Blogging Circle: Character Relationships (February)

Alright, so I kind of forgot February.  Oops.  So we're going to go back and do the post for that today.  And also probably get in March today as well, even though I have other writing things to do.  Other writing things that I don't really want to do because I'm here writing blog posts.  Also, spring needs to decide if it's here or not already.

So, character relationships.  Due to it being February and the month of luv (sometimes twue luv bwings us together to-day), we're going to focus on relationships.  Bonus points to anyone who gets the reference in the parenthesis above.  So the questions are as follows:

• How hard is it for you to create character relationships?
• Do you pre-plan them or do you end up letting them develop as the novel goes on?
• Have your characters betrayed you and paired up with someone you didn't expect?
• Give us the story of how your favorite written characters got together and what makes their relationship strongest.

It is not hard for me to create character relationships.  I like having characters interact with each other, even on a platonic or romantic level, because it just makes the plot go easier.  I think there is nothing that I've written where there wasn't a romantic undertone, which is kind of scary, but I think that goes hand in hand with how much romance is wanted in stories.  It is extremely hard to pick up a novel where there isn't some sort of romantic subplot and I should know because I've searched for such a thing.  And then I'm a hypocrite because I don't write what I would read.  Oops.  :)  But it's also fun in the end because, sometimes, as I'll explain with the favorite written characters, the plot builds up around the relationship.  

I pre-plan my relationships because I like to plan everything.  I need to know what is going to happen with all the characters or nothing really makes sense.  Well, it will make sense, but it's too chaotic in the end.  Like the time that I wrote Power without too big of a plan and romance snuck in between the female main character and the rogue of the story.  That wasn't supposed to happen, as I was trying to write fantasy without any romance, but eh.  It happened and I'll probably keep the relationship whenever I get around to the second draft of that story.  Don't ask me when because I really don't know, honestly.  That's on a back burner so far away it's in the next zip code.  I think that also covers the third question as well, so woot woot.  Didn't think I would do that.

So, story time.  My favorite written characters, at the moment, are Justinian and Kate.  They're from Mystery of the Dark and seem to bring out the snark in each other.  It's fun to write them when they first get together because they're not sure how to work - he just wants to be together and she's all "but you're the enemy" - but they get together in the end.  She gets used against him and he gets used against her and it's a lot of fun.  What makes their relationship strong is that, no matter what, they accept that they might never be on the same side but still love each other.  And he's very much of the mind set that she will kill him one day.  But there's nobody else who he would let kill him, so it's all good in the end.  Yes, he's insane, don't mind him.  They're still my favorites of the moment, until I get into Watchers, but I haven't started that yet.  

Bam, February done.  Now onto March and that post.  I'll try to actually write April in April too.  :)

Blogging Circle: The Hows and Whys of Planning

And we're back.  Kind of.  It's time for the 2014 Blogging Circle, which will go until it doesn't go anymore.  I'm thinking around October / November unless I get bored sooner.  I did talk last post about distractions.  :)

This month, we're talking about planning.  I'm also doing the One A Day WriYe video blogging, so this goes hand in hand with this about plotting.  The questions are as follows:

• What's your favorite planning method?
• Do you prefer to plot by hand or use the computer?
• What part of planning do you hate the absolute most?
• Or do you hate all planning and pants your novel?
• And the most important - why?

I'm going with the question that is the easiest and simpler to answer first - the plotting by hand or computer.  I like to plot by computer because I either misplace the notes if I write them by hand - I have a million and one journals - and I can better organize myself by knowing where things are.  Plus, all of my planning stuff is up on Google Docs, which means that I can be on any computer and work on my novels.  Or, you know, have Google Docs up on my phone due to the internet being down and use Word to write.  It's a win-win, honestly.

My favorite planning method... well, it's outlined in the WriYe Basic Stats document.  You put in the title, how many words you want to write, a summary, and then follow the links in the other sections to create a novel.  Before there was this amazing document, I tried to outline first and then create the rest with the outline.  Or have the characters down and then try to outline.  The linked document just makes things a lot easier for everyone, including me.

If you noticed, I didn't include world building in that paragraph.  That's because I loathe world building.  I really like using the Earth and cities that we have - it's probably why I took like a duck to water with all the urban stuffs.  It just makes it easier with writing to have a city already set up and you just put what you want to happen in there.  It's a lot like roleplaying in a way, which I also do, so yeah.  I do not world build all that much.  Or, if I do, I pants the world building.  In the novel I'm going to be working on in February - Prelude to a Heart - I have a very basic world build going on there.  It has to do more with the characters than any sort of shape the world has.  I figure that I can work up how the place looks as I go because I really don't care how it looks right now.  I might change when it is the 31st and I'm freaking out about it, but for right now, I'm okay with not having a good map in my head.

As for the why - I'm not sure I can answer that.  I'm comfortable with the way that I create my novels before I dive right into them.  It's taken some trial and error - like failing NaNo a few times - but this is good.  

Blogging Circle: Distract - ooo shiny! - ions

It's that wonderful time of the month (as opposed to the awful time of the month) where we gather around to do the blogging circle prompt.  If you cannot tell by the title of the post, this month is about distractions.  Distractions are the nasty things that pull you from what you're doing.  They can be anything, from a daydream to a nap to... well, a very cute and furry puppy.  Yes, Cookie, I mean you.  I would say stop being adorable but I do believe you will be a Nermal puppy (go look up Garfield if you don't get the reference).

Also, blogger thingie, I did spell it right.  On the first time.  Geek points for me, fail points for you.  Ha!

But back to the point at hand.  Let's copy/paste a bit here.
We all have them , whether they are living, mandatory, optional or fun. How do you work around your distractions? Do you separate time out or do you let the distractions come as they may? Are you one of the lucky ones that can shut it all out and write for as long as you'd like?

Before we get into the questions and answering and all, let me explain how I view distractions.  I view a distraction as something that happens when I'm actively working on getting something else done.  So, I'm writing a blog post and a police cruiser comes along, the police cruiser is a distraction because my eyes follow it to see what's happening.  This is different from just being a lazy butt and playing Freecell all day.  Mostly because that's procrastinating.  :)

Alright, first question - how do you work around your distractions?
I try to schedule work around them.  I know that, as soon as mom comes home until she goes up to bed (so, 5ish to 9ish), I will be distracted by whatever we're doing.  Usually dinner making and then watching television and whatnot.  Playing with the puppy as well.  So I try to make it so that I write before she gets home and then write a bit after she goes to bed.  Usually this works out well.  Sometimes it doesn't because I get distracted / not want to do my writing.  I also know, around 11 pm / midnight, I want to get on World of Warcraft and kick some Horde butt.  So, my writing day, on a day where I don't give into the want of not writing, is usually writing from about a hour after I get up (sometimes two, depending on the mood) until 5ish.  Then a break until 9 and some more writing until the WoW want kicks in.  That's how it's supposed to go.  It rarely goes that way, but I'm trying to be better.

Second question - Do you separate time out or do you let the distractions come as they may?
Well, the ones that I know are coming (see above question), I schedule around.  The ones that happen chaotically - meaning the puppy is involved - have to come as they may.  Same with the puppy needing me to play with her.  I just get up, spend some time with her, and go back to writing.  She seems to understand my writing time and is happy to curl up between me and the laptop.  Sweet thing.

Third question - Are you one of the lucky ones that can shut it all out and write as long as you like?
I can!  But only if the planets are aligned.  Meaning that it needs to be November, I need to have the noise canceling headphones on (with a fresh battery for the noise canceling part), and be at a Starbucks.  Then I am a rock star.  Same goes for when I write in a group / word war.  Unless the puppy needs something, I am good unless needed for an emergency.  :D

So yeah, that's distractions for the ... day.  I so want that person's convertable.  And ooo a puppy (not mine)!  *goes back to looking out the window*

Blogging Circle: Short Stories aka Tightening Prose

So, full disclosure here.  I am a novel writer.  I love writing 50,000 words and beyond, taking people on an epic journey, and all that jazz.  However, for one month out of the year, the amazing August, I become a short story writer.  For August, in the WriYe world, is the time of Augno and the AugNoWriMo Anthology.

I explained what I was writing in the last post and how it was breaking barriers and all.  This isn't another post talking about the story itself.  This post is more talking about the word maximums in short stories and how they're so darn short.  For example, the Anthology word maximum is usually 10,000 words with this year being a special 15,000 words because it's the fifth annivesary.  For someone who usually writes a lot more than that, it seems insane to try and pack an entire story into that little of space.

Fear not!  It can be done.  It can also be done the same way that one works on a novel.  You plan and outline.  It's ten thousand words, so if you wanted to do chapters, do a K a chapter.  Or 2K a chapter.  Yeah, it's tight, but it's doable.  But the easiest way that you're going to get it all out is if you go with an outline.  I recommend not to pants it because you might have story explosion.  So - plot it out - character sketch, outline, world build - the entire thing.  That is the first step to greatness.

The second step is realizing that you might have a story that is not appropriate for a short story.  Short stories are supposed to do beginning, middle, and end in a very quick arc.  If you think about it like running, short stories are the dashes while novels are the marathons.  While plotting, if you feel yourself going on and on with the summary or the outline, you might have a novella or a novel on your hands.  Best thing to do is to put it aside for September or NaNoWriMo and come up with a new idea.  That is not to say to not try to make the awesome idea into a short story, but there's a good chance you'd frustrate yourself.  It is best to never go down the road of frustration.  It leads to a lot of things we don't have time to deal with right now.

As for the third step, it's really just making sure you run a tight edit ship.  If you're over the maximum, go back and take out dialogue tags.  Make sure that you don't have something silly like "nodding a yes".  Get rid of things that don't fit, like the odd subplot that you just pushed in because it seemed like a good idea at the time.  This is your last step in the short story process, so really go at it.


I will say, to end this post, that if you use these three tricks in your novel writing, it'll be amazing as well.  So that's it for the topic of the month - the short story and how to tackle it.  We'll see you next month for the blogging circle of insanity.  :)

Blogging Circle: Breaking Out of Your Box

So, on WriYe, there's this amazing challenge known as "Breaking Out of Your Box".  Basically, and to someone quote the amazing Keri, we all have our one genre that we like to write in.  However, we really shouldn't make it our one genre, so the challenge makes us brave the unknown and take a genre that you might know nothing about to write in.  It is really fun and this is the first year I am actually going to finish it and publish the short story in Milestone.  

Milestone, for those who do not know, is the short story collection that is written by the participants of AugNoWriMo.  The link for Milestone goes to the first volume, which I wrote Matthew's Side of the Story.  It's back story for one of the million of ideas that are in my head.  :)

However, back to the subject at hand.  This was originally July's topic because a lot of us write zombies during the month.  Now, zombies is outside of the box for me, because that's more horror and I wrote supernatural stuffs.  But it is fun to try and that's how the Blogging Circle topic is on the Breaking Out of Your Box challenge.  Understand?  Good.  Even if you don't, follow along for the questions.  

Did you manage to break the box?
Yes, I actually am breaking the box.  My genre for this challenge is a space opera.  To quote wikipedia, "space opera is a subgenre of science fiction that often emphasizes romantic, often melodramatic adventure, set mainly or entirely in outer space, usually involving conflict between opponents possessing advanced technologies and abilities".  The best known space opera, at least to me, is the movie Star Wars.  One of the lesser known but insanely awesome ones is Firefly - which, if you have not seen, stop reading and go do so.  You will not be disappointed, especially if you're a fan of Joss Whedon.

Anyways, that's the genre I'm working in.  I've got romance (captain and her second are having a long term relationship), I've got adventure, and, most importantly, it is set in space.  They go to different planets and are currently running from the government due to a slight misunderstanding (murder and kidnapping).  I love it. I've got over 7K of it written and it might easily be 15K by the end.  It is just one of the most fun things I've ever written and I might have to do something more with the characters when I'm done with it.

Did it help you in anyway?
I think it did.  It showed me that I don't have to always write fantasy or supernaturals.  I can write something that is interesting to me and I'm not really having a lot of problems with it.  That might be because I started the story insanely early (August 1st) to allow for slow writing time.  However, part of knowing that it is going to get done and go into a publication that I love is driving me to enjoy it as I'm writing.  If I didn't enjoy it, I wouldn't be writing it and still be tearing my hair out for an idea of what to do.

What did you learn?
That I can be awesome, even in a genre that is completely outside of my norms.  Then again, I already knew that.  ;)  I just needed confirmation - thanks Keri!  


So, that's it for now.  Stay tuned - I've got another blog circle post to do (August) and that'll be up before the end of the month.

Writerverse

Writerverse is a writing land community where there are weekly and monthly writing challenges.  Everything - from original to fandom - is welcome as you start your journey.  Join me at Team Poetry or fight against us as Team Prose.  Either way, it is a fun filled community that is sure to tickle your writing spirit.

If you do decide to join, say that crescent_gaia sent you.  :)

Blogging Circle: Tick Tock Goes the Clock (Even for the Doctor)

This month's blogging circle's topic is Deadlines.  Dun dun duuuuuunnnnnn.  *ahem*  And the first thing that I thought of was Doctor Who.  Good job, brain, go for the fandom parts.  Now, for the questions.

We've all have deadlines to face - whether it be yearly like WriYe, monthly like NaNo, or weekly like LWS (Last WriYer Standing).  How do you face your deadlines?  Any advice to help meet them?  Any advice on what to do when you miss them?

What I like to do, when faced with a deadline, is try to have a plan on how I'm going to reach my goal.  For example, with NaNo, I try to plot out as much of the novel as I can and how much I want to write for each chapter.  That gets me to the goal of wanting to write 50K.  It also helps with getting as much done of the novel as I can in one month.  For the deadlines that go month to month, I'm a bit of hit and miss on them.  Sometimes I'm right on the money and have something done and ready to go.  But that's because I plan out everything ahead of time.  So, plan plan plan down the details as much as you can.  Also, try to get your schedule planned out ahead of time as well.

You're probably asking: What if I hit a snag?  Oh noes!  Well, go back to planning.  There might be something that you're missing and you've just tripped over it.  Look at what you've tripped over and make a plan of attack to fix it.  Sometimes a half hour of sketching a chapter makes the world of difference to hit your deadline on time.  Also, you might find a subplot you wouldn't have realized if you hadn't gone back and looked it over!  I know I have from time to time.

Now, I have missed deadlines, waving to them as they pass by.  The best thing to do, when you miss a deadline, is try to finish the project anyways.  For example - it wasn't until 2008 that I finished NaNo for the first time ever but I first signed up in 2003.  With the 2003 to 2007 projects, I kept at them.  Some of them I finished and some of them are locked away in a drawer to never be spoken about again.  So, finish the project and try to do it within a month of the old deadline.  You might end up liking the project anyways or you might lock the project away to never see the light of day again.  But the important thing is that you did finish.  Yes, it is late and yes, deadlines are important, but sometimes a finished project is the best ephoria for a writer.

So, recap of suggestions:

• Plan your heart out: Outline, character sketch, world build, and everything else.  Get your plotting out of the way first and then your project should move smoothly to hit the deadline.
• Don't be afraid to go back to planning when you hit a snag: Sometimes the best plot ideas come from going back and outlining the chapter.
• Schedule your time: Realize when you're going to work the best and try to use that time to it's maximum potential.
• If you miss your deadline: Get the project done and do not blame yourself (much).

And those are my secrets.  Go forth and smack those deadlines head on!