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Post by Suzy on Feb 22, 2014 14:44:37 GMT -5
That's where I am in my WIP. It all looks so bland and flat right now. I have the story in my head and I just need to write it down. And I do. Every day, 1000 words minimum.
I'm not that inspired right now but as the plot is good and the characters interesting, I have a faint spark of hope that it will be a compelling, readable story one day.
I always go through this flat period in draft #1. It's in draft #2 it really begins to happen. So, right now it's all about application and getting the foundation right. The frills and thrills will come later.
Just thought I'd share, in case anyone else goes through this 'it's a load of rubbish' period when writing a story.
ETA: I'm at 40K right now, so kind of at the turning point and at the top of the arc.
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Post by Becca Mills on Feb 22, 2014 17:59:10 GMT -5
Yeah, I know what you mean. For me, that "flat" feeling means I need to scrap what I'm doing and rewrite, but that makes sense, since I mix the Draft 1 and Draft 2 stages together in one big muddle.
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Post by Daniel on Feb 22, 2014 18:36:50 GMT -5
I'm right in the middle too, but it doesn't feel saggy. This is where the good guys have had enough and they are starting their comeback. I write faster during the second half of the book.
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Post by shawninmon on Feb 23, 2014 11:50:59 GMT -5
I'm right in the middle too, but it doesn't feel saggy. This is where the good guys have had enough and they are starting their comeback. I write faster during the second half of the book. I'm like a horse that's been out in the field too long. When I see the barn and smell the hay, I break from a trot into a gallop. Which is a farm boy way of saying I write faster at the end. It always feels like I'm pushing a heavy rock up hill until I get about two thirds of the way through the book. Then it goes over the top and drags me along, running behind it, the last third. That's where I am on my WIP, and it feels good! |
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Post by Suzy on Feb 23, 2014 11:59:41 GMT -5
I'm right in the middle too, but it doesn't feel saggy. This is where the good guys have had enough and they are starting their comeback. I write faster during the second half of the book. I'm like a horse that's been out in the field too long. When I see the barn and smell the hay, I break from a trot into a gallop. Which is a farm boy way of saying I write faster at the end. It always feels like I'm pushing a heavy rock up hill until I get about two thirds of the way through the book. Then it goes over the top and drags me along, running behind it, the last third. That's where I am on my WIP, and it feels good! Yes me too. Once I've got to the middle bit I get this feeling of speeding downhill, my tail is up, the wind is in my sails and I have to make sure I don't go too fast. I went back and tightened things up in the previous chapter and now I'm speeding along again. |
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Post by vrabinec on Feb 23, 2014 12:19:15 GMT -5
I wonder if writers worry too much about the sag in the middle. It's naturally gonna be the low point. Things will look hopeless, or so messed up that you get the feeling the reader might give up on it. But if the reader made it that far, he's gonna know there comes SOME kind of a turning point, and will probably hang in there to see what happens. I dunno. Maybe I'm in denial because I need to spruce up my middle, too. Someone hold me and tell it'll be okay.
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Post by Suzy on Feb 23, 2014 12:21:18 GMT -5
There, there, Fred... it'll be okay.
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Post by Becca Mills on Feb 23, 2014 14:01:28 GMT -5
There, there, Fred... it'll be okay. For sure! <pat pat> |
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Post by shawninmon on Feb 23, 2014 15:31:26 GMT -5
I have a new problem... I realized this weekend that my novel is a novella. All along, I thought it was going to be 65,000 words, but I'm at 32k and the end is in sight. So, I guess I've got a novella!
"Congratulations, sir, you are the proud father of a bouncing baby novella. It weighs 40,000 words."
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Post by Becca Mills on Feb 23, 2014 15:50:38 GMT -5
I have a new problem... I realized this weekend that my novel is a novella. All along, I thought it was going to be 65,000 words, but I'm at 32k and the end is in sight. So, I guess I've got a novella! "Congratulations, sir, you are the proud father of a bouncing baby novella. It weighs 40,000 words." LOL. Congrats! What're you going to name your new bundle of joy?  |
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Post by shawninmon on Feb 23, 2014 16:03:31 GMT -5
It's called Rock 'n Roll Heaven. I've been struggling with it for months. Now I see that I was struggling because I was trying to make it more than it was, trying to add more heft than its skinny little legs would hold. Trying to expand it was making it bloated and repetitive. So, I cut out a bunch of planned stuff that wasn't necessary and voila! A healthy story.
The good news is, now I can finish it this week and get it out in March!
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Post by Suzy on Feb 23, 2014 16:06:57 GMT -5
It's called Rock 'n Roll Heaven. I've been struggling with it for months. Now I see that I was struggling because I was trying to make it more than it was, trying to add more heft than its skinny little legs would hold. Trying to expand it was making it bloated and repetitive. So, I cut out a bunch of planned stuff that wasn't necessary and voila! A healthy story. The good news is, now I can finish it this week and get it out in March! Great title! Congratulations on the new arrival. When the Pub is a year old on March 14, we could have a combined launch and birthday party. |
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Post by Daniel on Feb 23, 2014 20:23:43 GMT -5
I wonder if writers worry too much about the sag in the middle. It's naturally gonna be the low point. Things will look hopeless, or so messed up that you get the feeling the reader might give up on it. But if the reader made it that far, he's gonna know there comes SOME kind of a turning point, and will probably hang in there to see what happens. I dunno. Maybe I'm in denial because I need to spruce up my middle, too. Someone hold me and tell it'll be okay. I agree that authors worry too much about the saggy middle. There's no reason for it to be saggy. It's the transition that readers have been waiting for. It's the "I've had enough and I'm not going to take any more!" moment. One of the reasons I prefer to follow the theory of fiction as "four parts" rather than "three acts" is because three acts leave the middle suspended without support. There's no reason the middle has to be saggy. It is of critical significance because that is where the protagonist shifts from defense to offense. It's an exciting moment! Or should be. |
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Post by Becca Mills on Feb 23, 2014 20:48:32 GMT -5
I wonder if writers worry too much about the sag in the middle. It's naturally gonna be the low point. Things will look hopeless, or so messed up that you get the feeling the reader might give up on it. But if the reader made it that far, he's gonna know there comes SOME kind of a turning point, and will probably hang in there to see what happens. I dunno. Maybe I'm in denial because I need to spruce up my middle, too. Someone hold me and tell it'll be okay. I agree that authors worry too much about the saggy middle. There's no reason for it to be saggy. It's the transition that readers have been waiting for. It's the "I've had enough and I'm not going to take any more!" moment. One of the reasons I prefer to follow the theory of fiction as "four parts" rather than "three acts" is because three acts leave the middle suspended without support. There's no reason the middle has to be saggy. It is of critical significance because that is where the protagonist shifts from defense to offense. It's an exciting moment! Or should be. See, this is the kind of stuff I never think about. |
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Post by Becca Mills on Feb 23, 2014 20:49:31 GMT -5
It's called Rock 'n Roll Heaven. I've been struggling with it for months. Now I see that I was struggling because I was trying to make it more than it was, trying to add more heft than its skinny little legs would hold. Trying to expand it was making it bloated and repetitive. So, I cut out a bunch of planned stuff that wasn't necessary and voila! A healthy story. The good news is, now I can finish it this week and get it out in March! Well, what a fantastic result! What's the genre? |
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Post by shawninmon on Feb 23, 2014 21:21:00 GMT -5
It's called Rock 'n Roll Heaven. I've been struggling with it for months. Now I see that I was struggling because I was trying to make it more than it was, trying to add more heft than its skinny little legs would hold. Trying to expand it was making it bloated and repetitive. So, I cut out a bunch of planned stuff that wasn't necessary and voila! A healthy story. The good news is, now I can finish it this week and get it out in March! Well, what a fantastic result! What's the genre? I wish I knew, Becca. Can you tell me? It's the story of Jimmy 'Guitar' Velvet, who dies in a bus crash and goes to the titular R n R Heaven, where he meets the greats: Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison, Elvis, Jim Morrison, etc. There's a problem in heaven and Jimmy solves the problem, before being resuscitated and getting a second chance at fixing his own messed-up life. I know who my audience is - music loving boomers that remember who Buddy Holly is - but I sincerely don't know the genre. It's not sci-fi, because there's no sci. It's not fantasy because there are no elves or dragons. It's not a romance because the romance is at best a secondary plot line. It's not literary fiction because I write very simple, happy stories. I sincerely have no idea. Suggestions? |
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Post by Becca Mills on Feb 23, 2014 23:31:52 GMT -5
That sounds *fantastic*, Shawn. What an awesome story idea. So, is it light-hearted, or are the problems (in the afterlife and on earth) sort of heavy stuff? Is the problem in the afterlife a mystery?
Personally, I think I'd aim for categories like these (depending on the answers to the questions above):
Literary Fiction Themes/Coming of Age
Mystery, Thriller & Suspense/Suspense/Paranormal/General
Science Fiction & Fantasy/Fantasy/Coming of Age
Science Fiction & Fantasy/Fantasy/Metaphysical & Visionary
Literature & Fiction/Contemporary Fiction/Fantasy
Humor & Entertainment/Pop Culture (I know "humor" sounds wrong, but this is where you'd go to find rock-and-roll books)
It can definitely be categorized in contemporary fiction, even if it's a simple, happy story. The question is how to fine-tune a huge category like that to become more visible.
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Post by shawninmon on Feb 23, 2014 23:41:13 GMT -5
That sounds *fantastic*, Shawn. What an awesome story idea. So, is it light-hearted, or are the problems (in the afterlife and on earth) sort of heavy stuff? Is the problem in the afterlife a mystery? Personally, I think I'd aim for categories like these (depending on the answers to the questions above): Literary Fiction Themes/Coming of Age Mystery, Thriller & Suspense/Suspense/Paranormal/General Science Fiction & Fantasy/Fantasy/Coming of Age Science Fiction & Fantasy/Fantasy/Metaphysical & Visionary Literature & Fiction/Contemporary Fiction/Fantasy Humor & Entertainment/Pop Culture (I know "humor" sounds wrong, but this is where you'd go to find rock-and-roll books) It can definitely be categorized in contemporary fiction, even if it's a simple, happy story. The question is how to fine-tune a huge category like that to become more visible. Exactly. It is relatively light-hearted through most of it. The problem that exists is that we have a collection of the most creative people that have ever existed, and they can't create anything new. They don't understand why, but it's like the creative part of their brain has been excised. The fun part for me is that Jimmy, who describes himself as "I'm not a has-been. I'm a never-was" is the one who brings creativity back to these giants and legends. A lot of the focus is on "Holy crap! That's Jim Morrison!" which is pretty lightly done. On the other hand, Jimmy is acting like a reverse-Christ figure in that he is coming from Earth to Heaven to "save" the creative souls of the occupants. It is paranormal, but not a thriller or suspense. I like the idea of metaphysical & Visionary. That could work. I also like the Humor category. Great ideas, Becca! You're hired! |
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Post by Pru Freda on Feb 24, 2014 0:17:34 GMT -5
This has been a timely thread, thank you, everyone. I've barely reached the middle and already I'm sagging. I'm on the second draft of a supposedly 60K story - which ended up at a mere 36K after the first. Apart from one scene (the denouement) yet to be written, I'm struggling to up the word count all round. Like Shawn, I considered making it a novella, but there is so much story to tell, it really does need to be longer. (Love the sound of Rock and Roll Heaven, btw. Good luck with that.) Ah, well, if nothing else, the title of this thread has given me a cracking idea for a joke.  |
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Post by Becca Mills on Feb 24, 2014 0:28:14 GMT -5
That sounds *fantastic*, Shawn. What an awesome story idea. So, is it light-hearted, or are the problems (in the afterlife and on earth) sort of heavy stuff? Is the problem in the afterlife a mystery? Personally, I think I'd aim for categories like these (depending on the answers to the questions above): Literary Fiction Themes/Coming of Age Mystery, Thriller & Suspense/Suspense/Paranormal/General Science Fiction & Fantasy/Fantasy/Coming of Age Science Fiction & Fantasy/Fantasy/Metaphysical & Visionary Literature & Fiction/Contemporary Fiction/Fantasy Humor & Entertainment/Pop Culture (I know "humor" sounds wrong, but this is where you'd go to find rock-and-roll books) It can definitely be categorized in contemporary fiction, even if it's a simple, happy story. The question is how to fine-tune a huge category like that to become more visible. Exactly. It is relatively light-hearted through most of it. The problem that exists is that we have a collection of the most creative people that have ever existed, and they can't create anything new. They don't understand why, but it's like the creative part of their brain has been excised. The fun part for me is that Jimmy, who describes himself as "I'm not a has-been. I'm a never-was" is the one who brings creativity back to these giants and legends. A lot of the focus is on "Holy crap! That's Jim Morrison!" which is pretty lightly done. On the other hand, Jimmy is acting like a reverse-Christ figure in that he is coming from Earth to Heaven to "save" the creative souls of the occupants. It is paranormal, but not a thriller or suspense. I like the idea of metaphysical & Visionary. That could work. I also like the Humor category. Great ideas, Becca! You're hired! Heh, heh ... sounds good, Boss! I gotta say, the whole protagonist-as-reverse-Christ-figure thing suggests that there's a little more going on here than a simple, happy story.  It'd be great if fantasy had a straight "paranormal" category, but I think it was "paranormal and urban," which is going to be full of werewolf romances, I think. Something with ghosts might work, too, but I didn't see that listed. You might put some of these things in your keywords and just see where Amazon slots you in. |
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