When in Rome, don't use the toilets

I have homework I'm not motivated to do.  It's almost bedtime so I can't really get into serious writing.  So I'm blogging.  Yes, some may argue with the "serious writing" thing and blogging.  I'm too tired to get into it.

However, I had a good friend tell me he was going to publish his LTUE notes on his writing blog.  Not all at once of course, talk about brain dump overload.  I decided this was a good idea and so I am stealing it, sort of.  I'm going to read through my notes and share the highlights and insights.  Let's face it, no panel is a non-stop treasure trove of brilliance.

My first class of conference was called Complex Narratives and the first point that I want to share is this:  a complex narrative can be created by simply repeating a simple formula with multiple characters.  Just remember that each character does not need to be in the part of the formula at the same time and some characters will linger in one part while others will linger in another.  The formula may not even start for one character until half way through the book.  But applying the formula will give you something to work with and create depth in your characters.  Depth makes readers care.  Caring readers send you hate mail when you kill off a character.  You know you've done it right if you can see the tear stains on the hate mail.

This is the Novel Mage saying, *POOF*

The struggle for dominance

The dark and stormy night began with a terrible fight for attention and domination.  It lasted seconds.  The desire to create and write against the need to do homework.  Homework won of course but the re-match is coming.  It seems more often now as the semester moves towards completion and my thrill at freedom grows.  But until the final grade is posted, the winner is pre-determined....most of the time. 

What can I say...the senioritis won't go away. :)

This is the Novel Mage saying, *POOF*

Life, the Universe and 42.

LTUE has come and gone, and in memorial I finally read "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy."  I'm afraid to say that for all of the silliness contained therein I found the ending to be quite unsatisfactory.  Alas, such it is with writing and life.  But now I can at least claim the read and not feel so uneducated in the ways of novelists. 

Until I have more time and focus....

This is the Novel Mage saying, *POOF*

Slef - pubilshing is the dark and stormy night

So I just read a fun little blog post on self-publishing:  http://www.themillions.com/2011/11/reasons-not-to-self-publish-in-2011-2012-a-list.html .  He makes some very valid arguments against self-publishing and quotes some top-notch authors on why to stick to the big publishers.  The big argument that still moves me is that of Refinement.  Editors and Copy Editors that can help you refine your story to be the best that it can be.  I've heard stories about having to remove characters, change plots and rewrite your favorite scene.  But even Harry Potter and Twilight had Editors.  These people read a LOT of stuff and they are pretty good at knowing what works and what doesn't.  That is a big plus for making your book a hit.

But what if you can't get it in to them?  What if the first couple of pages aren't as gripping and they round-file it before it gets good?  What if you send something in and you have no contacts in the industry?  What if it just plain sucks but your friends and family are too nice to tell you but you can't bring yourself to submit it for fear of rejection?  Self-publish.

There is nothing like a bunch of faceless people who can reject you immediately and forget you until your major hit comes out as opposed to someone who might create a file on you, make notes that other Editors can read when your next manuscript comes in.  I can handle a faceless reader dumping on my stuff.  I think.

The other advantage to self-publishing is that I can release my story in pieces.  The first one I plan on putting out there will come in 3 parts.  That's the way it was meant to be.  Will it ever be published as a whole book?  I don't know.  But this way I can publish as I finish each part.  I doubt a major publishing house will be willing to do that. 

So let it be written.  So let it be done.

This is the Novel Mage saying, *POOF*

When it rains, you get wet.

And NaNoWriMo has started.  My friends are headlong into it racking up word counts like an elephant and peanuts.  It's amazing, inspiring.  Not me.  My sum total of writing for the month consists of writing down the dream I had that would make a very surreal book.  My wife says I should write it.  Maybe that will be for next November when I don't have two group projects and other stressors actively assailing me.  December can't come soon enough.

This is the Novel Mage saying, *POOF*

Magic

It has been some time since I wrote anything, here or otherwise.  But my niece recently read the first 6+ chapters of my book and loved it.  Nothing like praise to motivate you to write.  But I remember leaving the Oak Wand because my inspiration had packed it's bags and headed to Bermuda.  So, to get back into it, I started at the beginning and reread the entire thing.  This ended at a sentence where I didn't know quite where to go.

I must thank JK Rowling because Harry Potter has afforded me much inspiration.  The Oak Wand is NOT like Harry Potter but a few of the situations are similar enough that how JK writes them, has helped me.  And so it was again.  I started with only a sentence at a time coming to me.  But they kept coming and coming and coming for 5 more pages.  I knew what the event was that would happen (sorry, no spoilers) and how it would be resolved-ish but I just didn't know how.  Now I do.

Sometimes when I write, I don't feel like this is really my story.  I'm merely transcribing the story someone else has is telling me.  I am surprised at how scenes unfold, at the reactions of the characters.  Is it because I'm a fabulous writer?  Or maybe I'm just suffering from fortunate inspiration.

This is the Novel Mage saying, *POOF*

Days go by

Wow, it seems like forever since I posted last.  Oh, look it has been!  No posts in July at all.  Much too busy lately with school and work and family and laziness to write.  I've also lost some of the fire I had before.  This saddens me but I have NOT needed one more thing to stress about.

The good news though is that I have started writing again.  I'm taking a story I wrote in high school, then rewrote 5 or so years ago and now rewriting it again.  It never ceases to amaze me how much my writing has improved.  As soon as I sat down, with this project in mind, and started reading the story, I couldn't believe how much 'telling' I did.  I didn't 'show' very much at all.  My dialogue was little and ....well, blah.  Then I remembered that this copy was still quite improved over the original.  EEK!  Luckily, I believe my sister is the only one with an original and it isn't a soft copy she can circulate easily.

Still, in my quest to be published is still moving forward.  Since I originally wrote this story in 3 parts, and now that I'm rewriting (page 1 is now pages 1-3), my plan is to release it in 3 parts.  So if all goes well, you can look for "Mysterious Prince Part I" by Christmas as an ebook. 

This is the Novel Mage saying, *POOF*