DAY FIFTY SEVEN
I can almost see them. I can certainly feel them.
Standing at their positions, waiting for their cue. Primed ready for action, anxious to be getting on with it.
They're talking amongst themselves, shuffling their feet and smoking cheap cigarettes. They are nervous and impatient despite the feeling that once it all kicks off, things are not going to go well for them. They are still keen to start. Whatever mayhem and destruction awaits them, it must be better than this, standing around, waiting. Or so they think.
They are the characters in my head, waiting for me to start my novel, waiting to explode into life and get things under way. They are impatient and are ready to kick my head in if I don't get on with it.
But, the research must continue . . .
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Three Fillings and The Truth
DAY FORTY SIX
Research continues at a steady pace. After studying two true crime books and getting a "feel" for my subject matter, I returned to revise one of my plot lines. This proved to be quite satisfying.
While reading the true crime books, I realised that my original plot contained a few errors and misconceptions. My preconceived notions of my subject matter were incorrect. This is why research is important. You may think you know what you are talking about but with a bit of research, you can prove yourself right. Or wrong as the case may be.
Finding out that some aspects of my plot were utter rubbish was not such a bad thing. In fact, incorporating my new found knowledge improved it ten fold; opened up new avenues, new storylines and created more beliveable characters.
Refining your fictional storyline with the aid of your research notes is excellent stuff - your novel starts to take shape, you start to believe in it a bit more, you start to see the characters, hear them talk, fall asleep with them running around in your head (well, I do anyway). The characters and the plot now seem more three dimensional because they have some basis in truth.
It's quite a refreshing experience.
After researching those two books, I returned to my A3 plot and revised it. This was very satisfying. In fact, as I reached the climax (in the plot), I became very excited (not in that way) about the development of my novel thus far. I couldn't wait to start writing.
I have one storyline roughly mapped out from start to finish, albeit with lots of questions to be answered, and I have done some research as noted above. But, no, not yet; I can't start yet. There are still some aspects of the novel that I am completely clueless about - more research needed.
Next on the research list: Location, location, location.
P.S. Saw Pan's Labyrinth (and The Devil's Backbone) last Sunday at the Riverside Studios double bill - excellent stuff - but that's all I'll say as this blog is turning into one steady stream of movie reviews.
P.P.S Had three fillings done today - mouth numb and jaw hurts. Three more next week!
Research continues at a steady pace. After studying two true crime books and getting a "feel" for my subject matter, I returned to revise one of my plot lines. This proved to be quite satisfying.
While reading the true crime books, I realised that my original plot contained a few errors and misconceptions. My preconceived notions of my subject matter were incorrect. This is why research is important. You may think you know what you are talking about but with a bit of research, you can prove yourself right. Or wrong as the case may be.
Finding out that some aspects of my plot were utter rubbish was not such a bad thing. In fact, incorporating my new found knowledge improved it ten fold; opened up new avenues, new storylines and created more beliveable characters.
Refining your fictional storyline with the aid of your research notes is excellent stuff - your novel starts to take shape, you start to believe in it a bit more, you start to see the characters, hear them talk, fall asleep with them running around in your head (well, I do anyway). The characters and the plot now seem more three dimensional because they have some basis in truth.
It's quite a refreshing experience.
After researching those two books, I returned to my A3 plot and revised it. This was very satisfying. In fact, as I reached the climax (in the plot), I became very excited (not in that way) about the development of my novel thus far. I couldn't wait to start writing.
I have one storyline roughly mapped out from start to finish, albeit with lots of questions to be answered, and I have done some research as noted above. But, no, not yet; I can't start yet. There are still some aspects of the novel that I am completely clueless about - more research needed.
Next on the research list: Location, location, location.
P.S. Saw Pan's Labyrinth (and The Devil's Backbone) last Sunday at the Riverside Studios double bill - excellent stuff - but that's all I'll say as this blog is turning into one steady stream of movie reviews.
P.P.S Had three fillings done today - mouth numb and jaw hurts. Three more next week!
Friday, February 16, 2007
Re: Search
DAY TWENTY SEVEN
Over the last two weeks I've really knuckled down and put in some hours researching my novel. It's been quite interesting and not at all laborious thankfully, but it has raised a few questions.
For example: how much research should one do? when do you determine that you have researched enough in order to produce a realistic and reasonably accurate piece of writing? what do you put in? what do you leave out?
I am writing a work of fiction, but these days, readers demand a higher level of believability and accuracy from novels. In the modern day, the crime reading community have an increased knowledge about police procedurals, criminal activities and forensic science than ever before thanks to films, TV and literature. Therefore, even if you are writing fiction, there is a necessary amount of research to be done to satisfy hard core crime fiction fans and keep them reading your work. Added to that, I am sure it is every crime writer's dream to have someone in the know, be it a policeman, detective, or even a criminal, comment that the writer's novel is realistic and believable.
So how much is enough? To tell you the truth, I have no idea. Do too little and even if you have written a good story, it can be let down by errors and implausibilities that turn the reader off. However, do too much and you run the risk of spending too much time researching and not enough time writing. And there is also the risk of including information from your research that might not be relevant in order to justify the time (and money) spent. Information overload can also get up a reader's nose, especially if it fails to move the plot along.
So how much is enough? For me, I've decided that I will research as much as is necessary in order to give myself the confidence and the knowledge to write the story I want to write. And write a cracking good one too!
I also think that when I take off my writing hat and put on my reading cap, I will be able to identify those areas in my work that need further research to increase the believability factor or double check the detail. That's the theory anyway.
And I keep thinking back to what George Pelecanos said - for your first novel, remove all barriers. Make the first attempt as easy as you can. In terms of research, this means, in my opinion, to scale down the scope of your research; do enough to fill in those big holes in your knowledge; use it to refine your plot and character profiles and then get on with the writing.
In the end, you DO NOT want to use research as an excuse to delay sitting down in front of that blank page and starting your novel. And don't worry, I plan to practice what I preach.
Over the last two weeks I've really knuckled down and put in some hours researching my novel. It's been quite interesting and not at all laborious thankfully, but it has raised a few questions.
For example: how much research should one do? when do you determine that you have researched enough in order to produce a realistic and reasonably accurate piece of writing? what do you put in? what do you leave out?
I am writing a work of fiction, but these days, readers demand a higher level of believability and accuracy from novels. In the modern day, the crime reading community have an increased knowledge about police procedurals, criminal activities and forensic science than ever before thanks to films, TV and literature. Therefore, even if you are writing fiction, there is a necessary amount of research to be done to satisfy hard core crime fiction fans and keep them reading your work. Added to that, I am sure it is every crime writer's dream to have someone in the know, be it a policeman, detective, or even a criminal, comment that the writer's novel is realistic and believable.
So how much is enough? To tell you the truth, I have no idea. Do too little and even if you have written a good story, it can be let down by errors and implausibilities that turn the reader off. However, do too much and you run the risk of spending too much time researching and not enough time writing. And there is also the risk of including information from your research that might not be relevant in order to justify the time (and money) spent. Information overload can also get up a reader's nose, especially if it fails to move the plot along.
So how much is enough? For me, I've decided that I will research as much as is necessary in order to give myself the confidence and the knowledge to write the story I want to write. And write a cracking good one too!
I also think that when I take off my writing hat and put on my reading cap, I will be able to identify those areas in my work that need further research to increase the believability factor or double check the detail. That's the theory anyway.
And I keep thinking back to what George Pelecanos said - for your first novel, remove all barriers. Make the first attempt as easy as you can. In terms of research, this means, in my opinion, to scale down the scope of your research; do enough to fill in those big holes in your knowledge; use it to refine your plot and character profiles and then get on with the writing.
In the end, you DO NOT want to use research as an excuse to delay sitting down in front of that blank page and starting your novel. And don't worry, I plan to practice what I preach.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
A3 Plotting
DAY NINE
The first draft of my novel's plot is complete. Well, not 100% complete - I don't actually know how it's going to end yet - but complete enough to begin some research.
Despite what Stephen King says about plotting (i.e. don't do it), I thought it was best for me to have a go at drafting up a plot. Being my first novel, I think I need at least a basic story blueprint laid out before me. I don't think I am at the stage where I can just take a concept and write down whatever comes to mind (although, that does sound appealing). I probably could, but it would be rubbish. So call me "Plot Boy". For now.
There are two extremes to plotting - the detailed method and the "back of a napkin" method. The former involves sitting down and mapping out every little event that occurs in the novel, every conversation, every disaster or tragedy, falling just short of writing out the prose. The latter is a scratchy, incomplete scribble that barely rises above an idea - maybe it just describes a situation - and you go from there and see where it takes you. They both have pros and cons - mainly being: the former gives you direction, while the latter is much more fun.
Bearing in mind that this is my first novel and that I want to inject some fun into the process, I decided to go for an in-between approach with slight leanings towards the detailed method.
I grabbed a blank page of A3 photocopy paper from work and got started, writing every weekday morning for a week and a bit. I decided to write down everything that came to mind, leaving out the detail, but making sure things made sense, fitted together and did not contradict. At least the same amount of ideas came out of my head during those eight days as compared to the previous eight months when the story was banging around in my head.
So after eight days: both sides of the A3 paper were filled with a general chronological plot and notes on motivations, side plots, questions to be answered, etc, etc. It's detailed, quite detailed, but there is also plenty of room left (in the plot, not on the page) to go off on a tangent if I so wish to. And there is the fact that the final fifth of the novel is nowhere to be seen. I'm leaving that until later. How much later will depend on how confident I become.
The whole experience was very satisfying and of course, fun. I recommend plotting on A3 paper, it helps capture the whole plot on one page - a kind of snapshot - that you can return to for adjustments or just to refresh your memory. I used little boxes - like a basic flow chart - to chart the progression of the story. Writing in pencil is obviously preferable as there will be plenty of changes to be made when better ideas form in your mind.
I suppose my original concern was that a detailed plot would soak up all the fun and excitement of writing the actual novel (hence where the napkin approach works better). However, after finishing my first draft, I can tell you that not only was the exercise exciting, a plot is such a dynamic thing that no one knows what will actually happen when I start typing away at Chapter One.
Now, I must change hats - Plot Boy becomes Research Boy (and I don't mean a lad from Victoria's north eastern suburbs).
The first draft of my novel's plot is complete. Well, not 100% complete - I don't actually know how it's going to end yet - but complete enough to begin some research.
Despite what Stephen King says about plotting (i.e. don't do it), I thought it was best for me to have a go at drafting up a plot. Being my first novel, I think I need at least a basic story blueprint laid out before me. I don't think I am at the stage where I can just take a concept and write down whatever comes to mind (although, that does sound appealing). I probably could, but it would be rubbish. So call me "Plot Boy". For now.
There are two extremes to plotting - the detailed method and the "back of a napkin" method. The former involves sitting down and mapping out every little event that occurs in the novel, every conversation, every disaster or tragedy, falling just short of writing out the prose. The latter is a scratchy, incomplete scribble that barely rises above an idea - maybe it just describes a situation - and you go from there and see where it takes you. They both have pros and cons - mainly being: the former gives you direction, while the latter is much more fun.
Bearing in mind that this is my first novel and that I want to inject some fun into the process, I decided to go for an in-between approach with slight leanings towards the detailed method.
I grabbed a blank page of A3 photocopy paper from work and got started, writing every weekday morning for a week and a bit. I decided to write down everything that came to mind, leaving out the detail, but making sure things made sense, fitted together and did not contradict. At least the same amount of ideas came out of my head during those eight days as compared to the previous eight months when the story was banging around in my head.
So after eight days: both sides of the A3 paper were filled with a general chronological plot and notes on motivations, side plots, questions to be answered, etc, etc. It's detailed, quite detailed, but there is also plenty of room left (in the plot, not on the page) to go off on a tangent if I so wish to. And there is the fact that the final fifth of the novel is nowhere to be seen. I'm leaving that until later. How much later will depend on how confident I become.
The whole experience was very satisfying and of course, fun. I recommend plotting on A3 paper, it helps capture the whole plot on one page - a kind of snapshot - that you can return to for adjustments or just to refresh your memory. I used little boxes - like a basic flow chart - to chart the progression of the story. Writing in pencil is obviously preferable as there will be plenty of changes to be made when better ideas form in your mind.
I suppose my original concern was that a detailed plot would soak up all the fun and excitement of writing the actual novel (hence where the napkin approach works better). However, after finishing my first draft, I can tell you that not only was the exercise exciting, a plot is such a dynamic thing that no one knows what will actually happen when I start typing away at Chapter One.
Now, I must change hats - Plot Boy becomes Research Boy (and I don't mean a lad from Victoria's north eastern suburbs).
Friday, January 12, 2007
And It Begins!!
Ominously, I typed up this blog last Friday, but it would not "publish". Not that I'm superstitious or anything. (whimper)
DAY ONE
A momentous day like today deserves more blog time, but unfortunately I'm running late for some panto.
Today was momentous because today I began my novel. With teeth gritted and buttocks clenched, I arose from bed this morning as the alarm went off and without pause, discarded my misgivings and fears, and headed for my desk and computer.
There was no fanfare or cutting of the ribbon; I just sat down, turned my computer on and let the fingers do the talking.
I was pretty excited though.
First, I came up with a provisional title for my novel. Every novel should have a title from the very beginning - it gives it an identity. I mean, after all, this is my baby and you can't have a baby without naming it. I'll change its name by deed poll later on - the natural course in the life of a novel.
Next, I wrote up a very brief synopsis. This is handy so as to keep the "thrust" (panto style) of the novel in focus. Of course, this can change too, as the novel evolves.
I must say it was fun writing the synopsis: it was like drafting up the blurb that may appear on the final product – very exciting indeed.
So I’ve started; I’ve broken the seal. Now let the words come flooding out.
Oh, I suppose you would like to know what the provisional title of the novel is. Okay, fair enough. It’s – oh damn, look at the time – I’m late for panto!!!
(sniggers off into the distance).
DAY ONE
A momentous day like today deserves more blog time, but unfortunately I'm running late for some panto.
Today was momentous because today I began my novel. With teeth gritted and buttocks clenched, I arose from bed this morning as the alarm went off and without pause, discarded my misgivings and fears, and headed for my desk and computer.
There was no fanfare or cutting of the ribbon; I just sat down, turned my computer on and let the fingers do the talking.
I was pretty excited though.
First, I came up with a provisional title for my novel. Every novel should have a title from the very beginning - it gives it an identity. I mean, after all, this is my baby and you can't have a baby without naming it. I'll change its name by deed poll later on - the natural course in the life of a novel.
Next, I wrote up a very brief synopsis. This is handy so as to keep the "thrust" (panto style) of the novel in focus. Of course, this can change too, as the novel evolves.
I must say it was fun writing the synopsis: it was like drafting up the blurb that may appear on the final product – very exciting indeed.
So I’ve started; I’ve broken the seal. Now let the words come flooding out.
Oh, I suppose you would like to know what the provisional title of the novel is. Okay, fair enough. It’s – oh damn, look at the time – I’m late for panto!!!
(sniggers off into the distance).
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