Boarders Writing a Novel - Thread V

[Derfel Cadarn]

Broke the 100 page mark. :)

Once I'm done re-writing my prologe I'll stick it in the writer's forum. I signed up there a while back and then got writer's block trying to fix the plot of my novel.

[Ebenstone]

Quiet here :) Everybody reading Dance? This is the first Martin book I've read since I started writing. My accursed 'writer's eyes' do occasionally see some hiccups in GRRMs words... "You're not wrong", am I right? :P

Maybe we can discuss Dance when everybody is finished and see if we might learn a thing or two

As to my own writing - it's slowed, but for a good reason: 1 month till marriage!

I'm actually working my way through Dance much slower because I am bound and determined to finish Sisters of Khoda. I'm going to have a huge writing day today but I'm breaking now for a little while before wading back in!

The only problem with reading Dance is that it makes me think of Winter's Discord and the following books since they are so inspired by ASOIAF. I'm sticking to my vow of not looking at any of the Seasons books until they either get represented, sold OR it's 2012. Seriously.

The other crazy part is the featured essay under latest news about "The Sins of the Fathers." That's a HUGE theme in my series.

Congrats on the wedding.

[Zoë Sumra]

In other news, I seem to have restarted my novel again. I need to stop doing this. This time I'll force myself to go back to the end after I finish the first chapter rewrite, even though the tone and several key background details have changed significantly.

*picks up and shakes several times* STOP DOING THIS. Yes, I'm shouting at you, but it's for your own good.

Get to the end. Then redo the beginning. You'll need to redo the beginning whatever happens, and there's no point doing it if you don't have an ending!!

[OwenDarklock]

Right now I am writing a novel called Willow The Wisp, about a young boy growing up in a small town, who lives near a large forest. The forest comes into play as well as a mysterious girl named Weiden Nebelstreif (words taken from the German version of Goethe's The Elf King, which the novel is very loosely based on) alot of different influences come into play, but mainly Keith Donohue's The Stolen Child, the poem by Goethe and also Yeat's poem The Stolen Child, and Donohue's other novel Angels of Destruction. Miyazaki too, and that recent movie The Secret of Kells, and maybe McCammon's book Boy's Life.

But yeah, it's a modern day set magical realism tale.

[Ahimsa]

I'm quite impressed by the word counts some of you have. I'm just over 40,000 words into my current work in progress. I think, with a significant effort, I'll get to something like 80,000. That's not a lot, especially for a spec fic book. Oh well, maybe I can add a warrior woman who wanders throughout the country as a subplot (kidding--I like Brienne!)

[Arthmail]

I am not reading Dance. Its not even on my radar. I have a book to write. Besides, i really don't care to read Martin so much anymore. I'll not invest any more time in his series until he actually starts to produce. I have no intention of getting into it again only to sit around for another five years wondering when the next one is going to come up.

He owes me nothing, nor do i owe him anything.

[Zoë Sumra]

I started Dance this time last week, but have slowed down significantly since - one chapter yesterday, none so far today. Just not grabbing me, and I've other things to think about... such as fixing my book. I'm coming round to seeing what I have to do to make one character's story more compelling, and it'd have the benefit of improving views of another important plot angle.

[buku.banzai]

Whew. Now to the actual synopsis:

Darion, a councilman of Arrios, is sent on a mission to investigate the theocratic empire of Kassiun, who despite their own outlawing of Bhaccus, are pushing for it to be legalized on Arrios. On the way, Darion will uncover a plot that involves multiple powers vying for control of both old lands and new nations.

Thoughts?

The synopsis doesn't actually describe what Bhaccus is, so that's going to be a source of confusion for whomever's reading it. Additionally, don't capitalize "Bhaccus", it's not a proper noun.

[Venardhi]

I'll join in I suppose. I've just recently returned to writing after about a year doing very little reading (of fiction at least) or writing while ironically working in a book store.

My current project is a rewrite of an old short I wrote in a few weeks back when the fact that I wrote a story mattered more to me than if it were any good.

Luckily I already have a backbone of plot to follow, as I'm trying to embrace the concept of just writing for the sake of writing and not worrying too much about editing as I go.

The two-line:

"Street-orphan twins Aru and Sol encounter an old dying soldier who feeds them tales of their high birth and great destiny, of magic scourged from the land and the power sleeping within them. One brother eager for glory and adventure and the other fearful of what it will cost them both, the boys follow the old man's story to seek the truth of who they are and who they must become."

Though it is a pretty standard hero's journey, it follows the perspective of the 'lesser' brother who isn't the hero so much as the side-kick who occasionally saves the hero so he can save the world.

Mostly 'low'-fantasy in a grimy pre-industrial era where magic is deemed too dangerous to exist by a state that has barely survived the last few centuries of constant sorcerous war and the nearly successful invasion of a once-fabled sister-race of mankind.

[Nebuchadnezzar]

Started working on a new novella, maybe short novel, crammed out a quick 9k in 3 days. I guess you could call it steampunk but to me if feels more like WW2punk. Also doing Horrible Edits of Death on the first book in my Urban Fantasy and half way through the sequel. Busy, busy, busy this year.

[Zoë Sumra]

After a very uninspiring week, I drafted a synopsis for Rough Diamond while on the train back from my father's house. Have also worked out how to fix most of its problems, though whether or not this translates into solutions is yet to be seen. Having a bit of a wibbler about agents not wanting starts of series right now, but decided to ignore it.

[manmiles]

Another Novel Idea, I seem to cultivate them like Hugh Heffner and blondes.

It's a Steampunk Idea, set in late 19th century London, concerning a collection of bored young aristocrats, illigitimates and other people screwed over by the British Empire and the establishment of Lords and the Crown, turned Anarchist to try and toppled the British Empire from the inside. It's really something I hope that will address one of my main concerns with Steampunk, that of it's seeming tendancy to fetishise and idealise the British Empire and that culture. Don't get me wrong, I like steampunk, I think it's one of the few SF subgenres that really allow more of a kick-out towards old school pulp adventure than Hard-Science and Space-Opera seem to nowadays. I also like the steampunk fashions that have cropped up in recent years (pretty girls in fishbone corsets- classic) But I feel that it's these same elements and that same pulpy atmosphere that leads towards some dangerous nostalgia to a period of Western History that we cannot avoid in that, for a time, we were one of the biggest, meanest collections of Bastards on the planet. If people have to be slightly careful about idealising the Colonising Spirit of the Old West and the early American settlers, then we must be doubly careful on idealising this period of our times.

Or, to put it in a simpler way, inject a little bit of PUNK back into Steampunk.

'Ours is such an age of wonder that we forget that our Glorious Empire is built on a foundation of bones with the blood of the poor and the savage as the cement.'

[Zoë Sumra]

It's really something I hope that will address one of my main concerns with Steampunk, that of it's seeming tendancy to fetishise and idealise the British Empire and that culture. ... But I feel that it's these same elements and that same pulpy atmosphere that leads towards some dangerous nostalgia to a period of Western History that we cannot avoid in that, for a time, we were one of the biggest, meanest collections of Bastards on the planet. If people have to be slightly careful about idealising the Colonising Spirit of the Old West and the early American settlers, then we must be doubly careful on idealising this period of our times.

:agree: Good on you.

[Arthmail]

I had a good run last night. 3500 words.

[Chirios]

My Long Term Project:

Three Bastards and a Crate full of Wine

Blurb: Dingane of Bakwe heads past the Midday Sea, to suppress and conquer the Ibaerian raiders who are raiding his fathers' ports and merchant ships. But madness grips the Stone Cities of Bakwe, and a smiling stranger stalks the land...

Basic Idea: Bakwe is a large kingdom that has existed for 100 years. Tau, the King, has been suffering from constant raids by the Iba kingdoms to the north, past the Midday Sea. He sends his bastard son, Dingane, north to conquer Iba, along with Dingane's friends Mandla, a bodyguard in training, and Njabulo, a military engineer and painter. After his son leaves he begins to hear reports of brutal, violent, random murders occurring throughout his kingdom, where fathers murder their children, where mothers set fire to strangers on the street. When questioned, these killers all ask one question:

"When is the Smiling Man coming?"

[Myrddin]

I started Dance this time last week, but have slowed down significantly since - one chapter yesterday, none so far today. Just not grabbing me, and I've other things to think about...

I'm in the same boat. I'm 100 pages in and if someone stole my copy right now, I'm not sure I'd be bothered to replace it. Sad, really.

As for my own writing, well, there is a reason this thread is 8 pages long and I think this is my first post. I ran out of writing drive some months back and haven't done a thing. I remember how close I am to having this thing polished and think I need to push through and do it, but after working all day, coming home to kids, and then the nightly routine, I'd just rather veg in front of the boob tube. Weekends are kid and family filled too.

I'll get back in the saddle one of these days. Probably just not any time soon.

[Ebenstone]

I'm in the same boat. I'm 100 pages in and if someone stole my copy right now, I'm not sure I'd be bothered to replace it. Sad, really.

As for my own writing, well, there is a reason this thread is 8 pages long and I think this is my first post. I ran out of writing drive some months back and haven't done a thing. I remember how close I am to having this thing polished and think I need to push through and do it, but after working all day, coming home to kids, and then the nightly routine, I'd just rather veg in front of the boob tube. Weekends are kid and family filled too.

I'll get back in the saddle one of these days. Probably just not any time soon.

Stu-

Sorry to hear that you hit a wall. I understand that completely! Really, I do. I've gone through those writing doldrums.

I'm cruising on Sisters of Khoda. Had a 4500 word day yesterday and I'm pushing 1500 in the last 90 minutes. I want to wrap this up before August 15th so I can start getting ready for classes in the Fall and a new YA scifi project I've got kicking around.

I actually have a few pages of plans for the next few months.

Okay, back to Sisters.

[memmorio]

Unnamed Project.

The Mytah(think angels) and Vinti(you got it, think demons) vie for influence over the people living in this world divided between 3 nations/empires. The people of this world posses a power called Austa(think the Force bitch a bit more juice) connecting all things together. The Mytah infuse our main character, Nasaal, with a bit of extra Austa as a child without his or anyone else's knowledge. So he rises through the ranks of military fairly quickly and becomes a veritable badass all the while his doppleganger is coming to rule his rival nation. I say his doppleganger because the Vinti have interfered by doing much the same with this child while possessing him. These higher spirits play with the fate of this world with their human chess pieces hoping to work their wonders.

Anyway the story has a kind of Star Wars in a fantasy setting feel to it. I think I have 6k written for it, but I haven't touched it in quite awhile as so much of it is a jumble and writing dialogue is killing me.

[gladius]

I'm completing my collection of short stories. They can be grouped into 3 linked categories. The first is about desperate and unacknowledged, but very talented artists who are manipulated by a group of entities known as the small gods. The second is about madness, altered perceptions and various weird stuff (for example someone who is obsessively searching for a supposedly cursed wig that may have killed his sister and aunt) . The third is about special dreams or nightmares that have a profound impact on the dreamer.

One of the stories was already published and last month i sent another to a competition . Hopefully it will be chosen.

[Derfel Cadarn]

Finally posted on the BWB writers' board. I've got about 115 pages written (15,500 words I think roughtly) but I'll stagger the release.