Now, I'd like to mention the 2nd Annual Golden Coffee Cup. Folks, it's coming up.
In honor of National Novel Writing Month, I have a little event on my blog for anyone one who needs an extra boost of motivation to get their current project rolling.If you don't know about Nanowrmo, National Novel Writing Month, this is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30. This is a kamakazie approach to writing, it's about quanity and not quality. The Golden Coffee Cup is a different kind of motivational thingy. This soon-to-be coveted award (an awesome picture of a coffee cup emailed to you that you may display it with pride) will be given to the successful November goal setters. This is my answer to that "interesting concept" (cough, cough) of requiring writers to churn out 50,000 incomprehensible words in one month. Hey and some folks tell stories with pictures and feel like they are left out in the cold. I’d like to churn less with much more comprehension in my month. I ask you to join me. The 2007 Golden Coffee Cup will be awarded for a month of goal setting and achievement.
THE RULES:
1. Post your November creative goals here by Nov 1. That is the deadline, folks.
2. Come back weekly for general cheering and wild ruckus, celebrating your successes. We'll do some holy snappin'. For extra motivation, celebrity guests will be on hand to offer high fives for your achievements!
3. If you reach your goal by Nov 30, you will be eligible for a Golden Coffee Cup. There is no verification process, I believe you. Send in your email address to mollyblaisdell@verizon.net and your Golden Coffee Cup will be emailed to you. Display it proudly as wallpaper, post it on your blog, print it out and tack it on your bulletin board for year-long motivation.
4. New for this year: Four lucky winners will receive a real paper cup of genuine coffee (winners will need to send my their address to receive coffee) because everyone loves a free cup of coffee. All you have to do is submit your goal to The Golden Coffee Cup on the first week of November and then come in the last week and let me know that you have achieved your goal. I will read the goals and then the achievement and then award the "real" cups of coffee to the best entries.
I do the judging and it is wholly subjective.
GOAL GUIDELINES: The Golden Coffee Cup is about making a goal and keeping it. If you are a novel writer, you can write something new with a realistic word count goal, keeping your life in mind. Your goal might also be making your first novel submission (think Delacorte Contest) or a revision of a novel you've already written. You can do this! If you are a picture book writer or artist, hey, picture books are harder to write than they look. I don't really care about the word count because if your project is over 500 words that might be a problem. Picture book artists tell stories too. You might be an artist making a dummy and a dummy is certainly as hard to create as a novel. This is about quality not quantity. Win your very own Golden Coffee Cup. Let's bring some excellence into that creation!!!!!
Want to check out the 2007 winners of the Golden Coffee Cup? Click here.
26 comments:
Hi, Molly!
I will take coffee in any way, shape, or form...even cyber versions of it...
My goal for November?
To find that I have submitted all my current projects due by the first week of November, while still managing to set up a haunted house in our basement for my daughter's 10th birthday, bake several dozen cupcakes for said event (must feed the class, the soccer team, and the girl scout troop in honor of it), and not to catch a cold that will put paid to these ambitions.
Oh, writing and illustrating goals! Well, meeting the deadlines suffices for the writing, I guess...my other goal will be to submit an illustration to the Chinook...and how about setting up a website for myself as a writer?
Oh, gosh, what have I done???
Time for more coffee...
Christina Wilsdon
This blogging and entering contests are both new to me, but....here it goes!
I have two goals:
1.finish 3 illustrations and a complete pencil dummy for a picture book, ready for final critiques
2. finish a color dummy for a board book, ready for final critiques
Great goals for November, Suzanna and Christina!
Is this the right spot? Geez, you can tell my head isn't in the game these days, lol. I took the month off before child starts preschool in Nov.
Sooo....that means I can actually set some pretty heady goals for myself! Three days a week to write! Whoah! Whatever will I do with myself?
There's just one problem - I haven't formulated those heady goals just yet.
Some possibilities:
* Write very rough, short first draft of current project.
* Write a rockin' first chapter of said project so that I can actually submit it to things (conferences, etc.).
* Write as much as I can, the best that I can, in the given time and space of November.
Does free cup of coffee involve having it with you? Because I'm in, but if it does, then I'm super-in. But I want to have coffee with you anyways, even if I have to buy.
:)
Holly
Hi Holly!
I would be happy to join you as you enjoy that wonderful cup of coffee.
Oooh, I like your goals!
Here's some big holy snapping:
SNAP! SNAP! SNAP!
:) Molly
Finally ... I saw TEA! I'll do this for a cuppa :)
Goal: Write 2 pages per school day on MG novel.
Vijaya
I'm in.
I intend to write a young MG mystery. Cuz' I like 'em. And I like coffee. But we should just get together and drink, anyway. Ah-hm. Coffee. Drink Coffee, that is!
shelley
My goals for November:
1. Finish the first 100 pages of my expanded ghost story, and outlines for books 2 and 3 of the series, by November 5 (the editor’s deadline).
2. Get an actual contract for the project.
3. Finish the expanded novel by December 5 (the editor’s deadline again).
4. Stay sane.
5. To ensure #4, save time for rock climbing, swing dancing, and hanging out with friends.
6. Celebrate goals one through three with good food and drink, preferably shared with others. Celebrate goals four and five by repeating them.
Molly, you should come visit me here in New Mexico. We went looking for the comet last night, and saw it, along with a Milky Way full of stars. Nice sunset, too.
Chris Eboch
www.chriseboch.com
Hi Molly- thanks for doing this.
I attended the SCBWI Fall Novel Revision Retreat, and my goals are follow up to that.
1) Have a research conversation with a contractor about building houses
2) Review my notes from the retreat
) Rewrite the first chapter of my MG novel from a) the current protagonist's POV b)shifting POV
3)Be out of bed and ready to write by 5:30 am three mornings during the week and by 7:00 on either Sat. or Sun.
- Annie Gage
Hey Molly,
Here's my goal. Im keeping it simple, so I don't overwhelm myself:
1. Submit one PB manuscript to one editor.
2. Intentionally Blank.
Megan, who would like a tall, decaf mocha, no whip
Hi Molly,
Looks like I'm going to get these goals in just under the wire.
I have two:
1. Submit the picture book manuscript that's been sitting here since July.
2. This second goal is for she who has trouble sitting in one place for more than about 10 minutes at a time: Buns in the chair and write at least one chapter a week of my novel.
I don't think you'll have any trouble finding friends to have some coffee with!
Susan Greenway
Hi All,
Wow! What fab fab fab goals! Nothing like a little coffee (or tea) to get you motivated!
Yay for the tea sippers!
Holy snappin'! Snap! Snap! Snap!
Chris, invite to New Mexico. I really have to get over there. Oooh, Milky Way. I need the stars, you know. Gadzooks, that's some ambition!
Annie, great follow through on the conference. Kudos ahead of time!
Yay, Shelley, Holy Middle Grade Mystery!
Oooh, Intentionally blank, now that is good goal. Yay, Megan!
Snap! Snap! Snap! Whap, biff, boff, pow, zowie! Here's to one chapter a week and a picture book submission, Susan.
Molly,
You'll know who this is, but I'm signing up under my "secret" blog, which I haven't posted to in over a year (it was an experiment). Woo-woo!
My goal is to finish the rewrite on my YA novel. I have about 11 chapters to go.
I'm almost afraid to set such a goal because October has gone by so quickly and I'd hoped to finish by October 15 (and before that by Oct 1, Sept 1, Aug 15...) But I WON a Golden Coffee Cup last year, and it seems like a good omen.
Blessings,
"Tess"
Ok, I guess I have to nail my goal down now! So my official goal is:
* Write as much as I can, the best that I can, in the given time and space of November.
* Secret goal that I can fill you in on personally!
October has been all about thinking and a little research (and a lot of hanging out with little daughter who just started preschool today!).
And with that, I'd love to take YOU out for a cup of something! Let's make a date.
Holly
Hey Molly,
I need to make this simple.
My first goal is to post a goal here. Did I make the deadline?
Goal number two: complete one craft article.
I'll have one splenda-sweetened, sugar-free vanilla soy latte.
AB
I see we have some very motivated folks.
My goals for the Golden Coffee Cup:
1. Post Every day
2. Rewrite one chapter and submit one book.
3. Finish Rough Draft of my very short untitled chapter book.
I like secrets!
Hi Molly -- So here's my goal by email.
- Write half an hour twice a week
- That's it.
And as I said on my witty posting that you will never see -- it would be a stretch to call that a modest goal. "Humble" is even out of my league.
Take care,
Louise
Hmm, if I write it, will it happen...
1. My goal is to finish my first PB and submit to cloots at Greenwillow by Nov 30.
2. Write for at least 1 1/2 hours 3 times a week between 10 pm and midnight.
3. To stop procrastinating, judging myself, feeling overwhelmed with my lot and to have a "just get on with it sometime today" attitude.
By the way, I live for coffee. My slogan should be "will write for coffee".
So I guess I'd better start here and get back to writing...
Susan
Hey, Susan "will write for coffee"! Snap! Snap! Snap! for your goals!
Hi Molly - I did it! I finished my PB and it is now somewhere at Greenwillow (hopefully Ms Cloots is reading it right now).
So, what now. Wait... wait... wait...
Meanwhile, I'm still waiting... Need a coffee!
Anyway, better get back to writing. I've already started on my 2nd PB. Yay! Better open another bag of coffee...
Happy Turkey Day
Susan "will write for coffee"
Snap! Snap! Snap! Holy snappin' that's fast work. Yippeee! And congratulations. You are soarin'.
Congratulations, Susan "will write for coffee"!
OK, here it is the eve of Nov. 30, and what about them thar goals for November?
My report: kid's birthday party a success; I made the cupcakes, and didn't catch a cold. However child did bring home lice over the Thanksgiving holiday--NOT in the agenda. But, that's nitpicking, I guess. Anyway: I did meet 2 of the writing goals, and the third one in spirit--got my writing projects in on time, just submitted a little doodle to the Chinook, and got up a website--that's the "spirit" one, it's not a website for me as a writer (which is what I intended to do) but instead a website devoted to certain collectibles. But I figure it's a start.
And I even had a real live kaffeklatsch with another writer yesterday. Which was delightful even though I came home and discovered I was only wearing one earring. A call to the coffee shop resulted in the news that they'd found my lost earring. It had fallen into my coffee cup.
Honestly, I was not drinking with my ears. I've heard of drinking in things with your eyes, though. But ears? Ridiculous.
Hope everyone else is contented with reaching or nearly reaching their goals too.
Well, I did not quite meet my goals, but it is Not My Fault. I turned in the extended manuscript early, but have not worked on revisions because I haven't gotten feedback from the editor yet. And I don't have an actual contract, but he's going to the acquisitions meeting on Monday and says it's "very very likely that we will publish this." I did manage to stay sane (at least as much as ever), and to save time for friends and fun activities -- including a rollicking homemade miniature golf competition on the putting green in my parents' backyard over Thanksgiving weekend -- despite getting a cold.
Chris Eboch
It was AbFab to have these goals to work on. I met them in modified form and am off and running with a totally new tone- that might just be the right one- for my novel.
This worked so well for me that I'm going to email writing buddies and try to find someone who would like to exchange monthly goals on a regular basis.
Thanks again, Molly!
- Annie
Oh, how did I miss your blog last time? I can't wait to sit down and read through it all!
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