Yes I delve now into the steampunk world...

So that last post was bunk. Sort of.

Anywho, in light of the very fast approaching November and the Nanofest it brings, I must buckle down. So Bloodstone is on the back burner. If ideas come to me while I plot for this next one, then so be it.

But now onto newer things.

All I can say is that it will be a steampunk story...or gaslamp fantasy [as it may be an AU or original world]. There are two potential stories fighting for my attention. One that is hella complicated and another that is a bit simpler and confined to a single novel.

My goal for next Nano is to not only win but to finish the novel, so that any extra work is rough drafting and finalizing.

So what does that mean? Well it means that I need to get all my planning and plotting down. This is best shown with a list [as I like lists], see below:

THINGS I NEED TO COMPLETE [AKA FINISH THE DAMN THING] A NANO THIS YEAR:

1. A complete cast of characters [with traits, backgrounds and such]:
Last Nano I got to know most of my characters as I went along--for some that was good, for others not so good. Really bare bones others were flat as paper.

2. An opposing force [for each character]:
Every one has a conflict. Some are the focus of the plot, while others are small and personal. Don't forget them.

3. A working knowledge of my world [maps, lifestyle, history]:
Might not be as necessary for this story, but it is still helpful.

4. A well written plot outline [summary, timeline, key character actions]:
I wanna know what is going to happen before I start. Not all the nitty gritty, but at least an idea. And of course, how it ends!

5. Sketches [of machines, characters, places, etc]:
While imaginative, I can have a hard time describing things. This time I need those images in advance, so the descriptions seem real.

6. Know my villain:
This has got to be the one thing I've had the most issues with. The motivations, goals and desires of my villain or antagonist always seem to fail me.

7. Reference information [historical, scientific, anatomical]:
Since I'm doing Steampunk there needs to be a degree of accuracy in period elements and machinery, so this will be handy.

8. Novel title/cover art [for fun]:
Completely unnecessary, but it would be a nice little project to do.

9. A Nano timeline:
Worked for me last time, it should work again.

10. A lot of patience and a good headstart:
I plan to write a bunch on day one and two as they are on the weekend.


And I need all this before Oct. 31 11:59pm!

We'll see how that goes.

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.

I'm actually working on it--for real

Life has been incredibly busy, but rest assured I have been working on the novel.
I just haven't had a chance to post anything in a while, so here's a quick info dump.

First and foremost I finished reading my novel [or what was written so far].
While I think it's far better than the shitty drivel I thought I had churned out...it still needs ALOT of work before
anyone can beta it for me. Speaking of betas...if you're interested, let me know.

The things I need to work on:
--Narrative voice. I tried to be fairly neutral, but I think I could jazz it up a bit. So I plan to test some styles
and then rewrite the whole thing in the winning style.
--The villains/supposed villains. Since it dawned on me that my character is "caught in the middle" more
than directly opposing anyone, I need to figure out how the two actually opposing eachother [Othena and Kole]
work and what they really want.
--Plot is too straight. Litterally, despite a minor detour I added, the damn plot still goes in a B-line.
So I'm dropping a giant plot bomb on them to shake it up a lot and throw them off track.
--Purpose of the "quest object". I never knew its real purpose as I wrote the novel and now I really gotta
figure that out. Otherwise my story has no real point and the object is just a catalyst.
--Ambiguous Silas. I have this problem with another one of my plots. I don't know how I want him to act.
So I really need to figure him and his crazy race of peoples out.
--World building. Despite all my imagination I've been hella vague. I need to just decide and commit.
That's my new motto: "decide and commit"

Well that's most of it in a nutshell. We'll see how it goes in a little bit.

Ta!

Editing--woo!

So actually reading my novel [Blood Stone] was incredibly painful at first. Mainly because it's been a long time since I looked at it [dropped it like a hot potato in December] and because the first couple of chapters are being completely rewritten due to changes.

But they will benefit from those changes...lemme tell you. I was not doing so well when I first started writing the book.

But I'm now a few chapters in and it's pretty entertaining. The writing needs to be polished, but otherwise the characters are fairly engaging. Of course I will need other people to beta test so I can get some real opinions on my book.

Anywho...I'm chugging along and finished half of what I wrote. Now I just need to read the next half!

-------

As for Revenant, character development is coming along. I've been using music and visual suggestions to help build characters. So far so good. One of my more complicated characters is coming out loud and clear. Now I just need to work on the others and we're in business.

Not gonna say any more on that for a bit--because I don't want to get distracted from my first nano[Blood Stone].

Speaking of distractions...I did the worst thing ever. I started reading a new series "Twilight" and fell in love with the characters. Now I'm worried there are similarities with my new book...there shouldn't be [thanks to planning ahead]. There is nothing worse than trying to write a good story and it ending up as fan fic.

Not that there is anything wrong with fan fiction...but that's not my goal here. I have a hell of a lot of original stories crammed in my brain and I wanna get them out there. Fan fiction can wait.

Well that's it for the update.

Night.

Revenant

So because I was so badly prepared for Blood Stone, I figured early prep is the key to a good novel, which means slightly easier editing later. *hopefully*

So what is Revenant?
Well it is based on my original Nano plot I was planning before I frantically ditched it for a new plot [Blood Stone]. But I've revamped it a lot and I like it much better now.

A young woman discovers at the age of 23 that she is a revenant--a group of humans who fight the evils of the world and cannot die. Well they can die, but they just keep coming back no matter how they die [ala Claire in Heroes but far more immortal].

The dictionary definition of "revenant" is: one who returns or one who returns after death.

The deal is that her family is under a "curse" or "blessing" [depends on who you ask] that turns the "first of the first" [first born of the first born...etc]. Which in this case means her mom and her grandmother. But no one seemed to think it was necessary to warn her...thus hilarity ensues.

Overall this story is going to be much less serious than Blood Stone and set in an slightly alternate universe of our world, specifically in San Francisco.


That's all I'll say for now--but I'll start dropping more info closer to Nano...I just don't want to jinx it.

Edit away!

So I've been working on my novel...mostly revamping the plot and figuring out the characters [I failed to do a lot of pre-planning before NaNo!] and logging the hours only to find out that:

"Planning does not count as editing"!

I just can't agree with that. I already know without reading my story that the plot needs to be corrected and the characters need to be developed. If I don't spend that time figuring that stuff out now--I'm still going to have to do it later.

Also by doing it in advance, means I can mark where and how those changes are going to come into the novel as I read through it--shortening the editing time. Huzzah!


Any way...the big changes:

1. Story truly revolves around Kole and Othena's conflict, but told through the eyes of Devii.

2. Silas' character must change: He is much more sly, cunning and charming. A wolf in human's clothing.

3. Plot changes:

a) Story starts with one of Devii's attempts to run away.
b) Devii goes into the forest to "hide" but Silas convinces her to actually try and go home with his help.
c) Silas tricks them into going after the stone...which leads to them being captured [basically he walks them into a trap].
d) Somehow [I haven't thought of it yet] they will be taken off course
e) Devii will turn on/abandon Cael and chooses to trust Silas [maybe Cael made a mistake--reason they went off course].
f) Completely different ending!!!!


So far I'm liking the changes.

Tomorrow I read and edit the novel!

National Novel Editing Month

So March is National Novel Editing Month and I plan to participate. Although I've been super busy--I'm not going home for break. So that makes it the perfect opportunity to work on that novel of mine.

I printed out the novel already, which is quite a hefty stack of fibers. I'm sort of dreading reading it, but hey I might actually turn this into a really good story.

Anywho, Jean has inspired me to keep working on it, so the novel's been on my mind recently.

Here are some thoughts that recently popped up late last night:

Maybe Devii has an importance of her own, giving Othena another reason to go after her and to keep her in Benim. By doing this there is a greater drive to get the girl, besides her involvement in the whole situation. Haven't decided what the importance is yet.

Devii should have made previous escapes in the past. If her goal is to return home, then I think she would have attempted to run away before. I like that idea.


Either way, I think the story is a bit too linear. I need to figure out everyone's goals and make sure there are strong conflicts to add drama. Also, I need to add some interesting twists--but that might make the story longer.

Oh well. I'm tired.