quote:Welcome to this week's Novel Support Group. Anyone can join. If you're new, tell us a bit about who you are and what project you are working on. Feel free to update the NSG Work in Progress thread with your current projects. Although we can report on any number of things, here is a list of suggestions (suggestions welcomed).
What were your goals last week and did you accomplish them? Describe what you worked on. Set goals for next week. Did you learn something during this week?
Here is a list of things that you can do each week as we work on our novels (suggestions welcomed).
Writing on a novel Characterization World Building Relevant research
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As for me:
Last Week's Goals:
THE SHAMAN'S CURSE/THE VOICE OF PROPHECY/BEYOND THE PROPHECY: Boxed set entered in Group Sale for next weekend. Starts tomorrow.
WAR OF MAGIC: Social media promotion. Some.
BECOME: TO CATCH THE LIGHTNING: Continue writing first draft. Some.
THE SHAMAN'S CURSE/THE VOICE OF PROPHECY/BEYOND THE PROPHECY: Group sale starts tomorrow. http://cleanindiereadssale.com/ The boxed set will be only $1.99.
WAR OF MAGIC: Social media promotion.
BECOME: TO CATCH THE LIGHTNING: Continue writing first draft.
posted
I'm actually working on outlining two separate projects now--the one I was already working on and a fantasy novella concept that won't leave me alone.
Novellas sound like a good bridge to lead me toward proper novel writing, I think....
Posts: 745 | Registered: May 2015
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posted
I haven't updated here for a while, but I'm still around, and still, I hope, making some progress.
My main story at the moment has grown to about eight scenes (or beginnings of scenes) and fragments, and totals just over 7,500 words. I know that's not much, but as a whole this story already feels a lot more coherent than any of my other pieces which have reached this length. I now have a basic outline, a much clearer idea of the characters, and a slightly better-developed world, but there's still a lot to work out. Yesterday I looked through the most recent scenes with my 'wise reader' and amassed comments and areas for improvement. So for this story, for now, I'm going to focus on editing those scenes rather than writing many new ones. I need to work on improving as I go, and incorporating changes as soon as I get them rather than waiting until I've half-forgotten them.
Otherwise, I have been writing a good amount every day and have sorted all my projects and ideas into a list. I've got at least three potential short stories (evolved from writing practices) that I'd like to write, as well as four longer pieces (too large to develop further for a while), and I've also finally decided on a NaNoWriMo project for this year. My only worry now is that NaNoWriMo is going to be bad for my writing. We'll see... If it begins to crowd out my other projects too much, I'll stop.
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posted
My writing of any length lately focuses on attention paid to essential detail: not too little, not too much, just the Goldilocks' right amount of "lavished" attention to specificity and attendant content and organization.
One of these days, I hope for a cognitive switch flip that will make possible stream-flow writing; effectual draft composition, more or less once and done drafting, that then only needs minor rewrites, revisions, and proofreads.
The three focus areas of my composition practice are motivations, stakes, and tone. My process to date had been motivational content drafting, then stakes development, then tone. I at least want to synthesize those into a single drafting process, if not a productive stream flow overall.
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quote:Originally posted by extrinsic: One of these days, I hope for a cognitive switch flip that will make possible stream-flow writing; effectual draft composition, more or less once and done drafting, that then only needs minor rewrites, revisions, and proofreads.
Is that actually a thing? I've personally begun to feel like it's largely a myth.
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posted
Piers Anthony details his writing process in several of his novels, notably, the Incarnations of Immortality cycle. Anthony describes a stream-flow process. The descriptions, though, only depict mechanistic considerations and provide scant inspiration sources and influences. After much reflection, study, and analysis of Anthony's works, I conclude he did, indeed, write a stream flow.
On the other hand, Anthony started from extant real-world mythos and symbols and his home territory real-world settings. Those aided his work from their pre-extant associations readers bring to their reading. As it were, name exposition and some development paraphrases of any given immortal being's conventional mythos predominate, little if any lively innovation -- Thanatos, for example, from On a Pale Horse, 1983.
On another hand, Anthony's strength is lively dramatic structure -- plot: complication and conflict in particular, and are somewhat visibly formulaic at times.
See official Anthony site, especially his voluminous page "Publish on Web" for a troll through self-publication firms' controversies, scandals, scams, and a state-of-the-culture exploration.
Do you think writing processes is a topic for discussion in Writing Discussions? Successful writers' processes. Much of my study over the years has analyzed that topic. From Aristotle to Zelazny. One standout from the study is, no matter how much quantity any given writer expends to express process, the quality falls short. Therefore, close reading and analysis, sort of forensic dissection, fills in some gaps.
Plus, analytical skills and tools to do so come from published critics -- analytical critics who examine and explicate writers' methods, messages, intents, and meanings more so than express personal approval or disapproval. The former covers more writer growth enhancement territory.
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quote:Originally posted by extrinsic: Disgruntled Peony,
Do you think writing processes is a topic for discussion in Writing Discussions? Successful writers' processes. Much of my study over the years has analyzed that topic. From Aristotle to Zelazny. One standout from the study is, no matter how much quantity any given writer expends to express process, the quality falls short. Therefore, close reading and analysis, sort of forensic dissection, fills in some gaps.
Plus, analytical skills and tools to do so come from published critics -- analytical critics who examine and explicate writers' methods, messages, intents, and meanings more so than express personal approval or disapproval. The former covers more writer growth enhancement territory.
It might, yes. I'm not sure I'd have a lot to contribute, personally; I've read a fair amount of 'how to' books on the process, but haven't analyzed them at the same level as you. I'm essentially trying to pick through potential options and settle on the things that best suit my style. It would certainly have the potential to make for interesting discussion, though.
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posted
After about the third how-to text I studied, I could distinguish that they repeated many recipe steps and techniques between one another. Analyses and aesthetics texts were and are far more informative. Some texts conflate how-to and aesthetics and don't distinguish between those indivisibles though distinguishables.
For my other arts, linear and syntheses flow processes emerged after a full comprehension of their theories, techniques, formulas, and sciences -- food preparation, for one, the chemistry and physics of food. Graphic arts, pottery, and woodwork, too. Plus, considerable selective narrowing of form and formula, mostly driven by economic and material and tool resource and work space limitations.
I'm not at that synthesis point yet with prose composition, due in large part of late to the realization that few or no such resource restrictions narrow written-word expression. The narrowing of choices are entirely driven by subjective considerations -- mine own. The only costs risked are time and effort. And doubt is the logjam. Confidence is its lynch-pin cure.
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