August | 2017 | Meredith Mansfield, Author

Archive for August, 2017

Forging Ahead

Posted in writing, tagged fantasy, first drafts, series, writing on August 30, 2017| Leave a Comment »

So, I’m getting back on track for all the things I should be doing, including writing. That’s a bit slow, because I’m still more or less feeling my way through this part. But I expect to finish up this chapter and start the next by the weekend.

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I’m also realizing that part of what makes this part a little difficult is that it’s doing several jobs, not just really making clear–and poignant–what the main character has to lose. It’s also in part setting up the second book, possibly to be titled BECOME: TO RIDE THE STORM. (Don’t quote me on that. I have at least two alternate titles and I haven’t even started that book yet.)

The second book will have two new important characters and some of it will take place in another part of this fantasy world–a place my main character is about to visit, briefly. So . . . yeah some set up for the second book coming up.

Anyway, moving forward.

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Getting Back to Work

Posted in writing, tagged fantasy, first drafts, series, writing on August 27, 2017| Leave a Comment »

Well, it’s been a week of not getting much done on anything. Not cleaning the house, or working on the yard, or–most especially–writing. But I’m getting back in the groove, now. And progress will be made on BECOME: TO CATCH THE LIGHTNING.

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I’ve got a brand new chapter to start. Still in that slightly nebulous section before the turning point. But I do have at least an idea how many chapters there’ll be and more or less what they’ll be about. And it still is just a first draft. All I really need is to do is to keep writing until I reach “The End”. Everything else can be fixed later, if necessary.

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Sorry This is Late.

Posted in Real Life, tagged Dogs on August 24, 2017| 2 Comments »

Very late. I haven’t been feeling very well off and on the last few days. Add in some distractions with the new dog–the two are not entirely unrelated–and nothing much has gotten done. Making a plan to change that, but no progress yet.

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New Family Member

Posted in Real Life, tagged Dogs, fantasy, first drafts, series, writing on August 20, 2017| Leave a Comment »

I may have lost my mind. We’ll see. I went and got another dog on Saturday. She’s a real sweetheart–very, very good with people.

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Interactions with my resident dog still a work in progress.

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However, she’s way too interested in the resident feral cats (fed by my nephew) and a couple of small dogs we’ve passed on our walks (three so far).

Needless to say, I haven’t gotten any writing done since Friday–when I did finish a chapter of BECOME: TO CATCH THE LIGHTNING and figure out how many more chapters there are in that section I’ve been working on.

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Coming Unstuck

Posted in writing, tagged discovery writer, fantasy, first drafts, series, Writer's Block, writing on August 16, 2017| Leave a Comment »

It’s slow still, and perhaps a little painful, but I am breaking through that block of uncertainty and forging ahead on the first draft of BECOME: TO CATCH THE LIGHTNING.

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I have no idea if any of this will remain in the final version. But that’s not the question right now. The point is to keep writing and moving the story forward. And that’s what I’m doing, slowly but surely.

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Goals and Obstacles

Posted in writing, tagged fantasy, first drafts, series, Writer's Block, writing on August 13, 2017| Leave a Comment »

You know, that title could apply to the plot of a story. But in this case, it’s about my goals–and obstacles–in getting the story done. I’m still in that nebulous part of the BECOME: TO CATCH THE LIGHTNING

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where I’m not entirely sure how I’m going to get from here to the next major plot point or how many chapters it’ll take to get there. Progress has been slow. Too slow.

There’s less than a month left before school starts up again and I go back to work. My goal was to have this first draft done. I think that’s highly unlikely now.

But what I need to do now is just write. It’s a first draft. It doesn’t have to be perfect. It doesn’t even have to be something that will be in the final draft. There’s a high probability that some of it will be cut or substantially changed. That’s okay. That’s what a rough draft is for. But I need to start pushing myself to at least keep this story moving toward a completed first draft.

This one is taking much longer than it should.

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Summer Is Weird

Posted in writing, tagged discovery writer, fantasy, first drafts, series, writing on August 9, 2017| Leave a Comment »

For me, anyway. My “day job” is only for the school year (roughly the second week of September through the third week in June, here). It’s way too easy to loose track of time when I don’t have any real schedule. Which, in part, explains the lateness of this post. (Part of it is wasting time playing a stupid computer game. (Tip: If you’re a writer of stories, don’t get involved in any game that has a story as part of the game.)

In spite of the wasted time, I’ve been making steady–if occasionally slow–progress on the first draft of BECOME: TO CATCH THE LIGHTNING.

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But the time isn’t really wasted. Since, as I mentioned in my last post, I don’t have as good a feel for these next couple of chapters as I usually do . . . well, sometimes, it’s necessary to pause for a bit and let my subconscious catch up.

Anyway, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

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Rolling Outlines

Posted in writing, tagged fantasy, first drafts, outlines, series, writing on August 6, 2017| Leave a Comment »

I’m a discovery writer. I don’t outline–not the whole story before I start. But I usually have something like a rolling outline for the next few chapters from where I currently am in the first draft.

Right now, I’m approaching what should be the midpoint of BECOME: TO CATCH THE LIGHTNING.

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I know what that point is, but these next few chapters . . . I know broadly what needs to be there. It’s important, because this is the place to really show what my main character has to lose–right before he loses it, in a way. But I don’t even have a good feel for how many chapters this will be.

Of course, it’s still just a first draft, a rough draft. And it certainly doesn’t have to be perfect on the first go round. In fact, it would be astonishing if it was. But this does feel a little like stepping off a cliff in the dark and hoping the ground’s not too far away, or at least soft. Still, the only way is forward.

There’s still a little time to enter the audiobook giveaway. You really don’t want to miss this one.

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#AmWriting

Posted in writing, tagged audio books, characters, fantasy, first drafts, inspiration, series, writing on August 2, 2017| Leave a Comment »

It’s hot and humid here, which is not normal. So, a good day to let everything else go and just stay in front of the computer. And, unlike the last few days, the words are flowing pretty well.

So, I’m spending my writing time working on BECOME: TO CATCH THE LIGHTNING and I’ve very nearly finished that chapter that I was briefly stuck on a few days ago.

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Because, sometimes you have to just grab a handle and stay on the roller coaster as long as it keeps moving.

I’m approaching the midpoint, which should be interesting, though there are a few chapters to get through before then. And, in one of them, my weasel of an antagonist is going to get taken down a peg or two–which will set him up to want a bit of revenge. That hasn’t been what he’s been playing for up until now. But . . . things change.

Don’t forget to enter the audiobook giveaway. Someone will win an audiobook of THE SHAMAN’S CURSE. Or one of the other eight audiobooks. Some lucky someone will win all nine.

Do it now, before you forget. 🙂

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