Role Playing Lessons

So its October now. How crazy is that?

The other night Kat was like "You haven't posted in a while" and I was like "I know". And here's the reason: I joined a role play board.

If you are unfamiliar with the concept here's the the wiki article on what we do there.

Now, the last time I was really involved in a RP was sophomore years of high school and again in college. The first one was a Harry Potter based RP, and then the second was a reoccurrence of the same characters found there with the same person (Dany). I learned a lot from these two games, and I am learning more things from joining this new board (a super powered original world called Weekend Warriors, check it out its kind of awesome) so I have decided to write about the lessons I've learned from role playing.

01. Always say 'yes'.
This is a rule from improv actually, but its very important when you're writing with someone else. You always say yes to whatever they said in the last post. You might have been expecting something completely different, you might have no idea where you're going now, but if you say yes interesting things will happen.

How to apply it to writing by yourself: You're sitting there, and you get this feeling at the back of your mind that there's something insane that you want to throw into your novel. A tuna suddenly jumping into the boat of your main character, someone asks someone else to move in with them -- say yes. Go with it. What's the worst that can happen? You can always come back to that point and change it later, but if you say yes, you might suddenly have a better novel. So say yes!

02. Develop voices early.
Writing in third person makes voices harder to deal with. In first person you can get all sorts of things out easily, but in third, its easy to become detached. My favorite use of third person is in Harry Potter. J.K.R. has Harry's voice down so well, and it comes out in tiny word choices, the way that things are described and small choices. Writing in third person on an RP board has reminded me of this intensely, in part because I have six characters, and two pairs who are somewhat similar in nature (Bex/Lucy and Deliah/Charlotte). I'm not sure when it happened, but I have a sense when I'm writing any of these characters that sometimes I'm doing it wrong. Bex doesn't ever say "gonna" nor does she generally swear (as opposed to Lucy, who always says gonna, and if she doesn't swear three times in a post, then somethings really fucking wrong). Developing their voices early differentiated them incredibly and instinct takes over when writing them now.

How to apply it to writing by yourself: If you've got a strong sense of a character, then you should have their voice. It is important to be able to differentiate your characters in the way they sound because only in that way are they separate and you can keep things consistent.

03. Description matters. 

When I go back and re-read some of my old RP, I am always amazed that anyone understood me because there is a lack of description of what things look like. There are other problems with re-reading RP (hello dialogue being weird and conversations not making sense), but one of the major things I have discovered and am working on, is an increase in description. Thoughts are all well and good, but I want people to know what I'm seeing.

How to apply it to writing by yourself: Writing for me involves seeing the scene like a movie, but not everyone will see if the same way, and sometimes, when I return, the movie has gotten really weird. There's no harm in over describing. You can always edit it out.



04. Remain as open as possible. 
Okay, so this is more a lesson about living then writing. My first experience RPing was extremely cliquey. I wrote with two people in total, and it ended terribly because I wasn't writing with the mods (still bitter that they deleted all of our threads because we started writing some stuff on LJ instead of on the board even though it wasn't related to Hogwarts -.- MOVING ON). Anyways, coming into a new board, I wanted to write with as many people as possible and its improved my writing seeing what other people do.

How to apply it to writing by yourself: Always check in with other options, always see what other people are doing, and if you like it, steal it. Well, learn how to do it yourself. I do not suggest you plagiarize.


05. Think about how other people think. 
When you're juggling between characters its always interesting to see how people think. Two people can have wildly different views on what happens in a scene, and that's okay, because that's what normal people do. Writing with other people can open your eyes up to this whole new world.

How to apply it to writing by yourself: Figure out the moment when the character becomes a separate person. This is the moment when the character does something that you would never, ever do in a million years. Remember that feeling. Its very useful.

06. Facets of yourself. 
When I started RPing, all my characters were the same. I had a tendency to Mary-Sue them, and to have all the answers and to try and make them always be right. Real people aren't like that, and RP characters aren't like that. Letting them be wrong was a huge struggle for me, now its a delightful thing that opens up plots that otherwise wouldn't happen. The problem was, the characters were all me with a different name and face. I am a method author -- when I write I take my own experiences in order to describe emotions especially -- but in the end, the reactions have to be something different. So only facets of you go into the characters, making them different.

How to apply it to writing by yourself: Write someone completely different from you in some way and see what similarities you have. Is it emotionally resonating with you, or is it some other facet of yourself in your characters? Make sure your characters are all different in some way.


07. Share. 
Novels aren't supposed to see the light of day until they are done. Short stories should be worked on. The 500 words of a post, they can be shared quickly and you get instant feedback in the form of the next post. Someone is there interacting with you and interested because they are involved. No worrying about whether they want to read or not cause they always want to read!

How to apply it to writing by yourself: Sharing is good for your writing. Not parts of your novel, but sharing samples and small bits you write, it helps you see where you stand and it helps you always strive to put out something worth reading.


08. Write. A lot. 
I have written over 200,000 words in the last two months. That is definitely a lot. I've been pushing the amount I write daily and usually I get in about ten posts a day, which is about 5000 words daily (give or take). I'm doing really well at pushing it, and I know I can, but it helps to have someone waiting eagerly on the other end. It pushes you to write more.

How to apply it to writing by yourself: Set goals, meet them, and push further. I used to think a 3000 word day was a good day, now 5000 words is a typical day. I, for one, am looking forward to NaNoWriMo.


09. Action creates reaction.
Another theater rule I stole: always move the scene forward. Threads can get buried in reaction if you're not careful. Always push the scene forward to see what happens. Writing to a thread where nothing has happened is one of the hardest things you can do. Always do action so there is something to react to, and hope your partner will add to the forward momentum.

How to apply it to writing by yourself: Always push the scene forward. It keeps people reading, it keeps you interested. Lots of thought and reaction is not interesting to read.


10. Do what's good for you.


This one's pretty much as is. Do what's good for you, do what you need to do. If RPing doesn't do it for you, then don't RP. Don't force yourself to do something you don't want to do.

*SQUEEEEEEE*

GUYS WHY DIDN'T I KNOW THIS WAS COMING OUT?!!? SO EXCITED!

Books Are Coming Out! Despite the Debt Crisis x.x

I currently have four posts I still have to finish and post. One of them is massive and about TV, so its fine that its taking me forever, but the other three are just sitting there in my cue, waiting for me to finish them. So what am I going to do?

IGNORE THEM AND WRITE A DIFFERENT POST :D

I just went on Amazon to look at my magazine subscriptions (I'm going to end TIME and The New Yorker, I just don't have time to go through them) and on the front page under my recommendations was this:

And despite the fact that I am not as big a fan of the Beka Cooper books, I got really excited. So I'm doing a post on the upcoming books that are coming out from now until the end of the year that I'm really excited for.

August 23rd:

Okay, okay, you got me. I like Kathy Reichs' books. They are cheap and full of the kind of drama worthy of the TV show -- but they are addictive. I go through them in a day. I'm pretty sure I'm not caught up (I started at the ninth book, of course I'm not), but they are easy to read and get into, and I like that she's still publishing them. :D

September 13th:

Never heard of it until I did a search for upcoming titles, but this looks really interesting. 

September 20th:

AH I AM SO EXCITED FOR THIS BOOK. This is the last book in the Leviathan trilogy -- which I read the first two books of in the spring. Its an alternate history of WWI, and has a brilliant heroine -- plus I like Alex. I'm terrible at giving reviews without giving away information, but if you haven't yet read this series, GO FOR IT! Seriously, the next book is coming out in less then two months, what's there to lose?

As a science fiction writer myself, I am often plagued with doubts because I haven't read a lot of sci-fi that really intrigued me. Neal Stephenson is a good place to start though, and while I haven't read anything by him yet -- this book actually seems like an excellent place to start. 

October 4th:

I didn't want to read Percy Jackson because the movie trailer was my introduction to the series. If there is ever a story about how you should NEVER judge a book by its movie, it would be this. The series is great -- fast paced and entertaining. Its got a lot of entertaining twists and is full of mythology and friendship and love and its just great. Unfortunately, that series ended. HOWEVER, Rick Riordan has started a new series in the universe that Percy Jackson takes place in, and -- well I haven't read it. But the second book is coming out soon and because I am a series whore, I will probably end up reading The Lost Hero, which is the first book in the series, because I love them and I will want to read this one -- probably around when it comes out. See, it works perfectly!

October 11th:

Terry Pratchett! Discworld! Need I say more?

October 25th:

The day before my birthday... hmmm :D ('cept I don't own the first two)

December 6th:

... I have to read the first book. BUT AS A REMINDER. Also -- a note on how covers do matter a lot when it comes to selling a book. I know you're not supposed to judge a book by its cover -- but there are covers that jump out at you, and Cassandra Clare has got them. 

How to Make Friends and Keep Enemies

This is how I draw*. Benny is on the left, Caroline on the right.
In case you couldn't tell.

So I mentioned liking the Golden Trio (Harry, Ron and Hermione) in my last post, but didn't really connect it to anything. The point of that was that I kind of see my three main characters -- Caroline, Zeke and Stephen -- forming this sort of bond. What intrigues me about my tio is that Caroline fulfills Hermione's role, not Harry's, but she is definitely the hero of this story (Stephen would be Harry, Zeke, Ron).

When I say Caroline is Hermione, I mean, more along the lines of their initial dynamic -- Harry and Ron are off being best friends, while Hermione is lonely because she's a know-it-all. Zeke and Stephen hit it off really well, because Zeke is very likable, and Stephen is incredibly noble (and stupid about it sometimes). Zeke and Caroline really don't like one another, but share the bond of a common home (not a Hermione/Ron thing, just mentioning it).

So now, I am trying to find a way for them to all become friends. In Harry Potter, they fight a troll and win, Hermione takes the fall for them, and they find out she's not all that bad. I don't know how to do this with Caroline, Stephen and Zeke. Stephen has seen a softer side to Caroline just now, and he was upset when she nearly died, but Zeke and Caroline are a different matter. I'm worried that their years of fighting with one another and hating one another for no real reason, can't be overcome by just Stephen letting her join in the games.

I know I was all excited last post about not knowing what's going to happen, but here I am, worried because I don't know how this will work, and I really want them to be friends. Indeed some of the plot, I sense, will need them to be friends. The real reason they aren't friends now is that Caroline is jealous of Zeke.

Anyways, so I'm writing that.

I'm also finding it amusing that Benny, a character from a seperate novel, is making fun of Caroline and Caroline back at Benny as I write. They have amusing interactions. I wish there was a way to combine their stories, but not really. AH WELL. We solider on.

*This is not how I draw. But its how I draw when I'm feeling lazy/am at work and realize I have no image to go with the post. ;)

Playing with Point of View -- CampNaNoWriMo Day 22 (ish)

I have now started three NaNo's for this month. One was about the characters I posted about below. I am still very much in love with that story, but I think it needs some work in terms of getting it to be... a story. Currently I have a beginning, a vague idea of a middle, and an end. I just need to work on it a little bit because it was reading flat to me.

The next one, was of course, The Book of Gates, my twelve part series following Alane and various other characters. It is, in a word, epic. I have been trying to write it for years. Unfortunately, I seem to be a bit daunted by the idea of twelve books to write in a series. I have decided, for my own sake, that if I were to ever try and publish tBoG (hee, t-bog), I would have to write all 12 books before sending out the first one. Mostly because they are complex in terms of their scope, and some things have not yet been planned, and there are arcs, and mini-arcs and over arching arcs, and I want to make sure they all fit together, and come to a satisfying conclusion, so as to avoid the third book slump that seems to happen with quite a few trilogies, and several series (not that it occurs in the third book, its just it happens in trilogies a lot, so I call it that). Anyways. Its a labor of love, and I think I may have to snowflake it, just to try and get a grasp on what I'm writing towards in the first book.

So then I threw my hands up and went and watched Treasure Planet, which, dudes, seriously underrated film. It came out in an over saturated market, and was marketed towards the wrong crowd, which is why people think its not as great as it is, but having watched it nine years later, I've got to say it was impressive. Anyways, so I watched it with the intent of coming up with a novel idea from it. And I did.

I'm not ripping off Treasure Planet, but the initial spark was -- treasure seekers. In the movie, the characters are motivated by the idea of gold, but this is me, so treasure automatically means knowledge to me. Anyways, I was thinking about motivations, and the need for money, and how Harry Potter works, with a trio and the power of friendship (which is to say, OT3?), and I came up with this orphan character who was left at a Space Port and is therefore always looking for money.

And when I started writing it, you know the strangest thing happened. 1. Caroline, my main character, decided to be written in present tense. 2. She decided that she was telling the story, and so it had to be first person.

Most people say first person is an easy tense to write in. I could not agree any less. I hate writing in first person. Mostly because I end up starting a lot of sentences with "I did this" and I find it incredibly difficult to vary my sentence structures in first person. Third feels more natural to me -- I have written in third person limited for most of my novels.

But I was thinking about this, and how my last novel was third-limited to one person -- another first for me, usually I jump around in about five people's heads (oh yes, I am terribly good at finding four people I want to write with, and then discovering I need a fifth voice) -- and it was incredibly interesting to see what it forced the characters to do. So with this in mind, I decided to let Caroline have her way. Who knew, maybe first person, present tense would work for me.

The beginning is rough. I always try and start with some sort of action -- whether it be speech, or something important about to happen -- because it means I have to keep going. If I start with description, I'm bogging myself down in unnecessary backstory. Action requires my pen (fingers, I usually type) to move. In this novel what ended up happening was a lot of "I ran. I looked around. I slid on my knees towards. ect." I hated it. I wanted to get out of it so badly. Often I would find myself trying things like "She did this," before realizing I was referring to Caroline, and having to delete it. I also have many, many problems with the tense. I have written "said" instead of "says" so many times, I am shocked when I manage to type "says" first.

But something funny happened around 7,000 words. I stopped noticing. I got into the story. I found Caroline's voice, while slightly annoying, and things began to happen.

I've got to say, there are some brilliant bits to writing in first person, present tense. For example -- I know as much as Caroline about what's going to happen and I DON'T NEED TO KNOW! I usually write towards something, it helps, and with third person, past, you have to know where you are going so you can have the write thoughts cross character's minds. With first person, present, you can guess where you're going, but the story can accommodate all sorts of things, and you feel much more connected to the character.

No, I am not in love with first person present, I don't think I'll stick with it forever. But for this story, which is teetering between sci-fi and fantasy, where I don't know what the end is going to be, its perfect.

Anyways, I'm 11,000 words in, and I have 9 days to finish this novel. Oh, would you look at that? Another 9 day novel?

Except it won't be. I don't have the pressure to finish the novel like I did with 9 day, just to get to 50,000 words. :D

OH AND CHECK OUT FIREBIRD ON BLOGGER. We're mirroring it on blogger and on LiveJournal because Josh doesn't have the same experience on LJ as me. I prefer LJ, to be honest. BUT IT WILL BE UP ON BOTH SO CHECK IT OUT.

In Defense of Passion (Harry Potter 7.2 Midnight Showing)

We are told as children to sit still, hold our tongues, listen to our elders. And we do. By the time we've entered school, the rule of 'behave yourself' has gotten written into our social dialogues. If you're loud, if you say things in a different way, if you are different you get called out on it -- an ostracized if you push it too far, or become popular if you fall within a strict concept of "cool".

Oh, am I revealing I was a nerd in middle school/high school -- totally. I was a COMPLETE NERD (what do you mean was? I am still a nerd, I get excited over having scientists contact information at my command, not that I would use it, but do you see?). Let me be honest, though, my school was not the typical high school you see in Hollywood, it was too big. I was not downtrodden and reviled, I do not have high school flashbacks of awful times. Indeed my time in middle and high school was remarkably smooth, for all you hear about how terrible it is from other nerds.

Anyways, the point is, the rules tells us to stay cool, calm and collected -- homogenous with the rest of your peers lest you break away and become that ostracized person who eats dirt with worms down the bottom of the garden.

This makes having a passion about something hard. Passion is loud, noisy and it makes you give away so much of yourself you're afraid you're never going to give it back (this does not always happen). Passion is squashed down in us as children -- for a reason -- and from then on, you can be labeled as 'weird' for liking something passionately. That's why Trekkies are labeled as weird -- they are willing to break the bounds of propriety that are imposed by society to dress up in costumes and deeply care about something (and my impulse to say 'sometimes a little too much' is a symptom of this point).

I was thinking about this the other day because I had this exchange with my brother:

Me: So you'll be home Wednesday?

Jasper: Yeah.

Me: Just in time for Harry Potter!

Jasper: Uh sure.

Me: So you're not planning on going to a midnight showing?

Jasper: What's the point, you already know what's going to happen.

Why would you want to go to something you already know the end of? Why wouldn't you? I grew up with Harry (as in, I was about his age when it started and was around his age each time the next book came out. He was my peer). I was Harry crazy -- I reread the books, have a compendium of random trivia around Harry. I am a loud fan, a crazy fan, someone who went to midnight book releases and was SO EXCITED about being in London for the seventh book. I have forced people to come with me to see movies, and book releases but I would have happily gone by myself.

The point is, I am passionate about Harry Potter -- and that's why I want to go to a movie I know the end of (though, ugh, there were moments of annoyance). Its about expressing that passion -- and having other people with you who do the same!

Harry Potter is the reason I am still friends with Sammie (I went to middle school with Sammie, we bonded over it. She is my Harry Potter Best Friend). Harry Potter has brought me closer to Matt and as a result, Maddie (friends from school). We share this connection because of a deep love for these books, these characters -- this story.

And that's something worth being passionate about.

I own all the paper backs, all but 1 of the British versions 

(I have two of some of them) and all but 7 of the 

American hardbacks (7 went missing after I 

bought it -- UPSET). 

Anyways, I'm not as upset about the end of the Harry Potter movies as I thought I would be. I think its mostly because, in re-reading I've found I love them just as much as I did when I started them. There is so much in them that you can learn from. True, re-reading creates a different feeling, and there are parts that didn't bother me as a child, but are annoying now, but there is also so much good in them. 

As Dumbledore says: "Of course it is happening in your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?" Harry will always be real to me. 

Thank you J. K. Rowling. Just... thank you. 

Writing Fail

I have Harry Potter thoughts, but I'm keeping them to myself for the moment because I'm running on three hours of sleep and it doesn't should like anything at the moment.

Instead, I'm staring at my NaNo and BEING UPSET WITH IT. Apparently, Neil, Leta, Erik and Jane aren't entertaining enough for me. I have to write OTHER people. Its because Alane has popped up again -- actually Alane hasn't, Mattie has, and she is loud, annoying and well... I like her.

Don't be annoyed with me for the fantasy cliche, but Mattie is a nickname for Mataline. I usually hate this, but my reasons for doing it in the Book of Gates is that there are some made up names and some names that are commonplace here (Elaine, Harvey and Madeline) but some that are clearly not (Navari and Koil). Rather then have an Aerith and Bob situation, I decided to change everyone's names up. Some names do have spellings that are normal, but that's because you can't really spell Anna differently. Mya is a way of spelling the name, but it works cause its got a y. ANYWAYS. Not a discussion of names. (Though, if you're curious, I changed Harvey into Harvi).

Anyways, so Mattie showed up and was all angry and so full of anger because I've had in the back of my mind the idea of a character who Alane has hurt badly stalking her for revenge, and Mattie is so interesting in that respect because -- well she's Adair's daughter, the one who takes after her mother, and I think it would be fascinating for me to see what she does. Adair is so pissed with me. Originally Anna was going to die, but now I've just disfigured her, and Mattie has run away from home to get revenge on Alane.

Mattie and Anna are the polar opposite type twins -- Anna is sporty, full of energy, and takes definitely after her father. Mattie was planning on becoming a doctor like her mother, loves to read, and doesn't go outside if she can help it. So you would think Mattie wouldn't go out seeking revenge -- but she does. And its this twist in her character that I find to be so interesting.

The fun part was that within moments of me finding Mattie, a new character showed up and he told me about himself -- a charming trickster. I was trying to puzzle out some more about it when it hit me -- he's a shifter -- THIS IS EXCELLENT. In the world I've built here, shifters are so rare they are thought to have been killed off and are no longer considered to be magical. :D I LOVE WHEN CHARACTERS ARE BRILLIANT.

Now, if only I could name the scamp, we'd be in the money. Thoughts anyone?

PROOF

LIFE, its so difficult

I was gonna take a picture of my phone or my desk in some way to prove I actually have a job, but then I couldn't because my phone died. In the most annoying way possible. I have to bike home and I was listening to Bossypants by Tina Fey and really enjoying it and now I shall have to bike home with nothing in my ears!!! #firstworldproblems (other first world problems: I have started to add hashtags to normal posts other places then twitter).Well anyways, I will post a picture eventually.

I think I've kind of found a groove with this blog and know how I want to use it. So now, instead of articulating it, as good practice, I'm going to pretend I didn't know and just keep doing whatever the hell I want. In my own life: I've got a job as a receptionist at NOVA, which has brought out the super nerd in me. I was putting in information off of business cards on Tuesday and I typed "Elizabeth Lo" and Elizabeth freaking Loftus showed up. SERIOUSLY. Then I went around looking for other people I knew, and DUDE THEY WERE ALL IN THE DATABASE. Yes, I am a nerd for being excited about this. Its not like I'm about to call one of them and be like "Give me a job." but I might fangirl at some of these scientists... I'm such a bio nerd.

Anyways, so life has been going on. I've been working for three whole days. I have been struggling with Neil, Leta, Erik and Jane (Oh, Madeline still exists, but in a future book, maybe it will be book 2 for August's Camp).

This is the point where I pull out my strategies for fleshing out characters. The first one is to go to TVtropes and click on random and find something I know, before going and looking for a trope that I love and want to incorporate. The second is to take the Mary Sue Litmus Test.

I have decided to share with you, the tropes that are associated with my four main characters, as well as their Mary Sue Scores (and why the got them).

Neil:

Was your character's name... Taken from a character from another fandom that you like? Yes, Neil is taken from Humon's webcomic Neils, which is hard to link because its on her deviantart page.

Do authority figures not punish your character when they probably would have punished his or her peers under the same circumstances? Neil and Jane get away with a lot, at first because they're rising stars, and then because they've got a dead end case that have made them less then noticeable by higher ups.

Is your character unusually accomplished for his/her age, time period, place, occupation, and/or social status? In something that is extremely desirable and/or useful in the story's universe? Neil and Jane are both in their early 20s, and have both received awards for their service... not lately though. They both work as Agents, which is a desirable position to be in.

Not counting his or her first language, how many languages does your character fluently speak? Click one box for every language. Neil can speak Spanish fluently as well as English.

Total: 10

Neil is The Hero of the story, main protagonist Charmer, with a smile that gets him through most doors (especially to women's doors). He has a cheery, almost Determinator quality about him when it comes to the case file. He is the Cowboy Cop to Jane's By the Book Cop, but they work well together, and are basically, Heterosexual Life Partners.

Leta:

Is your character the best or among the best at anything he/she does? Leta is a skilled hacker. Neil and Jane have a few conversations about how brilliant she is.

Are other characters extremely impressed or astonished at your character's skills and/or virtues? When Neil and Jane meet Leta for the first time, Jane and Neil have a similar reaction of 'But you're in a wheelchair'.

On the subject of your character and his/her family... Was your character orphaned, abandoned, kicked out, or at least raised by a family/person that was not his/her own family? Yes, yes, yes, Leta's mother was awful and her father wants nothing to do with her, because he has a new family. Doesn't mean Leta's upset by it. Indeed, she seems not to care much. Probably a reaction to Erik's epic over response to it.

Is your character physically disabled, and has nothing to make up for it? She used to have mechanized legs, but getting kicked out of the game meant that they came for the legs, and she was left with... nothing at first, but then Eric went a bit mad and insisted on getting her a wheelchair.

Total: 5

Leta is a Genius Cripple, being unable to move her legs, but being The Smart Guy. She tends to be Erik's Morality Chain, though to a less extreme extent -- certainly Erik would not work with Neil without Leta around. Nor would he be above killing people in the Agency without Leta. Despite her Missing Mom, Leta has never had major issues with her parents. Her father knows about her, but has asked to not be contacted as his life has changed since Leta was born. Her mother left when she was 14. Neither seemed to have had a major imprint on her Manic Pixie Dream Girl personality towards Erik.

Erik:

Any ordinary name spelled or changed so that it's more unusual? Erik is an actual spelling of the name Eric, but I would normally have spelled it Eric. His mother was feeling poetical, as she was with Leta's name.

Is your character described, illustrated, and/or shown as exceptionally beautiful, cute, or handsome? Do you find your character attractive enough to date him/her? Mmmmm, Erik is half Native American, half white. He's very, very, pretty. (he also doesn't share a father with Leta, thought I should point that out).

Is your character the best or among the best at anything he/she does? Along with Leta, its admitted they are the best hackers.

On the subject of your character and his/her family... Was your character orphaned, abandoned, kicked out, or at least raised by a family/person that was not his/her own family? His father never knew he existed, and when Erik showed up to introduce himself, he found his father refused to believe it. Then his mother left him, basically to look after Leta, when he was 18. He never quite recovered.

Has your character ever been honestly selfish, petty, lazy, shallow, or pointlessly cruel? He made an Agent that was after him and Leta go into the office and almost shoot his partner because it was "More fun" that way.

Total: 9

Erik has strong Big Brother Instincts towards Leta, but despite this he is a little bit of a Jerk With A Heart Of Jerk. He is The Lancer to Neil's Hero, and the two have a Ryu And Ken relationship. He's something of a Well Intentioned Extremist when it comes to the Agency and those who work for it (part of why he and Neil don't get along). Leta is his Moe. He has severe Parental Abandonment issues due to never knowing his father (his father doesn't know he even exists) and his mother's struggle with drug addiction which took her in and out of his life often.

Jane:

Not counting his or her first language, how many languages does your character fluently speak? In order to become an Agent, you need to be fluent in two languages. Jane can speak Japanese perfectly, having been a nerd as a child and watched a ton of anime.

Is your character the best or among the best at anything he/she does? Is he/she famous/reknowned for it? She's known as the best shot in Boston. She's a remarkable sharpshooter, and its why Neil trusts her to have his back.

Does your character ever single-handedly take out more armed forces (EG, security guards, soldiers) than you can count on one hand using his/her kick-butt skills? The reason Neil trusts Jane is because of this. Also, she scared him a little by doing it.

Total: 5

Jane is a Kindhearted Cat Lover. She has a serious, long term relationship with her boyfriend Kevin. She is a Girl With Guns and knows how to use them (everyone in the Agency agrees she is the best shot in Boston). She's an Action Girl with a sense of the Lady Of War variety. She has a bit of Jeanne D'Archetype about her, due to her perseverance and desire to do what is right.


Good way to waste time!

Anyways, going to read some now. HARRY POTTER RE-READ. I'm live tweeting it. :)

Camp NaNoWriMo Session 1 Day 3

As the titles of these posts get longer and longer, the days of July creep away. I only have one more day before I start my job and my time becomes... different? I'm not sure, but I'll be working a 9-5 job and that will be something to get used to.

Anyways, so today I sat down to do a minor amount of planning for Camp NaNoWriMo. You may recall that the outline method I attempted for the 9 Day Novel failed, so I am not going to attempt it again. I do, however, think that having wrestled with characters for a bit, I accomplished a lot in terms of knowing where things were going to go. The other thing I found out was that I tend to find characters after the end of their novel. In my 9 day novel, Penny and Tia were found way, way, way after their novel, and recently I realized that Neil, Leta and Erik have a lot of background that has to get covered before I can really dive into the present I was working with. So I will probably be going even further back and trying to plot from there. 

I'm using James Scott Bell's method as described in his book on writing Plot and Structure: A disturbance and two doorways. The basic premise of this idea works with the three act structure -- the beginning is a disturbance, the doorways lead from one act to another, and are 'doorways of no return' so there is no way to go but forward for the characters.

So, this is what I'm doing for an outline -- the disturbance and two doorways and then I'll hit the road running, because I now know I've lost all the words I could have written due to the shift in timeframe.

At least I have tomorrow off, right?

Anyone else doing Camp NaNoWriMo? How's it going?

Camp NaNoWriMo Seesion 1: Day 1, 2 and 3

Wow, Day 1 of Camp NaNo was a slog. I didn't get around to until late, and I was super tired, so I'm pretty sure the end of the section I was working on doesn't make sense. I even think that a majority of it is going to have to go as I think about the requirements of point of view. 

Also Day 1 involved a drive into Boston which turned into Dorchester and Roxbury and being really, really lost. The story goes like this: Kat called me around 5:30 to ask me to bring her cell phone to her in Boston, because she left it at her parents. I was not pleased at the prospect of heading into Boston Friday night around rush hour, but I couldn't very well say no, so I went. She is currently working on a show, which was why she didn't me to bring it to her and while I had been to the theatre once, I actually hadn't been to the theater by car, so I got a bit lost heading down to the theater. 

I saw one of the actors heading into the theater as I pulled up and yelled for him to bring the phone to Kat and then, because I'm dog sitting, I headed back towards the house. Only, not quite knowing where I was meant that I went the wrong direction. I was heading out of Boston, I kept telling myself, and that meant I could find a way back home. However, as I traveled in search of a street I knew I got more and more lost. And then my phone died. 

So here I was, a white girl in a red VW Bug, feeling very visibly suburban and lost in one of the most dangerous places in Boston and I had to pull my laptop out of my bag to charge my phone. Great. While my phone was charging, I hit a street called "Washington" which I took gladly, thinking it was a street it turned out not to be. I ended up wiggling around in Dorchester for almost an hour, trying to figure out the best way out. 

Eventually I got on a parkway, which lead me, finally, to streets I knew, but it was very, very disconcerting to not know where I was. It meant when I got to the place where I'm housing sitting, I wasn't feeling super up to writing.

Day 2 hasn't been much better. Indeed, I seem to have lost the 2,000 words I wrote due to the POV issue. I also lost words due to these guys: 

Theo is lying on the cushion, Thor is sitting there with his funny face. They are both super old and slow at everything. However, that being said, they are both characters, and quite amusing at times.

I also went to see Kat's show. I'm not a huge fan of the show -- I never went through a Rent phase -- but the show was quiet enjoyable. Possibly because there were actors that I worked with in high school in the show, and people I knew from Kat talking about them, and the moment the show started I could tell who had directed it. I also didn't noticed mistakes the way I used to. I wonder if its the distance of time that has changed my perception of theater, or something else, but it was different to go to a show and not pick out the details that were problematic.

Except for Ryan (who played Roger, if you know the show, and who I stage managed in his first show at my high school as a freshman) who was weirdly mumbly at the beginning -- that I noticed and was annoyed by, mostly because it felt like he just wasn't opening his mouth. Weird.

Anyways, so writing!

I came up with characters! I have Leta, Nik, Neil and Lilah. Huh, typing them out like that I have noticed a trend in names. I guess Nik will have to be Erik, which is fine, as that was his name originally until he told me he was half native american and I got a mental picture of him. Okay, so Erik, Neil, Leta and Lilah. I kind of am unsure of Lilah's name, but I have a really strong sense of her character.

I also have something that could be a plot, mostly to do with forcing people together in a specific way to ensure that they have to interact, which will force plot. I hope. I could also muddle about with the characters until they tell me their real plot as I did with the 9 day novel. We'll see. I'm off to look for a better name for Lilah. Now I've thought about it, Leta is a good name, but Lilah is an 'L' name that can change.

Other then that, of course, I have to write for Firebird. I'm excited about the prompt. Maybe I can use it for NaNo?

Post 9 day novel Wrap up

DONE! *faints*

My final word count with the chapter titles removed came to 59295 (a pleasing palindrome of a number).

I've been playing with these characters for less then a year, but they're already huge in my mind, real people. I'm excited to finish this chapter of their lives (I know what continues to happen with them of course, and it may turn into another novel, it may not). But its tinged with sadness. I really love these guys and now I think I should take a break, or I'll never be able to edit this thing.

Halley wants me to send it to her and to get it done by August, which I'm totally for, but I need some separation from it, so I'm going to head into Camp NaNoWriMo which starts today and attempt to keep up with the blogging as I go. Of course, there are fewer words involved with Camp NaNoWriMo, so it might not be as pressure cooking exciting as the 9 Day Novel stuff.

The problem is, now I've got Penny (my lead) stuck in my head. I'm having problems trying to come up with a new character to play with. I started thinking about how I started with Penny and the gang: NaNoWriMo last year where I had a brain wave about 11 days in and decided to do something that was based entirely around five characters that I pulled out of no where.

That novel was not terribly good, I will admit. After all, nothing happened but people running around shooting each other. But I did get five great characters from the exercise of writing about 40,000 words on them (I wrote 50,000 words in November, but only 40,000 of them were for that story). It is at this point, that I have a confession to make. My brother, Jasper, actually was quite instrumental in getting the actual novel I wrote these last 9 days started.

Jasper put up this on his blog, which for some reason spoke to me and resulted in me asking him to illustrate something I wrote. Then of course he was like "Yes! Totally!" and I was like "Crap! I haven't written anything he'd like to draw!"

Luckily I had been kicking around with the idea of doing an Oregon Trail in space story, and had been borrowing the characters from my NaNo to do it, and had this idea of a city in my head, a city made out of giant space ships that had settled in the ground. Anyways, taking that, I threw my five characters into the city and tried to see what would happen.

This was where I met Lee, and what I sent to Jasper: the mixed up beginning of Penny getting into Carys and seeing the great ark ships. This was what Jasper got from it:

It was kind of fabulous (the middle sketch of the woman with her hand on her hip has lead to Lee's expansion) to see what someone else thought of my characters (and typical of Jasper to gravitate to Lee's character, he likes mechanical things) and so it was that I began to search for a way to make their story real.

June came around and I realized I hadn't written anything, and so the 9 Day Novel was born.

Now I'm having problems because WTF am I going to write for Camp NaNoWriMo? Perhaps its time to find some characters again and throw them into something they don't quite understand. :D

9 Day Novel has been great. I've enjoyed it incredibly. I will probably do it again.

Keep watching. Camp NaNoWriMo is up next.

Day 9 -- the day after yesterday, better known as the last day of this adventure

This is it. The last day. Today I write until the story ends. Admittedly, I have some things to do today, but apart from those -- write like the wind!

It all comes down to it today. I'm going to get things all set up and write as much as possible and we'll see where I am when the day ends. Either way -- this has produced a working draft of this story in 9 days. How freaking cool is that?

Around 10 pm


More chapter titles:

Chapter Fifteen: Penny goes around in the walls?
Chapter Sixteen: I have to do another chapter title? DAMNIT.
Chapter Seventeen: Humdedadumdeda A title
Chapter Eighteen: More titles? Crap.
Chapter Nineteen: DOOM
Chapter Twenty: More DOOM
Chapter Twenty-One: Down in the Deep; or the Decent of Orpheus (?)

I got a but poetical there. I'm having some problems with coming up with names for chapters. I suppose I could go without chapter titles, but there is something enjoyable about chapter titles and if I can just figure out a theme I'm sure I'll make it work.

Anyways, this is procrastination, so I can avoid getting into the last(? possibly second to last) chapter. CRAZY. Let's get this done!

Around 11pm


Holy crap. I finished.

Final word count 59,394.

WOOOOOO!!!

Wrap up post tomorrow and the beginning of Camp NaNoWriMo. :D

Thanks for watching.

Groundhog Day 8 -- or Day Eight 2: Electric Boogaloo

Due to the complete failure of yesterday in terms of word count (I think I wrote something like 5 words), I decided to do Day 8 over again. The advantage of this is that 1, I get to make a lot of jokes about the movie Groundhog Day (this will probably be the last one though, I'll get distracted and forget) and 2, I will finish on the last day of June and not awkwardly on the 29th. I'm not sure how I missed this, but if I hadn't missed day 8, I would have ended today on the 29th, which isn't as good as ending on the 30th.

So yes, forget yesterday as Day 8, TODAY is day 8. :D

Now before I got too far, I just wanted to plug this article that Diane Duane, one of my all time favorite authors (she writes the Young Wizards series), retweeted this morning: A Home Before the End of the World. It was fabulous, and poignant, and just a great way to start the morning. I hope it starts your morning as well (or evening, afternoon or lunchtime even).

ANYWAYS, onwards. The keyboard awaits my first 1000 of the day.

Around 11am

I have figured out that if I can get to 50,000 with whatever has happened here, I could jump start the end of the novel and get it done by tomorrow. How strange is that?

My current word count is above. I was just thinking that even if I fail to finish the novel, at least I got this far into it in 9 days. It makes everything worth it. 

Around 10:30 pm

Wheeeeeeeee! I just wrote a very dramatic scene which will haunt Penny, my lead, for ages to come. I also managed to put in a character who might be The Doctor. MIGHT BE, is the key. I would never say he is. He does wear a pinstripe suit and a brown coat though. 

Anyways. I am about to hit 53,000 words, which is good, because my goal for today would have been 56,000 had I been on track. I'm heading into a dramatic ending which may or may not take me to 63,000. Either way, I'm happy with what's happening. I feel the draw of the end, pulling me along. 

Anyways, so in my spare time, whist I am procastinating, I've been thinking about ebook formatting of this book. And chapter titles. But the point being, is I made a cover for this book. I've decided that the book will probably be called Cut Throat in part, due to the true story that some of the characters are only barely based off of (the Scott family is the Medici family). Anyways, I wanted there to be blood dripping down from the cut, but I couldn't figure out how to make it look quite right, so I just left as is. 

Its not the most beautiful or captivating cover, but I was procrastinating, what do you want from me? I will actually make a cover for it properly later. I was pleased with the torn paper effect though, hence me sharing it. The tutorial I used was really good. 

Oh, and other noveling news -- CampNaNoWriMo has opened up!!! I already have an idea for it, but its super vague. Well, after doing almost 7,000 word days, 1,667 is an easy concept. I can knock that out (be)for(e) breakfast. 

I'm excited about everything! Let's get going on the end of this novel -- I know where things are going now. :D

Day 8 -- the day before tomorrow

Today promises to be wicked busy so taking a few minutes to drink tea and compose myself.

Yes in the background of this image you can see the names of the thirteen mechanics of Carys. I mean, if you squint and peer at it closely enough. :D

Anyways. So my mother is at the Cape, being all "I need a break!" and she took the car with her. Meanwhile, I have to take Kipper home to his family, take Tillie to the vet and have a doctor's appointment myself. We figured out a way to make it work -- I would drive my dad to work and then I'd have his car to drive to all these things.

This morning my dad informs me he has an eye doctor appointment. Me: o.o

Anyways, so there's lot's of running about and trying to make things fit. I am going to probably not be able to write much until 2:30 or so. I'm somewhat upset...

More later.

Around 8:30


So, as I predicted I wasn't able to get any words in. Though I didn't foresee it lasting this long. Ow. Well, I'm just going to have to go with what I've got now and try to get to a point where I can get things moving for the plot. Maybe going into the end, which is broad and dramatic, will allow for me to be pulled along on the last day? We'll see.

Good news though! Tillie, who was diagnosed with stage 4 carcinoma in September, has not developed any new growths, and according to the vet, she will probably get to live another 5 to 6 years despite having been given about four months to live nine months ago.

Tillie was annoyed with me because I was taking a picture of her in the care, and not taking her for her walk.

Day Seven -- a Day to Remember?

The deck is the bane of my existence.

There are tons of little nails in it which require removal and guess who is at home and "not doing anything". Oh yes, so I will have to remove these nails today. LUCKILY I can do it at my own pace and I think that will help me in terms of not wanting to rip my hair out.

So today. Today I am supposed to hit 49,000. I'm currently at 38,322. You never know, I could surprise myself. I don't know if I've ever done an 11,000 word day before though, so it may not happen.

My mother is going to the Cape today, so I will have the house to my self and only the dogs to care for until my dad gets back. I'm going to try and hit 7,000 words before six so I can at least be done with my word count before my dad wants me to do things.

Tillie is very worried mum is going to leave her behind -- for good reason as Tillie is not going to the Cape.

Oh, and as a small PS as I've been adding pictures recently to my posts: I've downloaded this app called Instagram which adds filters to your photos and really helps with the color and the way things look. So that is why you've got all these pictures on here, looking kind of cool. I will try and take pictures that aren't Tillie related some time, but unfortunately, she's terribly photogenic, so its hard. :D

Back to writing. More later perhaps.

Around Midday

I got distracted again. Need to work on that. Anyways, I thought I'd share the chapter titles I have currently. You can kind of tell where the story went sideways by the fact that the titles change. I'm probably going to rework the titles later, but I was amused by things that happened, so here are the titles:

Chapter One: An Opportunity
Chapter Two: An Unexpected Visitor
Chapter Three: A Wake Up Call
Chapter Four: A Surprise
Chapter Five: A Death in the Family
Chapter Six: An Early Meeting
Chapter Seven: Revelations
Chapter Eight: Something
Chapter Nine: Another Thing
Chapter Ten: Some Title I Have Yet to Come Up With Thank You Very Much
Chapter Eleven: Some New Title I Have to Come Up With
Chapter Twelve: Lee Arrives
Chapter Thirteen: In Which Something Happens, But I Don't Know What Yet, So Don't Ask Me
Chapter Fourteen: Oh Good Another Headache For Later

Right, I'm heading back. I leave you with these two songs which I've got on repeat as a soundtrack for this novel:
New Medium - Faded Paper Figures (discovered the other day while out with Halley)
Cosmic Love - Florence and the Machine (honestly, probably my favorite song of all time. I've listened to it so many times. When I first downloaded it I actually lay around for four hours listening to it on repeat... I think I got high off of music)

Around 10

Having seen the trailer for Brave (see above) I got really excited and distracted for a bit. Then I fell asleep -- I was so exhausted suddenly I just needed to lie down. I didn't wake up until my dad came back and woke me up. So yes, that was not an accomplishment.

I did however, turn on different music and now have Obliviate from the Harry Potter soundtrack on repeat. LOVE IT.

Anyways, I'm at 45,000 words. Only 4,000 more words to go and I'm not yet tired :D! Maybe 49,000 is in reach due to napping. We'll see.

Around 11:30


Well, my eyes are all dry and something strange just happened in my novel so I'm going to bed in order to figure out what happened. I am now only 3,000 words behind!!! I think that makes today an 8,000 word day WAHOO! Perhaps today is a day to remember. Or perhaps not. Tomorrow shall be busy but I will try hard to get words in. Goodnight everyone.

Day Six Dawns

Yesterday was rough on my word count. As I said, we are redoing the deck at my house, and I offered to help my dad (with a push to get it done as soon as possible). However, I was thinking it wouldn't happen this weekend, due to it being wet, also my dad's birthday. Once again I underestimated the destruction my family can have on my word count. Add on to that, last night was one of the only free nights Kat will have for ages due to her show, and I wanted to write... it was a mess.

Being a writer is hard -- the distractions are enough to get you doing other things for weeks. Sometimes you have to set up time for yourself to get things done. And I have never done this before because I can do 1000 words in half an hour (a little less, but I like giving myself a mental break before heading back in). Yesterday was the first time I attempted to set a time for myself to write, and told people about it, and it blew up in my face.

People are always so supportive of my writing, until I actually want to put words to the page. Then I'm taking time that I should be devoting to other things. Its like people feel like my writing is a hobby -- not something that should cut into time I could otherwise be spending doing something else -- and to me, its not a hobby, its a solace and way of life.

I know my mother deals with this all the time because she's self employed and works from home, and people are always assuming she has time for something, when in fact she's quite busy (of course it gets confusing because my mother also complains about not having enough work to me, so I tell someone else that she's looking for work, and then my mother is like "No I'm too busy!" ... I don't understand that but sure).

Anyways, angst of an artist, blah blah blah. I wonder how much time I waste writing these entries instead of getting in my words. ;)

In NaNoWriMo they talk about the effect of getting to 20,000 words, and how this is the point where the writing slows down because you know the characters and have to slog to get through. I've never really experienced this with my NaNos, unless of course, I get stuck on a novel that's just not going to work because it hasn't marinated long enough. I do get a sense of the twenties though, and know I'm in it now (despite being at 31,000 words). So push ahead.

Word count doesn't matter so much, I must remind myself. Its all a matter of getting as much as I can on the page. Still, I'd rather like to get to 40,000 by tonight... I hope I can. :D

I leave you with a picture of Tillie, for motivational purposes:

Almost 9

Okay, so no, I am not at 42,000 yet. I'm not even at 40,000, but I'm at a tidy 34,000. I feel pretty good at the moment and fully intend to keep the night going on and on until I get somewhere good. And this is mostly due to the fact that.... I love Lance and Penny interacting. I forgot how fun they are because in my NaNo they had one scene of fun and then Penny got all depressing. Its mostly that Lance brings out a different side of Penny that we mostly don't get to see when she's not around him, and it makes her so entertaining. Plus Lance is silly.

Anyways, more stuff has happened, and I am pleased. :D

I agree Tia, I agree. I am so entangled in this city. <3

Trials and tribulations of Day Five

So, if you've been following me, you know that yesterday did not go well. I got 5,000 words in and hit a major road block. I tried to do what is advised at this point and went to see a movie (Beginners) and then tried not to think about it too much and just wrote for a while, free style to see if the characters would come up with it by themselves. Well, then didn't, so I went to bed in the hopes that if I slept I would have dreams that would help, or at least I would wake up with a solution.

Unfortunately cat drama happened. Let me explain the cat drama.

This is Gus:

He's my cat (the other one is Daisy). I love him dearly, but he's a very outdoorsy cat and likes to be outside. Anyways, a few years ago, we had a golden retriever staying with us (by the name of Churchill), and the dog freaked Gus out so much that he ran out of our yard and ripped open his leg. After several days of not knowing where he was, he returned, limping painfully, and had to have surgery. He did, however make a full recovery. Its times like these that I think that Gus would have made a very good Wizard Cat. 

The point being, Gus now can't deal with stranger dogs. We currently have a dog called Kipper staying with us. Kipper is a sweet dog:

But of course his presence means that Gus refused to come inside. Instead he would stand in our neighbors yard while we called for him, calling back that he was hungry and we better get his dinner out to him there. So, since my mother doesn't understand how to catch cats, I was the one outside, throwing cat food at Gus and trying to grab him. Didn't work. 

Well last night I wake up because Gus is yowling up a storm outside. So I go downstairs at about 4:45am and let him in. I think this interruption got into the collating of ideas in my brain and now I'm still stuck. 

Well, stuck - ish. I think I have a solution for the whole story, and its that Tia is protecting Penny, and the Shadow Collection is much closer on hand, making the danger pressing, so that Tia would feel awful for giving up Penny. We'll see. I'm going to have to wriggle it a bit. 

Today I have to get 9,000 words in, to make up for yesterday, the problem being that my dad wants me to do things with him. Well, let's get going. Do 1000 quick. See how it goes.

At 11
I have managed to write... 4,000 words today x.x I owe another 3,000 for today and 2,000 from yesterday. That's an extra 5,000 words tomorrow. And I'm so tired now.

Okay, so today, I had to start destroying the deck we have in our backyard. It was rotting and needed doing, but it of course, had to happen in the middle of this project.

Plus, tomorrow is my dad's birthday, so we went out tonight. And then Kat called me and was like "I am free!" and I was like "I NEED TO WRITE 5,000 WORDS" and she got mad at me. :(

I'm too tired to continue. Tomorrow I'll just have to figure it out.

Goodnight.

From the chronicles of Day Four

I have found a new app called instagram (you all probably know about it already, shush, sometimes I'm super behind) and I keep adding photos to it and tweeting them -- because yes, I'm becoming better at tweeting. ANYWAYS. Since this is happening, I'm thinking about copying all of my tweets from the day related to #9daynovel and put them here. Well, thinking about it.

Anyways, as day four dawns, I am feeling pretty good. I'm going to start out light and as the day progresses push further. I don't have any specific plans, but I will have to go outside at some point today. I'm thinking of going to the library for a change of pace. Or the gym. I'd rather the library because its so nice there for writing. Anyways, so start out slow, speed up, slow down for an exercise break, slow start again and make it happen.

Yesterday I did not manage to get to my goal of 9,000 words, but I did get to 7,000 words. The way this is going, I sense the end result of these 9 days will be 63,000 words. I would like to get it up a bit more, and try for 65,000, if not the 70,000. I do know the novel won't be done, but the vast majority of it will be. I might be just about to hit the climax at 70,000 words, so here's to trucking on and seeing what happens.

Keep following me on twitter -- being able to pretend that people are paying attention to me makes the writing happen. If I fail, everyone will know about it ;)

I leave you at 9 am with this picture of Tillie, my dog:

More later.

2 pm


So a new character arrived today -- K98M3 (yes, the pun is, canine ate me. There will be a clever joke about this later in the book, unfortunately I still don't know exactly what it is. Puns anyone?). I think I shall like him a lot because, well, he's a repair sphere who's going to have character. :D

Anyways, I've managed to get, what, 4,000 words done thus far. I've decided to reinvent my chapters, so I could stop being in chapter two, which would have been about 15,000 words long x.x SO instead, I've just gotten to chapter 9. Makes me feel more productive, even if I'm still kind of wriggling around in the dust going, 'ahfwighrge my outline, my poor outline.'

Onwards and upwards. Maybe I'll get to 7,000 before 8? Then I can attempt to get on and write more then 7,000 words a day. :D

Another picture, this time of my computer screen:

Around 11

Ouch. I've hit a road block. I've got a good set up for a powerful force behind quite a bit of the novel, but have stalled when it comes to motivations. I need a reason for why Tia is going along with the plan her parents have cooked up -- I mean, apart from familial love, because Tia's not big on her family. Argh. I think I may loose out on today as a great writing day. I tried pushing ahead and all I got was this round about conversation of what's going on in my head. *grumble*

Well, I'm going to bed. Maybe sleep will offer something up to me.

Update from Day Three

So this nine day novel stuff has gotten me going rather fast. I find 7,000 words a day to be something of a challenge usually. I mean, I can sit down and bang out 5,000 words every now and then, but the idea of doing more is sometimes taxing. Now I'm doing 7,000 words a day for nine days. A but more if I can manage it. Maybe my goal for today should be 8,000 words?

Anyways. I'm chugging along. I think that there is a definite plus to sharing that you're writing at high speeds like this. For one thing, people might not care, but you can pretend they do. I've gained followers from this project. Its interesting.

I was thinking about the fact that NaNoWriMo tells you to tell everyone you know what you're doing -- a novel in a month -- and how it really does work, the sense that if you don't get it, then many people will know about your failure. Eh, I might keep doing this 9 day novel stuff in the future, get it set into a sort of contest for myself. We'll see.

Originally this was in the last entry about the idea but I'm starting a new entry:

Going to take a break from twitter for a moment so I can have more then 160 words to outline my plan for today. I'm going to a video blogger's filming today with Halley starting around 11 so I got up early-ish to do some writing. Now I have my tea, I can sit down and think about a plan for the day.

So, if I start at 8:30 (so 15 minutes until then), I should write about a 1000 words by 9. Then quick break and another 1500 by ten (I don't like giving myself longer then half an hour to do timed work, I always get kind of stressed as the time runs down, and half an hour : 1000 words works for me even if it really takes me 20 minutes). Another 1500 by 11, as I'll need to change. So the idea is to get 4000 in before I head out. Pretty good plan.

Let's see how it works out. I'd like to be 3000 in at least before I need to leave.

Keep following me on twitter. I find it wonderfully liberating to pretend people care. :)

Just before 8:30
Me: I think maybe I should think about making it a 9,000 word day. Just to make up for the fact that I haven't written 10,000 every day, and I do want to get to 70,000....

Famous last words?

9:30am
The time I threw my outline out the window.

10:45pm
So, the 9,000 word day did not happen. I got another 7,000 words in though, so feeling pretty good. Let's see.
Total words: 21329
Total words today: 7,293
Number of tweets: 13

#9daynovel

9 Day Novel

So I had this plan. It went like this:

June 7th, start my novel. July 1st, finish my novel.

Sure, that seems like not long enough to finish a novel, but I usually get to 50,000 words by November 23rd, when it comes to NaNo (actually more then that lately, but we're getting to that).

So far I have 1,000 words. Oh yes, I am pushing it a little. And by a little, I mean A LOT. I'm not planning on a 50,000 word novel, I'm planning on an 100,000 word novel. That means, if I want to get to my goal, I have to be putting out 10,000 word days.

Still, I have ways of doing this. Including the sprint exercises I picked up in NaNo. For example -- writing 1,000 words is not hard for me, so I break the 10,000 words down into 1,000 word chunks. Ready set go.

So yes, I'm attempting a 9 day novel. Plus a short story for The Time of the Firebird, a new project me and Josh are working on.

Follow me on Twitter as I attempt this crazy idea: TWEET.

Edit: Looking at my schedule, and how much I wrote on the first day, I'm amending the above. I'm still trying for 10,000 word days, but the goal of the nine days is to get to about 90,000 words, not 100,000. That being said, I would consider a 70,000 word novel worth the craziness.

Update from Day One:
Words: 7011 words
Number of Characters: 6
Number of Deaths: 0

Update from Day Two:
Total Words: 14036
Words Written Today: 7025
Number of Characters: 12 with names, 3 without names but who may come back
Number of Deaths: 2
Number of chapters complete: 1

End of night sentence (too long for twitter): She knew the ships like the back of her hand, but the machinery that kept the state working – she had no idea how that worked.

Yeah, my first chapter is almost 12,000 words long. x.x

I'm enjoying this tweeting my way through word sprints for myself. Its kind of fun.

Temper Tantrum

ARGH.

I have a problem. I may have written seven novels, and some of them had engaging characters, and interesting plots, but I can't seem to make the endings works. This was the problem with Evolution of a Wolf, where the ending was big and dramatic but it did grow organically from the beginning and middle of the story. I may have gotten too committed to what happened with Alice and Ian to really comprehend how it was not right and now, they seem stuck in that space. I can't get my brain to work.

Anyways, so I decided to just scrap the whole thing and start something new, because I was getting itchy. I plotted something out -- and it was cool. It was heading towards clockwork punk, with a bit of space western thrown in, but I have had the hardest time STARTING it, because I know the ending doesn't work.

I thought it was first draft fatigue -- thought it was the rush to get through the end, but I can't even plot an end that makes sense. WHAT THE HELL SELF.

Well FINE I AM JUST GOING TO WORK ON IT.

*stomps off to do so*

Quick Post

Five word response to Doctor Who last week and this week:

The Rebel Flesh: Creepy Doctor with the Creepy face.

Almost People: OH MY GOD AMY.

In other news: I'm thinking about doing bits that are "Friends Comments" and "Grey's Anatomy Judges You". Also thinking about adding a bit for crime-drama but since I don't watch the quintessential crime-drama (though what that is I'm not sure, I was thinking CSI, or maybe Law and Order?) I'm not sure if I can. Anyways, working on a Friends Comments post at the moment. We'll see how it goes. :D

Changing Seasons

I just finished re-reading A Great and Terrible Beauty, which I read ages ago and had mostly forgotten. I do remember that when I read it for the first time I didn't think it was the greatest book of all time. I should mention that I still don't think it is the greatest book of all time, but in re-reading it I have found myself going, several times, "This is beautiful".

I know why I didn't like it when I was a freshman in high school -- the characters weren't perfect; indeed, Pippa annoyed me, Ann was bland and Felicity seemed cliche, Gemma just bothered me, and in the end they didn't get their 'proper comeuppance'. The plot moved a little slowly for me at the time. The end came suddenly and seemed unexpected.

What a difference eight years and a world of experience and looking at media differently can do to you. A Great and Terrible Beauty is brilliant in its treatment of the characters -- Felicity and Pippa are not granted sudden redemption by becoming friends with Gemma, and even our narrator isn't above reproach. She has such real emotions -- the desire to fit in, and be the queen bee, and also to look after Ann -- pettiness is something she can go for. They are full of depths and interesting places they could go and it is a true flaw, not a Mary-Sue flaw that isn't one.

Its also beautifully written. There were so many lines that were like poetry (something I used to hate).

Anyways, I just find it so interesting the way my tastes have changed to enjoy the way things are structured and produced, how characters can't be perfect for me to like them any more, and appreciation of the imperfections is what I really enjoy these days. Sure, its to be expected, but I still find it to be cool.

Fall Season

Feeling like I'm missing shows is weird so I decided to write a list of the shows I will be continuing to watch, and then the 'maybe I'll watch this pilot' slash shows that I may watch over the summer that are still going on. 

1. 30 Rock

2. Big Bang Theory

3. Bones

4. Castle

5. Grey's Anatomy

6. Happy Endings

7. House, MD

8. How I Met Your Mother

Possible new shows:

1. Charlie's Angels

2. Scandal

3. Once Upon a Time

4. Pam Am

5. Finder

Shows to catch up on:

1. Private Practice

2. Chuck

3. Fringe

4. Body of Proof