NaNoWriMo 2012 Winner

If you check the handy little sidebar that I have on the right hand side of my blog, you'll notice that there's a little box there that says that I "won" the NaNoWriMo. Well, winning isn't really that much of a correct term to use to describe someone who has successfully gone through the trouble of churning out fifty thousand words in a matter of thirty days, because if it is, then everybody who finishes a five kilometer run would be considered winners. I know some people who might consider successfully forcing themselves to traverse five kilometers in a row on foot to be "winning", but I disagree.

Anyway, my novel, PH:2086 is far from finished, and also very far from having a well-strung together plot. To be honest, after the time and quota pressures of the NaNoWriMo was removed from me like a bomb collar on my neck, I have noticed that I am not really up to adding more stuff into the novel anymore. Or maybe it's because I've recently taken up drumming and I'm very much occupied with practicing at every spare moment that I can get.

I'm not a fan of leaving things unfinished, though, so I will set some personal goals for me to pursue so that I can manage to rack up to eighty thousand to one hundred thousand words, which is the average and most accepted word count for most novels. I have the feeling that I won't be able to compress every bit of the story into one novel however, so I'm thinking of making a sequel once I finish the manuscript.

I also have another novel in the works besides PH:2086, and it's something that I have been working on way before the NaNoWriMo. Hopefully I can get that done as well. Perhaps some excellent time-juggling is in order.

NaNoWriMo 2012

Today marks the first day for the National Novel Writing Month of 2012. Actually, that was yesterday, but I did plan writing this post earlier though I procrastinated by watching a couple of very well-made films made using the Source Film Maker on Youtube, and so I digress. Don't worry about the name though, NaNoWriMo is actually international. There's also conveniently a community of WriMos in the Philippines, which, of course, I immediately joined.

I took on the challenge of joining the NaNoWriMo this year because I find that it's a perfect challenge for me to pursue on my road to self-improvement. 50,000 words in 30 days. Not a pretty hard challenge to do especially with me being a man of dedication and perseverance.

I've been concocting a faint idea of my novel for a while, as I rode my commute from school to my home, a period where I am strangely more creative than usual. It's the story of a young girl who lives in a dystopian Philippine society of the future where the entire country was ruled by an autocratic theocracy. And that's basically an explanation of the story in one line.

I plan to license my novel using a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs license once I finish it, so that I can distribute e-book copies of it for free here on my blog, and just earn revenue through the sale of physical books, similar to what Cory Doctorow did to his book, Little Brother. I don't really care about book royalties, I'm more concerned with delivering a message.

I'll keep you guys posted on my progress. Right now it's the second day of the NaNoWriMo and so far I've done 7700, according to my last word count update at the time of writing. My estimated time of completion should be somewhere around the middle of November, if not, a few days after mid-November.

Doing some work on a novel

Some friends and acquaintances of mine have noticed me writing and working on some sort of manuscript. It's neither surprise nor a secret, I am writing a book. More specifically, I'm writing a work of fiction. I've been writing a lot of prose fiction ever since I wasn't even in high school, though some of those works were lost either accidentally or intentionally by me.

I have had a lot of ideas for writing a fiction novel during the last five years or so, but none of them ever even made past the simple 10,000 word count checkpoint. The reasons are probably because I can't find the time to work, and that I can't seem to string together a coherent plot that doesn't entirely sound like I hastily pulled it out of my ass.

I am not going to put in any specific details on this novel that I'm working on, nor am I going to hand out a plot summary of it. Those things will come once the first self-edits of every chapter and scene in my novel are done and I'll have to go find and coerce an unlucky person to edit my work again. But here's a hint for the persistent: It's set in (sort of) present day September 2012 in the Philippines, and it has something to do with international politics. It's a work of fiction that branches itself out from real-world events of that time. A lot of the places I used in my novel are also very much real. The genre is mostly thriller with bits of mystery thrown in here and there.

To prevent myself from slacking off and procrastinating by just deciding to play Sid Meier's Civilization V or Payday: The Heist all day, I've set a short term and two long term goals for my writing. The short term goal is, write at least 750 words a day. Does that sound too easy for a goal? Not really, especially when you're trying to make the plot as realistic, plausible and detailed as something you can find in a Robert Ludlum novel. I have noted a few days where I was not able to meet my short-term goal, or even wrote a single word on the pending chapter.

The long term goals are 45,000 words and 80,000 words for the entire novel. 45,000 words is 5,000 words short of the word count requirement for the National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), though I have some recollections of their word count requirement being only 45,000 or even 40,000. The second goal, 80,000, is the average word count of a lot of popular fiction novels. The 80,000-100,000 word count range is also comically referred to as the "zone where the publishers and agents actually take your manuscript seriously".

I'm writing my work in vim, typesetting it with LaTeX, and outputting it in a PDF using pdflatex, because who needs "word processors" anyway? I also wrote a small Python script that calculates the word count of each individual chapter and the entire manuscript itself, and calculates how much (in percentage) I have done to reach my long-term goals. There is a margin of error in its calculation of word count, however, since wc also counts my LaTeX comments and commands as words.

Hopefully by the next week or two I'll be able to finish the entire first draft of the manuscript. I'll begin editing by then, and at the start of November, I'll begin work on another novel to participate in this year's NaNoWriMo.

My review of the updated Blogger interface

As I've stated in my previous post, I've just come back to writing on my blog again. It feels really good to be typing nonsense again, especially since my ThinkPad has one of the most comfortable keyboards I've ever used.

Anyway as I was writing my previous post, I stumbled upon a small bar with blue text on the top of Blogger's composed page. It said something along the lines of "Try Blogger's new interface". I was intrigued, because recently Google has been redecorating and redesigning the interfaces of many of their web services, starting from Gmail to Youtube and Docs. Being tired of the default Blogger interface (seriously they've been using that for more than 10 years), I was intrigued and decided to give it a try.

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Consistency

Finally, Blogger looked like a proper Google Web Service rather than something separate from the rest of the services. The interface is highly inspired from Google Docs (which I greatly use and recommend) and Google+ (which I do not really use but highly recommend for other people who do not like Facebook). The sense of minimalism is apparent in the design, as well as intuitiveness. All major functions that you are ever going to need are on top of the area you are editing your post on, but then again, that's the de facto interface design of mostly everything you type text on.

However, added on top of that editor and its buttons is a row of very cleanly-laid and good-looking text and buttons, as well as your Google+ name and picture. However, the prominent "Google bar" that appears on most Google services such as Docs, Calendar and Gmail appears to be missing, but I don't really care since adding it probably makes it look out of place. It might also prove to be quite distracting.

I highly suggest that Google replace the buttons on the main toolbar though -- they appear to have been taken from Blogger's last look. I suggest that they use something similar to Google Docs' monochromatic, minimalistic buttons.

Editing

As a coder one might expect me to prefer editing my post in Blogger's raw HTML editor instead of the WYSIWYG editor Blogger provides. That would have been the case before Blogger updated its interface, as I find the editor to be ugly and boring as hell. However, with the new redesign I'm now more apt to use the WYSIWYG editor instead. It feels so clean, and the minimal design always inspires me. But that doesn't mean I don't need the HTML editor -- I still use it to fine-tune the elements of my post.

While I'm on that topic, the HTML editor appears to be very well designed as well, and it is noticeably wider than the Compose mode (I will now address the WYSIWYG editor as the Compose mode from now on). That's good because HTML tags can take up a lot of space and no one likes too many newlines.

Cons

No interface is complete without its flaws. As such, I will now proceed to list them here in this section.

No option to easily change formatting styles in Compose Mode

Someone who is experienced in word processors would prefer using "Formatting Styles" to format their bodies of text rather than just manually editing them. This is important for consistency, and it can also save you a lot of time.

However, on Blogger's Compose mode, there does not appear to be a menu or a button in the main toolbar that allows me to quickly switch formatting styles. This is disappointing because I have to go to the HTML editor and wrap my headers into appropriate header tags in order to turn them into headers. And yes, I know it will work as well if I wrap them in tags inside Compose mode, but it would look pretty much out of place with the rest of the interpreted text.

No indication of whether your post has been (automatically) saved

Google Docs has this neat little feature on the autosave that tells me whenever the document I'm working on has been automatically synced and saved to Google's servers. I really like that feature because I am paranoid that my files might not have been saved and that the next unfortunate crash of my browser would be the end of my work.

Blogger does not have that feature. The system automatically saves your work everytime you stop typing for a while, but it does not have that persistent indication that your work has been saved. While you are not typing to ponder some thoughts, Blogger automatically saves your work, and the Save button on top of the main toolbar briefly turns into a "Saving..." button that indicates that your work is being saved. While that is quite comforting, sometimes I'd like to know that Blogger has already saved my work some time ago while I stopped typing to ponder my thoughts, as I usually do so for extended periods of time and I usually leave myself in a state of short term memory loss afterwards.

My suggestion? Put something that tells me when the last edit I made was saved somewhere. I'm not saying the Save button should be removed entirely (as shown in Google Docs), because I think for this matter, it is still necessary.

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I think that's all I have to say about the new updated Blogger interface for now. It's pretty, intuitive, and most importantly, minimal. There's just a couple of stuff that they should try to fix here and there. I'm quite too tired of further scrutinizing the interface and adding more feedback, because at the time I'm writing this it's already really late. But I do expect improvements to happen in the future, somehow.

Book Review: Season of the Harvest

Title: Season of the Harvest
Author: Michael R. Hicks
EPUB: Yes Kindle: Yes Paperback: Yes Hardcover: No

An exceptional read. Season of the Harvest is a techno science fiction thriller that takes us deep into the promising, yet dark world of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO), that are commonly found in the plant food that we eat.

While the whole book itself is a work of fiction, it does lay an interesting question for the reader after going through the book. Are genetically modified food products beneficial for us in the long run? Is it possible that we are overlooking their possible unforseen consequences?

The book is very well written, with the plot steadily flowing, keeping the reader interested chapter after chapter. I actually find it hard to put down the book even if I've been reading for a long time. The action scenes in the book are well-detailed, and it gave me a good idea on what's happening, where something is happening, and who's involved in whatever's happening. The confrontations, gunfights, and even dialogues between characters are rendered beautifully, and they allowed me to vividly play the scenes in my mind.

The grammar in this book is top-notch, though I might be inaccurate because I did not have time to slowly go through the book over and over again in order to find errors in them. The author has edited the book well.

There was one part in the book that served as an annoying cliffhanger though - (WARNING: SPOILERS, highlight text to read) the part where they were missing that one bag of seeds. Perhaps the author intentionally put it in there in order for readers to draw up their own predictions to what's going to happen next.

Rating: 4/5 stars

My story of owning a Kindle 3

I am a man who enjoys great works of literature. Reading is one of my prized pastimes, and I regularly keep track of my reading progress like I keep track of my exercise activities. My favorite reading material are works of fiction, however, I also enjoy reading non-fiction works like articles, opinions, etc., so long as they are relevant to my interests. I am fond of my ability to stay engrossed and lost in reading for extended periods of time. The average human attention span has reached an all-time low for the past few decades that reading an entire novel from beginning to end sounds like running a hundred miles while on crutches. If you have reached this far, congratulations. Most people wouldn't even get past the first sentence. But I digress.

To fuel my need of literature, I carry books along with me. I typically read them during hours where the time is better spent doing something other than just staring blankly into the distance, like while on the bus. It is uncommon for me to find time to read books full-time, as my time is divided more unevenly than the Philippine social system.

Books suck for a couple of reasons though. First, they take up space. I already think that my HTC Desire HD consumes too much space due to its 4.3" screen, despite it being almost as thin as a copy of Newsweek. An average pocket paperback weighs just about the same as my phone, though they are much thicker and larger.

Friends once asked me, "Why don't you get yourself a tablet?" "Sure," I replied. "Which one?" "The iPad." they would reply, and I would later contemplate why my dear friends would recommend such shitty contraptions. Knowing myself, I would probably root for an Android tablet, like a Samsung Galaxy Tab, but I couldn't afford such.

To hell with tablets. They're overrated expensive toys for little boys and girls. Besides, no one really uses tablets to read books anyway (unless comic books and manga count). Most people use their tablet computers to just play Angry Birds. I have no intention to spend more than half a thousand dollars just to play some game involving flightless, suicidal birds and architecturally-talented green pigs. If I owned a tablet, I would only read books and manga on them. So why wouldn't I just get a device whose primary purpose is to view works of literature?

So I lurked around the Internet (probably in a three-piece pinstripe suit, black, shiny loafers and a monocle), and I discovered e-readers. What makes e-readers completely different from tablets is the screen. Tablet computers use touch LCD screens, while e-readers use e-ink screens. E-ink screens are different from LCD screens because they use "electronic paper" that manipulate ink (real ink) to display text in different shades of gray. E-ink screens are superior to LCDs when it comes to contrast and reading in direct sunlight. Text is really much clearer on e-ink screens when compared to LCDs. However, since e-ink screens do not have backlights, it is impossible to read in the dark without an external light source. Additionally, since e-ink screens manipulate ink, it takes a while for them to refresh, which makes them incapable of displaying animation.

I've researched many different e-readers when I stumbled upon the BeBook line of e-readers. They were inexpensive and seemingly reliable (with a touch interface to boot). I have also perused the Sony line of e-readers, which were touch-capable but a lot more expensive. However, I immediately understood that choosing a not-very-well-known brand of e-readers would merit a small library of books. It's much like choosing an iPhone over an Android or a Windows Mobile phone because they have more (albeit shittier) apps.

I went to Amazon and examined the Kindle 3. There were two versions of the Kindle - one has both Wifi and 3G connectivity, and the other only has the former. I did not need a 3G connection - Wifi will have to do. For $139, it was a pretty sweet deal. I only had to add forty dollars for shipping and customs. It was scheduled to arrive a week after I ordered, but it came four days later, which was a great bonus.

The Kindle 3 was indeed an amazing device to read electronic books on. The screen itself was very crisp, and handled itself in bright sunlight. The device was lightweight and somehow pocketable, if your pocket can carry pocket paperbacks. I bought a jacket for it, which was not really a jacket built for the Kindle 3 but for the Samsung Galaxy Tab. It fitted snugly since the Kindle was about as large as the Galaxy Tab.

It was happy moments for two weeks after that. I brought my Kindle everywhere, and nobody really gave shit about it because it looked like a small, leather notebook when I carried it by hand. I've finished reading George Orwell's "Nineteen Eighty-Four", Vladimir Nabokov's "Lolita", and a couple of other classics with my Kindle.

All of those moments came to an end, however, in an unfortunate Sunday. I was sitting in a grassy meadow, with the Kindle in my pants pocket. When I fished it out to continue reading James Patterson's "Tick Tock", I was surprised to find the top of my screen "cracked", with a tear running diagonally from the top left corner to the middle right side of the screen. I thought it was just temporary so I began to repeatedly refresh the screen by using the "Alt-G" key combination. It was futile. The e-ink screen was cracked from the inside. The Kindle was broken.

My first instinct was to contact Amazon's Customer Service and kindly ask for a replacement device. I first contacted them through e-mail, but they replied that they could not process replacements through e-mail and I have to call their international phone line. Now, I've heard horror stories about customer service representatives on the phone, so I've decided to stall for at least three days before calling up Amazon. I read some comments of people on the Web about Amazon's customer service when it comes to Kindles. They say that the customer service was excellent, and they will agree to send me a replacement device with no questions asked, provided that I return the broken Kindle in return. I took their word for it and I gave it a try, and soon I was sent a replacement Kindle (which would arrive in about four to five days of course).

The Kindle has not yet arrived today, however, I am anxiously anticipating its arrival. Once it arrives, I'll send the broken Kindle back to Amazon. Hopefully I'll only have to do this once, though some people claim they are on their third or even fourth Kindle replacement.

Overall, the Kindle is a great inexpensive way to view electronic books. However, if you want something that can take a bit more wear and tear, I'd suggest something like the Sony Reader or the Bebook. Or just stick to reading real books.

Hate your life? Try writing self fanfics.

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines fan fiction as "stories involving popular fictional characters that are written by fans and often posted on the Internet - also called fan fic". Most works of fan fiction are generally obscene, insane, unrealistic and written with grammar ripped from a fifth grader. But really, that's just the point of fan fiction. It's basically, "Who the fuck cares, this is my work, I can make anything happen." And in fan fictions, anything is ANYTHING. Some fan fictions actually make the story better. The rest are just literary Rule 34.

Although writing fan fictions has been a favorite pastime for both writers and non-writers, writers of the genre usually have a very, very small reader base (i.e. himself). So what's the point of writing something that only you are willing to read? The whole situation could be a little better if you wrote a fan fiction about you instead.

While writing a fan fiction for oneself would violate the definition given above (you are no longer writing about a  fictional character), it's a great way to escape the harsh view of reality. Say for example you made a mistake that fucked your life up good. You can write a fan fiction as a recount of that event, but instead of portraying yourself as a failure you can actually fix everything by rewriting it. It sort of like photoshopping a shitty photograph to make it better. Remove some key events, change how everything happened, maybe even throw Chuck Norris in as some sort of equalizer for that story of your life.

However, as amusing or awesome your self fan fiction will be, it would be best that you DO NOT publish it to be read by other people. Keep it somewhere confidential. Nobody really wants to read your fan fiction about fighting dragons part-time being the reason you are late at work everyday. And when they do, the consequences are almost always never the same.