WRITING/PODCASTING A NOVEL IN 30 DAYS NOV 6

National Novel Writing and Podcast Posting Month 2021

Welcome friend to Create Art Podcast where I help you tame your inner critic and create more than we consume. I am Timothy Kimo Brien your thankful head instigator with over 20 years in arts and education. How I accomplish this is by providing you with commentary, interviews, discussions, and projects that will inspire you to create art. This month I will be podcasting daily and writing a novel in 30 days. I am participating in NaPodPoMo and NaNoWriMo again this year as I did last year and you can hear those episodes here. You will be able to listen and read along to what I wrote for the day. I like to practice what I preach when it comes to art so I am challenging myself to write and having you come along for the ride. It is my hope this inspires you to accomplish your goals with your art and if you would like to share what you are doing email me at timothy@createartpodcast.com

History of NaNoWriMo and NaPodPoMo

NaNoWriMo: National Novel Writing Month began in 1999 as a daunting but straightforward challenge: to write 50,000 words of a novel in thirty days. Now, each year on November 1, hundreds of thousands of people around the world begin to write, determined to end the month with 50,000 words of a brand new novel. They enter the month as elementary school teachers, mechanics, or stay-at-home parents. They leave novelists.

NaPodPoMo: NaPodPoMo* is a month-long event along the same vein as National Novel Writing Month aka NaNoWriMo. The difference? Well, instead of writing a 50,000-word novel, you podcast every day for 30 days from November 1st-30th. Use any platform you desire. From full production studio to iPhone app and just about anything in between. The goal is to use the challenge of podcasting daily as a form of podcasting boot camp.

The Writing So Far

6 Nov 2021 daily count 1869 cumulative count 8403

“I never considered that possibility, but then I don’t deal with the same issues as you deal with daily. I’m not trying to excuse my ignorance; I am just saying that I had no idea. I see your point, I respect it, and I will be careful, but I am not going to move here or in your summer cottage. I do appreciate it and I am not saying I never will, in fact I was just thinking to myself about building a home here in the future now that it looks like I will have a small family,” replied Carl.

“Well, I am glad you are considering the possibility of moving here and taking some precautions.” Replied Nate.

Both brothers sat in silence for awhile sipping their drinks and enjoying the quiet of the rural setting. Occasionally Carmine would look out at the brothers from inside the house. She had a smile on her face because she knew that if anyone could convince Carl to stay closer to them, Nate was up for the task. Carmine was friendly to Carl’s ex-wife, but since the divorce, she was out at the house alone most days. If Cheryl married Carl, then she would have someone to come out and visit and talk with, and with Myra becoming part of the family, she would have another girl to teach crats to and recapture some of her childhood. In the distance, the rothers heard the rumble of the six-wheeler going over the grounds of the house. They could almost hear the laughter of the kids as they drove through the trails. Nate was tempted to turn on the app on his phone that was connected to the monitoring system and show Carl the video feed of the kids having fun and that he could track them wherever they went in the woods but decided that might make Carl more paranoid. Besides he could watch the video feed anytime he wanted to. Nate had left strict instructions with is secretary to not disturb him this weekend and for the first time in weeks, his phone wasn’t alerting him about meetings and client requests.

“So, what are you going to tell work on Monday, are you going to take some time off while we go through the adoption process and updating your estate plans,” asked Nate?

“Yeah, I suppose we should talk about that, how long does it take to get this stuff knocked out. I have a ton of leave but if I need to take some extended time off then I need to let them know how long I will be out. Its not like they will go under if I m not there for a while, but they have been really understanding since the diagnosis,” replied Carl.

“We can go a few different ways, Angela will talk more about that later today, but I’d say if you do what I recommend then take a week off. Plus, if you plan on marrying Cheryl, you will want to take another week off later for the honeymoon and the ceremony, her moving in, closing out her lease and what not,” replied Nate.

“You guys are the experts in this, I feel like I am just along for the ride,” replied Carl.

“Well for school and all the administrative stuff that happens with kids, and depending on what Vince brings us today, basically we recreate Myra as an adopted kid from some contacts that we have, and no one would be the wiser. We just need a stable and believable story that everyone swears to make it happen including Myra and Cheryl. Do you think they would be up for that,” asked Nate?

“I think Cheryl is game, Myra is the wildcard in all of this,” replied Carl.

“Yeah, Myra has been the wildcard ever since she showed up. I have a feeling that there is more to her than we know. I don’t like mysteries; they have a way of ruining your plans. How is she taking not being around her father,” asked Nate?

“Better than I would have at age nine. She told me she is starting to feel at home around Cheryl and I but she feels guilty about that and loving her father. The kid is in a tough spot. She seems to be resilient enough,” replied Carl.

“Kids will surprise you with how tough they are. I could tell you stories about Seth and Rachel that would curl your toes and keep you up at night and make you rethink taking on Myra,” said Nate.

“I have a feeling you will be getting a lot of calls from me about what Myra does as the years go on,” said Carl.

“Well, I am hoping for many years of those calls,” replied Nate.

“Yeah, me too,” said Carl quietly.

“That’s good to hear. I haven’t heard you be so positive in a long time, like since before the diagnosis and the divorce. It’s a good look for you. Carmine and I have been so worried about you. We honestly were thinking of doing an intervention at some point but then this issue popped up and well maybe it’s a miracle or something,” said Nate.

“Yeah, even though I am exhausted, it feels like a good exhaustion. Like its for the better of the universe or something,” replied Carl.

“Get used to that feeling, it comes with the territory. If you change your eating habits and try being a vegetarian you might feel better, I know when we switched over, we all felt much better and I was able to knock out eighty-hour weeks no problem,” said Nate.

“Are you seriously trying to convert me over to the dark side? Dude, that is low even for you. I mean I have a cursed diary, a new kid and possibly a new wife. I need my steak,” replied Carl.

“It’s not like it’s a religious cult, its just a better way of living to help you feel better and might make that tumor go away or at least stop it from getting worse. It can’t hurt to try right,” asked Nate?

“Let’s just resolve one issue at a time. If things go smoothly with Myra and Cheryl then I will consider going vegetarian,” said Carl annoyedly.

“Okay, I’ll stop bugging you about that for now. You’ll eventually see that I am right as usual,” said Nate smugly.

Both brothers were quiet for a long time after that enjoying their drinks. Carl started to nod off as the day wore on. It started to get warmer, and Nate got up quietly to raise the cover from behind Carl’s tail gate chair to shade him. Carl began to softly snore. Carmine opened the door with two drinks in her hands to refresh the drinks the brothers had, and Nate put his finger to his lips to let her know that Carl was dozing. She smiled and handed Nate his drink and went back into the house. Nate was glad to see Carl so relaxed and sleeping, he knew that Carl worked as hard as he did and was about to embark on a journey that he had already been on for years. Even though Nate was the middle child, he felt more like the older brother because the oldest brother Pete was twelve years older than Nate and sixteen years older than Carl. When Nate got married and had the kids, there was some necessary separation from Carl, and this left an emptiness in Nate’s life that he didn’t like to talk about. Being able to help out his little brother made him feel like he was making up for lost time and their parents would be proud to see how well they had both turned out.

Nate went inside the house to help make lunch for everyone. They put the leaf in the dinning room table and Nate put out the plates and silverware while Carmine finished up the vegetarian dishes that she and the kids worked on after breakfast. Because there would be so many people at lunch, they put everything out on the antique buffet table that was the only piece of furniture from Nate and Carl’s parent’s estate. This was one of the reasons that Nate had chosen to pursue becoming an attorney. Their parents had been bad with money and planning and when they passed away, most of the furniture and collectables were sold to pay off debts and to provide them a humble grave and headstone. When Nate had realized how bad they had been swindled by the probate lawyers he made sure that one of the first practices he dismantled was the partnership that had stolen their family’s savings. Carl never knew all the details of what happened, and always wondered why the only item Nate had was the buffet.

Carl woke up from his self-imposed nap just as the kids and Cheryl were coming back from the tour. He was glad that the kids and Cheryl didn’t see him napping, he never really liked anyone seeing him sleep. He looked around and saw Nate and Carmine finishing up setting the table and putting the food out.

“Thanks for letting me get some shut eye in. Can I lend a hand,” asked Carl sheepishly?

“It’s almost done, grab Cheryl and the kids and let them know lunch is ready would you,” replied Carmine?

“I’m on it,” said Carl as he went to the back of the garage. “Hey Cheryl, did Seth get you wet on the tour?”

“Nope, Rachel drove the whole time, wow your brother has a huge place out here. Its so beautiful. Myra grabbed some flowers for Carmine. The girls are going to make something out of the flowers today. I’m sorry I said I would cover the shift this afternoon,” replied Cheryl.

“You can stay for lunch though right,” asked Carl?

“I’m no going to miss meeting Vince. Seth and Rachel told me all about him. That guy sounds intense, he’s still coming right,” asked Cheryl?

“As far as I know. Okay everyone lunch is ready. Myra did you have a good time,” asked Carl?

“These woods are fantastic, and I can’t wait to see what we turn these flowers into. I’ve never seen this type of plant in my life. Can we stay overnight or come back tomorrow,” asked Myra?

“We’ll see, right now we are going to eat some lunch. I am sure you both are hungry. And thank you Rachel for not getting them wet, we didn’t bring a change of clothes,” said Carl.

“I hope you all can come by tomorrow and we can go swimming in the lake, it’s supposed to be pretty nice tomorrow uncle Carl. Maybe you can bring some more pictured of Paris or Mexico as well. I love those pictures you take and stories you tell,” said Rachel.

“I think I am going to be out voted no matter what I say,” joked Carl.

“Pretty much, get used to it,” said Cheryl. “I have a double tomorrow but next time I am bringing my swimsuit and maybe we can camp out in the woods.”

Reaching Out

To reach out to me, email timothy@createartpodcast.com I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and lets start that conversation.