Welcome back to Rapid Reviews! This week, we explore another album from 2012, EXID’s “Hippity Hop.” Unlike SPICA, I do occasionally listen to EXID, although I only started after the infamous fancam of “Up and Down” went viral. That being said, I like their style and eagerly look forward to their comeback.
TV show “The Voice” released a video promoting that on the May 14 episode, BTS and the Jonas Brothers would be making a special announcement. Quickly, theories of the groups performing that very night or even a joint project spread through the fandom. With high anticipation, fans tuned in, eager for the awaited announcement! Only for the Jonas Brothers and Taylor Swift to announce their respective performances on “The Voice” season finale. Afterward, “The Voice” listed BTS as one of the other artists performing, although their stage will be pre-recorded due to their tour.
As you can expect, BTS fans were disappointed and angry at the slight. Frankly, I don’t blame them. Without any bias, to get Taylor Swift when you expect BTS is drinking an orange soda only for the taste to be grape.
Now, I’ve been a woman of many fandoms over the years. I have experienced similar disappointment. I’ve learned that reading or watching things thoroughly is key to save yourself from heartbreak like this. With that said, something feels iffy about this.
In July 1999, Chris Baty and friends challenged themselves to write a 200-page novel in a month. “Everyone’s got a novel inside of them,” he wrote in an early email to his friends. It started off with 21 participants. The next year, Baty suggested moving it to November, to capitalize on the cold dreariness of the month. They also hammered out the finer details of the rules. By 2001, the participants grew from 21 writers to over 5000.
Today, November has been declared National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo, and people worldwide dedicate themselves to write. In 2017, over 349,000 people signed up and over 50,000 successfully finished. Since 2006, hundreds of NaNo novels have been published, both in traditional publishing and self-publishing.
While there are rules, the annual event runs solely on the honor system. That said, the rules are pretty simple:
That’s it. It doesn’t matter if you finish the project, if you verify your word count daily or at the end of the month or how exactly you wrote it. The principle of NaNoWriMo is simple: get in the chair and write. Often, people glorify the writing process as this mystical thing when showing up and doing the work is one of the most important things you can do.
I’ve done NaNoWriMo twice — once with my sister in 2013 and by myself in 2016. In 2013, I had no laptop, so I had to write everything by hand. My outline wasn’t finished and I had no real experience writing. In 2016, I was working a job with crazy hours. I had a laptop this go around but no outline. Both times, I succeeded.
Despite having two different circumstances both times, I discovered a lot of who I was as a writer. As I looked over my incredibly rough first drafts, I could see what areas my writing was the weakest. I figured out what writing habits I had and how I worked best.
NaNoWriMo doesn’t necessarily teach you how to write a book, but it will show you how YOU write your book. The maddening pace of it will reveal things about yourself, both as a writer and as a person. It can even give you a support system, as the site shows you local writing groups during the month. Even if you prefer to write alone, there’s nothing quite like knowing you have a community behind you.
If you’ve ever thought about writing a novel but felt hesitant, I highly recommend NaNoWrimo. It’s honestly changed my life, and after all, everyone has a novel inside of them.
Editor's note: Originally published on MacGMagazine July 31, 2020
July 18 was a historical day in the Hallyu community as #KPSNPODCASTFEST launched. The digital festival was the first of its kind, showcasing various internet radio/podcast programs from the Hallyu community. K-pop and Hallyu podcasts such as Kpopcast Live and 106 & Seoul gifted fans with live broadcasts of their shows. This, of course, allowed them to interact with their fans directly. The jam-packed day featured 12 broadcasts for a total of 12 live episodes. Between shows, hosts played new and classic K-pop hits that had fans squealing in happiness.
Welcome to another Rapid Review! Continuing into our dive into third-generation K-pop, we’re digging into VIXX‘s “Jekyll.” VIXX is a group close to my heart. They’re one of the few artists who just ooze theatricality and epicness from concept to comeback stages. Still, it’s important to look back on an artist’s beginning to better appreciate their journey.
T his has been a playlist I've wanted to do. Before 2012, a Kpop idol who wrote/produced their own music was a rarity, and sometimes tha...
