Today I had a problem. I was insufficiently selfish. I accommodated myself to other people's needs and schedules. In one sense, this made me a good husband, father and son. In another, it shorted me on writing time. I wrote only two-plus pages. Aargh. Tomorrow, I resolve to be more selfish. Fair warning has been issued.
In today's only scene, the protagonist finally comes to see just what the antagonists have planned. He fears a possible loss of life. He quickly thinks of a way to head off the tragedy. But he's immediately thwarted when the antagonists take down the cell phone system and the electrical grid. Having no hope of solving the larger problem, he abandons his car, deciding his best chance of getting home quickly and making sure his wife is safe is to run through the dense fog.
Day 99 of writing my new novel is done.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Day 98, July 6, 2010
Being ninety-eight days into the writing of this blog, I don't remember if I've raised the subject of found characters before. I suspect I may have, but just in case I haven't, here's a brief recap. Most, if not all, of my major characters are planned. I work them out in advance of writing the first draft. For the really big characters, I write lengthy biographies, so I'll know who the heck they are when I'm putting words into their mouths. Found characters, on the other hand, just step onstage, say here I am, you need me.
A lot of times, found characters can become among the most memorable and even likable in a story. Other times, though, they are important only as players of small but critical roles.
In today's first scene, such a found character steps forward. In order to be more than a mere contrivance the character has to have some flesh on his bones and just a bit of history. This character has leadership thrust upon him, heading up those who would thwart the antagonists big plan. Whether he succeeds or fails will determine whether the antagonists succeed or fail. In today's second scene, we get a new insight into the character who enabled the sexual predator, just before he meets his fate.
I wrote four pages today.
Day 98 of writing my new novel is done.
A lot of times, found characters can become among the most memorable and even likable in a story. Other times, though, they are important only as players of small but critical roles.
In today's first scene, such a found character steps forward. In order to be more than a mere contrivance the character has to have some flesh on his bones and just a bit of history. This character has leadership thrust upon him, heading up those who would thwart the antagonists big plan. Whether he succeeds or fails will determine whether the antagonists succeed or fail. In today's second scene, we get a new insight into the character who enabled the sexual predator, just before he meets his fate.
I wrote four pages today.
Day 98 of writing my new novel is done.
Monday, July 5, 2010
Day 97, July 5, 2010
Other than the joy of doing the writing, the most gratifying part of committing fiction is getting positive feedback, i.e. money to continue writing and reader comments telling you how much someone has enjoyed what you've written. Getting fan mail is a heady experience. Humbling too in a way. Because it makes you realize how lucky you are to be the recipient of a given talent.
You often see athletes look upward to express thanks after making a big play. That never seems corny to me. It seems appropriate.
Anyway, I received a complimentary e-mail recently. Someone I've never met told me he liked my book The President's Henchman, and asked me if I have a sequel planned. I told him the sequel, The Hangman's Companion, has been written and will be coming out soon in e-book and trade paperback editions. He followed up by saying he was sorry to hear that my new book wouldn't be published in hardcover as he collects and reads only first printings of first edition hardcover books.
I like hardcover books. I've been published that way three times. I've read more hardcover books than I can remember and have hundreds of them on my bookshelves. But I've never collected any. I don't object to book collecting. For me, it would be more interesting than collecting most other things. And it can be a good investment.
But for me, to paraphrase Shakespeare, the story's the thing. The book is just an object. It might be an appealing object, though I don't think much of most book cover art. But if the story's not wonderful, who cares about anything else? I'd rather hear an interesting story over a beer in a bar than read something ho-hum that was beautifully packaged.
Books are good, stories are better.
Today, I wrote five pages.The action's coming faster now. Some scenes are shorter and interplay with other short scenes. The protagonist's spouse hears a disturbing sound just outside her window. The antagonist kicks off the climax of her scheme. The protagonist figures out where the antagonist has been hiding, only to receive a call from the antagonist telling him his wife is the target of the sexual predator. The protagonist calls home, reaches his wife, but the call is cut short. He has to race across town to reach her—only a dense fog is going to make getting anywhere quickly very difficult.
Day 97 of writing my new novel is done.
You often see athletes look upward to express thanks after making a big play. That never seems corny to me. It seems appropriate.
Anyway, I received a complimentary e-mail recently. Someone I've never met told me he liked my book The President's Henchman, and asked me if I have a sequel planned. I told him the sequel, The Hangman's Companion, has been written and will be coming out soon in e-book and trade paperback editions. He followed up by saying he was sorry to hear that my new book wouldn't be published in hardcover as he collects and reads only first printings of first edition hardcover books.
I like hardcover books. I've been published that way three times. I've read more hardcover books than I can remember and have hundreds of them on my bookshelves. But I've never collected any. I don't object to book collecting. For me, it would be more interesting than collecting most other things. And it can be a good investment.
But for me, to paraphrase Shakespeare, the story's the thing. The book is just an object. It might be an appealing object, though I don't think much of most book cover art. But if the story's not wonderful, who cares about anything else? I'd rather hear an interesting story over a beer in a bar than read something ho-hum that was beautifully packaged.
Books are good, stories are better.
Today, I wrote five pages.The action's coming faster now. Some scenes are shorter and interplay with other short scenes. The protagonist's spouse hears a disturbing sound just outside her window. The antagonist kicks off the climax of her scheme. The protagonist figures out where the antagonist has been hiding, only to receive a call from the antagonist telling him his wife is the target of the sexual predator. The protagonist calls home, reaches his wife, but the call is cut short. He has to race across town to reach her—only a dense fog is going to make getting anywhere quickly very difficult.
Day 97 of writing my new novel is done.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Day 96, July 4, 2010
Today was another holiday quota effort, three pages written. Would have done more but people have these ideas about Fourth of July barbecues, and if they're nice enough to offer you a meal the least you can do is show up and eat it. At least, that's what I did.
Today's scene brings disparate supporting characters together and will soon have them interact. It's one of those quirks-of-fate scenes. I don't know how you feel about them, but I like them—assuming they're well done. The sexual predator and his enabler are about to move in on the protagonist's wife. Thing is, two far more deadly predators are observing them and decide to take an interest.
Day 96 of writing my new novel is done.
Today's scene brings disparate supporting characters together and will soon have them interact. It's one of those quirks-of-fate scenes. I don't know how you feel about them, but I like them—assuming they're well done. The sexual predator and his enabler are about to move in on the protagonist's wife. Thing is, two far more deadly predators are observing them and decide to take an interest.
Day 96 of writing my new novel is done.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Day 95, July 3, 2010
My wife has been with me through thick and thin and when she asks for a favor I do my best to provide what she wants. She asked me to write about whether I have doubts as I go through the lengthy process of writing a novel. She thought people would like to see me bare my soul or show vulnerability or something.
I might have doubts if I wrote serious literature. You know, the stuff where one character is more dysfunctional than the next and you wouldn't want any of them as a friend or a neighbor. Having doubts in that case would be in keeping with the work.
But I consider my writing to be intelligent entertainment, of one sort or another. So to address my wife's question: No, I don't have doubts. I've been through the drill enough times to know what works and what doesn't and I fix the things that don't work in my daily rewrites. If I somehow overlook something during the initial rewrite, I fix it when I do the overall reread of the first draft.
Note to any new writer who may read this: Screw doubt. It'll slow you down or stop you cold. Just keep writing. Most things can be fixed in rewrite. Keep writing.
As far as whether the main story idea is any good, that's a subjective call. Some people will like it, others won't. That goes for any story. Neither approval nor disapproval is universal. A sign that the idea works for me is how much fun I have writing it. I'm having a lot of fun with this idea.
Still, being the Fourth of July weekend, I got by with doing just two pages today. Enough to keep me engaged in the story. In today's scene, a supporting character learns she's been ditched. She'll have to scramble to get back in the game, and in doing so she'll make things worse.
Day 95 of writing my new novel is done.
I might have doubts if I wrote serious literature. You know, the stuff where one character is more dysfunctional than the next and you wouldn't want any of them as a friend or a neighbor. Having doubts in that case would be in keeping with the work.
But I consider my writing to be intelligent entertainment, of one sort or another. So to address my wife's question: No, I don't have doubts. I've been through the drill enough times to know what works and what doesn't and I fix the things that don't work in my daily rewrites. If I somehow overlook something during the initial rewrite, I fix it when I do the overall reread of the first draft.
Note to any new writer who may read this: Screw doubt. It'll slow you down or stop you cold. Just keep writing. Most things can be fixed in rewrite. Keep writing.
As far as whether the main story idea is any good, that's a subjective call. Some people will like it, others won't. That goes for any story. Neither approval nor disapproval is universal. A sign that the idea works for me is how much fun I have writing it. I'm having a lot of fun with this idea.
Still, being the Fourth of July weekend, I got by with doing just two pages today. Enough to keep me engaged in the story. In today's scene, a supporting character learns she's been ditched. She'll have to scramble to get back in the game, and in doing so she'll make things worse.
Day 95 of writing my new novel is done.
Friday, July 2, 2010
Day 94, July 2, 2010
I got off to a good start today and closed with a good finish. In between I did a lot of stuff that was ordinary but satisfying. Went to the gym to renew my daily battle against time and gravity. Went to lunch with my three favorite people. Came home and took a quick nap to get recharged. Finished with five-plus pages.
In today's first scene we see the place from which the antagonists will launch their climactic attack, and watch as one romantic fool (still a nice guy, though) seeks to foil the lead antagonist, for her own good, mind you. In the second scene, we learn that the chief protagonist has put a nice strategy into play to foil several adversaries, but even the best plans might be undone by circumstance. Even so, one bright idea can lead to another, and the protagonist is zeroing in on his opposite number.
Day 94 of writing my new novel is done.
In today's first scene we see the place from which the antagonists will launch their climactic attack, and watch as one romantic fool (still a nice guy, though) seeks to foil the lead antagonist, for her own good, mind you. In the second scene, we learn that the chief protagonist has put a nice strategy into play to foil several adversaries, but even the best plans might be undone by circumstance. Even so, one bright idea can lead to another, and the protagonist is zeroing in on his opposite number.
Day 94 of writing my new novel is done.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Day 93, July 1, 2010
As predicted yesterday, I got back on track today, writing almost six pages. The writing felt good. There were only a couple of interruptions and they were too minor to disrupt the flow from my muse. I know I've said it before, but the end is getting close. I can tell by the fact that the can't-do-without scenes are popping up. This refers to scenes that I know a reader would say: You know what, there should have been a little scene toward the end that did this. I often feel the same way when I read another writer's book. There are little bridges and grace notes that aren't apparent when you do your initial outline but should become apparent when you've lived with the story for three months.
In today's first scene, the protagonist shows he's really a good guy by answering a reporter's question honestly despite possibly jeopardizing his future by doing so. He also establishes a contact for a move he'll soon want to make. In the second scene, the protagonist uses a supporting character to goad someone else into making a tactical mistake. This will lead to an epiphany that, ta-da, leads him to solve the mystery of what the antagonists have planned.
Day 93 of writing my new novel is done.
In today's first scene, the protagonist shows he's really a good guy by answering a reporter's question honestly despite possibly jeopardizing his future by doing so. He also establishes a contact for a move he'll soon want to make. In the second scene, the protagonist uses a supporting character to goad someone else into making a tactical mistake. This will lead to an epiphany that, ta-da, leads him to solve the mystery of what the antagonists have planned.
Day 93 of writing my new novel is done.
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