Giving in to NaNoWriMo.

I officially signed up for NaNoWriMo last night. Yes, I know I'm half way through the month already, and I've only been writing for a week, but their little word count graph was just too much to pass up. I'm currently at just below 16,000 words, and need to step up my daily writing to finish 50,000 by the end of the month. My current goal was 2k per day, but now I need to do 2.3K to catch up. Will I succeed? I dunno. Finals are coming up in a few weeks, and I have a massive research paper in my Art History class, so I may be doomed to failure. However, it's important to me to know where I sit, and shooting for a goal will help motivate me, even if it may not be possible. So here goes.

I'll try to link my graph somehow....

I've officially started the first draft of a new The Sometimes Sword.

After converting the existing (straight fantasy) prologue to fit with the current incarnation (urban fantasy), I have completed the first chapter--nearly 6k words--so far. It's going surprisingly well. Despite my misgivings, I'm staying motivated and positive, and I think it's reflected in the material. Entering the modern world as opposed to a pseudo-medieval one in my writing is something I've never done before. It feels odd to reference things like TVs or iPods, but it's also kinda fun. Writing about high school and friends seems natural to me, and a character that previously lacked a fully-formed personality has since come busting through the screen at me.

I exceeded my daily goal of 2k words by, well, 2k words, for a total of 4k today alone. If I stick to it, I will easily have a 90k word book by the end of the year, ready to be edited and revised, possibly even submitted by summer 2012. (Once again, in case you missed it, this is a rewrite of The Sometimes Sword, an already completed novel running at 86k words. I am rewriting it to convert the entire thing into urban fantasy, a task too large for simply revision.)

Here's hoping this holiday season is a productive one! What about you? What are you working on right now?

I'm radically less interested in Art than I used to be.

First off, this post is a little disjointed, and I can't be held responsible for bad grammar and spelling. (I wrote it over the course of three days, shoved in between studying.)


Long before I ever thought of being a writer, I was an artist. Before I read books for pleasure I was teaching myself to draw and fumbling around with techniques (with horrible results). I eventually began to develop some skill to go with my talent, and over the years, I produced some pretty good stuff (in my humble opinion). For a very long time I thought visual art would be my calling. Once I got my first computer and copy of Photoshop, I began to teach myself computer animation and graphic design. Later, while performing vocals in my deathcore band, I taught myself to make t-shirt and other merch designs, including two CD covers.


All seemed to point to a computer graphics/animation career, and I hoped to go to college for a degree in it some day. After my band... well, disbanded, I fell out of practice, as show posters and merch designs had been my main source of work. Somewhere along the way in the ensuing years, I also fell out of love with it. This crazy idea of writing a story pushed it from its place at the adult's table then kicked it in the kidneys.


And I'm glad it did.


Right now I'm in college, working on my generals. One of my current classes is Art History 2720, and I hate it. I can't remember an exam I have feared so much as the one I just took. I'm no slob when it comes to retaining information and so on, but the amount of specific detail the professor demanded within an hour class is, quite frankly, insane. All I want to do is write, and anything that takes me away from that is a waste of time (or so I feel). Math I can handle (shockingly enough), as it only requires practice and knowledge of formulas and methods (you can't mess that up). Art History and my (shudder) Philosophy class require a different kind of brain power. And it's not just the frustration of connecting ideas and concepts, or simply memorizing dates, it's doing things the instructor's way, or the highway. It's all about their interpretation, even when it's blatantly wrong or out of context (looking at you Philosophy Professor).


I suppose it's mostly a matter of what I'm willing to place importance in, and while I know deep down that college is important, it just feels like a waste of time. Not just a waste; it is actively taking away from my ability to work on the dream of being a writer. I have no time to practice, no time to edit, and certainly no time to actually write the fiction. The only reason I continue with college is the fact that I can't simply rely on writing to support me. I'm not so egotistical as to imagine that I can "make it" or get published. It's only a dream so far, and dreams don't put food in your mouth. But if I use college as my back up plan, is it really worth it if it wholly prevents me from pursuing my dream?


Why can't I dream of being a doctor?

How I build my characters. (Feel free to use this if you like.)

I wanted to share what I have been developing over the last couple of weeks (with the help of my wife). Specifically character sheets. This is a document I am creating for my protagonist, and some other important characters. I didn't start out with a form like this, but rather converted an already completed character sheet, replacing the items with question prompts ( you don't get to read about my protagonist, sorry). Having a clearly defined person when I start is extremely helpful, and I look forward to getting these new, fully fleshed-out characters on the page. Hopefully this might help spark some things to consider in your own characters.

All About ________

Basics:

• Gender
• Age
• One-word Personality Type

Appearance:

• Body Type
• Skin Color
• Hair Length/Color
• Clothing
• Eye Color
• Facial Shape
• Height
• Possibly weight

Personality:

• How do they act in relation to others?
• What they think of themselves
• How do others think of them?
• Whose company do they enjoy?
• What do they think about their society
• What gender roles do they fall into?
• What gender roles do they break away from?
• What do they believe in?

Qualities:

• What is their occupation?
• What makes them unique at it? (ex: uses only knives to hunt dangerous game, etc.)
• What is their level of education?
• What kind of people of the opposite gender do they like? (This can be important if you have a romance of any kind.)
• What are some special abilities? (Magic, cunning, etc.)

History:

• What was growing up like?
• How did they do in school (if they attended)?
• What was their family like?
• Did they get along with their parents/siblings?
• What are their current views/memories of growing up?
• Were there any traumatic/impactful occurrences in their past? How did this affect them?

Character Arc:

• What do they learn by the end of the book?
• Why is it important that they learn it?
• Find a few more things that will change in the character over the course of the book.

Beginning:

Where does the character start out at? What are their beliefs at the beginning when we first meet them? How do they act? Are they immature, too mature, rude, timid, etc?

Middle:

This is where things need to change. Questions need to come up, and obstacles challenge them. The character begins to find that their beliefs aren't necessarily true. Confusion and conflict follows.

Climax:

Everything comes to a head. The character needs to take in what they have learned and questioned to save the day. The best character arcs will incorporate what they have learned into the outcome of the climax. Have Johnny realize that his mother's death can't torture him forever, and he has to move on or he'll never kill the Evil Magic Dude, etc.

End:

This is where you wrap everything up. The reader sees the character reflect on the journey, and what it has done to/for them. This doesn't have to be a perfect, tidy package. If your story calls for a sad or unfinished ending, that's fine, but make sure the character is different in the key ways you listed above.

NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month).

So most of you might know what NaNoWriMo means, but for those of you who don't, it stands for National Novel Writing Month, and it takes place in November each year. NaNoPlaMo isn't really a thing, its something that Chuck Wendig made up, and I adopted. It stands for Nation Novel Planning Month, and it's what I want to focus on today.

First, some more about NaNoWriMo. The whole deal is that a whole bunch of writers (anyone really) commit to write a 50,000 word novel between November 1st and November 30th. It's somewhat official, in that you sign up on their website and if you succeed in the 50k words challenge, you win (you win nothing, really, but that's not the point). It's an interesting idea, and I've heard that it helps a lot of people actually finish a draft for the first time. While I don't have much interest in actually pursuing it this year (some of you might remember that I wrote The Sometimes Sword first draft, which was 60k words in 25 days, back in April), I did want to use the idea and frenzied atmosphere (internetsphere?) of the event.

The other day, I was reading on Terribleminds.com where Chuck was discussing the pros and cons of NaNoWriMo. In the blog he mentioned that many writers go into November with the idea that a starting gun goes off, and they then have to sprint to the end of a race, full tilt. He pointed out that, as NaNoWriMo isn't really a rule-based contest, there is nothing preventing thought and deliberation from taking part. This is where NaNoPlaMo comes into play. What if, instead of a sweaty mob-rush to the ribbon, there was a steadier, perhaps tea-and-crumpet filled stroll along a beautiful scenic forest path?

What I mean by this, is that a challenge to write a 50k-word novel has it's merits, but if you don't write something with potential to be more than that, it was a waste of time. Chuck pointed out that a smart writer would use October as NaNoPlaMo, or a month in which to plan your 50k-word book. Once you have it planned, go ahead and sprint through November, finish that first draft, but be prepared to keep working at it. Write a second draft, expand it as much as it needs.

But back to the reason I'm writing about this. I intend to write my new book's first draft in the space of two months (yeah, I know, it's not NaNoWriMo, but I already explained about that), to the tune of about 80-90k words. I will be participating in NaNoPlaMo in the month of October, making sure I have a solid foundation, thereby cutting down the amount of rewriting and revising I have to do (cause I seriously hate that stuff).

What about you? Have you ever done NaNoWriMo or are you planning to?

I can't believe I'm doing this....

I have come to the incredibly painful conclusion that it is time for "The Sometimes Sword" and I to part ways. It has been an amazing several months, and I have pinned a lot of hopes and countless hours on this book. However, I have come to the realization that despite my best efforts, "The Sometimes Sword" is at best a step on my journey, and nothing more.


I will continue to write, and as I type this, I am concocting the beginnings of another book, one that will hopefully incorporate all that was good in "The Sometimes Sword", and none of the bad. To be honest, I'm feeling pretty emotional about it, and saying goodbye to these characters will be incredibly difficult to say the least. But, I have to be realistic, and if I ever want to be read by real audiences, I can't cling to something that is fundamentally flawed.


And so I say goodbye to you, Sometimes Sword, you will always remain with me, my first book, my first success, and hopefully not the last. Thank you for teaching me how to be a better writer.


Chale and Astrid, thank you for being my friends.

Romance. (And what the crap is my problem?)

I'm frustrated with myself. This last week has been horrible (and not in a complain-y kind of way, it's been my own fault). I feel like my life has been falling apart, and I've been letting it. I don't want to repeat too much from previous posts, but Writer's Depression and plain-old laziness have been beating me over the head. I've spent entirely too much time with our new computer and video games, or watching Netflix mindlessly. I haven't followed through with my goals, and it feels awful.


It's hard to shake off the shackles of self-doubt and complacency. I need to remember what I really want in life, and do what needs to be done to attain it. I will never get a book published if I don't stick to it. I won't succeed in college if I don't work at it. Both school and writing are hard, and I'll admit that I don't like to do hard things, but the end-result is well worth the journey. I just need to keep reminding myself of that. Enough on that. I think I may write a little bit about romance today.

Too young for romance?

Romance is something that you will find in most books on some level. I don't mind reading romantic sub-plots within a larger vessel, but when it overwhelms the rest of the story, that's when I gag just a little. I think many fantasy books strike a good balance with some exceptions. (I'm looking at you Terry Goodkind. And no, I don't consider Twilight to be fantasy, so let's just ignore that completely.)


When I first decided to write, I knew there would have to be some kind of romance, though I didn't relish the thought of actually writing it. My first book was to feature a female protagonist, and I was a little wary of writing romance from a girl's perspective. As you might know, that book never made it past the first third, and the actual romance was never written. In "The Sometimes Sword" I also knew I had to have some kind of love story (Becky was quick to remind me how much she liked that sort of thing), but I didn't want to have anything mushy. I was going to be writing young teen protagonists after all. So from the get-go, I knew I had to find that balance in a way that would seem natural, satisfy my readers, and at the same time, not make me want to puke while I was writing it. (You may begin to see a pattern here. I don't like the mushy stuff.)


The first order of business was easy: who is going to be romantic with who? My male and female protagonists were the obvious answer. However, their ages were slightly problematic. Though I started out with my male protagonist as age 12, he quickly moved to age 17, and so did my female protagonist. 17 is a better age to introduce love, but still quite young. So I thought back to when I was in high school, and realized that kids that age do "fall in love", it's just different from adult love, almost... unpracticed.


From there I decided to keep things light, maybe highlighting some of the awkward things two kids shoved together think about as they realize they like each other. I had so many books to use as bad examples (see: Twilight) and several as good examples, such as Fablehaven and Harry Potter. Young people can fall in love, but they don't need to be obvious about it, they don't need to have sex, they don't even need to kiss their love interest right off the bat.


It was important to me at the very beginning to have potential readers of the target age have realistic and healthy relationships displayed to them. Now, I have no delusions that anything I write will ever be read by anyone, just hopes that it will. If not this book, then one in the future, and it makes sense to start good writing habits now.


I'll admit, since the start of the book, the importance of the "love story" within has grown, but it's still muted, and stays within proper age limits. The goal is to remain well-rounded, and just like with character and plot, romance is an important focus as well.

See that little progress bar? (And a bit about excuses)

I'm going to begin tracking my progress through "The Sometimes Sword" third draft here on this blog. It might be kind of (horribly) innacurate to begin with as I figure out how to break the work into percentages, but hopefully it will assist in keeping me motivated.


Yesterday was supposed to be the third day of significant progress in the 3rd draft, but unfortunately the evening didn't turn out as I planned. First off, I neglected to actually schedule a particular chunk of work on my calendar (I myself am surprised at how much a difference this makes). That alone shouldn't have really stopped me, but then a few other things popped up. But first, some back story.


On Tuesday the 20th, my World of Warcraft account was hacked. What this means is that a person or persons unknown gained access to my password by means of a keylogger program (malicious software that records keystrokes such as passwords and usernames). They were then able to log onto my game from somewhere (China most likely) and steal my character's gold and gear, which they then sell on the internet for real-world money. 


Keep in mind this isn't Call of Duty. I have developed these characters over the course of two years, and starting over isn't really an option for me. So the thought of losing them is really, really sucky. This is a relatively common occurrence for World of Warcraft subscribers, as it is a very popular game, and the demand for easy (illegal) access to in-game gold has become a multi-billion dollar industry world wide. There is a process for recovering lost items and characters, but it takes a while. Anyway, the whole process of getting this fixed and receiving my in-game property back is still in the works (not without hiccups), and it's been a huge stress.

This all leads to the biggest reason I didn't write yesterday. Above I mentioned keyloggers. The scary thing is that World of Warcraft isn't the only thing they can hack. Anything I log onto can be recorded by a keylogger without me ever knowing: online banking, email, college records, tax records, etc. Now, Macs (the kind of computer I use) are a bit less susceptible to attacks from malicious software than Windows based PCs, but it still happens. The thing is, there aren't as many ways to clean Macs off (and as any tech savvy person knows, anti-virus software can be almost as bad as the viruses they are supposed to prevent), so I decided to perform a complete OS (operating system) restoration. This means that I had to back everything on my hard drive up (about 650 gigs worth of music, photos, and most importantly, documents for my books) which took 5.5 hours. Then wipe the system clean, and re-install the OS once more. (This was actually kinda nice, if annoying, as my system had slowed down a lot over the last 2 years, and it needed to be cleaned anyway, but still....)


I won't bore you with all the details of re-installing the OS, but the bottom line is that I was up way too late copying files over by hand onto my (practically) new computer. In the long run, it will be nice to have a fresh slate to work on my computer with, but I admit I obsessed over it too much (watching progress bars do their thing for a half hour at a time, etc.) 


So tonight I have extra work to do in order to catch up, and hopefully I'll even go above and beyond, and really get some nitty-gritty stuff taken care of in my book. When it comes down to it, I regret having made the excuse (even though it was important).


What about you? What excuses do you make for not writing, and how do you think you'll overcome them?


.

No post today. (Okay, no REAL post today.)

Homework and computer issues are sucking up my time. Hope to get a nice juicy post for tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by anyway!

A quick update.

So I just finished a 5 page scene that has been needing to be written for over a month. I admit that I left it blocked out with a placeholder line, [Chale and Astrid's Reconciliation] in the finished second draft. Kind of a cop out, I know, but it's finished now, and it's a relief.


It was a little difficult sitting down at first, but I put in a two hour block on my calendar, and there it was in front of my face. I had to obey. It didn't take the whole two hours so I spent a little time cleaning up some of the climax. Feels good to be back doing work on it. Tomorrow I'll spend a similar amount of time, probably writing a few pages of revised material throughout the first 3 chapters.

Getting back that writing "spark".

Like I said in yesterday's post, I really need to get back to work on my book. I think I need to start another set of short term goals and perhaps a daily work requirement. It's been long enough that I'm a tad scared that I lost the spark (by "long" I mean it has been a month since college started, and my editing time has been severely limited).


True, there have been times when I have had... well, time, but something always holds me back. Part of it is Writer's Depression, but mostly I think I may be burned out on that particular story. I've tried to begin new books in the meantime, with little success. (One of them might still be written someday because of a pretty fun setting, but all I could think of while I wrote in it was The Sometimes Sword.) It's a dilemma, for sure.


I'm starting to think that I need to do what I had to do when writing the first draft: knuckle down and get over it. I can't afford to let writing become less a part of me. I need that spark back, and sometimes that takes work. Painful, painful work.


So tonight I begin again in earnest. My goal is a final draft ready for submission by the end of the year. I will make this happen, and I will not give up until I have at least fifty rejection letters. Less would be fine by me. So what if this is only my second real attempt at a book. No author's story is the same, and I plan to go all out!


What about you? What are your short-term writing goals?

A bit about my book "The Sometimes Sword".

I still find it a bit awkward to say that I have a "book". It is indeed a book, and not having been published doesn't lessen that at all. However, like I explained in my post about writers being ashamed or writing, I have some reservations in saying the actual word to people. But hey, what the heck, I have a book dang it!

That aside, I thought I might relate some experiences and thoughts about my own process and experiences writing it. As some of you may know, I began writing it earlier this year, sometime in April or May. My goal was to complete the first draft in one month, just in time for college to start. I was, of course, insane. But it ended up working out. 

I don't want to repeat myself from other posts, but I do want to put out there that goals and schedules made it possible. What do I mean? Let me explain (don't worry, it'll be brief). When I started my first book, I had no set structure or short term writing goals (such as: so many words per day, or finish this scene by tomorrow, etc). With "The Sometimes Sword" I made a point of doing so, specifically 5 pages were to be completed per weekday, and 10 per day on the weekend. It was the only thing that got me to finish the first draft. In other words, it was all-important to me. I only missed two days, but seeing as I was sometimes writing 30 pages per day on the weekends, it all worked out.

Moving on, I want to lay out some of the problems I came up against, and how I found solutions to them (and if I didn't, feel free to give me some advice).

1. Character

There were many advantages to starting out blind, with no world-building or outlining to speak of (see my posts about Setting and Character). But there were also disadvantages, one of which was character development. I started out with a name, and a vague sense of personality. That was it. While this gave me freedom to go any direction I wanted as I wrote, it also made the process a little messy. For instance: my main character started out at 12 years old, but by the third chapter, I was writing him as a 17 year old. And my alpha readers could tell that he was getting older in my brain without me ever telling them. That required a bit of revising (which is a frustrating use of my time). It ended up working out, and the character is much better suited to the story at 17 years old.

Another problem was personality and quirks. All of my characters were written on the spot, as I needed them. Some never had much of an issue; there are three side-characters that developed strong, recognizable personalities from the get-go (not that there wasn't occasional need for tweaks). Unfortunately, my two protagonists (a teenage boy and girl) started out a little bland. They had no quirks to speak of, no voice, and no especially strong feelings about anything. This wasn't an insurmountable problem, but it did take a lot of time and extra material written to straighten out (on a side note, I'm glad it turned out this way, otherwise I might never have written several rather nice scenes. So it's not all bad).

My main focus was the addition of quirks and thoughts. I had struggled with quirks for a long time, scared to over do it: "Marion flipped her hair in annoyance," or, "Halmul's eye twitched before he could complete the lie". These aren't truly horrible, but if they become the one thing you identify your character by, your readers will quickly become annoyed. That being said, don't be afraid to explore natural reactions and quirks your character might have. It's a work in progress for me, and will continue to be so until the last draft is finished. Character thoughts, for me, are a great tool, one I wish I had utilized more from the start. Using italicized thought "bubbles" (not really a bubble, but an actual thought they have in their head, similar to a comic strip character's thought bubble) in the text allow you to get right into the character's head, and allows for direct communication of voice. I'm still in the process of adding a lot of thoughts into the individual character's point of view.

One smaller problem I ran across with character was last names. My world has surnames as part of their culture, but my characters don't. It was a simple, but frustrating oversight. I have yet to introduce a surname for my male protagonist.

2. Setting

I had always wanted a simple setting for this book, one that would make the reader feel comfortable. I didn't want complicated political plots or intricate religious dogma. I wanted to use terms like "The City" or "The King's Road". Now, I have nothing against broad worlds with insanely developed cultures and inhabitants (in fact, my favorite series The Wheel of Time is full of that stuff). But it wasn't for me, at least not yet. I feel like it has helped me stay a bit more focused on plot and character. At the same time, it also made it a bit difficult for my alpha readers to orient themselves within the world. As a result I began adding more details, gave some things actual names and so on. It still feels simple, but now it's a bit more fleshed out. Don't be afraid to adjust your original vision sometimes.

One more thing about Setting. In the wish to write simple descriptions, I feel like I might have gone too far, and left out a lot of opportunities to beautify my world. I regret that a small bit, but it's nothing I need to go back and redo.

3. Plot 

Holy crap Plot. The bane of my existence (no wait, that's editing). I've always had ideas for great beginnings, and sometimes good endings, but middles... middles are the bane of my existence. Okay, enough with that phrase. My default go-to plot is the travel log. Such as: protagonist has something bad happen to them, so they have to travel somewhere to fix it. Stuff happens in the mean time. That's pretty standard right? (And just to be clear, I think I pulled it off well enough in "The Sometimes Sword".) Just find some crap to do to them on the way. Well, it's not so easy as that. I found myself writing things in that had nothing to do with the overall plot. See, there's nothing wrong with events happening to make things hard for your character (see my post on writing dark fiction) or establish your world, but they should also serve a purpose in moving the story forward. I'm still trying to revise large chunks to make them fit the story arc better.

Watching the curve of your plot can be really hard to do. The book itself is too big to really see the whole thing in my mind's eye. It's something I still need to watch.

4. Dialogue

This is one thing that I am completely willing to admit is my weak spot. I can get it right after a while, but when my first draft was finished... it was bad. Let me tell you. I have to keep reminding myself that dialogue needs to sound natural, that I can't just dump info every time a character opens their mouth (sometimes called maid-and-butlering, look it up on Writing Excuses for more info). My dialogue tends to follow this format: Person 1 asks question, Person 2 answers. Person 3 asks for clarification, Person 4 gives clarification. Ugh. It's horrible, and I want to scratch my eyes out when I read it. Only after careful examination can I fix each conversation.

This is my intended fix: once all the other problems are fixed with plot, setting, and character, I'm going to sit down with my wife and alpha readers and have them read the dialogue like a play. I'll listen quietly and type revisions furiously as all the awkward crap floats to the surface. I'm actually looking forward to it.

5. Voice

I still feel a bit in the dark about this one. Voice is almost an ethereal, unattainable quality to me. It's the thing that makes a writer instantly recognizable just from reading their work. Some might call it the writer's style. It's something I know will come with practice, and some might say it already exists in "The Sometimes Sword", but I have my doubts. For now, I don't have much advice to give, as I myself need some.

So there are some of the things I have struggled with in my book. They certainly aren't all of them, and I might continue on with a few more in the future. What about you? What mountains have you come across in your writing, and what are you doing to surmount them?

Discovering Setting.

I'm unashamedly fond of the stereotypical fantasy setting: a pseudo middle-earth/medieval land ruled by kings and fought over by powerful magics. It just works for me. It's where I live inside my own head, and it's where I want my characters to live (I may be a bit guilty of reverse Mary-Sue-ism). A lot of people moan and complain about it, that it's overused, boring, or an unimaginative rip-off of Tolkien. Some of this may be true, but I would argue that there is also plenty of great fantasy out there that doesn't follow this formula. So much of it in fact, that I am surprised these complainers haven't tripped on it on their way to the forums (lame joke, I know). This is a problem to me: a bunch of loud-mouthed minority opinions that step on aspiring writer's dreams of writing the fiction they love.

Why should you ignore it? Because you are free to do as you wish, and there will always be enough readers to go around. But this isn't what I want to discuss. I want to explore the many options we have as writers in creating the world our characters live in. After all, you are the god of your story. Your word is law. Just make sure it's good stuff.

A lot of people start with setting, before anything else. And there's nothing wrong with that. Some major-hitting authors (I can't remember which at the moment, it might have been Orson Scott Card) have gone on record as saying they start with nothing but a map, then build everything else from there. There is no right or wrong (I personally start with a character first). Culture, politics, magic systems, and geography all have a part in Setting, so be thinking about all those things as you read on.

So you have this vague idea. Maybe its an image that struck you of a misty bridge built between clouds, or an Inn's warm kitchen set in a forest. Perhaps it's a smell that exists only in your head: the salty smell of a calm beach or the char-choked air of a burned-out city. The smallest things can spark a setting, you just have to build on that spark... or maybe a better analogy would be: fan that spark into roaring flames. Whatever.

It's sometimes difficult to explain the process of world building from a tiny idea, it happens extremely fast in my own head, and I'm sure most of you know what I mean. It's a process of exploring the surroundings of that calm beach from above, asking where it exists, why is it there. Are there people about? What do they do? The key is to ask questions of yourself. Then it's your job to make up the answers. To me, this process is incredibly enjoyable. It's pure make-believe and creation. Allow yourself to go wild, no holds barred. If you start out big and crazy, it's easy to reel yourself back in if need be, however, starting out too small and conservative can be troublesome. So explore those dusty corners of your brain, think back to when you were a kid and that one book about talking animals made you crazy (or whatever did the same for you). Why did it stick with you for so long? Use that feeling it gave you and run with it, making your own world in the process.

A word of caution that I had to learn the hard way: make sure everything makes sense. Your readers are willing to suspend their disbelief, but only so far. If you have floating pink mush balls for characters that live in someone's lower intestine, make sure every other detail fits with that. Don't break the illusion. It's hard to coordinate all the facts, so make a list, or write a small history book entry for your world. Use time lines or cork boards and note cards, whatever you are comfortable with. Don't be afraid to write pages of world-building.

On the other hand, don't. It works both ways. On my second book (after giving up the first one as a bad job) I went into it with the express intent to not do any world building. Any details were to come about in the actual pages. My goal was to put all my creative effort into the book itself, and not draw maps or make index entries for characters. And you know, it worked pretty well. I actually finished the first draft this time, in less than a month. This may not work for you, but don't be afraid to experiment.

In conclusion, there is no right or wrong way, just results. Find what works best for you, and do it. And have FUN.

Writer's Depression is worse than Writer's Block.

So today was supposed to be a post about Setting, and it might still be, but first I want to relate some thoughts about depression. Now, when I say "depression", I'm not talking about the generic kind you take a pill for (though they share a lot of similarities). What I really mean is the feeling of worthlessness (also known as "suckiness") that many (all) writers worth their salt feel at some point.

In fact, it's the very thing I'm battling with with at the moment. It has been several weeks since I did anything meaningful in my book, and it feels horrible.

Everyone has heard of Writer's Block (when a writer sits down to write and simply can't. It may be lack of ideas or something else unknown even to them). Sometimes it's so hard to get past that writers go days or weeks without writing anything. Writer's Depression is similar, but I think it deserves its own category.

You see, Writer's Depression isn't a lack of ideas, or a bad plot, in fact it may be the opposite. The writer's brain may be brimming with ideas, overflowing into his eyes like greasy sweat. But a million ideas do no good if they seem to have no merit. There come times when you look at your work and all you see is crap. Vomited-up bilge from a sea monster that just ate Justin Bieber. It's literally painful to read what you had done at times like this. You can't help but believe that it's all swill, unworthy to be read by the meanest high school jock. There seems to be a physical force holding you back from placing fingers to the keyboard, and a mental revulsion to looking at the screen.

This can come about from many sources. Some people may be learning to write faster than they can actually, you know, write. They look at the last two chapters and cringe, because they've already surpassed their skill from a week ago. (Yes, this actually happens.) Others may know something is wrong with their story, but not be able to diagnose it. This is especially frustrating, and very easy to become overwhelmed by. Sometimes your plot and scenes (even simple ones) become tangled up so thoroughly in your brain that you just want to throw it all away, then burn the dumpster. Sometimes it's the result of what someone else says (this is especially dangerous). If you have others reading your work (such as a writing group or alpha readers) it can be very easy to let their usually well-intentioned critiques bury deep in your heart like poison-tipped arrows. The most innocent remark about pacing, dialogue, or even your writing's voice can make you want to retreat into your shell and block out the world, because you know, everyone's a bunch of ass-hats. You put yourself into what you wrote dang it, and when your readers inspected it, they found it lacking (those jerks). (This is not the way it should be, but sometimes it is, despite our most logical effort. Remember that your work is not you, and it's not your baby. It is a flawed manuscript that you are responsible for improving. It's hard to see it that way, I know.)

There is no easy way around it, no magical potion to wash away the shame of Writer's Depression. There is a nearly physical pain sometimes in powering through it, and heaps of mental agony. I'm not exaggerating one bit, believe me. It can be worse for those that already have a tendency to get "down" about things in the first place (like me). The only solution is to keep on, persevere, and never give up.The pain of doing so is what separates us from the hipster in a scarf at the coffee shop. Said hipster feels nothing but self-congratulation at the amazing work he will produce, and thus does nothing to learn and improve himself. On the other hand, we who experience Writer's Depression can't go on without re-evaluating ourselves and what we produce. This does eventually lead to higher-quality work.

In conclusion, I suppose my point is this: you aren't alone with your thoughts of word-genocide. As much crap as you think your story is, it probably isn't. Don't kill it, but strive to improve it, and keep your head above water. Sometimes you need to take a break, walk away for a few days, or work on something else like a blog (aha, insight!). You'll come back refreshed, ready to cut the crap out, and write better stuff in.

So you want to begin writing, but don't know where to begin? (Part One: Character)

At some point, you just gotta realize what you want. More than that, you need to accept it (as my brother once told me). Some people want to draw comics, others want to paint, some people want to be in a band, and some people want to write. Obviously it's the latter I want to talk about; all you people out there who have a story to tell, even if you don't know it. I'm talking about all you who spend hours day-dreaming about the book you just read, or the people who can't play an rpg without filling their heads with character back story (among other things).

With this post I hope to answer some questions you might have, not just about how you should do things, but if the way you're already doing things is correct. When I first started, it wasn't like I had no idea what I was doing, I was simply in the dark as to the best way to do things (you'll find that there are no right or wrong ways generally). I hope to smooth out some of those worries and most of all, get you started in the wonderful world of writing.

I don't claim to be an expert, but here are some things that I wish I had known when I first started:

Character
To me, it's important to begin with character. The best stories are about people, and what they do, not what's done to them. Writers often spend a lot of time obsessing over this part of the writing process, and for good reason. Your main characters are important in establishing your voice, or the tone your writing will (hopefully) make your work instantly recognizable.


When I started The Sometimes Sword (my novel-in-progress), I had an archetype in mind (ie: the Sage Wizard, the Farmboy, the Evil Overlord, etc.) that I wanted to write about and that was it. I didn't even have a name. So for me, discovering the type of character (see above) was the first order of business. You have to decide who you want to write about. A lot goes into considering this. How many times has the Farmboy been featured? Star Wars (Luke Skywalker), The Lord of the Rings (Frodo Baggins), Arabian Nights (Aladdin), and many others. Its the rags-to-riches, young-hero-saves-the-day story, and we love that stuff. But is it what you want to write about? (For me, it was).


What about the Sage Wizard? This one is almost as easy to list. Star Wars again (Obi-Wan), The Lord of the Rings (Gandalf the Grey, and later White), The Sword of Truth (Zedd), The Prydain Chronicles (Dalben the Enchanter), and so on. While this archetype makes a good side character, feel free to make it your protagonist. There are no rules, just don't copy and paste. Remember, an archetype is one thing, a cliche is another. (Writing Excuses does an excellent job of defining the difference.)


We all know what the Evil Overlord is. Sauron from The Lord of the Rings, Emperor Palpatine from Star Wars, Darken Rahl from The Sword of Truth, and many, many others. He is the quintessential bad guy that ruins the protagonist's life and threatens the world or universe or whatever. Very hard to write from their point of view, but feel free to try. The worst that can happen is failure. Really. It's all a learning experience.


There are others (spend some time learning about them), all wonderful types to form your character from. Pick one that resonates with you and find what is unique about your Farmboy (or whatever you happen to choose). You will never write a completely original character, but that's not the point. Just like real people, characters follow certain traits and sometimes stereotypes. It's okay. Just make sure he/she doesn't blend into the crowd.


That brings me to another point, a quick one. Don't be afraid to write the opposite gender, of that's what you want. My first book attempt featured a female protagonist, and though rocky at first, it wasn't as hard as I had thought. My current book shares time equally between a male and female character, and (I've been told) that it works just fine. Go for it. You might just find that you understand more about the opposite gender than you thought.


Moving on to one of my favorite parts of starting a character: names. It doesn't matter. Seriously.


Okay, okay, I'll talk about it. I really do enjoy picking names. It's like having a baby, without the messy diapers and nine months of vomiting. Names help us connect to the person that is the character. It gives them identity. Feel free to experiment and go wild. Have fun. Just try not to obsess over it. Chances are (very high) that you will end up changing even the main character's name. I've done it several times across both books. It happens. Keep in mind also, that you want the reader to be able to recognize the names in your work, and try to keep the apostrophes to a minimum (in my opinion). Another thing to consider is the culture your character is based in (culture is another thing entirely, one I will try to touch on in a later post). If you have a seafaring culture, consider some nautical sounding names, or if your protagonist lives underground, perhaps they have earthy, rocky names. You can't really go wrong, but you can be more right.


One more note on names. If your culture uses surnames, try to think of them before you get 30k words in (just a bit of advice from experience).


Another thing I want to talk about is quirks. I'm sure you have all heard the term, and unfortunately sometimes we get the wrong idea. A quirk doesn't have to be a nervous tick that you mention every other sentence (in fact, please don't). It can be anything that sets your character apart, that makes him instantly identifiable. It could be the way a soldier touches the hilt of his sword, or the way a girl tosses her hair (this one can be overused also, so be careful). Quirks make your characters more human (or elvish, whatever), and while some may be subtle, your reader will pick up on them.


To sum this all up, feel free to start your writing project with a character. Feel free to name them, and spend time doing it. Be aware of what archetype you are writing into, and make them real (remember, unique is impossible). Focus your story on character, and you won't go wrong.


Tomorrow's post will be about Setting. Which I am looking forward to.