With the transitions outlined in my last post, it became apparent that my novel needed both a change of title, as well as a slightly different direction to aim for. So, unless I find a more aptly suited name in the future, the title is now Fair too Far. We'll see how long that sticks.
And as for the change in direction, perhaps a change of theme would be a more accurate description. I try to let everything I write have a purpose. I.e. I try not to write something simply for the heck of it, or simply because its awesome or hilarious. I write because there's a story that needs telling, and hopefully a truth that can be investigated or made clear.
One of my ultimate goals in writing is to create a vacuum of space where I can make a darkness so deep that when it cracks, the light shines through with stunning brilliance. That's why I love writing, because I can create awful scenarios, horrendously dark moments, and put my characters through more than they rightly deserve, so that the reader sees the truth with the same clarity that my characters do.
Sometimes that truth is simple. Or straightforward. Other times it is not. Sometimes it is very clear before I begin writing what the end goal will be. Other times it is not. This time is one of the not so clear times. But at the story gains more strength in my mind, and as words add to words, it will become more and more clear to me what exactly I need to bring to light in this particular tale. Perhaps hope. Or justice. Or patience. Most likely something more complex than that.
I am reminded of Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. There is a deep message in that book, behind all the wonderful action and science, but it is sometimes hard to put in words that will not make the story seem cheap and fake. The best way to understand what I am talking about is of course to read the book itself.
Hopefully that is what Fair too Far will end up being like.
Gaining courage,
Farjag
Being a blog of writerly ramblings and jotted notes “For what is said is forgotten in time, but that which is written endures"
November 8, 2013
November 6, 2013
On Existential Crises and Ninjas
So after the good start on day one, day two found me suffering from an existential crisis.
I had no idea where my story was going to go. Which is bad. Because I thought I knew that already.
It turns out, the plot I had outlined prior to November 1st didn't have enough forward impetus to be properly labeled a plot. It had character development by the buckets, danger and mystery by the tons, but nothing to dictate what happened next, no forward catalyzation.
Which evidently isn't a word.
Anyways, that was the main problem, but there was a second problem hiding behind it. And that was a lack of setting. I had characters, but nowhere particular for them to inhabit. Which quickly caused the story, already lagging from a lack of forward motion, to stagnate in a undecided place somewhere between Transylvania and the southern half of Virginia.
I.e. nowhere particular.
So all this is running through my head on day two and into day three. The setting was a relatively fix, and helped me push through the existential crisis of wether or not I should even continue Nano.
And then, late on day four, I remembered the old Nano adage: "If your story stalls, add ninjas!" Or something similar. While ninjas aren't exactly suitable to my story, it definitely started me thinking on what I could inject in the plot to completely create a new story. I realized that the plot I had was very thematically similar to 2011's Nano novel, The Trust Hole. I.e. A young, innocent character enters a dark place, meets colorful characters with dark secrets, and turns the place around, learning in the process their place in the world.
So while by day four I was really warming to the characters and setting, I realized the plot had to go.
So I added ninjas.
Or more properly an armada of death-dealing dirigibles breaking out of a cloud-filled sky to the sounds of hundreds of gatling guns.
I'm pretty sure this is going in a far more interesting direction than previously. :)
I had no idea where my story was going to go. Which is bad. Because I thought I knew that already.
It turns out, the plot I had outlined prior to November 1st didn't have enough forward impetus to be properly labeled a plot. It had character development by the buckets, danger and mystery by the tons, but nothing to dictate what happened next, no forward catalyzation.
Which evidently isn't a word.
Anyways, that was the main problem, but there was a second problem hiding behind it. And that was a lack of setting. I had characters, but nowhere particular for them to inhabit. Which quickly caused the story, already lagging from a lack of forward motion, to stagnate in a undecided place somewhere between Transylvania and the southern half of Virginia.
I.e. nowhere particular.
So all this is running through my head on day two and into day three. The setting was a relatively fix, and helped me push through the existential crisis of wether or not I should even continue Nano.
And then, late on day four, I remembered the old Nano adage: "If your story stalls, add ninjas!" Or something similar. While ninjas aren't exactly suitable to my story, it definitely started me thinking on what I could inject in the plot to completely create a new story. I realized that the plot I had was very thematically similar to 2011's Nano novel, The Trust Hole. I.e. A young, innocent character enters a dark place, meets colorful characters with dark secrets, and turns the place around, learning in the process their place in the world.
So while by day four I was really warming to the characters and setting, I realized the plot had to go.
So I added ninjas.
Or more properly an armada of death-dealing dirigibles breaking out of a cloud-filled sky to the sounds of hundreds of gatling guns.
I'm pretty sure this is going in a far more interesting direction than previously. :)
November 4, 2013
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
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
November 1, 2013
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.
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!
October 28, 2013
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!
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!
October 10, 2013
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.
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.
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.
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