Short Story Progress?

Today I slept late and got up tired. It doesn’t help I was up until 3. It was a lazy ish day. We did breakfast. Vicki and I tried to watch the new Persuasion movie on Netflix. I don’t recommend it. We turned it off after 25 minutes.

We picked a better version of Persuasion and while we watched, I worked on writing stuff. I have this mental list of things I need to work on. Today I was to put my Ava (pen name) books on Bookfunnel so I could participate with more promotions. I got all of them on the site.

After dinner, I was alone and my brain was not on my short story. I did other things and putzed a bit. I settled in to write and got about 1500 words down. I’m up to just under 13K for a total. So I still have 7K of room.

I’m on the final scene. I sat here playing on my phone. I hadn’t any idea on how to start this scene. I played on my phone for a bit. Bash and I have a routine. At some point around 11 pm, he gets up and bugs me to go to the bathroom. He will pace from the living room to the hall. He’ll scamper back and forth. Sometimes he even meows at me. So I went to the bathroom and ran water in the sink for him. I sat there not thinking about anything in particular and then it came to me how to start this climatic scene.

I’m excited to write it but my brain is sluggish and my eyes are tired. I got the beginning of the scene written. I’m taking a break though because my brain just isn’t focused. So I’m headed to bed and hoping I can finish this tomorrow. It’s only the 8th of the month but I’d like to finish this now so I can give myself a break between writing and editing.

I have a list of things on my calendar for the next couple of days but I’m hoping to do both. Hopefully I can get a lot done over the next few days. For now, I think I’ll go to bed and hope to have more inspiration in the morning.

Inspiration

I’ve been asked how I come up with my ideas.  It is hard to answer that because in most cases they just come to me.  When I’m working on a story, it just tells itself. 

I reach moments in each story where I have to consciously make a decision about where the story is going.  Sometimes I think through all the possibilities but mostly I just follow where I think the story should go. 

In the fantasy novel I’m working on, I thought I was done with the first novel but there was one area which was bugging me.  I was considering either rewriting an entire chapter or adding in another chapter.  The problem – keeping the cohesion of the story and adding to it by the addition. 

I’m reading the Wrede’s book on writing.  In there she talks about world building and the functions of scenes.  I’m trying to adhere to how she talks about the functions of scenes because to me she makes sense. 

In the fantasy novel, I’ve created a world where the genders have equality.  However, there is a scene where an older woman is talking to younger girls about “womanly things.”  If this is a world of equality then I felt there should be a section where the younger boys in the story get the same type of talk. 

The problem – I didn’t want the reader to be bored with a repetition of the same conversation.  I wanted there to be equality between the genders. 

For a couple of days I struggled with the issue.  As I’m falling asleep the other night, I come up with an origin myth for the novel.  Last night I’m thinking about going to sleep and can’t.  I pick up my netbook to start writing at about 10:00.  I worked on a new chapter for the book.  I just started writing and it flowed so easily. 

My phone rang and scared the crap out of me.  Vicki called.  I hadn’t realized it was 11:30 but I was nearly done with the chapter.  She told me she was just calling to tell me goodnight and make sure I didn’t stay up too late writing.  This is a running joke with us. 

Before midnight, I finished the chapter.  I will edit it a couple of times.  I think it adds depth to the story without it feeling like it I’m doing an info dump.  It brings in the origin of the land, it creates the equality I wanted with the genders, and it teaches the lessons that are needed – I hope. 

Where did the inspiration come from?  No idea.  I just know it came to me, whether from sleeping on it or from talking about it with my daughter and others or from somewhere else.  The inspiration hit to help me overcome a problem in the novel. 

Secret Past

Moon Affirmations  Daily Meditations Using the Moon Phase to Focus Your Energy

Moments in Nature

Technology has its uses….

I wrote last night till nearly one in the monring.  I finished yet another chapter.  This morning I had to be up to leave the house at 7 am so I set my alarm and got up.  Fortunately it is the weekend so I don’t have to dress up or anthing. 

The morning was gray and gloomy.  It seemed to fit my tired and somewhat growly morning mood.  While I had the radio on as I drove I wasn’t really listening to it.  Last night I ended my chapter and it was good but it wasn’t great.  It wasn’t quite what I wanted and I couldn’t figure out what I wanted – that’s part of the reason I stopped writing. 

As I’m driving along not really thinking about anything, my story pops into my head.  I’m thinking about what I want to happen next in the story – thinking about the next chapter, which characters will go where, what the next phase is.  My mind keeps going back to the end of the chapter.  I can’t seem to let go of the ending of the chapter.  Then an idea pops into my head that is BRILLIANT.  It is the PERFECT ending to the chapter and sets up a great transition. 

I’m picking up my friend and her daughter.  I am waiting for them in the parking lot.  I don’t want to forget my idea so I pull out my cell phone.  I open up the note pad section and write the ending to the chapter.  Ridiculous I know but still I did it.  Then I email myself the next two or three chapter ideas I had…

Granted I had my journal with me and I could have written out all of this but it would have been in my journal which is not where I want this type of writing to be.  I know this may sound contrary to my last two posts but this was a good use for technology and I wasn’t rude to anyone in the process.

To sleep or not…

Last night I finished a chapter about ten and thought okay I’m done writing but I’m not tired enough to go to sleep.  I grabbed the book I was reading and curled up in my recliner.  Three hours later I finish the book and decide okay it would be best to go to bed. 

I lay there in bed waiting for sleep to overcome me.  I’ve been awake a long time afterall and I should be able to drop off right?  I mean I had a full day yesterday.  I wrote for a while, did Vicki’s taxes, talked to Gin and Stephanie, watched tv, hung out with Ken, finished reading a book.  I should be tired right? 

Nope.  I lay in bed with my eyes closed.  I shifted positions trying to find a comfortable position and about the time I would start to drift off then the next scene in my manuscript started to play.  The good thing about this is that I’ll be able to write it fairly easily because it is in my head what will happen and how. 

I wanted to be up early so I could spend the whole day with Ken.  It’s his birthday and I wanted to be up early so we could sit and talk or watch a movie or whatever.  Nope – I finally fell asleep about 4 am and slept late. 

I appreciate the inspiration I’m getting to write this epic manuscript but at some point I would really like to sleep normally.  As a writer I may have to give up that desire because I have the feeling my muse is going to be as inconvenient as my guides…