So this past Saturday, the NaNoWriMo Kick-Off party took place at a chilled cafe in Craighall known as the Cnr Cafe…which is on a corner…and serves caffeinated drinks amongst other things; in other words, the right kind of place to do some writing. Oh and they also have WiFi.
As my first NaNo meet, I was not sure what to expect in terms of the place, the people, the event itself and about myself as a writer. I mean this event is bringing together a tumble of writers from across Joburg to discuss writing. It was a pleasant surprise when everyone was so open and friendly, genuinely interested in each other and what we have to offer. What a wonderful environment to be in!
Chatting books, authors, genre and sharing ideas with fellow writers has a very different feel than when speaking to someone who’s life isn’t defined by those things. It’s a completely different kind of energy that I look forward to feeding off when we start doing the write ins
So this years NaNo theme is Steam Punk and I felt every inch of my nerves freak out at once when realizing that this time my novel was not a Steam Punk novel. Well I still have 11 days to change that but in the mean time I still got lots to plot out. My close friend and fellow writer Tyron from Life In Light of Eternity (we are doing the Auburn series together…remember that? Check the Auburn tag on the side) has been running some ideas to me which I appreciate greatly – he inspires me…literally.
Anyway in the little Goodie bag we received at the Kick-Off party we all received neat little items. A cool little Steam Punk object with square gears! As well as a bronzed key, a notice to warn non-NaNo’s why I’ve suddenly become scarce, other little things.
The best part of the whole experience was the meeting of authors. Such a wide variety of people, personalities and insights. I am truly looking forward to sharing ideas and typing away along side my fellow NaNos.