A Wasted Day

There are many days I can’t work because I have other pressing activities. That’s frustrating, but it’s a neccessary evil. Today, however, I had time to work, and wasted it. That’s beyond frustrating. It leaves me deeply depressed.

Of course, I suppose I was depressed to begin with, since instead of working, I stewed the whole day long in stressful thoughts about my inability to face the future with my current resources (mental as well as physical). It was one of those days when my inadequacies pointed and laughed at my aspirations, and even at noon, the sun shone grey. I ate too much, tasted too little.

I scrolled through various Word files on my screen, but typed nothing. I thought about painting, but baskets of laundary were piled between me and my art desk. I thought about doing laundary, but returned to my computer.

Scrolled some more, typed nothing.

Worried some more, solved nothing.

Tommorrow, I am not going to worry, and I’m not going to even try to type one word. I think I’ll read. And try to go outside.

Another Round

I finished another round of revisions in order to have a draft for my later beta readers. In this version, which is still rough around the edges and missing one scene, I strengthened the story line of the hero.

One of the critiques of an early beta reader was that the story made a promise to the reader at the start which was never carried out by the end. I’ve revised that so that hopefully the reader will see how the story promise has been delivered. (Vague, I know, but I don’t want to get too much more specific.)

While working on revisions, I’ve simultaneously been working on the second book, but I’m now now sure. Should I keep working on book two or should I “refresh the palette” with some work on another book?

I suppose I’ll follow my inspiration; if I continue to go strong on book two, I will. But sometimes it does help me to take a break between projects and work on something completely different.

Does anyone else do that?

In Need of Villains

I have an idea for an Urban Fantasy, but I need an idea for the Big Baddies. I’m tired of demons, werewolves, and vampires. A goverment conspiracy run by a corrupt US senator who wants to sell arms to terrorists? Uh, no. That is so done.

What kind of villains would be original, badass, re-newable (can’t be just one dude, I need my heroes to plow through a lot of ’em), something interesting enough you’d like to read it?

Both sf (aliens, robots) and fantasy (demons, necromancers) type ideas welcome. What kind of villain hasn’t been done that would be supercool?

Guest Post on The Literary Lab

The Literary Lab was kind enough to invite me to guest blog. This week they are exploring the strengths and weaknesses of different genres. I’ve taken the opportunity to jot down a theory I’ve developed on the appeal (or repulsion) of Epic Fantasy.

Passing Time in Fiction

Following my post on middles, I reflected on what it is about the middle which is specifically giving me the most trouble. I’ve decided it’s because the middle is where I need time to pass, without specifically showing it. The beginning runs fairly fast, over a few weeks, and the ending runs quickly as well — over just a few days in fact. In the middle, however, nearly a year must pass.

You know those sequences in movies? Where they show montages of characters doing things, intersperced with pictures of the trees losing their leaves, growing frosty, then budding into green? How does one show this in a novel? Especially because I want the reader to have a sense of being right there with the characters all along, I don’t want to say, “A year later…” because that feels like we’ve left the characters to their own devices for a year, then returned to them. I’d like to show little bits of scene and scenery every half dozen weeks as the year goes by, then return to the blow by blow action at the end.

And all of this is complicated by the fact that I’m juggling two timelines, because there’s a flashback sequence interspliced with the main storyline.

What are your best techniques for passing time that you’ve used or read? Any ideas?

Mush in the Middle

Why do the middles of books, like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, tend to get so mushy, squished and icky?

I am trying to brush up my book and I think the beginning and ending are adequate, but Chapters 12 and 13 are simply undigestible. I honestly don’t know what to do with them.

Some of the problems are:

* too many truncated scenes giving a staccato feel to the chapters
* low tension sub-plots
* time bridges
* scenes which serve to set up later tension but are otherwise boring
* merely cutting or combining scenes results in illogical sequencing