Win

Yup, it's awesome!
I won NaNoWriMo!



And before you pop out the champagne and stuff, so did the other 1k+ people.
Don't get the meaning of the word 'win' here wrong; I did win, and so did they.
Being a winner doesn't represent being number one in this case, or any other similar cases; it's a win because we accomplished something.

You see, many of us wouldn't even think about writing a novel.
Even if we did, we'd actually procrastinate and never get to finish it.
So, this is where NaNoWriMo comes to play; and I think I've written about this before.
It challenges you to glue your ass down onto the chair to finish a 50k word novel in a month's time.
You can have a preplanned plot and drafts, but not a completed story.
You'll have to cast away all doubts and think about it as your fingers type; decide as you watch your characters materialize in front of your very eyes.
It also taunts, mocks and laughs at you whenever procrastination shows up; belittling you whenever you lean towards temptation.
Believe me, there wasn't a night that I wasn't sitting in front of my laptop and absorbed with getting my story out.

And you know what?
I'm not even done with my story yet.
Yeah, I can actually hear someone asking how the hell did I win when I'm not even done writing.
Actually, the goal of NaNoWriMo isn't about completing a novel in 30 days; it's writing a 50k story in the month of November.
And that, people, is the minimum number of words which makes a story qualified to be termed as a novel...A short novel.

There isn't a particular genre, and there isn't a best in genre.
The thing about this competition is, there simply isn't one ultimate winner.
There's no judging schemes, no bad blood amongst writers...None of the sort of evil.
A novel is considered a novel if you think it is one; just like how the first kiss is- It wouldn't be a first kiss unless you consider it to be.
The sky's the limit, and the earth is your canvas.
If you want to write about the apocalypse, you're welcome to.
If you want to make it that your vampires can be killed by nothing but chillies, go right ahead.
There are no rules, laws or anything...YOU are God.
It's a alternate world / universe that bends to your will and fancy.
It'll be as you dictate, even if it defies the law of Physics.
But mind you, your characters would sometimes take a life on its own to write itself and will not do as you command.
That's what happened to me and my characters. My FMC and MMC didn't turn out like I expected them to be, and there is definitely some friction that will happen to the MMC and his best friend.

This is also a good way to train your creativity and to think outside of the box.
Science students are generally blocks of wood, seriously.
Don't get me wrong, I am a wooden block myself.
We obey all the laws and principles that we are taught, like Newton's Three Laws of Motion and all the other principles.
It'll always be 1,2,3 and never h, k, 8.
When writing, it could be 1, m, 8, di, 389...You get my point?

My news of victory was received in cold response from my family.
My friends, on the other hand, were supportive. :D
(Thanks, guys!)
I felt happy that I could write that large amount of words in 30 days when I thought it to be entirely impossible a few weeks ago.
Now, I know that it's possible and I am capable of writing more than that.

What now?
Well, I'm going to finish writing my novel and try to come up with a title.
I think I heard a gasp and someone fainting...
Yeah, it's still a untitled novel. I left it as Story 1.
Here's the good part: The winners of NaNoWriMo are entitled to have their story printed!
Yup, the organizers and Createspace are going to print out my draft and compile it into a presentable manuscript... FOR FREE!
That's right, you heard me! Even the shipping is FOC!
The offer will end in June 2010, so I gotta finish my novel and its edits by then.
After having it printed, I can either sell it in Amazon or look for a literary agent that will read my book and then hopefully agree to represent me and take care of my career as an author.
But... That'll be decided later on.

I guess that's it for now.
I'm still trying to persuade my FMC to go on a trip with the MMC and his best friend, but she's worried about her siblings...
That's about as much of a spoiler that I can give; it's more than generous.
I guess you'll just have to read it when I'm done and satisfied with it.

Now to plug in my earphones and continue my literary quest to bring happiness to my FMC's life.
Too bad I can't do squat about mine.

Hell

You know the term, Hell on Earth?
I think that it simply is what it says: Hell on Earth.
Not a description of chaos, not the experience one feels; it simply means what it is- Hell on Earth.

Right now, I feel disgusted.
Not by the macabre find of corpses hastily buried in the South Philippines, not by the incestuous German man who violated and ruined his daughter and not even the Khmer Rouge nor the Jew Genocide of WWI.
I am disgusted at the beings that caused it- humans.
I feel disgusted by the beings that call themselves human.
I feel disgusted at myself who is human.
And no achievement of the so called human race or mankind will ever make me proud of being one either.

At this moment, I don't think that Hell is the worst place to be.
To me, being human is even worse than being a prisoner in hell.

Humans are never satisfied.
Humans are hypocrites.
Humans do what they teach their kids not to do.
Humans preach what they never abide by.
These are the real definitions of human.

I once questioned the reason to conform with human society's views if it goes against one's principle.
Someone replied that, if something is a social norm, then it is something accepted by human society; thus making it valid and correct.
I then challenged the speaker with the fact that sexual relationships before marriage is a social norm, but that doesn't make it right.
I was then labeled as stubborn and self-destructing.
See my point?
Humans are hypocrites and no longer have claims of being a more intelligent being compared to beasts.

As much as I am disgusted, I won't take away my consciousness and life.
I will simply live by the rules and morales written and preached by the hypocrites, caring not whether human society approves of it.
If they denounce me as human, I shall be glad of it.
I have no wish to be grouped under such vile and vulgar creatures of vice.

Mmhmm...
I'm not dead, yet.
Just very busy...
Like I'm half swallowed by the dreaded monster known as Life.

Still writing, just a tad behind schedule.
Have a whole bunch of stuff to finish this week.
Stupid tests and quizzes.
Gosh...

I really need a vacation soon.

Still

YES, I AM STILL ALIVE!
Of course I am, why wouldn't I be?

I'm still breathing;
I'm still blinking;
My stomach is still trying to digest mom's pork chop with apple cider sauce;
My esophagus still trying to suppress that burp I've been holding back on;
I'm still writing my novel- 23k and going,
My characters are rebelling- they don't listen to me anymore, and the most important thing...
Why the hell are there so many teen romance novels with vampires in them?

...Figures.
Everyone is gaga about Edward.
Speaking of which, I've not touched my Twilight novels ever since the movie came out.
I tend to stay from mainstream stuff- I don't like it as much once it gets famous and everyone is crazy about it.

The next book on my book hunt list are Isis: Tale of the Supernatural, Impulse and Initiative, The Personal Diary of Mr. Darcy and Nightlight.
I doubt I'll be able to find them here.

And if anyone is looking for a fun game to play, I might suggest that you try the Dream Chronicles; just make sure that you have enough RAM to support or it'll be very laggy and the graphics sluggish. It spans three episodes and I just finished the second one in the morning.
It's a hidden object game that is beautifully done; the mini games are really nice and the soundtrack is very soothing.
Others on my favorite list are: the MCF series, Princess Isabella: Curse of the Witch, Natalie Brookes and Samantha Swift.

Well then, I should be getting back to whatever I wanted to do.

Epic?

Ok, it's three in the morning (close to three thirty) and I'm still up.
No kidding.
My parents would flip if they opened their door and found me still on my laptop and sitting in the same sofa, at the same position and... still intent on typing.
Yeah, my family shares not the joy of writing; neither do they share my passion for books.
I fancy myself an adopted child, but my resemblance to mother made that thought wholly improbable.

The weekend is over and I had finally surpassed the recommended word count 2 days ago.
I started my story on the 4th, three days later than the actual starting date.
So far, I'm happy with what I've gotten; immensely happy.
My characters are starting to write themselves, which isn't a bad thing after all- less for me to mull over how to connect one part to the next.
I did not intend for my FMC to be so cynical, or her friend such a hopeless romantic, or her cousin to be so immature.
My FMC is now a cynical and outspoken person while her friend is much too busy ogling at her fiancé to be bothered by anything. Her cousin is acting like a child, even when he is twenty-four!

I had some trouble back then, my MMC did not want to come out.
Like I had tweeted for the past few days, he just wasn't willing to show himself. From 10k up to 14.5k words / 22 pages / 7 chapters, he showed neither hide nor tail. I worried that my FMC was too cynical and sarcastic for him.
But that problem is now solved! I finally managed to shove him out into the limelight at my 8th chapter / 26 pages / 15+k words.
Ah, the sweet feeling of accomplishment.

It may be 15k now, but I think I'll be able to add another 1.5 - 2 k words today, more if I'm lucky.
Speaking of which, I have to get to bed now. I still have classes up to 2 in the noontime.

PS: To think of the irony where I get embarrassed at kissing scenes and cringe away at the very sense of the abhorrent pink mood / atmosphere and yet, I'm writing a novel under the genre of romance!
And yeah, I've been reading a little too many Regency novels *coughPrideandPrejuidicecough*
that my novel is written in that form. Or rather, the conversation is styled in that form.

PPS: If anyone is curious, this is the URL to my page in NaNoWrMo -> Winternite's Profile
Uh huh, I have yet to think of a title for my novel. And sorry, no excerpt or synopsis either.