Better Living Through Shortcuts...Or Tell The Damn Story & Worry 'Bout The Rest In Editing!

Usually, when I reach a sticking point, a point where a story gets hung up by details, I'll side-step around it, leave a red star and a note telling me what's supposed to happen at that point.  This usually happens when I have to describe a character or a setting.  For example, in Before The Dawn, there's a conversation that takes place in Mason's office.  It's the point where I was introducing one of the federal agents, Special Agent Sebastian Eckes.

The scene was taking longer than I had thought it should because I was dwelling on Eckes's appearance and how the office was decorated.  So rather than dwell on both of those descriptions, I put a red asterisk where Eckes's description would be so I can put in a description of who he looks like.  (Yes, I have a specific person in mind for Eckes.  No, I'm not going to tell you who it is.)  I did the same for the description of the office.  This let me get through the scene and continue telling the story.

Of course, I got hung up later on by my inability to write a believable action sequence, but that's a story for another day.

I've run into the same problem in "The Fault Lies Not".  It had been cruising along quite nicely, and I was confident that I would be ending the story soon.  Then I ran into a problem.  I had to have my main character, EarthGov Security Special Agent Lin Sillo, kidnapped by the killer she and her partner have been searching for.  There would then be a scene in which information is provided to Vincent, Lin's partner, by agents of another government, and a scene where the killer gives Lin information that's counter to what Vincent's been told.

But how to do that?  There's a scene where the eighth victim is found, then an info-dump which leads to the search of an apartment and the discovery of the ninth and tenth victims.  Now, the apartment is in a tall skyscraper, so I had first thought about having the killer show up then be chased to the roof.  Lin engages him in hand-to-hand, as she did earlier in the story, but ends up being dragged off the roof by the killer.  They get caught in specialized fields designed to catch jumpers, Lin's rendered unconscious and she's carried off.

It just wasn't working.

I thought about maybe having Lin confront the killer in the basement of the building, lose and get carted off.  I was having trouble with that because, as I said, I have trouble writing action sequences.  I've been trying to figure out how to transition between these scenes.  Getting from Lin's scene, which is told from her point of view, to the scene with Vincent, a scene which Lin can't know anything about.

After much deliberation, I think I've come up with a solution.

It's a slight variation of what I usually do when I get stuck.  Rather than just put in a red asterisk and a note, I had Lin ask the unseen person she's telling the story to if he/she wants to hear all the sordid details about how she ended up being the killer's hostage.  She then says she has to refer to Vincent's report, which gives me leave to shift back to third person and write the scene with Vincent and the other agents, then go back to Lin's first person point of view and continue the story.

This will allow me to continue telling the story, while following my usual mantra:  JUST TELL THE DAMN STORY!  Finish the story and worry about fixing the details later.

Feeling confident about the story again, and about writing in general again.  Hopefully, this will help me get back on track and back to writing on a more regular basis.

Progress...Part 2

Okay, the story I completed yesterday, currently titled "Really Real", is a direct sequel to "A God to Dance With".  It takes place the next morning, after Scott and Zoe spent time dancing.  This is the first of four stories that follow AGtDW, but I started writing it after I wrote the third story.  Why?  Lemme 'splain...

From an editor of one of the many magazines I sent AGtDW to came the comment that the story seemed like it was part of a larger work.  I hadn't planned it that way, but given the way AGtDW ends, I could easily continue telling stories of Scott and Zoe. 

So I originally planned on twelve stories that would've led to Scott thinking Zoe was dead only to find out she was still alive and regenerating herself in the corona of the local star.  That proved to be a bit much, so after completing one story and getting two-thirds through two others, I put the project aside.

Now, I've decided to get back to it but I've trimmed it down to five stories:

"A God to Dance With" (complete)
"Really Real" (first draft complete, needs a new title)
"The Arc of Heaven" (first draft complete, will be working on it in the next day or so)
"Interlude" (first draft almost complete)
"Being" (Not started)

So, as it stands right now, "Really Real" is 4228 words in length.  The entire project is at 38,392.  I'm not too concerned about the length of this project; I've found some venues that aren't as strict on word count.

06/07/12 - Progress

It took longer than I expected but the first of four sequels to "A God To Dance With" is finished.  Ironically, it may be the first sequel but it was the second written.

I don't have a word count yet.  I'll have that later after I type it.

And yeah, it took longer than I expected but it was still so satisfying to write those words...

22 April 2012: At Long Last...Progress

It's been a while since I made any real progress on anything.  But I'm putting a real effort into rededicating myself to writing on a more regular basis.  At least, more than just the few words I can jam out between calls at work.

I've been focusing on four projects, two novels and two works of as yet undetermined length...

As mentioned on the previous post, I've finally finished Chapter 22 of Before the Dawn.  The novel now stands at 67,824 words in length, 12,176 words to go before my goal of 80,000.  I need to do some plotting before I can hit Chapter 23 but I'll be back at it soon.

The completed novel I somehow managed to forget, On A Cold Wind, is doing well right now.  I've done an intense, line-by-line editing (some would call it rewriting) of the first five chapters and I'm writing a new Chapter 6.  So as of right now, it comes in at 13, 099 words, 66,091 to go to 80,000 words.

A Bright Symmetry is actually an anthology of four stories (at the moment), beginning with "A God to Dance With".  You could think of this as a kind of sequel to Before the Dawn; it centers around Scott Madigan, and Georges Severin and Brynna Alexander do make an appearance.  Right now, it's at 10,048 words.

Though I wanted to put it aside for a while, Lin screamed at me so I'm back working on "The Fault Lies Not..."  At the moment, it's at 12,683 words.  I'm not sure how long it'll turn out to be.

So with the four projects, I should be able to make regular progress...so I can actually write instead of just talking about writing.

FINALLY!

Yes, it's true...the long nightmare is now over...Chapter 22 of Before The Dawn is now finished.  I managed to bring it to an unsatisfactory end between calls at work, but now I can move on...to three or four chapters of action.

I don't think it's ever taken me this long to complete a chapter.  Especially one which I know everything that happens in it.  I just couldn't get it down on paper.

I don't have a word count yet.  I should be typing it up over the weekend.  Then I'll know where I stand on the word count.

How Do You Forget A Completed Story?

I'm really beginning to worry about my memory...

I have a story called "A God To Dance With", which concerns immortal archaeologist Scott Madigan as he investigates the burial site of Querahl-tan, the "Sleeping God" of the planet Stelvra.  Along the way, Scott's lover, Zoe Baird, is killed and her body is possessed by the being known by the Stelvrans as Querahl-tan, who's really an energy being known as a Dolwa.  It's one of my favorites, though I've had trouble convincing editors of its worth.

As part of a rejection letter, one editor commented that "A God To Dance With" seemed like the first chapter of a longer story.  I hadn't been thinking that way when I wrote the story, but after reading that comment, I started thinking about what else Scott and the Dolwa (who used Zoe's name as well as her form).  I had come up with about a dozen stories that were planned to be combined into an anthology titled A Bright Symmetry.

I completed one other story, had two others about 90% finished...and put the project aside to work on other things.  Over time, I forgot about them.

Yes, you read that right.  I forgot about a completed story.

And I thought Sam Beckett had holes in his memory.*

So I'm going to tackle the project again, still under the collective title of A Bright Symmetry.  I'm going to complete the two incomplete stories, write a short prologue piece that'll come before "A God To Dance With" and make that an epublishing project.

By the way, the answer's yes.  The character of Scott Madigan here is the same Scott Madigan from the vampire novel, nearly twenty-five hundred years later.  Georges and Brynna make a cameo appearance in here, too.

*That's a Quantum Leap reference, for those who don't know.  Go to Wikipedia and look it up.

So here's three of the characters, Scott, Zoe and Arcadia Ryan...

Scott Madigan

Name:  Scott Madigan

Race:  Human (Immortal)

Age:  41 (given)/2797 (actual, as of 4498)

Date of Birth:  4457 (given)/1701 (actual)

Place of Birth:  Unnamed North American city (given)/Dublin, Ireland (actual)

Citizenship:  Scott is a citizen of the Federation

Legal Status:  No criminal record

Relatives:  Ian Madigan (father, deceased), Jennifer Madigan (mother, deceased)

Height:  175.26 cm (5’9”)

Weight:  75.57k (160 lbs)

Eye Color:  Blue

Hair Color:  Blonde

Religion:  Catholic

Intelligence:  Above average

Strength:  Normal

Stamina:  Normal

Durability:  Normal

Agility:  Normal

Reflexes:  Normal

Profession/Rank (Current):  Freelance mission coordinator, archaeologist, adventurer

Profession/Rank (Former):  Soldier, government security agent, numerous others

Current Alias:  None

Former Alias:  None

Personal Weaponry:  Ariflex Mark II Pulser

Special Weaponry:  Various, as needed

Other Weaponry:  Various, as needed

Transportation:  Various, as needed

Usual Base of Operations:  Kevelan

Friends/Allies/Confidants:  Brynna Alexander, Colin Alexander, Jess Alexander, Zoe Baird, Lauren Chedraki, Nathan Chedraki, Anastasia Krestyanova, Lily McConnell, Arcadia Ryan, Georges Severin, Lisa Stennis, Trebinocosalliche

Enemies:  Jha’na, Telen’na

Skills:  Archaeology, martial arts, computers, flying, security specialist

Special Abilities:  Scott is immortal; he was born in the year 1701 and hasn’t aged since the year 1742.  Because of this, minor injuries heal extremely quickly.  Short of total disintegration, his body will repair any damage done to it.

Source of Special Abilities:  Unknown

Interests/Hobbies:

Attitude:  Being immortal has begun to weigh heavily on Scott Madigan.  He is at times sullen and reserved, observing situations for a long time before acting.  Even when the life of a friend or a loved one is at stake, Madigan won’t take any rash action.  This has sometimes backfired on him, as he has at times waited too long, resulting in loss of life.  He is a loyal friend who will speak his mind if he has something to say.  Madigan has known some of the most famous names in history:  Caralynn Adrasteia, Lin Sillo, Tamara Bauren among others.

Zoe Baird

Name:  Zoe Baird/Quérahl-tan

Race:  Human/Dolwa

Age:  34/~600,000 years

Date of Birth:  4464/Unknown

Place of Birth:  Kevelan/P’Thresen Sector (The Arc of Heaven)

Citizenship:  Zoe is a citizen of the Federation

Legal Status:  No criminal record

Relatives:  Jonas Baird (father, deceased), Kamila Baird (mother, deceased)

Height:  167.64 cm (5’6”)

Weight:  60.33 k (133 lbs)

Eye Color:  Blue/Mahogany

Hair Color:  Red

Religion:  Fundamentalist/Atheist

Intelligence:  Above average/Genius

Strength:  Normal

Speed:  Normal

Stamina:  Normal

Durability:  Normal

Agility:  Normal

Reflexes:  Normal

Profession/Rank (Current):  Freelance mission specialist, archaeologist, adventurer

Profession/Rank (Former):  Observer, savior of the Stelvran race, “Sleeping God”

Current Alias:  None

Former Alias:  None

Personal Weaponry:  Ariflex Mark II Pulser/None

Special Weaponry:  Various, as needed/None

Other Weaponry:  Various, as needed/None

Transportation:  Various, as needed/Self-transportation

Usual Base of Operation:  Kevelan

Friends/Allies/Confidants:  Brynna Alexander, Colin Alexander, Jess Alexander, Lauren Chedraki, Nathan Chedraki, Scott Madigan, Arcadia Ryan, Georges Severin, Trebinocosalliche

Enemies:  Jha’na, Telen’na

Skills:  Archaeology, martial arts, computers, flying, dancing

Special Abilities:  In her original human form, Zoe possessed no special abilities other than an empathic sense that helped her understand Scott Madigan.  After her death and merging with the Dolwa known as Quérahl-tan, she possessed the attributes of the Dolwa:  Telepathy, telekinesis, energy manipulation, unassisted transportation and unassisted time travel.  She also has the ability to rearrange matter on a sub-atomic level and can “freeze” people in time.

Source of Special Abilities:  These are the natural abilities of the Dolwa and were attained by fusing with Quérahl-tan.

Interests/Hobbies:

Attitude:

Arcadia Ryan

Name:  Arcadia Ryan

Race:  Human (Immortal)

Age:  33 (given)/2535 (actual)

Date of Birth:  4465 (given)/1963 (actual)

Place of Birth:  Unnamed North American City (given)/New York City, New York (actual)

Citizenship:  Arcadia is a citizen of the Federation

Legal Status:  No criminal record

Relatives:  Unnamed parents (deceased), Amy Ryan (adopted daughter)

Height:  170.18 cm (5’7”)

Weight:  60.33 k (130 lbs)

Eye Color:  Blue

Hair Color:  Blonde

Religion:  Atheist

Intelligence:  Above average

Strength:  Normal

Speed:  Normal

Stamina:  Normal

Durability:  Normal

Agility:  Normal

Reflexes:  Normal

Profession/Rank (Current):  Master of the freighter Sentinel; freelance spacer

Profession/Rank (Former):  Adventurer, soldier, pilot, numerous others

Current Alias:  None

Former Alias:  None

Personal Weaponry:  Ariflex Mark II Pulser

Special Weaponry:  Various, as needed

Other Weaponry:  Various, as needed

Transportation:  Freighter Sentinel, various support craft, as needed

Usual Base of Operations:  Mobile

Friends/Allies/Confidantes:  Brynna Alexander, Zoe Baird, Lauren Chedraki, Nathan Chedraki, Anastasia Krestyanova, Lily McConnell, Georges Severin, Lisa Stennis

Enemies:  MilSci

Skills:  Marital arts, computers, flying, strategy and tactics

Special Abilities:  Arcadia is immortal; she was born in the year 1963 and hasn’t aged since the year 1997.  Because of this, minor injuries heal extremely quickly.  Short of total disintegration, her body will repair any amount of damage done to it.

Source of Special Abilities:  Unknown

Interests/Abilities:

Attitude:

...And It's Been Finished For How Long?

A few years bacck, I completed a novel titled On A Cold Wind.  It concerned the life and times of Caralynn Adrasteia, an artificially created human working for government security in the late twenty-second century.  It was to be the first of four novels, covering a year in Carly's life as she struggles against Efhram Bartok, another Enhanced Human, one who wants to start a revolution.

I had completed the novel, liked how it had turned out then put it aside for what I thought would be the usual waiting period before I started editing.

And then, I completely forgot about it.

I've been doing that a lot lately.

So I've started going through the novel, doing a line-by-line edit on the story.  Hopefully this draft won't take too long to get through.  And, hopefully, I won't forget it again when this edit is finished.

So here's the three main characters, Caralynn Adrasteia, her partner/lover Murphy Greenfield, and the main protagonist, Ehfram Bartok...

Caralynn Adrasteia (Carly)

Name:  Caralynn Adrasteia

Race:  Enhanced Human (Consectetur Humana)

Age:  15 (actual, as of 23 October, 2189)/early 30’s (apparent)

Date of Birth:  23 April, 2174

Place of Birth:  Gregor Mendel Genetic Research Facility, Albany, New York NorAm, Earth

Citizenship:  Carly is a citizen of Earth

Legal Status:  No criminal record

Relatives:  Martin Carleson (surrogate father), the other forty-nine members of Batch JCSeven

Height:  182.88 cm (6’)

Weight:  70.31 kg (155 lbs)

Eye Color:  Gray

Hair Color:  White

Religion:  Atheist

Intelligence:  Genius

Strength:  Enhanced Human

Speed:  Enhanced Human

Stamina:  Enhanced Human

Durability:  Enhanced Human

Agility:  Enhanced Human

Reflexes:  Enhanced Human

Profession/Rank (Current):  Government security agent, adventurer

Profession/Rank (Former):  Farm hand

Current Alias:  Snowflake

Former Alias:  N/A

Personal Weaponry:  Waller-Jameson CZSeventy-Five Phased Plasma Pistol; various others, as needed, provided by EarthGov Security

Usual Base of Operations:  Division Five Center, Oneonta, New York, NorAm, Earth

Friends/Allies/Confidants:  Xavier Bernard, James Browning, Leah Buchanan, Cheryl Dolan, Teresa Frankel, Murphy Greenfield, Harmony Moore, Melody Moore, Alexandra Sinclair, Bryan Styles, Marissa Tolliver

Enemies:  Efhram Bartok, Purists

Skills:  Carly is a skilled investigator, often noticing details others miss.  She is skilled in several martial arts, is an expert marksman and a good pilot.

Special Abilities:  Because she is an Enhanced Human, Carly is stronger than the average human (approximately  four times stronger).  Her senses are also better than average.  Her eyes are about as good as a cat’s, giving her excellent night vision.  (Like a cat’s eyes, Enhanced Human eyes have tapetum lucidum, which reflects light that passes through the retina back into the eye, increasing the eye’s sensitivity to dim light).  Carly can hear a broader range of frequencies and can pick a single voice out of a crowd.  Her sense of smell is so acute, she can recognize most people by scent.

Source of Special Abilities:  Genetic engineering

Interests/Hobbies:

Murphy Greenfield

Name:  Murphy Greenfield

Race:  Human

Age:  32 (as of 23 October, 2189)

Date of Birth:  17 July, 2157

Place of Birth:  Brisbane, Australia, Earth

Citizenship:  Murphy is a citizen of Earth

Legal Status:  No criminal record

Relatives:  Jamie Greenfield (father, deceased), Zena Greenfield (mother, deceased), Roddy Greenfield (grandfather)

Height:  180.34 (5’11”)

Weight:  79.38 kg (175 lbs)

Eye Color:  Blue

Hair Color:  Sandy Blonde

Religion:  Agnostic

Intelligence:  Above Average

Strength:  Normal

Speed:  Normal

Stamina:  Normal

Durability:  Normal

Agility:  Normal

Reflexes:  Normal

Profession/Rank (Current):  Government security agent, adventurer

Profession/Rank (Former):  None

Current Alias:  Sand

Former Alias:  N/A

Personal Weaponry:  Waller-Jameson CZSeventy-Five Phased Plasma Pistol; various others, as needed, provided by EarthGov Security

Usual Base of Operations:  Division Five Center, Oneonta, New York, NorAm, Earth

Friends/Allies/Confidants: Caralynn Adrasteia, Xavier Bernard, James Browning, Leah Buchanan, Cheryl Dolan, Teresa Frankel, Harmony Moore, Melody Moore, Alexandra Sinclair, Bryan Styles, Marissa Tolliver

Enemies:  Efhram Bartok, Purists

Skills:  Murphy is a skilled agent, trained in several martial arts.  He is also an expert marksman and a good pilot.  He is a good leader, and will often defuse a tense situation with a quick joke.

Special Abilities:  N/A

Source of Special Abilities:  N/A

Interests/Hobbies:

Efhram Bartok

Name:  Efhram Bartok

Race:  Enhanced Human (Consectetur Humana)

Age:  15 (actual, as of 23 October, 2189)/early 30’s (apparent)

Date of Birth:  22 September, 2174

Place of Birth:  Adam Welles Research Facility, San Francisco, California, NorAm, Earth

Citizenship:  Bartok is a citizen of Earth

Legal Status:  Convicted murderer

Relatives:  The other forty-nine members of Batch ANFifty

Height:  177.8 cm (5’10”)

Weight:  72.57 kg (160 lbs)

Eye Color:  Blue

Hair Color:  Black

Religion:  Atheist

Intelligence:  Genius

Strength:  Enhanced Human

Speed:  Enhanced Human

Stamina:  Enhanced Human

Durability:  Enhanced Human

Agility:  Enhanced Human

Reflexes:  Enhanced Human

Profession/Rank (Current):  N/A

Profession/Rank (Former):  N/A

Current Alias:  N/A

Former Alias:  N/A

Personal Weaponry:  Various, as needed

Usual Base of Operations:  Mobile

Friends/Allies/Confidants:

Enemies:  Caralynn Adrasteia, Xavier Bernard, Murphy Greenfield

Skills:  Bartok is a skilled leader and a persuasive speaker.

Special Abilities:  Because he is an Enhanced Human, Bartok is stronger than the average human (approximately  four times stronger).  His senses are also better than average.  His eyes are about as good as a cat’s, giving him excellent night vision.  (Like a cat’s eyes, Enhanced Human eyes have tapetum lucidum, which reflects light that passes through the retina back into the eye, increasing the eye’s sensitivity to dim light).  Bartok can hear a broader range of frequencies and can pick a single voice out of a crowd.  His sense of smell is so acute, he can recognize most people by scent.

Source of Special Abilities:  Genetic engineering

Interests/Hobbies: