humour / 22

NaNowWri...Decade?

» Student takes novel writing project to epic new lengths

theotherpress.ca

Sharon Miki
Humour Editor
M humour
@theotherpress.ca

A aspiring writers

and professional
procrastinators hurry their
tired metacarpals towards
the end of November’s
NaNoWriMo month-long
novel-writing project, one
Douglas College student

is bravely embarking on
what she believes is a far
superior version of the event:

 

NaNoWriDecade—or National

Novel Writing Decade.

“I mean, I thought about
doing the whole NaNoWriMo
thing this year, but I don’t
feel it would be fair to the
integrity of my novel, Saving
Kim Kardashian, to rush it
like that. But I still want that
sense of community and that
deadline that people get from
NaNoWriMo, so I thought this
was a great compromise,” said
29-year-old Douglas College
student, Erin Yoshida.

NaNoWriMo is a yearly
novel-writing event where
professional and amateur
writers come together to
brag incessantly about their
typographical superiority
while frantically trying to
type out 50,000 loosely
related words. Yoshida’s

“Anyone can
write 50,000
words in

a month,’
explained
Yoshida. “But
not everyone
has what it takes
to write 50,000
words over 120
months.”

: NaNoWriDecade expands

: on the basic NaNoWriMo

: concept, giving writers

: a timeline of 10 years to

: complete some sort of 50,000-
: word draft.

“ .
Anyone can write 50,000

: words in a month,” explained

: Yoshida. “But not everyone has
: what it takes to write 50,000

: words over 120 months.”

Yoshida, who has tried

: and failed to complete

: a sellable manuscript

: approximately five or six

: times—depending on how

: you look at it—cites her writer
: friends as a major inspiration
: for her movement.

“I got the idea towards

the end of November, when
: all of my friends that were

: as a brave alternative to

: projects like NaNoWriMo,
: which favour those

: who benefit from time

: privilege.

born with the inherent
: advantages of being
: able to finish things
: that we start ina

: reasonable amount
: of time,” explained
: Yoshida.

: the social

: and political

: advantages of
: the program,
: Yoshida also

: stresses the

: one major

: benefit of her
: NaNoWriDecade
: over the more
: pedestrian

: NaNoWriMo:

: a decade, I don’t really have
: to start worrying about

: hitting my word count until
: like summer 2024.”

: participating in NaNoWriMo

: started panicking about their

: word counts and talking about
: how the most important thing
: was getting the words down

: on paper,” said Yoshida. “Well,
: if that’s the most important

: thing, then it shouldn’t matter
: when I finish, right?”

   
  
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
  

Yoshida’s idea comes

“Not all of us were

Beyond

“Also, if I give myself

 

Time terrors

» Has student multi-tasking gone too far?

Chandler Walter
Columnist

he life of a post-secondary

student is filled with
planning and deadlines,
sacrifices, and compromise.
As we approach the end of
the semester, the pressures
of school, work, and life start
making stacks on stacks on
stacks—of stress. In this fast-
paced world, one must be
creative to keep up; and, as we
found out talking to students
on campus, Douglas College
students are very creative.

Many students have
admitted to taking naps on
the bus or in class, though
even these stolen moments
of unconsciousness are not
enough for Kyle Hammond, a
second-year Douglas College
student.

“I don’t have much free

: time,” he said. “I eat my

: breakfast bagel in the shower. It
: gets soggy, but I can get it down
: quicker.”

Hammond hasa full-time

“If you do away with the

: usual eight hours and just take
: naps throughout the day, you

: trick your body to jump straight :
: into REM sleep. It’s not ideal,
: but 2 a.m.—6 a.m. is when I

: get most of my homework

: done. I’ll have time to sleep in
: December.”

As is the case with Monica

Milani. I managed to get a few
; minutes with her during her
: study time in the library.

Milani, a 22-year-old

nursing student, is capable of
> some incredible feats in multi-
: tasking.

: and forth on a well-worn text.
: works.”

: schedule rob her of a social life,
: however, as she makes time to
: see her friends on the weekends.

: had to write out a full essay in

: the notes section on my phone
: while we were at the club.

: Pretended I was texting my

: boyfriend the whole time.”

end our interview with Milani
: there, so she could get back to
: the three assignments that she
: was working on.

: The only advice I can offer is

: this: don’t mix Adderall with

: alcohol, kids.

a =
: “T usually have headphones vi. 4)
: in while I study, though \ —

: it’s not music. ] read one

: textbook while listening to the
: : audiobook version of another,”
: job and attends Douglas College :
: four days a week. He has found
: that a scattered sleep schedule
: frees up some much-needed

: hours.

She said, her eyes darting back

“I don't know how, it just

 

Milani doesn’t let her busy

ad

“Yeah, that was terrible. I

Unfortunately we had to