A Writer's Notebook, Day Sixty-Seven
I broke 55,000 words today, but I am still waiting for the climax to truly begin. I can feel all the pieces falling into place, and I am just waiting for something to blow everything into full action. I have a sense of what that will be, and I think it is coming quite soon, actually. I think, really, it is very close. In fact, writing that sentence, I was realizing the sequence of events that is unfolding right now.
The scene I am working on at the moment is a dream sequence, but it is not irrelevant as many are, to a story, as it is actually a form of communication that is being used to contact the narrators. The story is complicated, but I also recognize that dreams are a major part of my work, at this point. While they don't always have to be part of a story, for me, I recognize that they are central in W/R and now in Gus And Bow as well. In each case, the dreams have a different function within the narrative, I believe, and I think that I use them in ways that are not typical, although I do not think the general approaches are wholly unique or original. Indeed, one aspect that I like about using dreams in these ways, is that they do allude to a long tradition in literature.
As well, dreams allow for surrealistic and absurd moments that can be spellbinding and can also create images out of themes, in a way that is difficult to achieve so literally outside of that context, at least in most books. Certainly, some authors are able to do these things without evoking a dream, and that is certainly something that can be done, but it requires that the author ground the work in a world that will allow such things to occur. In the case of these novels, while I did want that impact and freedom, I also wanted to have a layering that allowed the world of the book to include both dream elements and waking elements.
Anyhow, the dream sequence that I am writing will involve the revelation of certain information to the narrators and the reader. After they wake up, I think that it will actually be time for things to really hit the fan, and they will be in middle of it right out. That is easy to accomplish from here, and I know exactly what is coming. Of course, their are a lot of details that I still need to work out, but I think that I can figure out how it will all come together.
I've got a great deal to get packed into the climax, for it to really work, but I think it will be a lot of fun and that it will actually reshape much of the novel. It may well be that I need to do a massive amount of work after this to get it into a more cohesive shape, but I am happy with the work I have done on it. Again, I also see this as just another step in a longer process.
I also think that I have a bit more of an idea about what I may start work on next. I really do want to be ready by the first to start a new project for Nanowrimo. First, I believe that it will be an opportunity for community building. That is a huge part of it, I think, and it is something that I believe I could benefit from. As well, if I really am interested in keeping going and writing at a furious pace from here on, I think having that support system for the next month will be truly vital for me. Getting through two months and having two additional novels for it, would, I believe, get me hooked and make me feel that stopping would be a waste of the momentum and commitment.
The general idea, as I mentioned, is about superheroes, but I think I may have a more specific story inside that world, and I think it might have potential. I need to consider a lot more about it, though, and see whether I really am interested in this as a story right now. Of course, what I think it is now is never what it will become. I kind of felt that the current novel might turn a bit flat in some ways, but I have to remember that I am writing it, and so it will inherently reflect me, no matter how much I might attempt to reign it in with a premise that feels limiting in some ways.
In terms of Gus And Bow, I really do feel very optimistic at this moment. I actually had a bit of an insight about something that I wanted to add to the story and I realized where it would fit, as I was writing this entry, and went back to add it in. The actual bit that I added in is a piece based on an old joke that I am rather fond of, and it sort of just fit, as well as wrapping up something that had been put in to the book earlier. It was quite a fun bit to write as well.
The point is that I am feeling quite enthused and am eager to get to the end of the book. I think that shall be easy to achieve, now that I see how it is shaping up, and I am sure that tomorrow will be a very busy day for me in terms of the work that I have planned. I do, at times, still feel a bit of a dread about getting back to work, some days, but then, once I start, it usually is gone pretty fast. I haven't missed a day yet, and I really don't plan on doing so, especially not when I think I can get this completed and be ready for my next challenge in just a few more days.
The scene I am working on at the moment is a dream sequence, but it is not irrelevant as many are, to a story, as it is actually a form of communication that is being used to contact the narrators. The story is complicated, but I also recognize that dreams are a major part of my work, at this point. While they don't always have to be part of a story, for me, I recognize that they are central in W/R and now in Gus And Bow as well. In each case, the dreams have a different function within the narrative, I believe, and I think that I use them in ways that are not typical, although I do not think the general approaches are wholly unique or original. Indeed, one aspect that I like about using dreams in these ways, is that they do allude to a long tradition in literature.
As well, dreams allow for surrealistic and absurd moments that can be spellbinding and can also create images out of themes, in a way that is difficult to achieve so literally outside of that context, at least in most books. Certainly, some authors are able to do these things without evoking a dream, and that is certainly something that can be done, but it requires that the author ground the work in a world that will allow such things to occur. In the case of these novels, while I did want that impact and freedom, I also wanted to have a layering that allowed the world of the book to include both dream elements and waking elements.
Anyhow, the dream sequence that I am writing will involve the revelation of certain information to the narrators and the reader. After they wake up, I think that it will actually be time for things to really hit the fan, and they will be in middle of it right out. That is easy to accomplish from here, and I know exactly what is coming. Of course, their are a lot of details that I still need to work out, but I think that I can figure out how it will all come together.
I've got a great deal to get packed into the climax, for it to really work, but I think it will be a lot of fun and that it will actually reshape much of the novel. It may well be that I need to do a massive amount of work after this to get it into a more cohesive shape, but I am happy with the work I have done on it. Again, I also see this as just another step in a longer process.
I also think that I have a bit more of an idea about what I may start work on next. I really do want to be ready by the first to start a new project for Nanowrimo. First, I believe that it will be an opportunity for community building. That is a huge part of it, I think, and it is something that I believe I could benefit from. As well, if I really am interested in keeping going and writing at a furious pace from here on, I think having that support system for the next month will be truly vital for me. Getting through two months and having two additional novels for it, would, I believe, get me hooked and make me feel that stopping would be a waste of the momentum and commitment.
The general idea, as I mentioned, is about superheroes, but I think I may have a more specific story inside that world, and I think it might have potential. I need to consider a lot more about it, though, and see whether I really am interested in this as a story right now. Of course, what I think it is now is never what it will become. I kind of felt that the current novel might turn a bit flat in some ways, but I have to remember that I am writing it, and so it will inherently reflect me, no matter how much I might attempt to reign it in with a premise that feels limiting in some ways.
In terms of Gus And Bow, I really do feel very optimistic at this moment. I actually had a bit of an insight about something that I wanted to add to the story and I realized where it would fit, as I was writing this entry, and went back to add it in. The actual bit that I added in is a piece based on an old joke that I am rather fond of, and it sort of just fit, as well as wrapping up something that had been put in to the book earlier. It was quite a fun bit to write as well.
The point is that I am feeling quite enthused and am eager to get to the end of the book. I think that shall be easy to achieve, now that I see how it is shaping up, and I am sure that tomorrow will be a very busy day for me in terms of the work that I have planned. I do, at times, still feel a bit of a dread about getting back to work, some days, but then, once I start, it usually is gone pretty fast. I haven't missed a day yet, and I really don't plan on doing so, especially not when I think I can get this completed and be ready for my next challenge in just a few more days.
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