The Concept

National Novel Writing Month is "a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing." The challenge is simple: write a 50,000 word novel entirely within the month of November. This breaks down to 1667 words per day - a feat I wouldn't have been daft enough to even contemplate during the last few years when I was juggling two jobs but, now that I'm freelancing and can set my own schedule for November, the word count should not be a problem. So I've set myself a WriMo challenge with a twist:

Each day during the month of November I shall post my NaNo writing for that day to a new blog I have set up for the purpose: Raindancing Dragons. Each day's installment of the story shall leave one of its main characters with a key decision to make -- and you, dear readers, shall have the opportunity to decide which decision is made by voting in the poll posted in the blog's sidebar. I shall then write the decision which has garnered the most votes into the story.

Seriously.

Well, okay, maybe not always seriously. I reserve the right to write your decision into the story irreverently, comically, tragically, seriously or in whatever other vein I see fit -- but I will write it in!

Here's how it will work:

1. I will post the day's writing to Raindancing Dragons normally between 10:00 and 10:30 p.m. my time. (My time = GMT-4 November 1-3 and GMT-5 November 4-30.) [If Life conspires to throw me off my posting schedule, I will attempt to notify you of the next day's ETP (Expected Time of Posting) here in the Dragon Dreams blog when I make my daily post the day previous to the expected anomaly.]
   
2. During this same window of time, I will post a new poll in the Raindancing Dragons sidebar. Each poll will pose a question relating to a dilemma faced by one of the characters at the end of that day's installment and offer choices for how that character may choose to deal with said dilemma.
   
3. You may vote for one of the choices offered by me in the poll, or write in your own choice as a comment to that day's post. (There are a few simple rules for write-in votes, as described below.)
   
4. Each poll is open from the time of posting until the following day's update window (when it will be replaced with the new poll).
   
5. The character choice which has received the most votes during the time the poll was open will be written into the story.

The Rules

1. Please do not attempt to spam the polls. Each reader is entitled to one vote per day.
   
2. Recruiting your friends to read the story and vote for your choice is allowed and encouraged.
   
3. Sadly, I am functionally a monoglot. Write-in votes need to be submitted in standard English or I am not likely to understand them.
   
4. Write-in votes should be proof-read for spelling and grammatical correctness. (I am familiar with a variety of nationally standardized spellings for various English words, but I will not attempt to decipher "textspeak" or plain old laziness.)
   
5. Each poll gives you the power to get inside the head of one of my characters and vote on an important immediate decision in her or his life. The polls do not give you the power to play God. For example: "Laura decides that this entire project is a crazy idea, packs it all in and heads for home," would be an acceptable vote on the question "Does Laura accept the challenge and register for NaNoWriMo?" "Laura decides that this entire project is a crazy idea, packs it all in and heads for home, encounters no obstacles along the way, never regrets her decision to abandon NaNoWriMo and lives a quiet and pastoral life happily ever after," would not be an acceptable vote. Make sense?
   
6. Keep it clean. My story is intended for an adult audience -- but two of those adults are likely to be my parents! I reserve the right to discard any and all votes which I deem (in my sole discrection) to be inappropriate for publication in a public blog with my name on it.

Why am I doing this?

1. Because I think it will be fun.
   
2. Because I found out about NaNoWriMo through Blogger and immediately started thinking of ways to integrate my experience of the two while honouring the spirit of each.
   
3. Because I think it will be fun.
   
4. Because I think it will prove an interesting challenge.
   
5. Because I think it will be fun.

I hope you'll join me in November for a little Web 2.0 meets "choose your own adventure" stories meets NanoWriMo mayhem. Until then, you can continue to check back here for more news of my NaNoWriMo plans and pop on over to Raindancing Dragons for a fun, pre-NaNo practice poll.

Write on!