I don't know if you noticed on my blog page that when I uploaded to see if I would need an epilogue, it said YOU WIN and told me I had *exactly* 50,000 words. Not "and change" or a bit short. Word kept varying, it said I needed about 100 more. It made me laugh, since I had two days left at the time.
All this writing AND counting. I'm extremely impressed with all of you NaNophiles who have the courage and ability to glue 50K words together with nothing more than grey matter and perseverance.
It's funny how this whole NaNoWriMo thing is just a psychological trick we play on ourselves to get ourselves to write -- and we know that it's just a trick -- but it works anyway! There is, of course, nothing intrinsically magic about 50,000. Yet it feels wrong to be 500 words short.
Wow...and I thought MY Catholic Guilt (TM) was intense! Just type five Hail Marys and you'll be good to go.
Seriously, though, you cannot trust word counters, online or otherwise. If you really went through and hand-counted (do NOT go through and hand-count!), you'd find that you were far past the mark.
I guess the reason it bugs me is that I probably coulda stayed up on November 30th and written a few more pages and eliminated any question, but I was burned out by then, and just told myself I had to be close enough.
Open Office has me at 300 words short. Some counters have me at over the line. So...I guess I'm probably OK. I wish I still had access to the NaNoWriMo counter so I could see whether or not I actually hit 50k by their standards. I suppose I could potentially upload NaNo 2010 at some point during this year's NaNo to check it...
I also realize I'm probably making a mountain out of a molehill. I just feel like a lousy cheat. ;) Which, on the plus side, should motivate the heck out of me this time around, so I don't stop writing until I've not only passed the finish line but also finished the victory lap. Right? Right?? Ooh-rah and all that.
I'm sure you've earned that misplaced 500 words just by virtue of regular participation. Make up the balance this year, and your writing soul will be absolved.
My count was off too. I found the scanning had sprinkled some stray strings (adding words) and had missed or combined a lot of words too (losing some). By the time I cleaned it up Word had me 300 over instead of short. Still the way you type I'd think transcription would be a piece of cake for you.
You are hereby forgiven any transgressions about NaNo. Partly because I'm such a swell guy and fellow former New Englander. Partly because by the time November 30 comes around none of us have any judgement left. (Diminished capacity?) And partly for that wonderful cartoon that still has me smiling.
Besides, I don't want any guilt getting in the way of your LOTR rereading.
Thanks to all for the general lack of disgust and condemnation! I feel better now. Oh, and Jeff--I like that excuse: not guilty by reason of temporary NaNoWriMo-induced insanity. Or something like that.
Dude, you make me feel kinda depraved and without morals. 2 years ago, around the time of verification and completely and totally burned out, I committed the following sin: I did a copy and paste flashback. Of nearly 5,000 words. Granted, there were a lot of extenuating circumstances that year that led to the crappy word count (being in a toxic relationship, having my computer die mid november and spend a week in the shop without) but yeah. I kinda cheating. Truth is, I don't mind so much. I figure I made up for it in years where my count topped 60,000, and in the 200,068 words I wrote in three months in the summer of '08. Well, the moral of my rambling story is that you should not feel guilty about this. As everyone else has said, you should be proud for making to 50K--in PENCIL, no less! Yup, you definitely get the handicap. And you're AWESOME for even trying NaNo, let alone finishing it for all the years you have. Yup, you're awesome. I'm going to go work on homework now... CHEERS! art/theanab
12 comments:
I don't know if you noticed on my blog page that when I uploaded to see if I would need an epilogue, it said YOU WIN and told me I had *exactly* 50,000 words. Not "and change" or a bit short. Word kept varying, it said I needed about 100 more. It made me laugh, since I had two days left at the time.
All this writing AND counting. I'm extremely impressed with all of you NaNophiles who have the courage and ability to glue 50K words together with nothing more than grey matter and perseverance.
It's funny how this whole NaNoWriMo thing is just a psychological trick we play on ourselves to get ourselves to write -- and we know that it's just a trick -- but it works anyway! There is, of course, nothing intrinsically magic about 50,000. Yet it feels wrong to be 500 words short.
Go, and sin no more.
Wow...and I thought MY Catholic Guilt (TM) was intense! Just type five Hail Marys and you'll be good to go.
Seriously, though, you cannot trust word counters, online or otherwise. If you really went through and hand-counted (do NOT go through and hand-count!), you'd find that you were far past the mark.
I guess the reason it bugs me is that I probably coulda stayed up on November 30th and written a few more pages and eliminated any question, but I was burned out by then, and just told myself I had to be close enough.
Open Office has me at 300 words short. Some counters have me at over the line. So...I guess I'm probably OK. I wish I still had access to the NaNoWriMo counter so I could see whether or not I actually hit 50k by their standards. I suppose I could potentially upload NaNo 2010 at some point during this year's NaNo to check it...
I also realize I'm probably making a mountain out of a molehill. I just feel like a lousy cheat. ;) Which, on the plus side, should motivate the heck out of me this time around, so I don't stop writing until I've not only passed the finish line but also finished the victory lap. Right? Right?? Ooh-rah and all that.
And maybe I should claim I earned a 500 word handicap on account of writing it all in pencil? Heh...
I'm sure you've earned that misplaced 500 words just by virtue of regular participation. Make up the balance this year, and your writing soul will be absolved.
My count was off too. I found the scanning had sprinkled some stray strings (adding words) and had missed or combined a lot of words too (losing some). By the time I cleaned it up Word had me 300 over instead of short.
Still the way you type I'd think transcription would be a piece of cake for you.
You are hereby forgiven any transgressions about NaNo. Partly because I'm such a swell guy and fellow former New Englander. Partly because by the time November 30 comes around none of us have any judgement left. (Diminished capacity?) And partly for that wonderful cartoon that still has me smiling.
Besides, I don't want any guilt getting in the way of your LOTR rereading.
Jeff The Bear
Thanks to all for the general lack of disgust and condemnation! I feel better now. Oh, and Jeff--I like that excuse: not guilty by reason of temporary NaNoWriMo-induced insanity. Or something like that.
I think you're related to my wife.
If she finds the checkout clerk gave her an extra dime, she has to go back in and 'make it right'.
So, good on you. I prefer hypertrophy to hypotrophy where conscience is concerned.
(word verif = "polyp". Well.)
Dude, you make me feel kinda depraved and without morals. 2 years ago, around the time of verification and completely and totally burned out, I committed the following sin:
I did a copy and paste flashback. Of nearly 5,000 words. Granted, there were a lot of extenuating circumstances that year that led to the crappy word count (being in a toxic relationship, having my computer die mid november and spend a week in the shop without) but yeah. I kinda cheating.
Truth is, I don't mind so much. I figure I made up for it in years where my count topped 60,000, and in the 200,068 words I wrote in three months in the summer of '08.
Well, the moral of my rambling story is that you should not feel guilty about this. As everyone else has said, you should be proud for making to 50K--in PENCIL, no less! Yup, you definitely get the handicap. And you're AWESOME for even trying NaNo, let alone finishing it for all the years you have. Yup, you're awesome.
I'm going to go work on homework now...
CHEERS!
art/theanab
Oh, and awesome wordverif: banzina
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