Writing My NEW BOOK For Camp NaNoWriMo?! ✍🏿 writing vlog

[@persephone3892]

The "downtown" placement seems fine to me- in my town "downtown" is on the northside. Also i love the map!

[@ldjwrites]

@@persephone3892 I’m glad you like it! And ah okay, that’s good to know ahaha. Downtown in my city is to the north as well.

[@WriterAshC]

Long time NaNo participant here! I first participated in 2009, and didn't win. But since then, I've participated every November and have written 50k each time. I definitely wouldn't call it easy, but sometimes it's like muscle memory. I've also participated in Camp NaNo twice a year every year since 2012, and I've written 50k nearly every time (there was one camp session I remember writing 30k for my goal). There's definitely something to be said that if you do something enough times, it feels weird to NOT do it. Good luck with your Camp project -- you can do it!! 😁

[@ldjwrites]

@@WriterAshC Teach me your ways! Writing 50k in a month seems unreal to me

[@crystalcosmicreads]

I love finding new authortubers to watch!! I'm currently working on the first draft of a speculative fiction (sci-fi esque) adult novel and I'm hoping to finish draft one by the end of October to then start draft two for NaNoWriMo. Also, I love your map! It gives total Gotham vibes!! Good Luck with your project!!! New sub :)

[@ldjwrites]

@@crystalcosmicreads Ahhhh thank you so much! Good with your project as well :)))

[@northofdakota]

Nice to see another newbie authortuber! 👀 I don't really participate in nanowrimo but I've been working on my own story which is dystopian sci-fi and I've filmed a bunch of videos about it on my channel! 😁

[@AnnaRobbinsWrites]

Welcome to Authortube and so happy I found your vlog! Your map is amazinggg. What a vibe! I always have so much admiration for folks with map skills!!

[@ldjwrites]

@@AnnaRobbinsWrites I’m so glad you like the map! It surprisingly was not very hard to make, but I completely forgot what website I used (I made it a few years ago). I might have to do a short video tutorial once I find it again. Also, thank you so much for checking out my vlog and for the warm welcome. I’m about to check out your channel right now :)

[@AnnaRobbinsWrites]

@@ldjwrites oh yay I would love to see a video on the mapmaker for sure! :)

[@Oshotya]

Dope channel!!! Found you from KZbin suggestions. Love what you got going on bro! Keep going! Map was 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 by the way! 🫡🫡🫡

[@ldjwrites]

Thank you so much! I just dropped a video going more in depth on the city as well if you're interested

[@Oshotya]

@@ldjwrites About to check it out now. Can’t wait to read the book. Lets get it! 🤝🫡

[@KrisMF]

good luck with camp nano! gideon is such a fun read, i'm still making my way through it. i think you're right that people want to see stories that feel fresh but still "familiar" whether that's in a trope or character dynamics!

[@ldjwrites]

@@KrisMF Ooooo let me know what you think when you finish! The ending is insane. Also, thank you so much for checking out my vlog. I LOVE your videos.

[@greynightingale]

I had captain crunch when I sat down to watch this and write. Hell yeah.

[@ldjwrites]

@@greynightingale I love Captain Crunch! You’ve got great taste in cereal

[@sincerelyvee]

as a non-fantasy writer this was so so fun to watch! also super jealous of your custom chess set🤩

[@ldjwrites]

@@sincerelyvee oh my god it’s Veeeeeeeee! I love your videos SO much, this is crazy. Thank you so much for watching!

[@favouriteK]

This sounds really neat! Just be somewhat aware of the reputation NaNo has now. Don't let that stop you from writing or participating!! Best of luck to ya!

[@ldjwrites]

I totally had no idea about what was going on with NaNo! I don’t use their website and have never donated anyways, but now I know for my future vlogs. Thanks for letting me know and for checking out the video :)

[@favouriteK]

@@ldjwrites If you check out the NaNo subreddit, you'll find some alternative word trackers, communities, and challenges just like Camp for future enjoyment! But do please keep up with Camp this month and keep going

[@chelsea8694]

Yeah need to go head and start my nanowrimo prep, thanks for the inspiration!!!

[@ldjwrites]

Thank you for watching

[@traceymayhewauthor]

Good luck with Camp! Love the story idea and the title is spot on!

[@kassinichole1487]

Good luck on camp! Your book sounds super interesting. Can't wait to learn more about it and see more from you! Seven is one of my favorite movies so as soon as you mentioned it i was already like 💳💳💳 take my money!

[@ldjwrites]

WHAT'S IN THE BOX??????

[@kassinichole1487]

@ldjwrites Gets me every time!!!

[@tanawrites]

I am so invested. Good luck on camp!!

[@NiveaK.]

Your book sounds so interesting. If you ever publish it I'll definitely read it.

[@ldjwrites]

Thank you so much. I’ll definitely be keeping you all updated on what I intend to do with this project!

[@LettySharpeWrites]

Sounds like an amazing and ambitious project - can't wait to see where you go with it!

[@e_nyuszi]

Aye!! I'm starting a new project too!! You got this man! (also I like the idea of a chess theme and the detective sounds really interesting)

[@ldjwrites]

Thank you! What's your project about?

[@e_nyuszi]

@@ldjwrites Ofc! My project is basically a novel (or at least that's somewhat the plan) about a Korean woman living in China, who's marrying a mysterious sort of business man and it's kind of a murder mystery. As you can tell from that description there are still A LOT of details that I need to flesh out hahaha.

[@ldjwrites]

@@e_nyuszi Ooooo a fellow murder mystery writer!

[@e_nyuszi]

@@ldjwrites haha yes!

[@RealSkyzGameplay]

I've done 50k words in one month before, but after that I was reminded of the core concept of "quality over quantity." Looking back at them, I know I could've done so much better. To be fair, it was a draft anyways and I would've had to rewrite regardless but after re-realizing that I too hit a wall with that novel. I didn't like the main "goal", the lack of interesting characters, and so on. So, I moved to a project that I already had a lot of that stuff for, began writing, then stopped again. This time, I realized I didn't like the power system too well. It was too bland for my liking, and didn't move the plot as much as I wanted it to. For that reason, I'm instead watching videos of other people writing instead of getting back to writing despite redefining the power system. I'll get to it. Eventually.

[@maliahjoy2959]

Haha. That's my favorite thing to do: watch other people talk about their writing instead of writing myself.

[@RealSkyzGameplay]

@@maliahjoy2959 Right, I actually managed to get 1370 words in today though while exploring a potentially new intro I could write on my current project.

[@briyannamichelle]

Good luck! I just subscribed to your channel. You got this 👏👏👏

[@briellewrites]

Ahh!! I loved this vlog so much!! So happy to see you use the beat sheet template :') your map of your city and character descriptions were so interesting, it's clear you put so much thought and care into crafting this world!! cant wait to hear more about your journey, just subscribed :) and very honored to have helped inspire you kickstarting this channel!

[@ldjwrites]

Thank you so much for watching!!! I literally dropped my phone when I got this notification lmaooo. I’m so glad you enjoyed the video :)

[@kenbryan339]

I love the concept of your story! Looking forward to hearing more. The map is really awesome too.

[@ldjwrites]

@@kenbryan339 Thank you so much! I just dropped another vlog today going into a little more detail of the story

[@deathbybuttons]

Your book sounds so good. Great map and cover design as well. Keep the vids coming please! Very motivating.

[@ldjwrites]

@@deathbybuttons Thank you so much! And the videos will definitely keep coming :)

[@superkitten7560]

I am actually *very* interested in reading this book you have in the works. It sounds awesome!

[@MadisonMalaika]

Love the Batman vibes it sounds really interesting!!

[@ldjwrites]

Thank you! Batman is one of my favorite comic book heroes (even though I’m not much of a DC fan). I can’t wait to share the rest of this world with you all :)

[@ldjwrites]

I'd appreciate it if you could subscribe and like the video if you enjoyed! It really helps out the channel

[@MadisonMalaika]

@@ldjwrites yup already did!

[@ldjwrites]

@@MadisonMalaika thank you so much! I really appreciate it :)

[@zazenbo]

keep it up and stay inspired man

[@tiongenakazwe]

Your book sounds great! Best of luck with camp nano

[@ldjwrites]

Thank you so much! I appreciate you for watching :)

[@StoriesByKayla]

I love that you created a map to your city. I'm excited to see what you do with your story because it seems interesting. Also, I love Brielle's channel! I've never participated in NaNoWriMo. I'm kind of a really slow writer lol. I thought about doing Camp NaNoWriMo, but I have family coming for a week this month, and if I was going to do it, I wanted the whole month haha.

[@ldjwrites]

I’m also a fairly slow writer these days. You could always pick a random month and challenge yourself that way! No pressure, though haha. I’m going on a cruise for my birthday later this month, so writing on the board is going to be a little tough. Hoping I can make a fun video about it. Also, I’m glad you like the map. This is my first time showing it to anyone. Thanks so much for checking out my video. It means a lot to me :)

[@StoriesByKayla]

@@ldjwrites Happy early Birthday! You're better than I am. I'd be too distracted to write haha. I look forward to the video.

[@atlantistalamantes9262]

So interesting!

[@Chinelo_eve]

Your book sounds very interesting and I really like the map of the city! Also the chess element is really cool☺️♟️

[@ldjwrites]

Thank you! I absolutely love chess and never really see it mentioned in any books lol

[@andesears]

this was such a fun vlog to watch! good luck on nano camp! I can't wait to hear updates as you go along, I just subscribed! (also the batman inspo sounds epic, and your working title is awesome)

[@ldjwrites]

@@andesears thank you so much for watching! I’m glad you enjoyed it :) and yeah I absolutely loved The Batman. I love incorporating my influences into my works

[@andesears]

@@ldjwrites I think that’s what makes creative writing so fun, tying in the things that inspire you with your own original ideas! and everyone is inspired by different things and has unique ideas, so it’s so fun to hear about what inspires you and the work you’re creating through that! :)

[@princessthyemis]

It's cool to see your outlining process and enthusiasm!!! Although if you are writing, reading more is one of the best things you can do! so make that a part of your schedule. I absolutely ADOOOOOREEWE Gideon the Ninth as well! Also, you've inspired me to maybe actually do NaNoWriMo this november!! I haven't done it in years! 👏 I love your character outlines and their cool names!!!

[@ldjwrites]

Yeah, I definitely have to squeeze some reading time into my schedule. Also, I’m glad you’re joining in the festivities! What project will you be working?

[@princessthyemis]

​@ldjwrites I haven't planned the details of the plot yet, but it's the Salem which trials in a fantasy escape room environment! the main character is on a magic flying airship, which crashes into an isolated pocket universe that's an endless desert. Paranoia causes the crew to believe she is a witch and so she must use a cursed hunting rifle that has bullets which are fragments of a towed-down sun to find the witch who's at the center of the pocket universe and escape! 🤩🤩 and she wears a hazmat suit due to the dangerous fantastical elements of the desert which has a witch's hat sewn into it!!

[@Beingmimi0_0]

It was cool to hear about your writing project! I love all the new ideas. I can’t wait till we turn this copy/paste book industry upside down :) I will recommend reading Save the cat! Writes a novel by Jessica Brody for your new novel. It’s basically what inspired BrielleWrites template and a lot of plotting templates. It also talks about tips to writing different genres, including mystery

[@ldjwrites]

I’ve heard of that book but never bought it. Might have to change that soon… Thank you so much for checking out my vlog :)

[@Beingmimi0_0]

@@ldjwrites yes, it’s actually extremely helpful! And of course! I gotta support my black writers :)

[@MariaFlores-g1u]

Good for you man

[@ldjwrites]

@@MariaFlores-g1u Thank you!

[@kelleyiswriting]

I'm so glad to have found your channel!! Starting a new project to get away from an old project is the story of my life. HAHA. Really enjoyed the editing style of this video and the way you talk about your projects is so unique and refreshing :)

[@ldjwrites]

@@kelleyiswriting oh my god it’s Kelleyyyy! I love your channel! Thank you so much for watching my vlog :)

[@sootangel]

i see that quadeca merch lol your book sounds pretty cool! if you ever want another pair of eyes on it, i’d be happy to provide some feedback or even edits! :) (for free)

[@ldjwrites]

Ayyyy fellow Quadeca fan! Also, thank you! I'll be asking for beta readers once I wrap up this first draft, so I just may take you up on that.

[@patrick_nilan]

It always seems like a great idea the first week you start a new project!

[@ldjwrites]

Yeah I’m definitely gonna regret this in a few weeks! Thanks so much for watching Patrick :)

[@patrick_nilan]

@@ldjwrites ofc. I will say it does come with a wave of inspiration too though! I started of June by restarting my project from scratch and I think it might actually work out. Only time will tell 😂

[@ldjwrites]

@@patrick_nilan Good luck with that!

[@patrick_nilan]

@@ldjwrites and good luck with your project. The premise seems real interesting!

[@galthewriter]

your book sounds so interesting!! I love how thorough the map of your city is. you've definitely inspired me to try and make a detailed map of the island where my story starts as well (: good luck on camp nano! can't wait to hear how it goes for you!

[@ldjwrites]

You definitely should! I would love to see that map. Also, if you need any help, I can let you know all of the map resources I know of.

[@galthewriter]

@@ldjwrites I would appreciate that! I only know about inkarnate lol

[@ldjwrites]

@@galthewriter I’ll try to find the website I made this map on. Inkarnate is pretty good for Fantasy maps, so that might be your best bet for yours!

[@Lolo-iq6cs]

Can you make an in-depth video on the character profiles? Your names and descriptions seem so creative and organic, I would love to know more about your process in creating them

[@ldjwrites]

Yeah. for sure! I'll definitely be doing a video like that in the near future.

[@lucindaharrison]

Glad to have another Authortuber! One thing, I noticed on your character sheet that Alicia made "Moscow Mules." Would Moscow be a thing in your fantasy world? Brandon Sanderson told a great anecdote in his BYU Creative Writing course here on KZbin that he once included an ottoman (like the footstool) in one of his fantasy novels, even though the Ottomans would never have existed in his worlds. His editor caught it, I think.

[@ldjwrites]

Well, my world is Fantasy, but it's almost exactly identical to ours, as most of the Fantasy elements exist unbeknownst to most people. So a Moscow Mule would exist in my universe haha! Thanks for asking, though!

[@natesmith5444]

James Spader was Ultron! Kevin Spacey was someone waaay different (not a good person). But congrats on your vlog! Got a new subscriber! :)

[@ldjwrites]

OH MY GOD I CANT BELIEVE I DID THAT 😭. I get them mixed up all the time for some reason that's so embarrassing lmaoooo Thank you so much for watching and subscribing, Nate. I really appreciate it :)

[@sweetdesignink]

🙂 Out of curiosity, which is your favorite between captain crunch and fruity pebbles? Your side project for this month sounds interesting and fun! 😊 I like how the town is it's own character. I look forward to updates. I wrote on Wattpad from 2014-2015. I took a long hiatus. Slowly, I'm trying to revive my first drafts that are dusty on wattpad. How I write draft 2 is like my editing in 2014. 😂 While, I read draft 1 I rewrite and add info for characters, world, goals (if missing), etc that I didn't know previously. After 5 rewrite attempts over the years and failed terribly. I constantly felt I was missing the original feel. Now I'm using editing method. So far so good. 👍 Currently, I'm loosy brainstorming the trilogy. Taking a lot of inspiration from draft 1 elements. Adding more fantasy elements because idk why this book has 1 mention? 😅 The rest of my 1st drafts are filled with fantasy elements. 🤷🏼‍♀️

[@ldjwrites]

@@sweetdesignink That’s a tough one because I love fruity pebbles because they don’t get stuck in my teeth as much as Captain crunch does. Actually, nvm I’m going with fruity pebbles. Also love to hear you’re reviving your Wattpad drafts! That must be exciting. You’ll have to let me know how that goes. Would love to read them sometime.

[@RealSkyzGameplay]

5:48, how did you create the map?

[@ldjwrites]

watabou.itch.io/medieval-fantasy-city-generator Found the website finally. Only took me 2 weeks lol. Takes some tinkering to not make it look medieval. I might make a video on how I made mine.

[@RealSkyzGameplay]

@@ldjwrites Cool thanks man, for my story it's kind of set in the medieval era anyways so that works fine.

[@DistinctlyMeFilms]

Curious avout your city - did you plan anything outside of it? / The world its in?

[@ldjwrites]

@@DistinctlyMeFilms So, this city takes place in a world almost exactly like ours. I’ve not yet decided where in America it is, but I’m leaning Pacific Northwest. However, it may or may not also exist in my larger shared universe of about a dozen stories where superheroes, magic, and aliens exist. This book/city was meant to be like my “grounded” story, but I’m undecided on whether or not to have it be a part of larger universe. Sorry for the ramble lol