November is closer than you think

I just realized, recently, that November is really quite close. Which means that the insanity of writing a novel is closer than I think. Which also means that the insanity of applying to NSF grants and graduate school while writing a novel is closer than I think. I tried the writing-a-novel-in-December last year, and while I succeeded it wasn't nearly as much fun without the online community (or any community to speak of, really). It was my second year doing it, and I think that the product I ended up with was better than the first year. But I can do better. I have a few ideas for my novel this year. Most of them are stories that I want to write eventually, so I'll have plenty of fodder to keep doing this for years to come no matter which I choose. The three best ones are as follows; first, the story that I originally envisioned as a fanfic, but doesn't have to be, second, the story vaguely based on my experiences with circus people and diving, and third the science-policy dystopic story. I've had ideas for first chapters to all of them in the recent past, but I'm working on the fic-one right now. At the moment I think I'll do that one, but I think the other two are probably better stories. Or I could combine the first two, but that seems a bit much perhaps? It would need outlining to work right. The problem being that the first two are both vaguely retellings of Peter Pan or The Wizard of Oz (or Alice and Wonderland I guess, but I'm less familiar with that). I feel a little bit like that is the only plot I can really write, because it is arguable that the story I wrote last year also follows that paradigm in plot:

Main character runs away from/is spirited away from normal life to adventures, has adventures but in the process realizes that they really want to be home having normal life/normal life is the true adventure/some corny moral and returns home to cheers and fanfare. It's the typical children's story I guess. So maybe I want to write the science one simply because it's different.

In any case, this useless post brought to you by the fact that November is NATIONAL NOVEL WRITING MONTH. You should all write novels in November with me, so that I will have company.