Great picture eh? I loved writing this scene as well.
Done a few thousand words this week on London, and it's coming together better than I had thought. I have also posted Memento Mori, No Man is an Island and Lost Soul etc etc on this site. The problem with doing so many stories is that I get confused as to which has been posted where... and when! Memento Mori No Man is an Island Lost Soul Conversation The Room I am also thinking very hard at the moment about whether to post the 'blog' that I had prepared. It's one of those that one writes on the spur of the moment and then posts.. and regrets it later. I am going to sleep on it and read it again tomorrow. But perhaps the time has come to stand up for the things that matter to me. The complete Shepherd 3 is now up on this site although hidden from view for a couple more weeks. I need to add pictures and wait for the final part to be published on the Herald before I set it up. Vodka is also complete, and just waiting for a couple more illustrations, but that too, will not go up here yet.
As for my writing, I have made the fatal error of reading a load of books about 'How to Write.' Yes, some of the advice is great, really helpful and informative. But the problem is that if we all followed the 'rules' slavishly, then everyone would write in the same style. There would be no difference beween Dick Francis and JRR Tolkein for example. Reading through earlier stories I can see how immature they were, how the 'Mary Sue' syndome crept in, (but hopefully never a self-insertion!), how they are filled with adverbs and doubles and over-use of adjectives. But if I edit them ruthlessly, to follow the 'rules' then some of the life goes out of them. They lose their innocence in a way. I AM editing them simply because there are too many basic errors for me to be happy, but at the same time I am trying to stay within my own style. I completed Vodka and edited it with a vicious hand, only to realise that it was 'flat', and that it had lost that immediacy, that 'something' that made it work. So I 'unedited it! I just hope Ed Straker forgives me. It's a pretty brutal story (as usual). And I am adding some thoughts to this post; advice I read about the rules of writing. And these are probably the only rules I will try to follow slavishly in future. If you write with enough confidence and assurance, you will be allowed to write whatever you like. Write the story you want to write, as it needs to be written, as you want to write it. Write it honestly and with love, and do the best you can. Write with enjoyment, for yourself. And I do. Eight stories ongoing. And that doesnt include the entire third trilogy and and the end story of the second trilogy.
Oh... and Pittencriel. And Mutual Understanding. And 'Cut and Thrust'? That is the new title for Game of Chess. But that story might never see the light of day unless I can get the two characters to co-operate with me. The real problem is though, that I have mush for brains at the moment. I open a story and write a bit, then realise that I have NO idea where it is leading! There are some 'Writers' Sites' out there that explain exactly how to plan your story out in detail. And I mean DETAIL. Exact scenes, characters, timeline. I don't (and can't) work that way, although I appreciate now the need for more detailed planning of other aspects of a story, such as descriptions of even the most peripheral character. And bathrooms! When I wrote Process of Elimination back in 2009, I drew a scale plan of Straker's house and had that in mind throughout the whole story. But as for plots? Well, I start off and just see where it goes, although I usually have a pretty good idea of what I want to achieve. Shepherd was planned with two ideas only. Straker in the homeless shelter, and then ( and I am not giving away any details here!) the last scene was him returning to the Shelter (with his protection detail ) and driving up in his new car - which was going to be a Jaguar Sentinel! - oh.. and wearing jeans and a sweatshirt! The story however had its own agenda, and ended up going off in directions that were totally unexpected. But that made it all the more fun to write, as I had NO idea what was going to happen! Sometimes I would start writing and the character would take over. (Sorry Alec!) But it WAS fun to do, However, now it is nearly at an end and, as usual I am finding it difficult to look beyond to the next story. It will come. It always does! And I am seriously thinking of upgrading this site. Well, it finally happened. I finished it. The Shepherd.
Wrote my author's notes for it today. Although..... let's just say I am not entirely finished with it. But I am quietly pleased with it. Maybe in a couple of years time I will look back and laugh at it, at the mistakes and the things that I did wrong, but I have loved doing it. Even when it got difficult. And now? Who knows! I will buy myself something special to celebrate. I have a dragon earwrap that I bought when I completed Glitch, and a Dragon's Breath earcuff that seemed to 'fit the bill' when I completed Breathless... Now it is just a matter of finding the right thing for The Shepherd. I have three (no; six) stories on the 'back burner' at the moment. Well, probably more than that if I actually search through the numerous memory sticks that are lying around the house/office/briefcases/desks. I have two Rachel stories nearly completed, but I need to redo several earlier ones before I even think about finishing those. The Rachel stories were going to end in the marriage between Ed and Rachel, but that won't happen now, although it will end happily. ( Hey, I do ANGST... not 'Get'em' stories!!)
And after all, not every relationship has to end in a couple walking down an aisle. Let's face it, marriage would not be permitted between two people in that situation. (I covered that in Rules and Regulations!) Combined Operations (the next Rachel story) will have to be re-thought, as will 'A Matter of Degree' which was going to be the final story in the Chronicles. But, then I remembered 'Pittencriel' .. yet another Rachel/Ed adventure! I sometimes wonder if I will ever finish these stories! It doesn't matter though. There is time enough to write and to finish the UFOverse stories that I want to do. What IS important is to correct the things I have done in those earlier stories that are are so very, very 'wrong' (Alec Freeman as an Australian, Straker as a tee-totaller, Paul Foster as an incompetent!, and Shroeder misspelled throughout!). And maybe there will be time to do those reviews. Shepherd? You want to know how that is coming along? Well, it's ........ progressing. Slower than I would have liked, but I am getting there. Over twelve months now. But I am quietly pleased with it. (And that is down to one person.) |
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December 2015
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