Posted in writing, tagged e-publishing, fantasy, first drafts, Multiple Projects, sequels, series, Writer's Block, writing on February 24, 2016| Leave a Comment »
Busy day. I almost forgot to post.
But I didn’t forget to write.
In the last week, so far, I’ve completed three chapters of WAR OF MAGIC,
one of them today, and two chapters of BECOME.
I can see the climax of WAR OF MAGIC starting in just a couple more chapters. The end may actually be in sight! At least of the first draft.
Posted in writing, tagged e-publishing, fantasy, first drafts, Learning, Multiple Projects, revisions, rewrites, sequels, serialization, Writer's Block, writing, Young Adult on October 6, 2013| Leave a Comment »
Time to confront the truth. I’m stuck on my Weird Oz Story. I can–and probably will–finish Chapter 10. After that, I just can’t see my way ahead. I know where the story needs to end, but I don’t see how I get there.
I’ve only been in this place with a story once before. That was SEVEN STARS, the original version of FIRE AND EARTH. The reason then was that I had just gotten the story wrong. (In retrospect, it was a real stinker, too.) I wasn’t able to move ahead and produce a story I liked until I took a step back and reimagined it. A lot of things about that story changed when I did that, but it ended up so much better. That, after all, is the goal–a great story, well-told.
So, I’m going to have to take a step back and try to reimagine my Weird Oz Story. Let my subconscious play with it and see what ideas float up out of the depths. I suspect part of the problem was with the initial idea–throwing my Dorothy into Oz alone. One character by herself can only stay interesting for so long. Chapters 9 and 10 were about getting her some company, but I think it’s just too late. The point was to force her to take charge, but I just don’t thnk it’s working.
Meanwhile, for now, I’ll be doing some revisions to DESERT ROSE (formerly MAGIC AND POWER) and probably working on revisions to the rewrite of THE SHAMAN’S CURSE. That’s the great thing about multiple projects: you never have to be idle.
In other news, I’m getting antsy, so I’ll likely move the publication of the combined edition of BLOOD WILL TELL and BLOOD IS THICKER up to next weekend (about ten days earlier than planned.)
Meanwhile, another chapter of BLOOD IS THICKER is available free on wattpad. Or, you could just buy it and get the whole story all at once.
Posted in writing, tagged Alternate History, e-publishing, fantasy, Romance, Writer's Block, writing, Young Adult on June 24, 2012| Leave a Comment »
“The Music Box” a romantic fantasy novella has now been e-published. It’s available on Smashwords, so far. Amazon and GoodReads to follow in a few days. The other sites, like Barnes and Noble will take a little longer as it works its way through Smashwords distribution process.
This is the third story I’ve e-published and I think I’m getting better at the formatting process. And possibly at cover art, too.
What’s next up? Well, that depends. I have another novelette, “Becoming Lioness”, that’s still out on submission–for 144 days now. If that comes back, it’s next up. Otherwise, I’m going to have to get back to work on the sequel to BLOOD WILL TELL. Probably after I finish the first draft of THE BARD’S GIFT.
I’m happily back at work on my YA alternate history, THE BARD’S GIFT. I had been stuck on how to get from Point A to Point B. A little time working on other things and bouncing a few ideas around with writer friends did the trick.
Posted in Uncategorized, writing, tagged characters, fantasy, first drafts, Multiple Projects, priorities, Real Life, world building, Writer's Block, writing, Young Adult on May 16, 2012| Leave a Comment »
This last week has not been a very productive one. There are a couple of reasons for that.
On one hand, I’m just a little bit stuck on my current WIP. It’s a problem I anticipated, but it’s still a problem. THE BARD’S GIFT is about Astrid, a shy girl who finds that she’s been given the gift of storytelling–but the gift comes with a catch. Sometimes, even when it embarasses her or when people don’t want to listen to her, she’s compelled to tell a particular story. It’s potentially a very powerful gift, but not a very comfortable one.
Well, the problem with this story is that I have to put in those stories that she tells, which is almost like stopping the flow of the main story and writing a short story in the middle of it. That’s proving a little more difficult than I anticipated.
By preference, I’d like to have Astrid start with traditional stories, then maybe start finding that the story she has to tell has some variations from the traditional story, and then telling entirely new stories. This is an alternate history, so that means I need to find a traditional story from her culture (Norse or Icelandic) that fits with that point in the story. I have some more research to do. The books arrived yesterday.
Now, there are a couple of ways I could deal with this. I could just go around and come back to fill in the story. Or I could work on something else while I figure out the story Astrid needs to tell. I have a novella “The Music Box” that needs work before it’s ready for e-publishing and a short story “Apocalypse Cruise” that might be worth revisting because I might have figured out how to address a couple of its issues. The problem with that is that it typically takes me a day or two to really switch stories in my own head.
The other reason I’ve been having trouble with my writing this week is interruptions. They are, I think, going to turn out to be good interruptions, but I’m going to need to find a way to deal with them without losing productivity.
If you’ve ready my “About Me” page, you know that I take care of my mother, who has advanced Alzheimer’s disease. For several years, Mom attended an adult day care run by the Salvation Army and I had my writing time worked out around that. Last year, that day care closed and Mom had a one-week hospitalization. For someone like Mom, an event like that often results in a drop in functioning. Mom was no exception.
So, for the last year, I’ve been basically going it alone with Mom at home 24/7. Now, I’m deluged with potential help. Mom’s doctor switched her over to the home care portion of her HMO, which means nurses will come out to her instead of me having to try to get Mom back and forth to the doctor (not a smal task, believe me). Great. The home care people suggested that maybe she should be on hospice. In the last week, I’ve had the home care nurse, a social worker, another nurse to draw a test sample, and the hospice intake person out. And the hospice people are coming back today. I’ve not been very successful switching back and forth between these roles.
The house is a mess. I’ve never been a great housekeeper. It’s just not where my interests lie. I can always find something more interesting to do–like getting lost in my current story. But it finally does reach a point where I have to stop and deal with it. Those efforts usually run aground in the clutter.
But now I need to find some documentation. And so far, I haven’t been able to. (I have found some other things that I’d misplaced, but not what I’m looking for right now.) So, I’m going to have to start attacking the clutter and the semi-hidden stacks of paper lying around this house.
Looks like I’m going to have to make a plan. I might even *shudder* have to make a schedule.
Posted in writing, tagged fantasy, Middle Grade, revisions, Writer's Block, writing, Young Adult on February 8, 2012| 4 Comments »
I’m actually playing hooky (sort of) from an on-line writers’ hangout to post this, so it’ll be quick.
Well, yesterday I finally finished the fourth draft of MAGIC’S FOOL. That last ten pages was like pulling teeth–and there weren’t even that many changes. I suspect I’d just gotten burned out on the story, having done three straight drafts back to back. Note to self: Don’t do that again.
However, I’m now much happier with the story and I think it’s ready for readers next month. I’ll probably give it one more read-through before then, but not for a couple of weeks any way.
So, now I’m moving on to the polishing edit of SEVEN STARS. This one has been resting since July. I’m trying something new–giving it a good long rest before the last pass and sending it out into the world. That’s only really practical when you have enough completed works to keep querying while you give the new one the benefit of that time.
I’m less than ten pages in and already feeling energized by the change to a “new” story.
I’ve also been working on the query and synopsis. Look out agenting world. SEVEN STARS will be coming your way soon!
Posted in writing, tagged fantasy, first drafts, Middle Grade, Multiple Projects, paranormal romance, revisions, sequels, Writer's Block, writing on January 8, 2012| Leave a Comment »
A while back, I posted that I was stuck near the end of BLOOD IS THICKER. I’d lost the momentum and was having trouble getting it back. I played around with designing a cover for BLOOD WILL TELL for a while. (That’s still a work in progress, but it’s getting better.) But sooner or later, I had to come back and just find a way to finish BLOOD IS THICKER.
Well, this last week, I have. And here’s what I did:
I went ahead and wrote the last chapter. I had it all pretty much in my head anyway. That I could write with no problem. It was the stuff in between where I was and that ending that was the problem.
I outlined the half-dozen scenes I needed to get there. Generally, I’m more of a discovery writer than a plotter, but in an emergency I can outline. I usually just don’t find them very useful. I’m too apt to depart from them and end up being a pantser anyway. But, for a handful of scenes, it works fine.
Then I gave myself an assignment. Every day I would write one–just one–of those scenes. After that, I would let myself work on the second draft of MAGIC’S FOOL.
And that has been working for me. Just one more scene to go and then I can skip to the bottom and type “The End”.
Whew!
Posted in writing, tagged e-publishing, fantasy, first drafts, paranormal romance, Writer's Block, writing, Young Adult on December 28, 2011| 4 Comments »
Unfinished BLOOD WILL TELL COVER art
I have to admit that I’m stuck–for the moment–on BLOOD IS THICKER. Only two chapters from “The End”, too. I’m not happy with the last couple of chapters and a little nervy about making a time jump at this point in the story, even though I’m sure that’s what the story needs and trying to drag through the intervening time would probably feel just like dragging.
I’m filling the time by playing around with the potential cover art for the first book in the series, BLOOD WILL TELL, in case I decide to e-pub it after all. (I’ll know more about that, hopefully, in a couple of weeks.) Here’s what I’ve got so far (obviously only half finished).
I’ll get myself unstuck pretty soon. I have a couple of things to do to get there:
Posted in writing, tagged fantasy, Middle Grade, Multiple Projects, world building, Writer's Block, writing, Young Adult on September 14, 2011| 9 Comments »
First a little housekeeping. Some of you who visited this blog more than three months ago or so may have noticed that several pages were missing from the worlds tab. They related to the world of my first two novels–the same world as MAGIC’S FOOL. But also the same world as a short story I had entered in Writers of the Future. Since the judging of that contest is blind (nobody knows whose story they’re reading), I hid those pages. Since “Becoming Lioness” didn’t place, I’ve put them back.
Now, on to the meat of today’s topic. I’ve decided to try something different. I’m going to have two projects going at once–not, as often happens, one in revision and one in first draft. No, I’m going to try two first drafts at the same time. No idea if I can pull this off, especially with two such different stories. I guess I’ll find out.
The reason I’m doing this is that I’m pretty much stopped on MAGIC’S FOOL. Not blocked. I know what comes next. I can write it. I just don’t. I’ve been trying to figure out why this is. At first, I thought it was my concern over the central conflict. Having had to break up the much longer THE SHAMAN’S CURSE into pieces left me with a more internal conflict for the first story and that worries me a little, especially for a middle grade story.
But, having thought about that, I decided that I should follow Kevin J. Anderson’s advice and just dare to be bad (at first). Get the first draft down and then I can worry about fixing it. That doesn’t seem to have increased my enthusiasm for this project, though.
Now, I think I know what it is. MAGIC’S FOOL is a twice-told tale. I’ve already told the story. True, I’ve reimagined some elements of it, moved some things around, deleted others. But still, I’ve already told this story once. This is the reason some of us (like me) don’t outline extensively. Once I’ve told a story, the excitement isn’t the same.
That doesn’t mean I’m giving up on MAGIC’S FOOL. I just think I’m going to have to approach it differently than I do most first drafts. Instead of immersing myself in it and coming up for air with a completed first draft after six to eight weeks, I’m going to have to go more slowly. I think I may have to be content to just get a chunk done at a time–a chapter or two, perhaps.
But that’s not enough writing for me. The one thing I know for sure is that I won’t get anywhere by standing still. So I’m also, as of this morning, starting on BLOOD IS THICKER, the first sequel to BLOOD WILL TELL. (see a theme, there? Fooled you. It’s not what you think. No vampires, here.)
I normally just write down the ideas for sequels and move on to something new because, if the first book doesn’t sell the odds are even worse for the sequel. In terms of traditional publishing, you’re better off working on something different.
But, traditional publishing is no longer the only game in town and BLOOD WILL TELL is my prime candidate for e-publishing if I can’t generate some real interest in it this go-round. And, with e-publishing, it’s an advantage to have sequels to bring out relatively soon after the first book.
I have to start seriously thinking about that. December or January would probably be the optimal time to e-publish, if that’s what I’m going to do. And I really need the time to figure out what I’m going to do about a cover.
Posted in writing, tagged fantasy, revisions, Writer's Block, writing on September 1, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Now that the calendar says it’s officially over, I was going to post about “Awful August” today. Well, maybe I’ll save that for Sunday. (You have figured out that I post on Wednesdays and Sundays, right?) Today, I’m going to celebrate. It’s not a big celebration, but you’ve got to take what you can get.
I just finished Chapter 9 of MAGE STORM. This is a new chapter added as part of the second draft and it had me stopped earlier in the week. I knew what needed to happen in this chapter; two characters who weren’t friends before become friends partly by virtue of working together against the antagonist. But I didn’t know the details. It’s really hard to write a scene, let alone three or four, without those pesky little details.
I got the first part of the chapter written and then just stared at the # where the next scene was supposed to start. Nothing.
Ideas come to me best when I’m writing. Not necessarily right when I’m sitting with my fingers on the keyboard, but when I’m spending enough time writing every day to keep the juices flowing. So, I set MAGE STORM aside for a day or two. I worked on some back-logged revisions to DREAMER’S ROSE. I revised my latest short story.
Then I came back to MAGE STORM. Still nothing. I started the scene anyway. Even if I haven’t figured out the details, I know where it takes place and who’s there. Those things have to be set up anyway. Before I had that paragraph done, more was coming to me. I just now typed the last few sentences. I like it. And now I can move on with the rest of the second draft.
Yay!
Posted in writing, tagged fantasy, first drafts, revisions, Writer's Block, writing on May 2, 2010| Leave a Comment »
This past week I finally, finally, finished the new material at the beginning of DREAMER’S ROSE. I don’t know why this early material fought me so hard, but it always has. In the first draft, I finally gave up on it and started the story later, but that doesn’t really work. So, I went back and tried a different approach, which feels right. It was still hard to write though. Maybe it was just all the pain and suffering I went through the first time that made me reluctant to tackle that material again.
Eleven new chapters at the beginning are finished now and I think it will make a world of difference in the story. I will be having someone else–maybe more than one someone else–read those chapters soon. I need an unbiased opinion about them.
Now that that’s done, I’m starting on the revisions to the original first draft, which are going smoothly–even when I need to write new material. It feels really good to have the story flowing again.
Sometimes in life, and especially in writing, you just have to celebrate the small victories.
Meredith Mansfield, Author 