My writing space for today. Working on character sketches for all the major non-main characters in the story.
Month: October 2023
I’m back to working on my preparations after taking Sunday off. There are several significant gaps in my plot that are bothering me. I hope that by focusing on the setting and characters, I can gain clarity on what needs to happen in the middle of the story, which is currently a bit murky. During today’s brainstorming session of 3,000 words, I did manage to identify some story elements I need to include, like a rooftop chase through the twisted streets of my city’s slums. So, with a bit of luck, a few more days of this work will provide me with exciting content to fill in the gaps in my plot.
I’ve also realized that I’ll need to add an average of nearly 3,000 words to my manuscript each day throughout November. If I had the same amount of time to write every day during the month, I would say it’s no problem. However, I will be traveling for a week in November, and I don’t expect to write my 3,000 words on those days. Therefore, I’ll have to set higher expectations early in the month to hopefully get ahead of my target, compensating for the days when I’ll have a lower word count. I’m not particularly worried about it, but I do need to be mindful of this challenge.
My preparations for NaNoWriMo 2023 are well underway. After some contemplation, I’ve decided to embark on the journey of writing the Steam and Sorcery story. This marks the beginning of character development, the sketching of the plot, and the enrichment of somewhat scant setting descriptions. I’m also exploring tropes and cliches to incorporate additional layers of flavor into the narrative.
As I’ve previously mentioned, these ideas have been nurtured by the world-building I’ve been engaged in for some tabletop role-playing games I’m developing. The fantasy concept took the lead in my decision-making process, piquing my creative curiosity.
Brainstorming can be a delightful process, but it’s not without its challenges. Sometimes, ideas don’t neatly align, and I’m left grappling with the task of harmonizing the elements. At this point, I’ve managed to outline approximately 20% of the intended 40 scenes, with a primary focus on the beginning and end of the story. Now, the task at hand is to unravel the intricacies of the middle section. Sounds like a walk in the park, right?
As I kick off the preparations for NaNoWriMo 2023, my mind is currently wrestling with two intriguing story ideas. I haven’t yet made a final decision on which one to pursue, as both hold my interest. I’ll likely spend some time pondering each of them and let the one that resonates with me more take the lead.
Fantasy (Steam and Sorcery):
Set in the city of Dænavar, tensions are reaching a boiling point. Separatists are agitating for the removal of the Imperial Governor, the Mage’s Guild is vying for a seat on the city’s ruling council, facing opposition from the Artificer’s Guild. Meanwhile, the unexpected death of the city’s top crime boss has plunged rival gangs into near-open warfare on the streets. A young woman from the elite Emperor’s Guard, known as the “Greencloaks,” has been tasked with delivering a parcel of great importance to the Governor. However, her mission is derailed, and the package is stolen. Can she navigate the complexities and perils of a city on the brink of revolution and recover the stolen package in time?
Sci-Fi (Space Opera):
The Empire has demanded the annexation of an independent world with whom they’ve long maintained peaceful and profitable relations. Without explanation, Imperial forces are amassing in the system, poised to take the planet by force if it doesn’t voluntarily yield to the Emperor’s demands. During this tumultuous time, an aide to a senator in the independent world’s government does everything possible to prevent an impending war. When negotiations collapse, he joins her on a desperate mission to seek assistance from neighboring systems. Their journey is aided by a confident and skilled free trader, piloting one of the sector’s fastest ships. As they endeavor to breach the blockade, they are relentlessly pursued by enigmatic and lethal adversaries determined to thwart their mission. Can they secure the help they need before their home planet is lost? Who are these pursuers, and do they have a role in the Imperial threat?
Both of these stories captivate my imagination. They sprang from the world-building I’ve been engaged in for tabletop role-playing games I’m developing. I’ve been working on the sci-fi concept for a few days, but the fantasy idea emerged just as I was about to begin outlining the former. I have three weeks to decide which story to tackle for NaNoWriMo, unless, of course, another compelling idea comes to mind before then.
Given that I feel like I’m still at the beginning of my writing journey, despite having toyed with writing since early High School years, I often find myself picking up books about writing. From the classics of King and Le Guin, to the ones I find on Story Bundle or free in the Kindle store, I find them endlessly fascinating. I usually get a couple of interesting ideas to knock around in my head, trying to see if they fit into the model I have for how to write a book well.
Many of the books by non-famous writers are rather small, often less than 75 pages, making them quite quick reads. And I note that my willingness to take the advice seriously has a significant correlation to the number of books they have published, whether that’s traditional or self-published. Books from authors who have more works published through traditional presses are read more for the lessons they can teach about quality writing, while those from authors who lean more towards self-publishing are read more for the mechanical aspects of getting words on to paper.
Recently, several of the books that I have found myself reading are on boosting productivity when writing. It’s a laudable goal, and one I ultimately aspire to myself. The more I can get written, the more I can get out in front of reader eyeballs, the more likely I’ll be able to build a name for myself. As in many books about writing, these books are falling into one of two camps, pro-outlining or anti-outlining.
Be a Writing Machine and it’s sequel Be A Writing Machine 2, by Michael La Ronn and Writing Into The Dark by Dean Wesley Smith are both odes to throwing away your outline and writing fearlessly from your heart, since any writer who has read a lot and watched enough TV and movies knows what a good story is, and outlining limits the creative mind. They both believe your first draft should be good enough to be your only draft, with Smith advocating a kind of continual revision approach that I think makes the single draft goal achievable.
These ideas are interesting to me because I do sometimes find that outlining is tedious and writing a draft from an outline can feel like redoing my homework just for the sake of neater handwriting.
At the other end of the spectrum are Write Better, Faster by Monica Leonelle, Story Engineering by Larry Brooks, and First Draft in 30 Days by Karen S. Wiesner. Each of these books emphasize the absolute need for a detailed outline before committing words to the manuscript. They all tout the virtues of working all of the kinks and problems with your story out in advance by working though them in your outline. If while working on the outline you discover a dead end, it’s better to find that as part of writing a 20 page outline than 200 pages into your manuscript.
This also has great appeal, since I can easily see myself, lacking confidence in my abilities, wandering off into an impassable wilderness while trying to write without an outline and having to toss thousands of words into the recycle bin because I missed that left turn at Albuquerque.
As these things often do, it’s a war between the “Plotters” and the “Pantsers” (noting that “Pantser” is often seen as a derogatory term by those who prefer descriptors like “Discovery Writers” or “Wanderers”), with both sides accusing the other of engaging in huge wastes of time. Outliners point at the massive need for revisions on the part of most Non-Outliners, and of throwing away large chunks of manuscripts (and writing time) due to falling down a rabbit hole that could have easily been prevented if they had only written an outline first. And the Discovery writers crying that writing an outline is a waste of time because who really follows their outline to the end of the manuscript?
Ultimately, my process will sit somewhere between these two extremes. I already know my process well enough to know that I cannot successfully write a scene unless I know what I need the scene to accomplish. Each scene must have a purpose, and when I don’t really know what the purpose is, I find I start writing fractally, each paragraph expanding detail but moving the story forward in decreasing increments, like some weird variation on Xeno’s Dichotomy Paradox. When I know what the scene must accomplish, and I know the characters well enough, writing my target number of words is fast and easy (in fact, sometimes too easy).
However, when writing a detailed outline for each scene (or as Ms. Lenoelle aptly refers to it, a sketch of the scene), I find myself just aching to write the scene. Knowing the purpose of the scene and some bare details of it (who should appear, where it will happen, the POV character, etc.) seems to be all I need to make the scene appear on paper. This also allows for the “discovery” of details while writing that make the story richer and deeper, details that I then can push forward into the rest of the outline.
Anyway, that’s my diverting thought for the day. Time to get back to brainstorming about what the heck I’m going to write about for NaNoWriMo.
It’s hard to believe that nearly two months have passed since my last blog update.
Double-checks
Yes, indeed, it has!
To be honest, not much has unfolded on my end. I find myself dissatisfied with my current writing progress, my goals, and various aspects of my writing journey. Consequently, I’ve decided to take some time off to reflect on the changes I might want to implement.
Short Stories: My endeavor to master the art of writing short stories hasn’t seen significant advancement. I’ve dedicated considerable effort to this pursuit, but there’s a disconnect in how I approach my creativity that doesn’t quite align with the constraints of short narratives. Perhaps it’s time to set this task aside temporarily until I’ve established more sustainable writing practices.
Novels: With NaNoWriMo just around the corner, I’m contemplating a shift back to novel writing for a little while. It’s a realm where I feel more proficient, knowing I can steadily make progress and engage my mind more effectively. In preparation, I’ve been immersing myself in several books on writing advice. While I’ve gleaned valuable insights from these resources, the sheer volume of conflicting advice often amuses me. I intend to delve deeper into this subject in upcoming posts.
NaNoWriMo: I’ve discovered that I thrive with some level of accountability and a sense of urgency when it comes to my writing. It might be a manifestation of undiagnosed ADHD, but the prospect of meeting daily word count goals, coupled with the awareness of the pains of falling behind, compels me to sit down and write. Therefore, I’ve committed to participating in NaNoWriMo once again this year. Historically, I’ve had a reasonably successful track record with this challenge, having “won” it about 67% of the time I’ve attempted it, even while juggling a full-time job. Now that writing has become my primary focus, I’m eager to witness my daily word count. I’m sticking with the 50,000-word target for now, but if I consistently exceed 2,000 words per day, I might consider raising the bar. Regardless, I am wholeheartedly determined to complete a novel during this year’s challenge, no matter how many words it ultimately entails.
Recent Comments