to 50,000 words. I was concerned last night, but after 8 hours of sleep, a hot shower, a nice long walk, and some Red Bull at the Abby Pub, I figured everything out. I'm so tired. I already fell asleep at my computer today and hit my head on the desk. It hurt. I also passed out with my contact lenses in and now it feels like I have sand in my eyes. I hope I finish tomorrow. Everybody cross your fingers while I go pass out.

Day 25 - 44,408 Words
Too tired to write much at the moment. I'm still trying to figure out some plot details.
So Far:
Big things are happening at the Art Institute.

Day 24 - 42,101 Words
I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving holiday. For those of you trying to reach me at work, here is a bit of news.
My computer (at work) broke on Tuesday and the company took it away to "re-image" it. Between the holidays and the broken computer, I haven't seen my email for five days now. I'm sorry if I have come across as rude.
I have been working, as you can see. Only 7,899 words to go, and it's Saturday morning. Two whole days to myself. Yep, just me and this crappy book.
So Far:
There was a conversation about the past sixteen years, about hearing voices, about color field painting, and about Susan Anton. There was a drunken kiss. Now someone has a hangover.

Day 22 - 39,106 Words
Happy Thanksgiving!
I was too tired to post this last night. Everything seems to be going great. I think I understand the plot now. I'm able to summarize the novel for people when they ask me what my book is about, instead of just saying "I don't know." However, based on advice from previous NaNoWriMo winners, I'm not revealing it to anyone until the book is done.
So Far:
A new character is introduced. The title of the book is explained. Someone has been told that staying away from the art institute is a matter of their own life or death.

Day 21 - 37,327 Words.
I am so tired. I fell asleep on the train and I fell asleep briefly here at home and I'm going to bed early now. Somehow, I still managed to write over 2,000 words tonight.
I know earlier I said that December was going to be NaWaBeGeDruMo (National Watch Bethany Get Drunk Month) but it looks like It's going to be NaDoWaBeUnJanMo. (National Don't Wake Bethany Until January Month)
So far:
Earlier, someone went to the Goethe institute to get some mystery sentences translated. Now they are at the My Thai restaurant on Michigan Ave.

Day 20 - 35,011 Words.
Only 1,255 words today and I still didn't get my ironing done. Really, still very jive.
I did see the movie "Borat" tonight though, so I didn't plan on writing anything much anyway. What I did write, I wrote at the Redfish on State Street.
I saw a fellow Nanowrimo-er at the theatre. We asked each other why we weren't at home writing. So far:
Someone orders a double cheese, garlic, mushroom, and black olive pizza from Pete's Pizza the night after a hangover. Someone thinks about his old girlfriend, Mandy. Mandy gets a bikini wax.

Day 19 - 33,756 Words.
Only 1,385 words today and I still didn't get my ironing done. Pretty jive.
So far:
The two main characters had a 1,385 word phone conversation. Big deal.

Day 18 - 32,371 Words
I had to quit because the words on the screen were jumping around and giving me a headache.
So far:
Someone got a migrane instead of vomiting. A cup and saucer have traveled through time. All the root beer in someone's apartment disappeared.

Day 17 - 29,101 Words
I'm too tired to write, and my computer keeps crashing, so I'll make this quick. It's late (1:59 a.m.) and I'm tired.
Something strange has been going on in the main character's apartment. All of his spoons disappeared. He has two broken coffee mugs in his kitchen sink. There are some strange cassette tapes to take into consideration, and right now someone is sitting in the Golden Angel on Montrose and Lincoln eating southwest corn chowder with crackers.

Day 14 - 25,138 Words
Day 15 - 27,398 Words
I had a great entry for day 14, but my computer crashed as I was uploading my blog post. After that, I felt discouraged and decided to just go to bed.
I reached the half way point one day early, but I have tinnitus and carpal tunnel symptoms.
So far in the novel on day 14:
Someone made their mother go to the YMCA on the wrong day. Someone unplugged all their appliances instead of standing in the door jam. Someone dreams of dimensionless numbers that described oscillating flow mechanisms.

As for the novel on day 15:
Someone drank warm ginger ale. Someone vomits three times. Someone had their copy of Brave New World fall off a desk.
You can probably guess that day 14 was more romantic and interesting than day 15, what with the dimensionless numbers and oscillating flow mechanism, but someone had to vomit at some point I guess. So there you have it.

Day 13 - 22,564 Words
Yes, it's shameful. Only 1,504 words today. I'm still waiting for inspiration to strike. Waiting and Waiting and Waiting and Waiting and Waiting.
Meanwhile, someone is dreaming of dimensionless numbers that describe oscillating flow mechanisms. Someone spilled Yoo-Hoo all over that rabbit and it had to have a bath. Someone is learning about Prana.
Really, this is more difficult than I thought it would be.

Day 12 - 0 Words
I'm finally back to full health and interfacing with the humans again.
I know, I know. Zero words. How will I finish at this rate?
Instead of writing, I went to see my friend Igor Polevoy's lovely and talented wife, Laura, sing. She did a wonderful job. Also, I cleaned my apartment, which the NaNoWriMo people say I am not supposed to do until December 1st, but I mean, come on, yikes. Tonight I'll be writing a lot, I'm hoping to get at least 3,000 words. Please wish me luck.

Day 11 - 21,060 Words
I'm too tired. Someone drank tea out of a Tupperware container. Someone adopted this rabbit. It's sad. Someone named the rabbit Snorbles and it's too late to change it because it knows its name now and comes when you call it.

Goodbye everybody.
That's all she wrote.

Day 6 - 13,038
There isn't enough Red Bull in the world to keep me awake right now.
The story so far? I hate it. The stupid character suddenly has a mathematical Platonism fixation, and I don't know a whole lot about that so I'm going to have to research it. Why he couldn't be fixated on something I'm already knowledgeable about I don't know. What a pain in the ass. The other character is just wasting a lot of time being drunk so I'm considering killing her. Tomorrow someone may run amok with an ax.

Day 5 – 11,417 words
Today’s writing is brought to you by too much coffee. I got sick around 1:00 and had to sit on the couch and watch the movie “Wicker Park” starring Josh Hartnett. Personally, I would have written a different ending, but then it wouldn't have been called "Wicker Park". It would have been called "I totally beat that woman to death with these shoes".
Things went well today. This was the easiest writing day yet, and I’m ahead on my word count.
So far:

Someone drank vodka from the hotel mini bar. Someone ate a free continental breakfast. Someone’s genetic makeup wasn’t as good as it could have been. Oops. Somebody misquoted Mark Twain. Someone called every Washington Mutual bank branch in the San Francisco bay area, and someone is continuing to drink quite a lot of vodka. More than is good for them. And it’s me!*

*No, sadly my alcohol consumption has declined since the start of this task. It seems I don’t write very well when I drink. As a result, December will be NaWaBeGeDruMo (National Watch Bethany Get Drunk Month) if you want to stop by.

Day 4 - 8,456 words
This book is being brought to you by Red Bull and Parliaments.
I caught up on my word count today.

One characters handwriting is analyzed which causes someone to cry so hard they pass out while listening to Brian Eno. Someone is disappointed that lightning did not strike the airport. Someone has dinner at Scoma’s on fisherman’s wharf. Oddly enough, their dinner was as bad as mine was when I went there a few months ago, and they ordered the same thing! This must be and example of that famous “write what you know” game everyone’s been talking about. Someone bought garlic bread though, and I didn’t. The garlic bread was very good. I highly recommend it if you ever get the chance to go to San Francisco in my book.

Day 3 - 5235 words
Last night I went to the Chicago NaNoWriMo kickoff party and met all the other victims of this cruel experiment. There was pizza.

I also got a little writing done. The reading aloud of Nietzsche excited two characters so much that they had sex. I never thought I'd write a sex scene. Certainly not on day three. Although I knew if I ever did, it would contain Nietzsche. I can't wait to see what happens after the reading aloud of Heidegger. I bet a ham sandwich is involved.

Hello, and welcome to my blog. If you want to track my progress, find out what is happening in the story so far, or figure out what point I am at in my NaNoWriMo adventure, this is the place.

The story so far:


November 1, 2006
Day 1 - 1944 words

Someone jumped into an abyss, someone stole a backpack, someone got sick, someone sang part of Black Sabbath's Iron Man.


Day 2 - 4471 words

The contents of the backpack are revealed. An apple is not eaten. Someone remembers what college was like.