On Arson

Now, some of the very astute readers here will notice that the name "Arson" has been used once before here on the blog. Back in March of this year (so long ago!) I waxed lyrical about a plot bunny that momentarily distracted me from my other current literary projects.

That trail went nowhere particular in the end, I wrote about another half page before the trail dead-ended. The reason was very clear, I had no plot. I had two very distinct characters, without a true trail for them to follow. So they were forgotten.

But I very much liked the name, and so I resurrected it from the grave of unfinished tales, dusted it off and set it back to work. And while female protagonist's name stayed buried, the character itself soon found its way into my pre-Nano scribblings and plot prep.

So, in a way the story is finding new life. I took characters with no plot and placed them in a plot that had no characters, and hopefully I shall find a happy marriage between the two before the end of November!

Writing on,
Farjag

Off To A Good Start

Well, today went well. Not only was I able to turn in my architectural homework on time, but I also happened to finish off my first 1,700 words just now. Which means I have time tonight to relax and write a blog post!

What's that? Getting ahead while I have time? Pssh!

We shall see. I enjoy stopping writing at particularly chewy points of the story, much like commercial breaks for a tv show. It gives me an impetus to finish the next part the next time I sit down to write, sort of like a self-propelling kick in the rear. All that to say I stopped at a particularly delicious point, more on the comedic than suspense side, but still very much a kicker. To illustrate my point:

Arson grumbled. “Your head’s a little big for your shoulders, Alice.”

“Exactly what will get me a job someday. Or today, for that matter. Tell you what, I’ll make you a deal. If I impress your boss, Mr. What’s-what’s-face with what I can do, I get to stay. If he won’t hire me, than I’ll be off back home and you can keep on your merry, solitary way.”

Arson frowned in thought before extending a hand to his sister. “Deal.”

A half hour later Arson found himself setting Alice up in a bunk next to the juggler twins. Apparently her sleight-of-hand magic had duly impressed Mr. Kash.

Mwuah-ha-ha!

The Iceman Cometh

And with him November, that dreaded, longed for month. Sometime within the next 36 hours I shall sit down before the white wilderness of the blank page and begin to build, carving line after line of black letters until the wilderness has been civilized and a story has begun.

Time will tell how fast or far my attempt will go, but I hope to reach the other side of the month having built at least a 50,000 strong army of words who tell a story worth remembering. But if I fall midway, to battle or busyness, at least I will have attempted the journey.

I hope to see you on the other side, if my mixed metaphors don't get to me first :)

Forth, and fear no darkness!

Let the Games Begin!

NaNoWriMo has officially entered pre-production! That is to say, I logged into my account... and set up my novel. :D

But that did require some thought, as I had to synthesize all the dozens of different ideas bouncing around inside my mind into a single, semi-coherent train of thought that could be further synthesized into a synopsis.

In addition there was that pesky thing called a title... my novel had been going by the unassuming name: NaNoWriMo Novel. That was going to fly any further, so additional thought was necessary on that front.

And to complete the trifecta of unknowns, I had not named any of my characters yet. They had been simply going by Protagonist and the Sister. So that had to change too.

So after much soul-searching and brain-wracking, I worked the bits and pieces of a story in single whole, filled in the missing pieces and came out the other side with something resembling the skeleton of a novel. It definitely isn't much, but it's enough to go on.

The Imaginarium

When Arson Folkert ran away to join M. Kardanian's Traveling Imaginarium, he didn't realize he would never see his parents again. Now his younger sister Alice, an orphan with nowhere to go, comes looking for him, but Arson has no intention of leaving. And the Imaginarium hides a dark secret; the small troupe who run it are far more than they seem. The deadly road that Arson has started on will take both him and Alice into the darkest places of their soul, and it will take a strength they don't have to escape.

Once More Into The Fray

Once again, dear readers (the few, the proud), I'm back. Probably not for long, but definitely for the duration of November and NaNoWriMo, and possibly after that! If it does continue, the theme of the blog will likely shift to represent my more current interest of screenwriting and architecture, but in the end it will still be all the same story I am telling. 

So expect the next month to be filled with a smattering of ideas, brainstorming, dead ends, restarts, random plot threads and the like, while the following month of November will be filled with excerpts, rants on plot, more brainstorming, more dead ends, probably at least one reboot and quite a few cringe-worthy grumblings at my own ineptness. After that? Hopefully some cohesiveness as I seek to organize the brain-frenzied creative outpourings of the month previous into a coherent whole. 

Until very soon,
Farjag

The Road goes ever on and on

Down from the door where it began.

Now far ahead the Road has gone,

And I must follow, if I can,

Pursuing it with eager feet,

Until it joins some larger way

Where many paths and errands meet.

And whither then? I cannot say.

All Good Things Come To An End

Sadly, yes, dear readers, all good things do come to an end, and for this particular corner of the blogosphere, that time has come. If you are one of the few still reading this, you know how sporadic and intermittent my posts have been of late. College is requiring more and more of my time, leaving little for other activities, and among them blogging has always ranked low.

As a writing blog, this blog depends on how much I write, and with sparse amounts of time for writing, little writing gets done. So instead of me dragging my feeble posts on until one day they simply drop dead and never come back, I shall lay them to rest with some scrap of honor left.

But all is not lost! For come November, and the ubiquitous NaNoWriMo, there exists a strong possibility of a brief resurgence of updates, outlines and the like.

Until then, I bid you all a fond farewell, and will always keep in my heart the memories, comments and wonderful bookish friends I have made during my tenure as a blogger.

Stay strong, dear ones, and may your quills never run dry!