Move Over NaBloPoMo, Here Comes MoNoWriMo!

5,4,3,2,1,0…the countdown has begun! We have entered the last week.Just 6 more posts (including today’s) to go before NaBloPoMo ends. At the beginning it almost seemed like an impossible task- committing to make a blog post everyday.But as they say,’Where there is a will ,there is a way’! Kudus to all those bloggers who have made it this far.

NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month) has been a fruitful experience for me.I made new friends and gained some loyal followers. Thanks to all of you.Thanks to the WordPress team and the organisers of this event Blogher.NaBloPoMo helps writers and bloggers to expand their own potential and most importantly develop the writing habit. Infact this writing habit gradually grows on you. As evening descends and I wind up my daily chores I’m itching to reach out for my computer and start clicking on the keys. Truly its entertaining and rejuvenating for me.The T.V is often switched on to give me company, but most of the time I’m listening, rather than watching.

When I first got to know about the NaMos, I was undecided as to which of them to choose- NaBloPoMo or NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). Obviously i chose the former, but I also wish to write a novel which i know can be achieved only with self discipline and some pressure! Now that NaBloPoMo is edging to a close I have decided to chose my own novel writing month! Compulsory writing everyday of the month. in NaNoWriMo, one is supposed to complete a 50,000 word draft within the month of November. But all the editing work remains pending.I’m going to bend the rules a bit and do the editing at weekly intervals , because after all its going to be My Own Novel Writing Month i.e. MoNoWriMo !

Since November has been quite hectic, I’ll keep December a tad bit easier by limiting to one post a week hopefully (Lets see how it goes). So I choose January 2015 to be my MoNoWriMo. The regular blog posts will continue.How about you? I would love to know your views.

Easy, Healthy and Yum- Tomato Soup!

Come November and winter is just round the corner.

“October extinguished itself in a rush of howling winds and driving rain and November arrived, cold as frozen iron, with hard frosts every morning and icy drafts that bit at exposed hands and faces.”
― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Well, the winter is not so harsh in the Indian subcontinent,but yes, it has started to become slightly cold in the northern parts of India.and we are rather enjoying this weather. With the slight chill comes the desire for warm and comforting food as evening descends. What could be better than a simmering bowl of tomato soup?

Ingredients:

1 kg ripe tomatoes roughly chopped

3 medium size onions sliced

4 to 5 cloves of garlic

1/2 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp black pepper powder

2 pieces of cloves (optional)

1 tbs butter (optional)

1 tbs cornflour

Salt to taste

Method:

Boil all the ingredients in 5 cups water (pressure cook if possible for up to 4 whistles), till the tomatoes are soft and the skins begin to peel off.Decant the liquid in another container with the help of a large sieve with medium sized perforations.Mash the tomatoes now trapped within the sieve so that the pulp and juice passes into the rest of the liquid, leaving the seeds and skins behind. Discard them. Put the soup back on the flame to cook for a few more minutes.To thicken the soup, 1 tbs of cornflour dissolved in a little water can be added. Alternatively,a trick is to add 2 tbs of thick Knorr or Maggi tomato soup powder .It adds to the flavour and makes it more delicious! Lastly add a knob of butter and voila, soup is ready to serve! Garnish with fresh celery or coriander.Cottage cheese pieces added to the soup taste great too!  Serve with bread sticks.

The Challenge Called NaBloPoMo !

It was just by a lucky chance that I got attracted by Hot off the press article by Michelle W. ; ‘The NaMos are Coming! The NaMos are Coming!’ NaMo essentially meant  NaNoWriMo and NaBloPoMo , which stand for National novel writing month and National blog posting month respectively. My initial desire was to participate in the novel writing challenge. Could there be anything better than being able to complete a novel in a month ? Sure enough, but many experts warned that editing the novel could become a daunting task later on. The idea for my novel is very clear in my mind but i don’t want it to be a hurriedly churned out work. Having said this ,I just could not let ‘november’ pass by without doing anything substantial. It was with these thoughts that I zeroed in to take up the challenge called NaBloPoMo ! The challenge in which we are to commit to making a post everyday- however busy you may be. 

In part this page I am dedicating to this challenge is also prompted by the ‘NaBloPoMo November 2014 Prompts’ for day 6 i.e.

Do you consider yourself a “professional” blogger? Why or why not? What does that mean to you?

Ah well, I don’t see myself as a professional blogger yet, but yes i am learning ,and I guess I am learning fast.The real challenge for me lies in the fact that I want my writing to be taken seriously and so would hate to post anything which is not up to the mark. I am immensely thankful for the favourable and positive response that I am getting so far from fellow bloggers and readers.As for what is professional blogger? i am not so sure. Haha! perhaps it means someone who is able to earn some bucks other than accolades from their writing (besides their day job)!