First of all, before I read this, I would like to apologize for that *other* post where I was out of line and acted very rudely. I said some things I shouldn't have . . . Please forgive me. If I am not welcome here, just tell me and I will leave without argument.
I just finished the first part of my (hopefully) novel. So far I have the idea for two parts. The first one, from the "POV" of James (it's third person limited, so it's not *exactly* from his point of view, but basically) was 22620 words long, the most I've EVER written (but really not that much.) I have an idea of where to start the other one, but I just don't . . . feel like it.
Has anyone else had this problem? How did you solve it?
Thanks.
Posted by Writer_Actress (Member # 848) on :
i feel your pain. Well, one of the ways to start from stef's point of view is this: she sees him going insane at his birthday party... but what does she see him doing? maybe:
James's mother brought out the cake. It was a double layer chocolate. But James wasn't looking at the cake. He was staring at the birthday present that had come in the mail from his grandmother. The entire group was watching him when he went into a-a siezure or something. Stef screamed.
"Oh my gosh, Mrs. Pierce, where's your phone? I'm calling the meds!"
think of how stef would act in the situation. you can thank me now. lol.
Posted by writerPTL (Member # 895) on :
Um... It's from the preacher's POV, not Stef... It was never going to be Stef...
I'm not sure where you got that idea...
But thanks for trying!
Posted by srhowen (Member # 462) on :
If it's the transition that you are having a problem with it works many times to "skip" a scene or two and come back to it. Not all books are written in the order you see on the shelves. And many times the chapters are switched around to make the story read better.
A word on the ""Oh my gosh, Mrs. Pierce, where's your phone? I'm calling the meds!"" Too long for an emergency situation. Someone would simply yell for a phone, one or two words or they would yell for someone to call 911, or the equivalent. Also "meds" is what people in the medical profession call medication. Emergency workers are EMTs, paramedics, or an ambulance. If in a story you are calling them meds you might want to reconsider as a reader who is familiar with the terms would find the reading awkward.
Shawn
Posted by Writer_Actress (Member # 848) on :
at your house you said "oh remember that girl from the beginning? that stef?" and then you said maybe you should do it from her POV.
Posted by Writer_Actress (Member # 848) on :
shawn, what meds meant in that sentance was the slang term for 'medics. i've heard it said a bunch that if you're calling the paramedics that they dont bother with succh a big word. they just say meds.
Posted by writerPTL (Member # 895) on :
Kirsten, that was a joke.... About Steffie? She was just a name in the book . . . She couldn't *do* anything for the story. Sorry if I confused you.
Oh, and I happen to agree with srhowen--meds is medicine. Medics is maybe what you're looking for, but seriously, if you don't have time for two syllables, you don't have time to call an ambulence . . .
Posted by Holy Fuzz (Member # 919) on :
Maybe just start typing? It seems to work fairly well for me, and once I actually get rolling (so to speak), I can always go back and rewrite the first bit after I know what I want it to be like.
- Fuzz
Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
Apology accepted.
As Shawn has said, you don't have to write the parts of a story in the order in which it will be published.
So you don't have to start with the beginning of your story when you write just because that's what the reader will read first.
Start at a part that you feel like writing, and get that part written. You can always go back and write the beginning later, when you feel like it.
If the part you think you have to write first isn't the part that feels good to write, it may not feel good for the reader to read either.
Write the parts that excite you, that you are anxious to write, that are fun and that you are ready to write.
Posted by writerPTL (Member # 895) on :
Thanks! Yesterday, I just plunged in and started, and even though it was different than what I expected, everything came out all right. In the next chapter I'm skipping several years, but I think the transition will be okay, and then I get to to the plot of the story. Main point: It's all looking okay now! Thanks everyone for the advice!
you can thank me now. lol.