When writing any story, there are bound to be changes during the first draft. That’s especially true for me during this NaNoWriMo since I am planning the novel while I write it. Even 27,000 words in, there are things that change.
Characters can change more than their name or eye color. Their outlook on the world and other characters starts out vague and is more defined as you develop them. I already have several notes on things to change from earlier chapters.
Continue reading25,020 words so far. I realized today that I’m going to have to scrap a scene and a half from earlier in the novel to adjust for new characterization and plot. The characters are finally coming together in my head, so I’ve decided to outline them below.
There are many more characters, but these are the important players in the first book.
Continue readingI am 1/5 of the way there, with 18,011 words total. That’s on track for 90k! I spent most of this evening working on figuring out the rest of Acts 2 and 3, with many ideas but still a lot of scenes to sort and place.
These six are smaller subplots that either are only a small part of the story, or are the beginning of a larger plot that extends through the rest of the trilogy.
Continue readingFour days into November, and things are running pretty smoothly. I’ve written 12,419 words, or about 1/8 of the total. That’s close enough to par for me, especially at the beginning of writing.
Besides the main plot, there are ten subplots that I’ve planned. With the expansion of the main plot, some of these will run their course in this book, and others will persist through the trilogy.
I’ve made a large chart detailing each plot and how it comes into play for each scene. Each subplot was outlined using the same major beats as the main plot. I’ve got the first half of the novel roughly planned out, though I expect some changes in the future.
Continue readingI sketched out the main plot by hitting upon 9 major scenes that form the scaffolding of the plot. Hopefully I’ll be able to plan scenes to lead into and out of these scenes to fill the rest of the space between them. For those interested, these major scenes are based on K. M. Weiland’s Story Structure.
Continue readingNaNoWriMo got off to a good start today. I often don’t finish the goal of 1,666 words on the first day, because it is always difficult getting into the swing of a new story. This year should have been especially hard, since I’d only done the briefest amount of planning. But things went fairly smoothly today.
I spent two hours this morning working on plotting the main plot, discovering the characters I’d need, and writing the opening of the first chapter, getting a total of 754 words written.
This evening, I managed to complete planning the main plot, which I will share tomorrow. I also began to work on the sideplots that I discovered along the way. After half an hour of planning in my notebook, and an hour expanding my notes into Manuskript, I managed to finish Chapter 1 with a total of 1,993 words written for the day.
Now, to see if I can improve my pace, as I’ll need to write 3,035 words a day to get to 90k by the end of November.
How’s the prep been going for this year’s NaNoWriMo?
Well, for me, there hasn’t been much. Between work, family, and editing What Happened at Ingvar Bluffs, I’ve put off prepping for this year’s NaNo novel. So far, I only have a few themes, some sketches of the world, and a loose sense of the plot.
This year’s novel doesn’t even have a name yet, so I’ve given it a (very boring) name: Project River. You’ll see why I chose “river” in the setting description below.
I’m sharing this as a way to work it out in my head for tomorrow morning and to encourage you to begin NaNoWriMo, even if everything isn’t perfectly planned out. Here’s what I have prepped so far:
Continue readingMagnus ran his hand over the sling again. His fingers bounced against the pebbled outside of the cast. He cautiously flexed his muscles. Though his wrist did not move, a string of ache wound its way up from deep within and along the inside of his arm.
He scowled at the injury. He should be working. Instead, his stupid wrist was holding him back. He cursed his luck again and imagined what he could be working on if he hadn’t been injured.
Turning his attention from his wrist, he looked around the workshop. He had picked up the fallen sensations yesterday morning, but his tools were still out and scattered around the workbench.
He bent to pick up the shears that caused all this trouble, but a bolt of pain shot along his back, stopping him. He grit his teeth, grumbled under his breath, and slowly stood upright.
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He needed a plan. Valkan should be arriving soon. The student seemed skilled, so he should be able to follow Magnus’s directions.
Continue readingThis is the first part of a four part short story I wrote for my church’s advent calendar. Our writer’s group, Word Workers, has daily writings posted through-out Advent, including stories, memories, reflections, poems, and more. You can find the calendar at AllSaintsMTKA.org.
Magnus Stonhart shuffled through the chill, dark night while the knapsack slung over his shoulder glowed and thrummed and emanated sweet smells of all varieties. He preferred to work at night, when the world stilled and the crowds dispersed. Alone, he roamed the empty streets to gather sensations wherever he could. On summer nights it was pleasant, but the warmth of summer had waned. Christmas was near and the damp, cold night air clung to his skin, leaving a chill he could not shake even as he entered his workshop.
With an exhale, he set the heavy pack on the wooden table. He pulled loose the drawstrings and began to unpack. He removed the sensations one at a time, careful lest one drops or shatters. He sorted them out into their drawers: smells, temperatures, the large collections of sights.
A gentle knock on the workshop door roused him from his meditative movements. Outside stood a tall, thin man with a gray cloak wrapped around his shoulders. The man held a golden glowing memory in his hands.
Continue readingOne question people ask me is “Where do you get your ideas?”
The question is not hard to answer on an individual basis, such as how I came upon a particular idea for a short story or novel. However, for me, there is no consistency for where ideas come from.
Some form out of the blue, while others take months of molding and changing. Some are full stories when they come to me, while others are just the brief spark of an idea.
But if you are still looking for an idea for your NaNo Novel, let’s go through some of the ways my ideas come to me. Feel free to use these ideas to create your own story.
Continue reading