Posts tagged with 'outline'

Nano Struggles

  • Posted on November 3, 2009 at 12:17 am

Today’s Starting Word Count: 1706
Today’s Word Count Goal: 4200
Today’s Nano Average Goal: 3333
Word Count at the time of Writing: 9459 (Track)
Current Funds Raised: $0.00 (Donate)

So, the eminent Mr. Silver claims that he has technological wonders that might be able to help me rescue my NaNo outline, and that would be great. In the meantime, I am chronicling the wanderings of Mrs. Naughty McMeanie-Pants. I wrote all of the preface up to the point where The King comes home and gets murdered and The Prince is cursed. Now, having fled the scene of the crime, Mrs. Naughty knows that her days are numbered and is searching for a restful place to wait for who ever takes it into his/her head to come for her.

All the while my so-called Main Characters are still off-stage waiting for the drama queen to get through her narrative. I can almost hear them.

“Is she wrapping up yet?”
“Not that I can tell, but the flashbacks have stopped.”
“Well, that’s probably a good sign.”
“Maybe”
*sigh* “Wake me when it’s my turn.”

Poor things. This is what happened and stalled me out last year, though, so I’m just letting it happen. Who knows, maybe I’ll end up with a nifty novel entirely from the McMeanie-Pants point-of-view. There are worse things.

Research, Prewriting, & Outlining

  • Posted on October 3, 2008 at 11:49 am

28 days, 13 hours, 9 minutes, and 3 seconds left until NaNoWriMo Begins!
My Nano Page

So the process has begun. I’ve spent the last week researching the cultures, climate, landscape, and mythology of the Siberian Steppe and the PIE peoples so I have a good setting base. I’m written a little bit of character background, but nothing that will go into the novel. That would be cheating!

As for my outline; I want to scream! The story I want to tell isn’t a fairytale rework, but the outline keeps saying, “Ohhh, lets go this direction. You already have a talking animal, so why not do the ‘Since you rescued me, I’ll help you solve your quest puzzle,’ thing? It’s a classic!” No no no, don’t want to!

“I Actually Have a Need for a Hacksaw in My Studio”

  • Posted on October 1, 2008 at 10:11 am

An Assignment from “Caffeine for the Creative Mind:”

Most of us are familiar with the Swiss Army Knife, that clever gadget rhat house 276 tools in one handy red plastic sheath. As creatives, we may never have a glaring need for a 2” hack saw, but there are things that we use everyday in our professional lives that might make more useful tools. Your task is to invent your “Professional Survival Swiss Army …Thing.” What would your sheathed utility tool hold? Draw it on a piece of paper or simply list the items it would have.
(Mumaw & Oldfield 2006: 21)

“I Actually Have a Need for a Hacksaw in My Studio”- continue reading

NanoWriMo Day 1

  • Posted on November 1, 2007 at 11:53 pm

Word Count: 2,704 / 50,000

I’m doing something a little different this year.

And when I say a little different, I mean something that I’ve never before attempted in a serious way. I’m writing standard fiction. I’m not sure if it will qualify as suspense or as contemporary fiction when I’m done, but it sure as hell isn’t fantasy or sci-fi.

I haven’t figured out a title yet.

The plot, as currently revealed, is following two primary characters. Rebecca Grossman, a 34 year old writer from a small town who moved to New York two years ago, was raped in her home after coming home from a party. Detective Reuben Levine is a veteran member of the NYPD and has been assigned to her case. So far they’ve spoken one sentence each in each other’s presence, as Ms. Grossman fell into a unconsciousness just after Levine arrived on the scene.

You can keep track of my progress as the challenge progresses at http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/user/89393. Check back here as well for extra goodies like character profiles, research notes, and maybe even polls where in you, the dedicated reader, can give you opinion on the fabulous and progressing plot!

And now for today’s writing!
NanoWriMo Day 1- continue reading

NaNoWriMo: A Victim

  • Posted on October 29, 2005 at 5:21 pm

The victim (both the most and least important character in any murder mystery) of my novel is a woman by the name of Lynn Clancey. She is 32 at the time of her death and has been a practicing Fire mage for 10 years.

Lynn was raised in a small farming community of religious folk who reject magic in the same way that the Amish reject technology. These folk, the Weltlich, originated in Germany as an echo of Martin Luther’s new church. They are a protestant group who feel that magic contaminates the soul. Lynn was taught how to avoid using her gifts, and how to bottle them up. In her late teens, Lynn had a crisis of conscious, learned more about other religions’ takes on magic, and left the community. Though her parents disowned her, her grandmother gave her a nest egg and wished her the best. Lynn has not been in touch with her parents or younger brother (Charles) since Grandma died 5 years ago.

Lynn took the nest egg and used the tidy sum to live off of while she explored the Denver’s spiritual communities. In the end she joined a Wiccan circle and became fast friends with a Priestess and Wiccan seminarian by the name of Cora. After a year in Denver, Lynn used her nest egg and pristine credit to buy a building in Denver with 2 store fronts and a large second story apartment.

She lived above the stores, renting one store and operating a religious supplies shop out of the other. Instead of selling cheap knick knacks and other low quality items to a single faith, she chose to carry high quality items of “all” faiths. She began with Wiccan and Christian books, vestments, and important do-dads and slowly built her way up to representing all of the established religions within 30 miles of her shop. While she turned only a very small profit (after paying the mortgage and utilities), she was content and very active in her community.

After 5 years the business in her store was healthy enough to warrant an expansion. Since the other storefront she owned had changed faces 3 times in 5 years and was currently vacant, she chose to take it over herself. After a full remodel and refinance, “Trappings Religious Supply” doubled in size and the clientele grew with it. Lynn’s friend from the circle was a fully ordained High Priestess now, and was working part-time at a local bookstore to make ends meet since their circle didn’t provide a salary to the clergy. Hence, Cora becomes Lynn’s first employee.

Lynn is a hard worker who is the perfect murder victim. She works in a slightly controversial setting and receives threats regularly for ‘tainting’ religious good by selling them beside other religions’ sacred goodies. She is estranged from her family for religious reasons. She is celibate and socially inept, though a whiz at customer service. Her life focuses around a very small number of friends, all made within her spiritual community.

Physically, she is unremarkable. She’s 5’6” and a bit on the heavy side. Her ‘dishwater’ blonde hair and gray eyes are less than memorable. She dresses conservatively, in somber colors and tailored styles. This is a holdover from her upbringing, where men and women all wore quiet colors in order to better focus on Godly things. She always wears slacks, a button down shirt, and loafers. The make-up she wears is minimal and subtle. Her hair is cut in a very practical shoulder length style that defies fashion.

Nano Wrimo countdown: 12,033 minutes

My Nano Wrimo Page

NaNoWriMo: Magic

  • Posted on October 15, 2005 at 5:23 pm

In preparation for the Nano Wrimo challenge, I’ve been outlining my world, my characters, and my plot. I thought I would share some of this with my faithful readers (you strange, strange folk!).

My novel is going to be a modern fantasy/mystery. It is set in the Denver area and stars a Wiccan high-priestess who works two jobs to make ends meet. (No one ever said that Nano Wrimo had to be especially GOOD fiction!) In this world real magic is at least as common as having a good ear for music or eye for color. Like those mundane traits, the abilities range from the light and fluffy kitchen witch (the mother with an amazing singing voice) to the world famous wizard who writes books and has the ability to work great magics that change to world (Michelangelo).

Magic is like any other ability, the more you use it the better you get and the more tired you are. All forms of magic require concentration and focus, but the more frills and spell components you add the less skill you have to have. A moderately skilled mage with a complex spell and all the bell and whistles can make as much of a ‘bang’ as a strong mage with only his/her mind to work with. After hours of casting, concentrating and working a mage will be as tired as someone who had been doing hard physical labor for an equal amount of time.

There are two ways that magic is categorized: elemental attunement and ceremonial training. There are five element that a mage could be attuned with. Every mage is attuned to one and only one of these. They are not equally common. This list is from most to least common attunement. There are places that attumnents overlap, but the methodology in those overlaps will vary drastically.

Earth – herbalism, female fertility, agriculture, geology, clairvoyance associated with location
Water – purification, growth, change, ecology, precipitation, emotions, scrying
Air – intelligence, communication, telepathy, scent, peace, weather
Fire – purification, change, geology, creativity, pain, healing, male feritility, passions, telekinesis
Spirit – necromancy, mediumism, telepathy, divine contact, clairvoyance associated with people, healing

Ceremonial training (please suggest a better name for this category) is the method that a mage traditionally uses to get his point across. There are three basics within this group. Any mage can use any means he/she chooses, but they are not equal. The easiest methods make a big ‘bang’ but are not so good for long term projects (“flash in the pan” magic), the most difficult way of performing magig is also the best way to go if you are hoping to have an effect over the long term. These are listed from easiest to most difficult.

Ceremony – This is all of the “bells and whistles” of magic. Anyone with a bit of knowledge can cross reference the desired effect of the spell with the correct colors, scents, chants, etc. and come up with a spell that will have some effect. Minimal effort will create a noticeable little spell.
Religion – Limiting by its very nature, this is magic cast in a religious format. All religions recognize magic and most regulate its use for specific purposes or to only specific people. Some go so far as to say that the pious simply do not use magic at all, gifted or not.
Will – This is simply wishing magic happen and having it work. Even the most adept need to pause in their activities and focus in order to have an effect, and for anything more complex than lighting a candle, concentration exercises are used.

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