The Moving Target

October 19, 2012 at 2:56 pm (Uncategorized)
Tags: , , , , , , ,

Why is it that our plans for writing so easily go astray?  The post before last I said that I was going to finish this novelization of Biomalware by October 25th to give to my writer’s group and let them read it and give me feedback.

I haven’t done it.  No, instead I’ve been watching Doctor Who and writing a sort of fan fiction based on some experiences I’ve had recently.  It’s been a pretty strange time, as I’ve previously recounted, and it turned into a weird little story.  I’ve finished it and now I’m thinking – what’s the point?  I’m not going to sell it that way.  I’ve written an interesting little anecdotal story and now I want to invest it with mean, or maybe I just need to discover the meaning in it, what it means to me.  Why did my brain come up with it?  I did find two of my favorite themes in it so I hope that helps bridge it.

I think fan fictions and dreams are interesting to ourselves but a lot of times they don’t stand on their own as a story.  It takes some work to turn them into a real and complete story of their own that doesn’t require a whole lot of back story.  I shared the story with my writer’s group last night and the reaction was lukewarm.  Maybe it was just my sleep deprivation interpreting their reactions but I was looking for at least one person to really LIKE it, even if they could see room for improvement, but I didn’t hear that in their responses.  I have to wonder if that isn’t because fan fiction just requires too much knowledge of the story world for it to make sense to the average reader.  I don’t know.  I’m going to move forward with their suggestions and hope it makes it more accessible for everyone.  They gave me some good info about what didn’t work for them so I hope I can bridge that gap.

I also still want to finish that novel for my writer’s group but I just don’t see it happening before the end of the month and November is National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) so I may be looking at the end of the year for that.  I want to finish it but I don’t want to rush it.  Maybe the ending will be part of my word count for NaNo.

I’m planning a NaNo that combines short stories, non-fiction and maybe poetry.  I seem to keep getting pulled back to science fiction.  I started thinking I should be writing in that vein because I love it, but I also love mysteries.  Then I looked at what I’ve been writing on and realized it pretty much is science fiction.  I’m sure both will show up in my Nano.

Right now, I’m preparing for NaNoWriMo by collecting inspiration and prompts.  I’m making lists of people I’ve wanted to base a character on, things that inspire me, topics I’m interested in and the like.  I once did a 2,000 word story a day for most of a month so that’s what I’m shooting for.  Of course, I was out of work and single at the time, but why let little things like a family and work stand in the way of a good NaNo?  It might just take a little time travel to get things done.  No problem.

 

Leave a Comment

Inappropriate Stories in My Head

September 28, 2012 at 1:47 pm (Uncategorized)
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I was supposed to be working on my novelization of Biomalware.  I was supposed to be editing and re-writing, but the Universe had other plans.  Let me tell you a little story.

Last week I ordered a few items as presents for an upcoming birthday.  Earlier this week, the packages arrived, plus one.  I didn’t think too much of it but as I opened the last package and pulled out an item I wasn’t expecting to see, my mind did a few backflips.

It was a red Ferrari logo t-shirt.  I had seen this somewhere before, and recently.  In my sleep deprived state, my mind struggled to piece it together.  I knew I hadn’t ordered it.  Where did I see it?  A television show that we had watched that weekend.  Someone had been on the phone asking if the Ferrari logo was on the front and the back.

My mind reeled.  I had seen it somewhere else too, an online store.  Was I dreaming?  I almost always know when I’m dreaming.  I looked in the bag, no invoice or note.

I hadn’t bought it, had I?  Was I ordering things in my sleep?  Had someone ordered it and sent it to me for the birthday party that weekend at my house?  Perhaps one of my siblings?

I checked my invoices.  No, I hadn’t been ordering anything in my sleep.

I talked or messaged family.  No, no one had ordered it and had it sent.

To add a little more context, I’ve just started watching Doctor Who, the new series.  I had just watched the episode where Rose looks into the heart of the Tardis and becomes an avatar, sending the words “Bad Wolf” back in time and space to warn herself.

This was just too f@%*ing weird.

So, last night at writer’s group, I put the story to the group and challenged them to come up with a reason for the package arriving.

One of the group went the way of a horror story.  Fine.  Not for me, though.

As I drove home my mind continued to work on it, suggesting where the package had come from and why.  (Gallifrey, Texas.)  I’ve become a bit too invested in Doctor Who and he figured prominently in the explanation I’m afraid.

This morning, while I was showering, the story began again, dialogue writing itself.  I’m supposed to see a psychic in a week and apparently she has a message for the main character, saying where the package came from.  Little bit of telepathy, he’s not really dead.  I had to go write it down before work in order to still the voices.

I think I have a nice little sci-fi story going and it could really turn into something publishable if I just write it and then take out the Doctor Who specific references.

It’s not what I was supposed to be working on, but at least I’m writing again, creating.  I’m just going to ride the wave and enjoy it.  The other will come in its own time.

Life is strange and wonderful, if you just look at it the right way.  Enjoy.

3 Comments