It's looking like this year's NaNo has taken me by surprise. In fact, I don't think I really thought about it until I saw someone post about NaNoWriMo sometime before Halloween. So when November 1st reared it's ugly head I really had no clue what I was going to write - plus I was passed out on the couch fighting a cold. Yuck!
It's now November 7th - one week into the whole affair and I think I'm finally ready to start writing (i.e. I have a plot and some idea what I'm going to write). I know I could have started writing on the fly, but if my first attempt in 2006 taught me anything, it's that I can't really write without a plan.*
So what's the story?
The working title is "The Importance of Being on This Side of Paradise" - a combination of one of the most popular novels of the 1890s and one of the most popular novels from the 1920s.
Why? Well I've decided to write my Steampunk/Comedy set in an version of the 1890s that is infused with elements of the soon to come 1920/30s - prohibition, jazz, the age of innocence, gender-confusion, etc. My favorite music to write Steampunk novels to is jazz/swing music, so it seemed perfect to actually let my characters have a bit more pizzazz than their Gilbert & Sullivan loving counterparts. I call it the "Roaring 1890s". Not the most drastic combination, but it will be a fun one.
Alright, alright...the plot:
In the alternate time of the Roaring 1890s, a young illusionist on the rise to fame falls in love with a fake princess whose hand already belongs to an American "Duke". With the assistance of a formidable traveling theatre troupe and their motto of "Love Above All Else", these star-crossed bohemian lovers will find a way to start a new life in paradise (wherever that might happen to be).
I'm not going to go into more details about the characters today, but I'll post a few profiles, excerpts and sketches over the duration of NaNo.
Wooo! Let's get this party started!
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*Now to be perfectly honest, I did start writing on November 1st, but it was mere gibberish and plotting to keep me roughly in line with the numbers for NaNo. And I hated the idea of a blank Word document until I was ready. I was writing ideas on every surface/text editor I could find, so it should count for something.
Showing posts with label plot. Show all posts
Showing posts with label plot. Show all posts
Monday, November 7, 2011
Friday, November 5, 2010
Day 4: Back on track - finally!
Phew. It's the end of Day 4.
After a lot of false starts, self-sabotaging, etc, I am finally writing. However, it is not Memento Mori or Resurrection Man as I originally planned. They simply had too many plot holes that I had to put them on the back burner for another time.
Instead, I'm working on what I've called "The Girl in Red". It's a story very very loosely based on the fairytale of Little Red Riding Hood and set in a Steampunk setting. Our leading lady is a military courier who works for the R.E.D. (Regional Emissary Division)known for their red uniform jackets. It's one of the entry level ranks in the armed forces for women and she hopes to earn her way up the ranks to airship pilot.
As for the wolf he's more on the "good" or "neutral" side. He's an old friend of the MC from her days on a "transport" (although they were occasionally involved in smuggling) ship when she was rejected by the military for being a woman. He's got a bit of a wild side and is a thief, but comes from one of the wealthier families in town - although he'd never tell her that.
I won't go into more detail about what happens yet, except to say this: it all begins with a delivery going terribly wrong.
Word count as of midnight - 6,022 words
After a lot of false starts, self-sabotaging, etc, I am finally writing. However, it is not Memento Mori or Resurrection Man as I originally planned. They simply had too many plot holes that I had to put them on the back burner for another time.
Instead, I'm working on what I've called "The Girl in Red". It's a story very very loosely based on the fairytale of Little Red Riding Hood and set in a Steampunk setting. Our leading lady is a military courier who works for the R.E.D. (Regional Emissary Division)known for their red uniform jackets. It's one of the entry level ranks in the armed forces for women and she hopes to earn her way up the ranks to airship pilot.
As for the wolf he's more on the "good" or "neutral" side. He's an old friend of the MC from her days on a "transport" (although they were occasionally involved in smuggling) ship when she was rejected by the military for being a woman. He's got a bit of a wild side and is a thief, but comes from one of the wealthier families in town - although he'd never tell her that.
I won't go into more detail about what happens yet, except to say this: it all begins with a delivery going terribly wrong.
Word count as of midnight - 6,022 words
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Making it serial...part 1
YA novels generally run 40,000-75,000 words, but you’ll find books on either side of that. Write the story in the length it takes to tell it, and then check publishers’ guidelines.
Yowza...and my current story is about 139k.
So I've begun thinking about this serial story thing as a possibility. I just think that there can be a lot of adventure to be had and I'm probably going to need a few novels to tell it--especially if the cap is at 80k.
But that means a lot of restructuring...and that brings up a lot of questions.
1. Where do I end the story?
2. If I end it before she leaves the Orvilles, what is the focus of the first story?
3. How do I keep each serial from getting too cliche?
4. Where does it all end--when she finds her father?
5. Am I losing too much of the original Greek myth after the first book?
6. What happens when she finds her father?
7. What is the formula for the novels? Is there one?
8. What are the other novels based around?
I've got a lot of thinking to do.
Yowza...and my current story is about 139k.
So I've begun thinking about this serial story thing as a possibility. I just think that there can be a lot of adventure to be had and I'm probably going to need a few novels to tell it--especially if the cap is at 80k.
But that means a lot of restructuring...and that brings up a lot of questions.
1. Where do I end the story?
2. If I end it before she leaves the Orvilles, what is the focus of the first story?
3. How do I keep each serial from getting too cliche?
4. Where does it all end--when she finds her father?
5. Am I losing too much of the original Greek myth after the first book?
6. What happens when she finds her father?
7. What is the formula for the novels? Is there one?
8. What are the other novels based around?
I've got a lot of thinking to do.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
What my novel is all about...
My plot one word: Reunion.
I figured this out thanks to a NaNoWriMo forum and it's true. My story is all about reunions--with people from MC's past and with her father.
Memories actually turn out to play a much larger role in this book than I thought, so I need to write quite a few of them out after I finish the story [and figure out how to incorporate them later].
Didn't do much writing today--the boy kept me busy. Plus the next scene really does need my undivided attention, so I plan to start on that tomorrow.
One question though...if you were going to have a meeting to trade something [think of the typical hostage for money or villainous trading of object for object sort of deal] where would you meet?
a. a public place with lots of witnesses
b. a seedy place where the law won't intervene
c. someplace private but neutral
d. somewhere outdoors
e. somewhere on the outskirts and fairly empty [ex. trainyard]
It could be a combo of many of these...but the first thing that came to mind was the cliche outdoors public place [yet seedy enough that people won't call the cops should the bullets start a flying *and trust me they will*].
Now I'm not so sure. Perhaps indoors would be more appropriate--somewhere neutral. We'll see.
I figured this out thanks to a NaNoWriMo forum and it's true. My story is all about reunions--with people from MC's past and with her father.
Memories actually turn out to play a much larger role in this book than I thought, so I need to write quite a few of them out after I finish the story [and figure out how to incorporate them later].
Didn't do much writing today--the boy kept me busy. Plus the next scene really does need my undivided attention, so I plan to start on that tomorrow.
One question though...if you were going to have a meeting to trade something [think of the typical hostage for money or villainous trading of object for object sort of deal] where would you meet?
a. a public place with lots of witnesses
b. a seedy place where the law won't intervene
c. someplace private but neutral
d. somewhere outdoors
e. somewhere on the outskirts and fairly empty [ex. trainyard]
It could be a combo of many of these...but the first thing that came to mind was the cliche outdoors public place [yet seedy enough that people won't call the cops should the bullets start a flying *and trust me they will*].
Now I'm not so sure. Perhaps indoors would be more appropriate--somewhere neutral. We'll see.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
And she's off.
Dear Jeebus I finally made it!
At 78,257 Olivia has finally made her decision to run off with her father's last invention [okay so technically I didn't write the memory part yet, so it'll be a few more words into the story once that's added]. The "decision scene" turned out far more touching that I could have imagined--oh my little characters how I've become so fond of you. I sincerely hope that I will not have to kill any of the good ones--perhaps some injury instead.
So that means we've gotten past character building and mysteries into full blown adventure and such. And that means that I have stepped into the territory of the completely unknown. Which sucks because I only have two days left of NaNo to figure most of that out.
Oh I know I won't finish my story on Sunday [at least another 40k to write], but I'm gonna try to get as far into that half as I can.
Wish me luck.
At 78,257 Olivia has finally made her decision to run off with her father's last invention [okay so technically I didn't write the memory part yet, so it'll be a few more words into the story once that's added]. The "decision scene" turned out far more touching that I could have imagined--oh my little characters how I've become so fond of you. I sincerely hope that I will not have to kill any of the good ones--perhaps some injury instead.
So that means we've gotten past character building and mysteries into full blown adventure and such. And that means that I have stepped into the territory of the completely unknown. Which sucks because I only have two days left of NaNo to figure most of that out.
Oh I know I won't finish my story on Sunday [at least another 40k to write], but I'm gonna try to get as far into that half as I can.
Wish me luck.
Friday, November 28, 2008
Mini-update
So despite the arrival of the boyfriend for holiday festivities, I have kept steady with my writing. In fact I've been waking up early just so I can get some writing done while he sleeps. Makes me feel less guilty that way.
As of this very moment I am at 70,822. But my story is still very far from being finished. I think I failed to realize how long this story has to be to tell all of it--phew!
Let's just say that my protagonist needs to be running away from her guardians with a valuable object for the latter half of the novel and she's still there. On the bright side I'm only a few scene away from her officially running off. So perhaps I will hit "action" territory before NaNo ends.
Still nervous though, because once she leaves for "action" land...I haven't a clue what it's really gonna be like.
Well back to work!
As of this very moment I am at 70,822. But my story is still very far from being finished. I think I failed to realize how long this story has to be to tell all of it--phew!
Let's just say that my protagonist needs to be running away from her guardians with a valuable object for the latter half of the novel and she's still there. On the bright side I'm only a few scene away from her officially running off. So perhaps I will hit "action" territory before NaNo ends.
Still nervous though, because once she leaves for "action" land...I haven't a clue what it's really gonna be like.
Well back to work!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Reworking
I'm still here.
I am currently reworking my plot as we speak and I'm very excited about how it is going.
As for actual writing, I am still incredibly behind. Unfortunately, due to stressing myself out over my predicament and spending a chunk of today focused on elections--I probably won't write any more tonight.
Besides, I need to have a clearer plot line/character ideas before I try to ramble off 4,000+ words or so. I mean, I can write it, but will it be worth it?
So I'm off to plan before bed.
I am currently reworking my plot as we speak and I'm very excited about how it is going.
As for actual writing, I am still incredibly behind. Unfortunately, due to stressing myself out over my predicament and spending a chunk of today focused on elections--I probably won't write any more tonight.
Besides, I need to have a clearer plot line/character ideas before I try to ramble off 4,000+ words or so. I mean, I can write it, but will it be worth it?
So I'm off to plan before bed.
Plots fall apart...[or why character goals are important]
On the third day of NaNo, I wrote absolutely nothing.
Yep, nothing.
Fear not, I am not quitting NaNo, I just ran into a major issue that needed to be tackled before I could write anything else. That major problem being that my MC/Protagonist did not have her own goal. Sure she took on the goals of others as they came, but nothing was driving her. And as any good writer/writing book will tell you, the MC needs a goal or what's the point?
So I spent most of today trying to figure it all out and I have decided this:
My MC/Protagonist's father has gone missing and she has to find him/save him.
This opens a can of worms, so I still have a bit of replotting to do. Some characters can be salvaged, but a lot of them will probably be recast or dumped.
I've got a catching up to do.
Hope I don't have anything to do at work tomorrow.
Yep, nothing.
Fear not, I am not quitting NaNo, I just ran into a major issue that needed to be tackled before I could write anything else. That major problem being that my MC/Protagonist did not have her own goal. Sure she took on the goals of others as they came, but nothing was driving her. And as any good writer/writing book will tell you, the MC needs a goal or what's the point?
So I spent most of today trying to figure it all out and I have decided this:
My MC/Protagonist's father has gone missing and she has to find him/save him.
This opens a can of worms, so I still have a bit of replotting to do. Some characters can be salvaged, but a lot of them will probably be recast or dumped.
I've got a catching up to do.
Hope I don't have anything to do at work tomorrow.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Let there be plot.
At last...I have most of my plot...at least the first half.
I would love to post it, but fear of jinxing and stealings prevents me.
So I will put down some hints of things to come in the post...with names of course missing.
Plot points:
1. Someone will leave home to seek adventure.
2. Another secretly plots to kill a sibling/rivalry.
3. War is just a giant spectator's sport.
4. The only way to really get attention to dress in drag.
5. Someone will find their long lost sibling.
6. A few people will betray each other.
7. A person who seeks revenge will befriend his enemy's child.
8. Someone lived for 4-5 years alone without any human companions.
However, I hate to leave people craving the steamy *pun intended* plot I've been concocting...so I shall make a deal. Here I will post the rough plot of my writer's block novel, which is no way related, currently titled:
Mad Love (or How I Stopped Fretting and Fell for a Mad Scientist)
The daughter of a wealthy financier, who turns on her father when she discovers her has stolen the ideas of a brilliant young man and had him committed. As it turns out, her father is part of a group that intends to keep science out of the hands of the masses--under the falsehoods that science is akin to witchcraft.
Outraged that her father would do such a thing, she helps the young man escape and agrees to work with him. Their first goal is to raise money and she pretends to be held hostage. Finally funded, they begin to reek their havoc on the city in the name of science, which they believe should be free to everyone.
Their actions are discovered by another group [a League Of Like Minded Scientists perhaps, with a crazy acronym I have yet to figure out] and they are contacted. Given this option to join other scientists to fight the evils of a non-science world, the young man and his friend have a rather important (and silly) choice to make.
That's all the planning I'm gonna do for this story, since it's all supposed to work on sheer imagination and spontaneity. Mind you, this is just for when I get writer's block or bored and I will definitely post the episode-like chapters in the Excerptlopedia.
I would love to post it, but fear of jinxing and stealings prevents me.
So I will put down some hints of things to come in the post...with names of course missing.
Plot points:
1. Someone will leave home to seek adventure.
2. Another secretly plots to kill a sibling/rivalry.
3. War is just a giant spectator's sport.
4. The only way to really get attention to dress in drag.
5. Someone will find their long lost sibling.
6. A few people will betray each other.
7. A person who seeks revenge will befriend his enemy's child.
8. Someone lived for 4-5 years alone without any human companions.
However, I hate to leave people craving the steamy *pun intended* plot I've been concocting...so I shall make a deal. Here I will post the rough plot of my writer's block novel, which is no way related, currently titled:
Mad Love (or How I Stopped Fretting and Fell for a Mad Scientist)
The daughter of a wealthy financier, who turns on her father when she discovers her has stolen the ideas of a brilliant young man and had him committed. As it turns out, her father is part of a group that intends to keep science out of the hands of the masses--under the falsehoods that science is akin to witchcraft.
Outraged that her father would do such a thing, she helps the young man escape and agrees to work with him. Their first goal is to raise money and she pretends to be held hostage. Finally funded, they begin to reek their havoc on the city in the name of science, which they believe should be free to everyone.
Their actions are discovered by another group [a League Of Like Minded Scientists perhaps, with a crazy acronym I have yet to figure out] and they are contacted. Given this option to join other scientists to fight the evils of a non-science world, the young man and his friend have a rather important (and silly) choice to make.
That's all the planning I'm gonna do for this story, since it's all supposed to work on sheer imagination and spontaneity. Mind you, this is just for when I get writer's block or bored and I will definitely post the episode-like chapters in the Excerptlopedia.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Things are looking up
So after some pondering on the ol' inspirational spot, I started to pull my plot together. Either I have the first half of a story or the first novel in a two part series. We'll see. It all depends on how complex I want to make it.
But now I really need to start working on the characters--since the plot I came up with is simply the bones of the story.
Now since I've lost a great deal of sleep, these last few nights, to planning this story and such, I'm going to stop myself right now and head to bed.
I can work on the story tomorrow.
G'night.
But now I really need to start working on the characters--since the plot I came up with is simply the bones of the story.
Now since I've lost a great deal of sleep, these last few nights, to planning this story and such, I'm going to stop myself right now and head to bed.
I can work on the story tomorrow.
G'night.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Writer's Block is a curious thing...
So after my last post, I thought I was truly stumped.
Of course a few hours later, I started thinking and out of nowhere the wheels of inspiration started moving again.
And suddenly...a flow of ideas.
I will not mention them, for fear of jinxing myself before I really figure out the full plot. But I will leave you with these few thoughts.
My breakthrough came by looking at alternate scenarios for the original story, like the opposite game. Basically I thought to myself:
What if Theseus had not come yet?
What if the Minotaur wasn't killed?
What if Daedalus and Icarus escaped?
What if Icarus didn't die?
All of these opposites have helped me create an alternate universe for characters based on the Greek myth.
Key themes I plan to deal with:
Choices
Mistakes
Forgiveness
Secrets/Lies
Gender roles
Power/Playing God
Tehee! That's all for now.
I shall reveal my grand scheme later.
Of course a few hours later, I started thinking and out of nowhere the wheels of inspiration started moving again.
And suddenly...a flow of ideas.
I will not mention them, for fear of jinxing myself before I really figure out the full plot. But I will leave you with these few thoughts.
My breakthrough came by looking at alternate scenarios for the original story, like the opposite game. Basically I thought to myself:
What if Theseus had not come yet?
What if the Minotaur wasn't killed?
What if Daedalus and Icarus escaped?
What if Icarus didn't die?
All of these opposites have helped me create an alternate universe for characters based on the Greek myth.
Key themes I plan to deal with:
Choices
Mistakes
Forgiveness
Secrets/Lies
Gender roles
Power/Playing God
Tehee! That's all for now.
I shall reveal my grand scheme later.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Stumped...plotwise
So after helping my Penny with her plot, I've found I'm at a loss with mine.
Although I am using the Labyrinth for inspiration, I would really prefer to not just make a steampunk version of the same story. I want an interpretation.
But that is causing problems since I don't know where to start.
Maybe I should approach this how I would directing a play. Of course, one does not generally change the plot when doing this, but it could help me figure out the most important elements of the story and figure out how to work them together there.
Somehow I need to figure this out. And maybe that's how. After all, I can come up with all the outlandish plot ideas, but in the end its gotta go back to the basics.
So to the excerptlopedia!
Although I am using the Labyrinth for inspiration, I would really prefer to not just make a steampunk version of the same story. I want an interpretation.
But that is causing problems since I don't know where to start.
Maybe I should approach this how I would directing a play. Of course, one does not generally change the plot when doing this, but it could help me figure out the most important elements of the story and figure out how to work them together there.
Somehow I need to figure this out. And maybe that's how. After all, I can come up with all the outlandish plot ideas, but in the end its gotta go back to the basics.
So to the excerptlopedia!
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Everything finally makes sense...
I don't want to jinx it [knock on wood] but I may have my story for next Nano.
After all the plotting, research, etc, I found the missing piece. And now everything seems to click--the music I'm using for inspiration, the character concepts--all of it!
:: squee! ::
Probably won't be called "Revenant" anymore though as it's not fitting.
You'll learn why soon enough.
I'm gonna leave it at that.
After all the plotting, research, etc, I found the missing piece. And now everything seems to click--the music I'm using for inspiration, the character concepts--all of it!
:: squee! ::
Probably won't be called "Revenant" anymore though as it's not fitting.
You'll learn why soon enough.
I'm gonna leave it at that.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Try and try again.
Today I tried for the big 50,000. I tried my best but only managed to write about 5,000 words. It was a lot of work, but it's going pretty well.
I would have reached 50,000 if I had written 45,000 the day before. Oh well.
So tomorrow I will go for 50,000 again--maybe even 52,000.
Where am I in the story? About #6 if you check one of my previous posts. They're currently being attacked by zombie as two kids try to steal the stone. Othena is watching them from afar, planning to swoop in after the zombies have killed the bounty hunters.
Woot.
I think I would be able to write much faster if I had planned out every scene down to the description. Despite all my efforts, descriptions just keep stumping me. Just need to plan out each scene as I go along and hope for the best. I can always just go back and edit. [But that's the plan for next year.]
I'm nearly a winner, but still so much to write after that.
So tired.
I would have reached 50,000 if I had written 45,000 the day before. Oh well.
So tomorrow I will go for 50,000 again--maybe even 52,000.
Where am I in the story? About #6 if you check one of my previous posts. They're currently being attacked by zombie as two kids try to steal the stone. Othena is watching them from afar, planning to swoop in after the zombies have killed the bounty hunters.
Woot.
I think I would be able to write much faster if I had planned out every scene down to the description. Despite all my efforts, descriptions just keep stumping me. Just need to plan out each scene as I go along and hope for the best. I can always just go back and edit. [But that's the plan for next year.]
I'm nearly a winner, but still so much to write after that.
So tired.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Woot! I made it!
10,131 words baby!
Last Nano I failed at 6k, mostly due to an overly controlling inner critic, lack of organization and a very vague but overly complicated plot.
I can't believe I made it. Yes it's 5am, but I did what I sought to do--catch back up and get the plot working for me again.
There was a tiny roadblock in there for a while. My muse suggested some crazy plot where my MC and her best friend were doing a magic show to earn money so she could runaway. And another idea where she is forced to use her magic to impersonate people or torture them by making bugs crawl on them or some other creepy illusion.
None of this had to do with my main goal for the first part of the book:
GET MC TO FIND MAN BEING HELD HOSTAGE BY HER TRUSTED TEACHER.
Of course the BF [my official novel reality checker] helped to set me straight. I dumped the plots and made the "secret thing they were doing last night" something that related directly to the overall plot. It took some minor rewording in earlier parts of the text, but I'm much happier with the way the story is going now.
Huzzah!
Now bed.
Last Nano I failed at 6k, mostly due to an overly controlling inner critic, lack of organization and a very vague but overly complicated plot.
I can't believe I made it. Yes it's 5am, but I did what I sought to do--catch back up and get the plot working for me again.
There was a tiny roadblock in there for a while. My muse suggested some crazy plot where my MC and her best friend were doing a magic show to earn money so she could runaway. And another idea where she is forced to use her magic to impersonate people or torture them by making bugs crawl on them or some other creepy illusion.
None of this had to do with my main goal for the first part of the book:
GET MC TO FIND MAN BEING HELD HOSTAGE BY HER TRUSTED TEACHER.
Of course the BF [my official novel reality checker] helped to set me straight. I dumped the plots and made the "secret thing they were doing last night" something that related directly to the overall plot. It took some minor rewording in earlier parts of the text, but I'm much happier with the way the story is going now.
Huzzah!
Now bed.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Into the wee hours
I figured out a lot of things last night. Just need to write them down.
I just finished writing 7,952 words around 400 short of my daily goal. Boo! But it's 5am in the morning and I want to get some sleep. So I will make those few words up tomorrow morning.
The story is coming along...some of it's drivel or boring. My main goal is simply developing the characters and moving the plot along. If I really like the story I will go back and edit it during December.
But to sum up the plot:
A young girl who is gifted with the ability to create sensory illusions [they affect people so that what they see, hear, smell, taste and feel seems real] is forced to live in a corrupt city that her magic teacher was exiled to. She longs for escape when her already strange life is uprooted when she finds a strange man being held captive by her teacher. Believing him innocent she frees him, only to find out he's more dangerous than he seemed. Afraid of the punishment she will receive from her teacher, she flees the city the only way she can, into a dark and treacherous rainforest. Lost and confused she finds herself at the mercy of the very man she released and must help him find something hidden within if she has any desire to leave the forest alive.
Yeah...there is a LOT going on.
Right now I'm still on the everyday life part.
Soon the captive stranger will show his face.
And then...the forest.
Yes. :: tents fingers evilly ::
I just finished writing 7,952 words around 400 short of my daily goal. Boo! But it's 5am in the morning and I want to get some sleep. So I will make those few words up tomorrow morning.
The story is coming along...some of it's drivel or boring. My main goal is simply developing the characters and moving the plot along. If I really like the story I will go back and edit it during December.
But to sum up the plot:
A young girl who is gifted with the ability to create sensory illusions [they affect people so that what they see, hear, smell, taste and feel seems real] is forced to live in a corrupt city that her magic teacher was exiled to. She longs for escape when her already strange life is uprooted when she finds a strange man being held captive by her teacher. Believing him innocent she frees him, only to find out he's more dangerous than he seemed. Afraid of the punishment she will receive from her teacher, she flees the city the only way she can, into a dark and treacherous rainforest. Lost and confused she finds herself at the mercy of the very man she released and must help him find something hidden within if she has any desire to leave the forest alive.
Yeah...there is a LOT going on.
Right now I'm still on the everyday life part.
Soon the captive stranger will show his face.
And then...the forest.
Yes. :: tents fingers evilly ::
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
It's been a while...but I bring plot!
So I have finally accepted that my inner critic has been undermining my creativity. My boyfriend called me on it last night and I took his advice to heart. So I stuck with what I had:
A girl is bound to the service of a person, she wants her freedom.
Her main destination: a forest [preferably a rainforest] full of strange and wonderful creatures.
A man who is not human, with a dark past, that she must trust.
So I spent some time pondering about it. Answering the very plot issues that were convincing me to abandon it. And I had a eureka moment while walking to school.
This is what I dreamed up:
The MC is sold or taken from her home to serve a wealthy older woman who is a magic user. In exchange for serving her mistress's whim, she is being taught how to control her magic. However, the MC doesn't really enjoy her life--mostly because she is given the task of luring people to the house--people she never sees leave.
One day she figures out what is going on and finds a man, a blood drinker, chained up in the basement. Dazed in dreams, etc she stupidly sets him free [perhaps she befriends him for a while--or he haunts her dreams to gain her trust]. Either way he runs off leaving her to take the blame.
When the mistress finds out she decides to punish the girl. There are a couple of ways this can go. A) The mistress sends her off with one of her "guards" to kill the girl and get rid of her. B) She abandons the girl in a forest convinced she will die [feeding her to something?]. C) Sends her to find the man she unleashed. D) Send her into the forest to find something or someone.
Either way she ends up in a forest that she does not know. She makes a few mistakes and then is found by the very man she released. He offers his assistance as long as she will help him do something first. She accepts [it's possible she might plan to turn him in, but does not mention this].
Not sure what he wants though, but it's somewhere in the forest. Perhaps something the woman took from him. Or another creature that lives within the forest has it.
Along the way they will come across:
a) a girl who lost her brother [did he steal something?]--who might be a blind seer
b) zombies
c) the being that controls them
d) others like the man she released
Now either the mistress realizes that the girl was not killed and worries about her surviving and revealing her secret. So she sends others after her. Or she assumes she is dead, because her henchman tells her so.
Somehow she will escape the woods and either heads home first and decides to take revenge. Or desires revenge against her mistress--but when she appears to her mistress it is in disguise and kills her.
So I have a plot! And some characters to develop. Hooray!
Big questions to answer:
1) Why was that woman using the man?
2) Why were the kids in the forest? What did they steal?
3) What is the man seeking in the forest?
4) What is the mistress' ultimate goal?
Oh I'm so excited. This is like horror/dark fairytale/mythology/fantasy etc all wrapped up in a fun little adventure.
:: squeals with joy ::
A girl is bound to the service of a person, she wants her freedom.
Her main destination: a forest [preferably a rainforest] full of strange and wonderful creatures.
A man who is not human, with a dark past, that she must trust.
So I spent some time pondering about it. Answering the very plot issues that were convincing me to abandon it. And I had a eureka moment while walking to school.
This is what I dreamed up:
The MC is sold or taken from her home to serve a wealthy older woman who is a magic user. In exchange for serving her mistress's whim, she is being taught how to control her magic. However, the MC doesn't really enjoy her life--mostly because she is given the task of luring people to the house--people she never sees leave.
One day she figures out what is going on and finds a man, a blood drinker, chained up in the basement. Dazed in dreams, etc she stupidly sets him free [perhaps she befriends him for a while--or he haunts her dreams to gain her trust]. Either way he runs off leaving her to take the blame.
When the mistress finds out she decides to punish the girl. There are a couple of ways this can go. A) The mistress sends her off with one of her "guards" to kill the girl and get rid of her. B) She abandons the girl in a forest convinced she will die [feeding her to something?]. C) Sends her to find the man she unleashed. D) Send her into the forest to find something or someone.
Either way she ends up in a forest that she does not know. She makes a few mistakes and then is found by the very man she released. He offers his assistance as long as she will help him do something first. She accepts [it's possible she might plan to turn him in, but does not mention this].
Not sure what he wants though, but it's somewhere in the forest. Perhaps something the woman took from him. Or another creature that lives within the forest has it.
Along the way they will come across:
a) a girl who lost her brother [did he steal something?]--who might be a blind seer
b) zombies
c) the being that controls them
d) others like the man she released
Now either the mistress realizes that the girl was not killed and worries about her surviving and revealing her secret. So she sends others after her. Or she assumes she is dead, because her henchman tells her so.
Somehow she will escape the woods and either heads home first and decides to take revenge. Or desires revenge against her mistress--but when she appears to her mistress it is in disguise and kills her.
So I have a plot! And some characters to develop. Hooray!
Big questions to answer:
1) Why was that woman using the man?
2) Why were the kids in the forest? What did they steal?
3) What is the man seeking in the forest?
4) What is the mistress' ultimate goal?
Oh I'm so excited. This is like horror/dark fairytale/mythology/fantasy etc all wrapped up in a fun little adventure.
:: squeals with joy ::
Monday, October 22, 2007
I know...I know...
I said in my last post that I had a plot coming...and it is, but I don't want to jinx it by posting it until I have a clear view of goals for my protagonists and antagonists.
So far it's shaping up pretty well and not a moment too soon. Cuz I still have a lot of world building to do before November 1st. Ack!
I have spent quite a few frustrating nights wondering why the hell I still didn't have a plot despite planning ahead and trying to figure out a story way in advance. For next Nano I'm doing my plotting and research before the year is even out.
Eesh.
So far it's shaping up pretty well and not a moment too soon. Cuz I still have a lot of world building to do before November 1st. Ack!
I have spent quite a few frustrating nights wondering why the hell I still didn't have a plot despite planning ahead and trying to figure out a story way in advance. For next Nano I'm doing my plotting and research before the year is even out.
Eesh.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
So I lied...
A few days ago I said my plot was nearly figured out. Well...I thought it was, but found a ton of plot holes.
Then I realized I did not know what I wanted and was nearly sabotaging myself with conflicting desires. So I scrapped everything and took on a new method of plot building.
Think and commit.
Let the ideas come to me gradually or as I look for inspirations with the one restriction is that the story comes from this one idea:
A girl, who thinks her estranged mother is "crazy", inherits something after her mother's death that convinces her that her mother wasn't so crazy after all.
From there I let the ideas flow gradually. I removed the need to figure it all out immediately, which was killing some of my original ideas. I overthunk [i love that term!] them and my brain desperately needed the rest.
So far it's going pretty darn well. Most of this has been seriously helped by myNotes: a rich text editor that is tabbed for easier organization. It's shareware [wish it was freeware] but it'll do the job.
TTFN
Then I realized I did not know what I wanted and was nearly sabotaging myself with conflicting desires. So I scrapped everything and took on a new method of plot building.
Think and commit.
Let the ideas come to me gradually or as I look for inspirations with the one restriction is that the story comes from this one idea:
A girl, who thinks her estranged mother is "crazy", inherits something after her mother's death that convinces her that her mother wasn't so crazy after all.
From there I let the ideas flow gradually. I removed the need to figure it all out immediately, which was killing some of my original ideas. I overthunk [i love that term!] them and my brain desperately needed the rest.
So far it's going pretty darn well. Most of this has been seriously helped by myNotes: a rich text editor that is tabbed for easier organization. It's shareware [wish it was freeware] but it'll do the job.
TTFN
Monday, October 15, 2007
Creating a good plot is complicated stuff
So that plot I posted a few days ago...it's gone the way of the dinosaurs.
It just wasn't working. I can't say what's entirely wrong with it, but it didn't seem to flow or move forward. It sort of came to a dead end halfway through the story. So I spent some time working on my characters, their needs, fears...who they are. And then revamping the plot. The story has changed a bit, but it still uses similar characters and ideas. So far I'm pretty happy with what I have at the moment [we'll see if that's still true after I sleep on it].
I'll post a more finalized plot with characters tomorrow[later today]--for now I rest!
:: drops down on her knees to before her muse ::
Please please please let this be the last plot change....I have a lot of world building to do!
It just wasn't working. I can't say what's entirely wrong with it, but it didn't seem to flow or move forward. It sort of came to a dead end halfway through the story. So I spent some time working on my characters, their needs, fears...who they are. And then revamping the plot. The story has changed a bit, but it still uses similar characters and ideas. So far I'm pretty happy with what I have at the moment [we'll see if that's still true after I sleep on it].
I'll post a more finalized plot with characters tomorrow[later today]--for now I rest!
:: drops down on her knees to before her muse ::
Please please please let this be the last plot change....I have a lot of world building to do!
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