AUTHOR WRITES NOVEL IN STORE WINDOW IN ONE MONTH …

IN A CHICKEN SUIT

November was National Novel Writing Month, also known as NaNoWriMo by those of us in a hurry. You can find lots of info on this annual event at nanowrimo.org – including media kits, contacts, etc.

I am Christee Gabour Atwood and I participated in the event this year -- and I wanted to offer you an additional story idea as I attempted something that I don’t think has ever been done before.

I wrote a novel in one month in the window of Waldenbooks, Cortana Mall, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana … while wearing a chicken suit.

Why a chicken suit? Because a cow suit would have just been gauche.

Also, I wanted to be sure I didn’t take this NaNo thing too seriously. This whole event was to encourage people who have always said, “One day I’d like to write a novel” to actually write a novel. NaNo doesn’t encourage quality writing. It’s all about quantity. The goal was to get to the 50,000 word mark by November 30. And we were not allowed to start writing until November 1.

So, my plan was to sit in the window of the store with a table big enough for anyone who wanted to come join me as we wrote those incredible 50,000 words which was sure to include many, many, many adverbs and colorful, exciting, descriptive adjectives, as well as cheap plot twists like “and then she woke up”.

Okay, there wass some ego involved too. After all, I’m sure someone else might have written a novel in a window at some point, but I’ll bet this was the first time it had been done in full chicken regalia.

Some good points about having chose this unusual place to write:

• There wa’s no wireless internet so I can’t get distr …. Look, a shiny object!
• I could steal… I mean recycle … plot ideas from other books. (I knew if I sat by the John Irving books too long, you knew Idl end up sneaking a bear into my novel.)
• I’m wasn'y at home, so I could ignore useless distractions such as work, pets, friends and family, and those roving packs of dust bunnies reminding me that I haven’t cleaned since the Clinton administration.
• If I got stuck, I could pick a passer-by to throw into my novel. “Suddenly, from nowhere, there appeared one of that vicious species known as the ‘mall walker’, her blinding white Dr. Scholl’s flashing as she elbowed her way past the Clinique demo girl.”

So, that was my reasoning. Well, that … and the combination of merlot and a sale-priced chicken suit.

And, on another note, does anyone know how to get that armpit smell out of a chicken suit?

Christee Gabour Atwood and her pet chicken suit, Uncle Miltie

 Special thanks to Eric Beaty and the gang at Waldenbooks in Baton Rouge

THREE FEET UNDER: Journal of a Midlife Crisis

“A celebration of midlife … and elastic waistbands”

By Christee Gabour Atwood

2005 Cardoza Publishing  * Distributed by Simon & Schuster

JournalofaMidlifeCrisis.com