Mostly, I find writing with an outline helpful. It keeps me from having to stop writing and figure out what comes next and why, and how it should fit into the larger plot.
Usually.
I knew I didn't have enough plot for Wharf Rat, but I didn't expect what happened yesterday. Three days into NaNo and I slammed to a dead halt. No clue what comes next. I haven't written a word all day. (Tweets don't count.)
The problem is that I wrote a paragraph that would launch a subplot, which I need. Usually when I do that, I can come up with something on the fly, jump right in, and go back later and backfill necessary scenes to make the subplot fit in. But this time...nothing. Crickets. Dog barking in the far distance.
So now it's 9:20 pm and I spent most of the afternoon baking (pumpkin pies that turned out terrible, blueberry tarts that turned out terrible, rice pudding that turned out wonderful thank gawd) and most of the evening browsing membase (which was funny at first and then just depressed me). And I still have to write something.
*drums fingers*
I guess I'd better skip ahead and write a scene I know I'll need. I hate doing that. I feel like I'm cheating.
Showing posts with label outlines. Show all posts
Showing posts with label outlines. Show all posts
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Monday, July 2, 2012
I am a headache
I have a ferocious headache, one second away from deserving the name migraine, so I will just chunk these updates out and then go to bed.
The bird, alas, is dead. I didn't think he would survive; the fact that he lived two weeks still amazes me. I wish he'd died before I spent all that money on the big cage. Then again, once I get the cage disinfected, I may just get a couple of pet finches. My brother and I had zebra finches when we were little. They were boring but cute pets.
It has been quite hot lately.
I finished writing Shadow Trail yesterday! It's about 53,000 words long and I've already done one quick revision pass. There's a lot to be said for writing to a strict (if malleable) outline. The pacing in this one is excellent, if I do say so myself, although I will probably tinker with the ending to make it more exciting. Next I'm going to outline Wharf Rat, the project I started in May. I'm more likely to finish books that I've outlined, and I'm more likely to finish them faster and better. So outlining it is for the next few projects.
Happy late Canada Day and early Fourth of July. I'm going to bed.
The bird, alas, is dead. I didn't think he would survive; the fact that he lived two weeks still amazes me. I wish he'd died before I spent all that money on the big cage. Then again, once I get the cage disinfected, I may just get a couple of pet finches. My brother and I had zebra finches when we were little. They were boring but cute pets.
It has been quite hot lately.
I finished writing Shadow Trail yesterday! It's about 53,000 words long and I've already done one quick revision pass. There's a lot to be said for writing to a strict (if malleable) outline. The pacing in this one is excellent, if I do say so myself, although I will probably tinker with the ending to make it more exciting. Next I'm going to outline Wharf Rat, the project I started in May. I'm more likely to finish books that I've outlined, and I'm more likely to finish them faster and better. So outlining it is for the next few projects.
Happy late Canada Day and early Fourth of July. I'm going to bed.
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Today I kill a man
Work on Shadow Trail is moving along briskly, I am happy to report. Camp NaNoWriMo has really helped me stay on task, so even though I'm behind in word count, I'm way ahead where I would have been otherwise. I'm up to 21,000 words total, although almost 6,000 of those words were written pre-June.
I have an outline, but I've added so much to the plot that I need to rewrite it. And I hadn't planned on this book being so fast-paced, so some of the chapters I had planned are going to be jettisoned starting today. For instance, according to the outline, the chapter I'm about to write should have had my main characters Marian and Jacob* hiking a few miles with a group of other refugees, with Marian getting increasingly worried about the noise they're making. Instead, in the New, Improved Outline, the chapter starts with the camp getting raided overnight and Marian and Jacob--who wisely camped well away from the others--discovering that everyone is gone. And I will probably have at least one person die.
And of course there will be a couple of people who escaped the capture, although I'm not sure what to do with them yet. But I'll figure it out.
This is a YA with light SF elements and a sweet romance between the two main characters, so with its pace being so fast I think I can wrap it all up in no more than 65,000 words. It would be wonderful if I could finish the whole thing by the end of June, because I've got another project, working title Wharf Rat, that I want to work on next. I started Wharf Rat a few weeks ago to see if I could write grimdark fantasy that's so popular these days. Well, I can't, but instead it's turning out funny as hell.
*Remember guy-who-looks-just-like-Alex? Who I said one day I would use his real name for a character? That's him.
I have an outline, but I've added so much to the plot that I need to rewrite it. And I hadn't planned on this book being so fast-paced, so some of the chapters I had planned are going to be jettisoned starting today. For instance, according to the outline, the chapter I'm about to write should have had my main characters Marian and Jacob* hiking a few miles with a group of other refugees, with Marian getting increasingly worried about the noise they're making. Instead, in the New, Improved Outline, the chapter starts with the camp getting raided overnight and Marian and Jacob--who wisely camped well away from the others--discovering that everyone is gone. And I will probably have at least one person die.
And of course there will be a couple of people who escaped the capture, although I'm not sure what to do with them yet. But I'll figure it out.
This is a YA with light SF elements and a sweet romance between the two main characters, so with its pace being so fast I think I can wrap it all up in no more than 65,000 words. It would be wonderful if I could finish the whole thing by the end of June, because I've got another project, working title Wharf Rat, that I want to work on next. I started Wharf Rat a few weeks ago to see if I could write grimdark fantasy that's so popular these days. Well, I can't, but instead it's turning out funny as hell.
*Remember guy-who-looks-just-like-Alex? Who I said one day I would use his real name for a character? That's him.
Friday, March 30, 2012
But first an outline
I think it might be almost time to start my new project.
The problem with being a writer is the constant influx of story ideas. In my case, they're all ideas for novels, which take a relatively long time to write. Sometimes I think an idea is a short story idea, and when I start writing it turns out I've got a novel idea after all. Sometimes I think an idea is ripe, and I get five or ten or fifty thousand words in and realize I only had half an idea. (Outlines help with that problem, but I don't always do an outline.) I always intend to come back to those half-done projects (like Little Sparrow and How Christopher Kaplan Learned to Lie and Adventures in Zoology). But time is short, and there are always new ideas crowding in.
I was messing around with the sequel to Misfits, which has a working title of Unsung Math Genius. But I'm hesitant to write too much on it while I'm still querying agents for the first book. I don't want to jump the gun on the direction the series takes.
So I've been doing some editing and a little bit of writing here and there instead. And then BAM! An idea smacked me upside the head. It's YA, probably SF/F although that's an aspect of the plot I haven't resolved yet (the bad guys could be aliens or zombie type monsters or real life terrorists, depending on where I want to take the story).
Last night I figured out the main characters' names. Tonight: outline time. And then the first words.
The problem with being a writer is the constant influx of story ideas. In my case, they're all ideas for novels, which take a relatively long time to write. Sometimes I think an idea is a short story idea, and when I start writing it turns out I've got a novel idea after all. Sometimes I think an idea is ripe, and I get five or ten or fifty thousand words in and realize I only had half an idea. (Outlines help with that problem, but I don't always do an outline.) I always intend to come back to those half-done projects (like Little Sparrow and How Christopher Kaplan Learned to Lie and Adventures in Zoology). But time is short, and there are always new ideas crowding in.
I was messing around with the sequel to Misfits, which has a working title of Unsung Math Genius. But I'm hesitant to write too much on it while I'm still querying agents for the first book. I don't want to jump the gun on the direction the series takes.
So I've been doing some editing and a little bit of writing here and there instead. And then BAM! An idea smacked me upside the head. It's YA, probably SF/F although that's an aspect of the plot I haven't resolved yet (the bad guys could be aliens or zombie type monsters or real life terrorists, depending on where I want to take the story).
Last night I figured out the main characters' names. Tonight: outline time. And then the first words.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
A sad lack of tiny ponies and dragons
Best blog post ever. Trust me on this. I got the link from cuteoverload.com, and you know they never steer you wrong.
I remember now why I stopped writing the romance novel this spring. It wasn't that it sucked, although the beginning was really uneven (fixed nao ha), it was that it was boring. I like the characters, but they lead tedious, small lives with not even the slightest possibility of a dragon or a unicorn or even a tiny pony showing up unexpectedly. I'm going to forge on with it because it's not hard to write, but this is my only foray into non-paranormal romance, I swear.
I did find my original outline, which I'd written in paragraph form. You know what? It's not an outline, it's a synopsis. And it's already written! *bursts into tears of joy and relief* Now I have to finish the book, because I am not going to waste a perfectly good (actually, it's very good--clear and concise and with notations of character development) synopsis.
I remember now why I stopped writing the romance novel this spring. It wasn't that it sucked, although the beginning was really uneven (fixed nao ha), it was that it was boring. I like the characters, but they lead tedious, small lives with not even the slightest possibility of a dragon or a unicorn or even a tiny pony showing up unexpectedly. I'm going to forge on with it because it's not hard to write, but this is my only foray into non-paranormal romance, I swear.
I did find my original outline, which I'd written in paragraph form. You know what? It's not an outline, it's a synopsis. And it's already written! *bursts into tears of joy and relief* Now I have to finish the book, because I am not going to waste a perfectly good (actually, it's very good--clear and concise and with notations of character development) synopsis.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Empty-headed as usual
I'm stuck on The Trickster Society, or as its shiny new title is, Shadow Crossing (100% more urban fantasy in that title! 100% less fun!). I have no clue how to tie everything up with a proper whizbang ending. I'm around 77k words in and have maybe 2k more that I can write without having to make a decision on the plot.
I tried outlining the ending last night, but I kept getting bogged down because, yes, it's hard to outline a big mental blank spot. I think the main problem is that this book's set in the real world, so I keep trying to apply real-world solutions to the book's plot issues. Why yes, I could get the bad guys arrested...but wouldn't that be lame? My main character has spent half the book training to be a bodyguard. I think she needs to kick someone's ass before the end of the book.
I tried outlining the ending last night, but I kept getting bogged down because, yes, it's hard to outline a big mental blank spot. I think the main problem is that this book's set in the real world, so I keep trying to apply real-world solutions to the book's plot issues. Why yes, I could get the bad guys arrested...but wouldn't that be lame? My main character has spent half the book training to be a bodyguard. I think she needs to kick someone's ass before the end of the book.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
insert plot here
I wrote 3,000 words today, longhand, and just finished typing them up. I'm going to try and add another 500 or so before bed, too.
The only problem is, I've pretty much written all the early scenes I had planned. I've written my way to the edge of a cliff. I can see the plot continuing on the other side of the canyon, but I'm damned if I know how to cross.
Time for some outline action tomorrow, I suspect.
The only problem is, I've pretty much written all the early scenes I had planned. I've written my way to the edge of a cliff. I can see the plot continuing on the other side of the canyon, but I'm damned if I know how to cross.
Time for some outline action tomorrow, I suspect.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
WIP Wednesday FTW
I've finally gotten back in the rhythm of writing. In fact, I've written over 8,000 words just in the last few days. It feels good! I'll be taking my laptop with me to DragonCon, and I hope to make some time in the evenings and/or early mornings to write.
Of course, the outline I worked on so carefully a few weeks ago is totally useless. It was totally useless within 1,000 words. I kind of expected that, though; this is a swashbuckling adventure, and I wanted to be free to add details and chase subplots as I thought of them. I'm only about 19,000 words in total so far, and I'm really happy with the way things are going. There's not a lot of swashbuckling so far, but that's about to change fast. Right now Our Heroine and her expedition-mates have been captured by bandits, but she's going to escape (with some help). Very soon she's going to acquire a sword and a few good reasons to use it.
Of course, the outline I worked on so carefully a few weeks ago is totally useless. It was totally useless within 1,000 words. I kind of expected that, though; this is a swashbuckling adventure, and I wanted to be free to add details and chase subplots as I thought of them. I'm only about 19,000 words in total so far, and I'm really happy with the way things are going. There's not a lot of swashbuckling so far, but that's about to change fast. Right now Our Heroine and her expedition-mates have been captured by bandits, but she's going to escape (with some help). Very soon she's going to acquire a sword and a few good reasons to use it.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
ew what am I drinking?
I've gone through like a gallon of lemonade in the last two days. I poured the last half-glassful tonight and looked in the fridge to see if we had anything to top it off with. My mom, who's one of those people who buys icky flavors of food that no one actually likes, had brought home blueberry-acai juice. I topped off my lemonade with that, and of course it tastes (and smells) sort of like I'm drinking medicine. Ew. Eww. Gag. I don't like to throw out food (or lemonade), so I'm making myself drink it. It also seems to be giving me a headache. Maybe I'm allergic to acai, whatever it is. I thought it was something spammers had made up.
As for writing, I got the outline sort of written for the new untitled project. It's going to change a lot. If it doesn't, it will suck as badly as my lemonade-blueberry-acai concoction. But I suspect it'll end up pretty good--or if not good, at least it'll be fun to drink. I mean write.
But Iron Chef is on so I'm going to forget about outlining and lie back to watch people cook.
As for writing, I got the outline sort of written for the new untitled project. It's going to change a lot. If it doesn't, it will suck as badly as my lemonade-blueberry-acai concoction. But I suspect it'll end up pretty good--or if not good, at least it'll be fun to drink. I mean write.
But Iron Chef is on so I'm going to forget about outlining and lie back to watch people cook.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
WIP Wednesday: still no title
No title yet, and no words written, but I did read over what I've already written on the new untitled project today. It's good! The first chapter needs work--I wasn't sure what tone the main character's voice would take, and I didn't settle into it until the second chapter. Then again, the first chapter is only 500 words long so it won't be hard to rewrite.
In the first five chapters that are already written, I've introduced all the main characters along with the first broad strokes of their personalities and interactions, I've introduced the main themes of the book, given the main character some issues to work through, and hinted at some plot complications that are going to show up real soon. At the end of chapter five, one of the characters has just shot a spy (with an arrow, and he's not dead).
I'm dangerously attracted to the title Adventures in Zoology. If I was browsing the SF/fantasy shelves in B&N and saw a paperback with that title, I know I'd pick it up.
Tomorrow I'm going to rough out an outline--just a sketchy one, not a jot-and-tiddle everything-plotted-out one. I think this book will work out best if I write it fast and throw in all the ideas that pop up as I write. It's got some serious themes, but I want it to be fast-paced, fun, light, and as inventive as I can manage. If I pre-plot too much, I'll lose the spontaneity.
Friday I'm going to start writing, whether or not the outline is done and whether or not I've settled on a title.
In the first five chapters that are already written, I've introduced all the main characters along with the first broad strokes of their personalities and interactions, I've introduced the main themes of the book, given the main character some issues to work through, and hinted at some plot complications that are going to show up real soon. At the end of chapter five, one of the characters has just shot a spy (with an arrow, and he's not dead).
I'm dangerously attracted to the title Adventures in Zoology. If I was browsing the SF/fantasy shelves in B&N and saw a paperback with that title, I know I'd pick it up.
Tomorrow I'm going to rough out an outline--just a sketchy one, not a jot-and-tiddle everything-plotted-out one. I think this book will work out best if I write it fast and throw in all the ideas that pop up as I write. It's got some serious themes, but I want it to be fast-paced, fun, light, and as inventive as I can manage. If I pre-plot too much, I'll lose the spontaneity.
Friday I'm going to start writing, whether or not the outline is done and whether or not I've settled on a title.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Up to date
Yesterday I piled up all the notebooks I had sitting around, went through them, and made sure that everything I'd written in them was transcribed. Five notebooks had big chunks of writing that I'd never typed, for four different projects. I got it all typed even though it took hours, hours that I could have spent watching Hot Pursuit police chases on TV and eating ice cream. But I'm dedicated, so I typed instead.
So now White Rose, Little Sparrow, Stag in Ruin, and the new still-untitled project are all up to date. I really like Little Sparrow and I'd like to get back into it--but while I was typing up the last little bit I'd written, I could feel myself writing the plot into a corner. I definitely need to sit down and figure out exactly what I want to do with that one. I think it needs an outline. I've been working without outlines lately, but every project is different.
So now White Rose, Little Sparrow, Stag in Ruin, and the new still-untitled project are all up to date. I really like Little Sparrow and I'd like to get back into it--but while I was typing up the last little bit I'd written, I could feel myself writing the plot into a corner. I definitely need to sit down and figure out exactly what I want to do with that one. I think it needs an outline. I've been working without outlines lately, but every project is different.
Friday, January 16, 2009
blank Wednesday
My list-making for Blood and Taxes continues apace, and it's starting to resemble (slightly) an outline. To me, anyway. For instance, here's what I'm going by in order to get all the important events in the right order for the next week of in-book events; I copy this verbatim from my spiral notebook:
Fri night - party
Sat am - donation, clinic opens
Sat pm - Elemental
Sun - talk to Charmer and Than, Tuck's mtg/blood, haunting
Mon (Aug 1) - taxes, Bowers, regen.
Tues - Devin's party, Evander
Wed -
Thurs - Sinnet's party, Gerzell, Than found
Fri - Ash and angry Vincent
(V will tell king after this)
Okay, that all makes perfect sense to me, and if it makes perfect sense to you I don't want to hear about it. The biggest issue I have is with Wednesday. See that blank space? I can't decide what goes on Wednesday or if I need to pull all the action up a day, or if I need to dispose of Wednesday with one transition paragraph. At the moment Wednesday is empty, because I suspect I'll be adding some action there.
Also, what is with all the parties?
Fri night - party
Sat am - donation, clinic opens
Sat pm - Elemental
Sun - talk to Charmer and Than, Tuck's mtg/blood, haunting
Mon (Aug 1) - taxes, Bowers, regen.
Tues - Devin's party, Evander
Wed -
Thurs - Sinnet's party, Gerzell, Than found
Fri - Ash and angry Vincent
(V will tell king after this)
Okay, that all makes perfect sense to me, and if it makes perfect sense to you I don't want to hear about it. The biggest issue I have is with Wednesday. See that blank space? I can't decide what goes on Wednesday or if I need to pull all the action up a day, or if I need to dispose of Wednesday with one transition paragraph. At the moment Wednesday is empty, because I suspect I'll be adding some action there.
Also, what is with all the parties?
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Bad Guys shouldn't be all bad
I just heard from the editor, and my story "Sand-Skin Man," that appeared in issue #7 of Beneath Ceaseless Skies, is going to be podcast pretty soon! My first podcast!
I spent a couple of hours last night making notes for Blood and Taxes--not an outline exactly, although it'll probably morph into one. I've bogged down on the writing; I don't know what's happening next. Or rather, I have an awful lot I want to include, but I'm not sure where everything goes and I haven't figured out who exactly the bad guys are.
Figuring out who the bad guys are is important, because I like to keep it a secret and throw the reader off. These books are like mysteries that way. More importantly, I like to make the reader care about the bad guy--because he/she's a person too, not just the Bad Guy. But if you label who the bad guy is right off, it's harder to make the reader care. Readers are smart. Readers know the bad guy is probably going to die. I want the reader to be confused and upset when the bad guy dies, not "YEAH! He died! Stupid bad guy deserved it."
So anyway, my note-taking consisted mostly of lists. First I made a list of interactions between the main character Ana and various of the other main characters; "Ana and Ash," for instance, is a bulleted list of when and where Ana meets Ash until the climax of the action, with a few jotted notes about what they talk about or do. Now I need to mesh all these lists together into one master list, which will be an outline. Maybe I should have just written an outline to start with, huh?
I spent a couple of hours last night making notes for Blood and Taxes--not an outline exactly, although it'll probably morph into one. I've bogged down on the writing; I don't know what's happening next. Or rather, I have an awful lot I want to include, but I'm not sure where everything goes and I haven't figured out who exactly the bad guys are.
Figuring out who the bad guys are is important, because I like to keep it a secret and throw the reader off. These books are like mysteries that way. More importantly, I like to make the reader care about the bad guy--because he/she's a person too, not just the Bad Guy. But if you label who the bad guy is right off, it's harder to make the reader care. Readers are smart. Readers know the bad guy is probably going to die. I want the reader to be confused and upset when the bad guy dies, not "YEAH! He died! Stupid bad guy deserved it."
So anyway, my note-taking consisted mostly of lists. First I made a list of interactions between the main character Ana and various of the other main characters; "Ana and Ash," for instance, is a bulleted list of when and where Ana meets Ash until the climax of the action, with a few jotted notes about what they talk about or do. Now I need to mesh all these lists together into one master list, which will be an outline. Maybe I should have just written an outline to start with, huh?
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
I need about 50 subplots
I'm still having fun with The Taste of Magic, but I'm definitely to the point where I have to make some hard decisions about where it's going. I'm a third of the way in now. Events need to pick up and the plot needs to thicken a lot.
And since I have only three days until I have to write like a mad thing for Nano, I need to make my decisions now. Now! Nanow! Oh, I slay myself.
So that means subplots galore. It's okay, I can go back in and add stuff so the subplots don't appear out of nowhere (Nanowhere?). Maybe I'll throw a troll into the mix. Yeah, a troll! And, um, maybe Ana has a Secret Fear--no, wait, she already has a Secret Fear. Two Secret Fears is just stupid. Okay, then, I'll make the glass ruby she found into something Important! Of course, that means I have to go back and make sure it's not a coincidence when she finds it, which means also that I have to figure out its significance. And since I already have to figure out the significance of the tattoos, they're probably related. Oh, and what is going on with the attacks on the king's guards? Zeeda's a king's guard, so maybe he's going to end up in danger! And maybe I should bring out the theme of racism and classism in this world more than I've done so far. And the bad guy needs motivation, so maybe that all works in with the Themes! And maybe Ana kind of thinks he may be on the right path even though he's evil! Or not! Yeah! And a troll!
And since I have only three days until I have to write like a mad thing for Nano, I need to make my decisions now. Now! Nanow! Oh, I slay myself.
So that means subplots galore. It's okay, I can go back in and add stuff so the subplots don't appear out of nowhere (Nanowhere?). Maybe I'll throw a troll into the mix. Yeah, a troll! And, um, maybe Ana has a Secret Fear--no, wait, she already has a Secret Fear. Two Secret Fears is just stupid. Okay, then, I'll make the glass ruby she found into something Important! Of course, that means I have to go back and make sure it's not a coincidence when she finds it, which means also that I have to figure out its significance. And since I already have to figure out the significance of the tattoos, they're probably related. Oh, and what is going on with the attacks on the king's guards? Zeeda's a king's guard, so maybe he's going to end up in danger! And maybe I should bring out the theme of racism and classism in this world more than I've done so far. And the bad guy needs motivation, so maybe that all works in with the Themes! And maybe Ana kind of thinks he may be on the right path even though he's evil! Or not! Yeah! And a troll!
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Up and down
Not to alarm anyone who knows him or make people feel sorry for me, but things have been rough the last two days with my dog Jasper. He's not doing very well. I'm hoping it's a temporary issue, but if I'm not my usual chipper self--okay, my usual vaguely-annoyed-and-100%-self-centered self--you'll know why.
Anyway, I'm glad guy-who-looks-just-like-Alex came in to test this afternoon at work, because seeing him always makes me happy. He's changed his hair again. He's so cute.
I'm working on The Taste of Magic, my Nano book, and yes, I'm actually writing it. I want it to be a bit over 80,000 words total, so my goal is to reach 30,000 words by the end of October and then write the next 50,000 as the "official" Nano part. I'm about 15,000 words in and I've only been working on it a week or so, so it's entirely possible that I'll reach 30k by Halloween. I don't have an outline, though, which feels perilous to me. I've been working with outlines since my first Nano book in 2005, so it feels odd and without-a-netty not to have one now. On the other hand, so far the plot is holding together and I kind of know where it's going.
I'm at the fun part of writing, where everything's going swimmingly and when I think, "What shall I read tonight?" nobody else's book seems as interesting as my own.
Anyway, I'm glad guy-who-looks-just-like-Alex came in to test this afternoon at work, because seeing him always makes me happy. He's changed his hair again. He's so cute.
I'm working on The Taste of Magic, my Nano book, and yes, I'm actually writing it. I want it to be a bit over 80,000 words total, so my goal is to reach 30,000 words by the end of October and then write the next 50,000 as the "official" Nano part. I'm about 15,000 words in and I've only been working on it a week or so, so it's entirely possible that I'll reach 30k by Halloween. I don't have an outline, though, which feels perilous to me. I've been working with outlines since my first Nano book in 2005, so it feels odd and without-a-netty not to have one now. On the other hand, so far the plot is holding together and I kind of know where it's going.
I'm at the fun part of writing, where everything's going swimmingly and when I think, "What shall I read tonight?" nobody else's book seems as interesting as my own.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Editor kitteh edits
That's Vincent, sitting on my outline. It is an extensive outline with lots of notes on it. I told you.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Outline worries
I'm a bit worried that my outline is too ambitious. It's hard to tell, though, because I wrote the outline in paragraph form instead of my usual half dozen words per chapter. It's more of a synopsis than an outline, really. I had to do it that way to make sure I don't forget anything while writing it--I won't have time to go back and add much before the three days are up.
There are twelve chapters, one paragraph per. I gave each chapter its own page and printed it off, and now I'm going to go over it and make notes. I keep thinking up details I want to add. I wonder if I'm the first person to enter who is not just writing a book, but who has built an entire new fantasy world solely for the book. I started pretty much from scratch at the beginning of August and the world feels pretty rich to me, and it's different from anything I've tried before. Even if the book turns out terrible, at least I've got a new world to play in.
I guess this time next week I'll be desperately trying to finish up so I can get a decent night's sleep. I just hope I haven't bitten off more than I can chew.
Speaking of which, tonight's vegetable: okra.
There are twelve chapters, one paragraph per. I gave each chapter its own page and printed it off, and now I'm going to go over it and make notes. I keep thinking up details I want to add. I wonder if I'm the first person to enter who is not just writing a book, but who has built an entire new fantasy world solely for the book. I started pretty much from scratch at the beginning of August and the world feels pretty rich to me, and it's different from anything I've tried before. Even if the book turns out terrible, at least I've got a new world to play in.
I guess this time next week I'll be desperately trying to finish up so I can get a decent night's sleep. I just hope I haven't bitten off more than I can chew.
Speaking of which, tonight's vegetable: okra.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Post-masquerade
I stayed up way, way too late last night writing. It was past two by the time I got to sleep, but I finished the masquerade scene. Tonight I've been working on its aftermath, but I need to step up the pace and not let it flag too much. I still have a lot of ground to cover before I'm done.
Trouble is, I really am in uncharted territory now. I know what needs to happen, but I'm still not sure how to arrange it so that all the characters are where they should be. The action is so complicated, with so many characters, that I'm seriously thinking about a flowchart.
It'll have to wait until tomorrow, though. I'm worn out and I've had a headache all afternoon. Time for bed, and in the morning I'll hit the Fourth of July bake sales with my mom and then come home to write until the fireworks start.
Trouble is, I really am in uncharted territory now. I know what needs to happen, but I'm still not sure how to arrange it so that all the characters are where they should be. The action is so complicated, with so many characters, that I'm seriously thinking about a flowchart.
It'll have to wait until tomorrow, though. I'm worn out and I've had a headache all afternoon. Time for bed, and in the morning I'll hit the Fourth of July bake sales with my mom and then come home to write until the fireworks start.
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Outlined!
I finally got my NaNo book outlined this weekend! I started the outline yesterday, and last night after going to bed I worked out the ending. Right-before-I-fall-asleep is my best time for plotting, for some reason. Last night it backfired a bit, because while I figured out the perfect ending, resolving the major story arc using something introduced naturally in chapter one, I got so excited that I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep. I ended up getting up and working logic puzzles until midnight.
For anyone who's interested, here's my outline. Just a few more days and I can get started! I'm going to be keeping the chapter titles for this one, and I may shuffle a few chapters around as I write. I'm hoping that some of the chapters will work as standalone stories with just a little tweaking.
Jack of All Trades
Preface: Advertising Pays
I. The Mad Colt
hag-ridden--a bite for Pepper--it follows under the stars
II. The Wasp Orchard
"hallo, ugly"--something bothering the wasps--Pepper and parafin--porch steps
III. The Long Letter Home
pen for hire--Pepper's got a bone--buzz buzz
IV. Haying
No rain--all in a day's work--Helen's lemonade
V. The Ghost in the Abbey
The storm, and it searches--the visiting wizard--an ill wind
VI. The Fretful Old Man
Barlowe House--the anti-gaming league--Helen's subterfuge
VII. The Damsel in Distress
Disappearance of Helen--the nature of dragons--not exactly a knight
VIII. The Modern Farmer
Keen business fence--those aren't goats--laughing last
IX. The Wishing Well
poor soil--X marks the spot--silver spoon, gold ring
X. The Fairies' Infestation
delegation--what price silver?--stampede to safety
XI. The Stranger
Mrs. Peevies' lodger--screams in the night--lulled to sleep
XII. The Harvest Race
Mr. Goodacre's triumph--stolen horses--waspish culprits
XIII. The Highwaymen
stand and deliver--Pepper can roar--no gaming tables today--crossing rivers
XIV. The Cursed Wedding
hurried vows--pain--Pepper saves the day
For anyone who's interested, here's my outline. Just a few more days and I can get started! I'm going to be keeping the chapter titles for this one, and I may shuffle a few chapters around as I write. I'm hoping that some of the chapters will work as standalone stories with just a little tweaking.
Jack of All Trades
Preface: Advertising Pays
I. The Mad Colt
hag-ridden--a bite for Pepper--it follows under the stars
II. The Wasp Orchard
"hallo, ugly"--something bothering the wasps--Pepper and parafin--porch steps
III. The Long Letter Home
pen for hire--Pepper's got a bone--buzz buzz
IV. Haying
No rain--all in a day's work--Helen's lemonade
V. The Ghost in the Abbey
The storm, and it searches--the visiting wizard--an ill wind
VI. The Fretful Old Man
Barlowe House--the anti-gaming league--Helen's subterfuge
VII. The Damsel in Distress
Disappearance of Helen--the nature of dragons--not exactly a knight
VIII. The Modern Farmer
Keen business fence--those aren't goats--laughing last
IX. The Wishing Well
poor soil--X marks the spot--silver spoon, gold ring
X. The Fairies' Infestation
delegation--what price silver?--stampede to safety
XI. The Stranger
Mrs. Peevies' lodger--screams in the night--lulled to sleep
XII. The Harvest Race
Mr. Goodacre's triumph--stolen horses--waspish culprits
XIII. The Highwaymen
stand and deliver--Pepper can roar--no gaming tables today--crossing rivers
XIV. The Cursed Wedding
hurried vows--pain--Pepper saves the day
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Outlining
I'm still reading (on and off, mostly at red lights during my commute) No Plot? No Problem! in preparation for NaNoWriMo. Today I read this line: "It may be counterintuitive, but when it comes to novel writing, more preparation does not necessarily produce a better book."
Now that I have permission to skimp on my character development (pre-novel, at least), I'm all set to start the fun of outlining. I'm not being sarcastic, honestly. I love outlining. It means I'm about finished with the musing and turning-it-over-in-my-mind phase and I'm about to start the actual writing. And the very start of writing a new novel is like the early stages of a white-hot (won't-last) love affair.
I don't know anyone else who outlines like I do. I mean, I haven't actually taken a poll or anything. Maybe everyone outlines like me.
I rough out my book chapter by chapter, briefly. I give each chapter a title--just for my use; I don't typically title chapters in the finished book--and underneath each title I jot three or four phrases. And that's my outline.
Here's an example from my last year's NaNo book, Stag in Velvet (gosh, I like that title). Here's the first chapter of my outline (scribbled in a spiral notebook):
1. Breaking up is hard to do
painful separation--once bitten--we should be dancing
And that's it. In this case, I used song titles because the book opens with the main character having just broken up with his girlfriend. That's the chapter title. The girlfriend happens to be a werepanther, though, and the break-up was clinched by the girlfriend slashing the main character across the chest with her claws after an argument. That's the first phrase. In this world there are vampires, but they're not spooky or undead or Anne Ricey, they're fairly common and treat the whole blood-drinking thing in a practical manner (and it helps that they eat food too, and don't need blood often); the main character's brother is bitten by a vampire in the first chapter, which sets up an issue with vampires that comes in later in the book. That's the second phrase, obviously. As for the last phrase, the chapter ends with the main character's family learning a dance that their entire clan is going to perform for the king at his jubilee in the second chapter.
So rather than write all that out, I just wrote down 14 words and that's my outline for chapter one.
Of course, I'd worked out a lot of the details mentally ahead of time, so (for instance) I knew I was going to have the dance and the vampire bite and so forth in chapter one. But I didn't have all the details worked out, which means that some of the later chapters have very vague phrases that may or may not get used if I ever finish this poor book. For instance again:
8. Ruined beauty
Death of a prince--a matter of politics--treachery
I have only the vaguest idea of what's going on here. I know that a cousin of the heir apparent will die, and I think the politics thing has to do with the king's courtship of the heir apparent's sister (I should hastily explain that the main character has traveled with his king to a neighboring country, and the king is courting a princess of that country). I don't know whose treachery I've indicated, but I'm sure once I get to that point I'll have a better idea. These are just landmarks on the novel's road, after all, not hard-and-fast directions.
Oh, and I change the outline as I go along. This one has a lot of scratch-outs and arrows moving phrases to different chapters and carats adding new phrases. I've put the phrase "shopping with Sitilka" in three different chapters and I think I'm going to end up moving it again. Despite the prosaic sound, it's actually a very important scene. It would take too long to explain why; fortunately I only need to write "shopping with Sitilka" to remind myself of all the details I've worked out ahead of time.
Okay, now I have to go do some writing.
Now that I have permission to skimp on my character development (pre-novel, at least), I'm all set to start the fun of outlining. I'm not being sarcastic, honestly. I love outlining. It means I'm about finished with the musing and turning-it-over-in-my-mind phase and I'm about to start the actual writing. And the very start of writing a new novel is like the early stages of a white-hot (won't-last) love affair.
I don't know anyone else who outlines like I do. I mean, I haven't actually taken a poll or anything. Maybe everyone outlines like me.
I rough out my book chapter by chapter, briefly. I give each chapter a title--just for my use; I don't typically title chapters in the finished book--and underneath each title I jot three or four phrases. And that's my outline.
Here's an example from my last year's NaNo book, Stag in Velvet (gosh, I like that title). Here's the first chapter of my outline (scribbled in a spiral notebook):
1. Breaking up is hard to do
painful separation--once bitten--we should be dancing
And that's it. In this case, I used song titles because the book opens with the main character having just broken up with his girlfriend. That's the chapter title. The girlfriend happens to be a werepanther, though, and the break-up was clinched by the girlfriend slashing the main character across the chest with her claws after an argument. That's the first phrase. In this world there are vampires, but they're not spooky or undead or Anne Ricey, they're fairly common and treat the whole blood-drinking thing in a practical manner (and it helps that they eat food too, and don't need blood often); the main character's brother is bitten by a vampire in the first chapter, which sets up an issue with vampires that comes in later in the book. That's the second phrase, obviously. As for the last phrase, the chapter ends with the main character's family learning a dance that their entire clan is going to perform for the king at his jubilee in the second chapter.
So rather than write all that out, I just wrote down 14 words and that's my outline for chapter one.
Of course, I'd worked out a lot of the details mentally ahead of time, so (for instance) I knew I was going to have the dance and the vampire bite and so forth in chapter one. But I didn't have all the details worked out, which means that some of the later chapters have very vague phrases that may or may not get used if I ever finish this poor book. For instance again:
8. Ruined beauty
Death of a prince--a matter of politics--treachery
I have only the vaguest idea of what's going on here. I know that a cousin of the heir apparent will die, and I think the politics thing has to do with the king's courtship of the heir apparent's sister (I should hastily explain that the main character has traveled with his king to a neighboring country, and the king is courting a princess of that country). I don't know whose treachery I've indicated, but I'm sure once I get to that point I'll have a better idea. These are just landmarks on the novel's road, after all, not hard-and-fast directions.
Oh, and I change the outline as I go along. This one has a lot of scratch-outs and arrows moving phrases to different chapters and carats adding new phrases. I've put the phrase "shopping with Sitilka" in three different chapters and I think I'm going to end up moving it again. Despite the prosaic sound, it's actually a very important scene. It would take too long to explain why; fortunately I only need to write "shopping with Sitilka" to remind myself of all the details I've worked out ahead of time.
Okay, now I have to go do some writing.
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