Thus ends November...
Writing for around 22 days out of the 30 days of the month, I polished off my 50,000 words fairly easily. It was definitely easier than the 50,000 I did in 2006, at least in speed.
But, in a way, it was harder. I had less idea of where I was going. The Big Rusty Lie (makes a great Christmas present) was a simple but stupid Point A to Point B story with a lot of dumb side-trips throughout, expanding the plot and making everything silly and confusing. This time I had a Point A (a couple of months afterThe Big Rusty Lie) and a few points along the way, but no Point B that I was headed toward. I didn't even have an idea of what kind of points should be between, just that everything was built off the back of the first book, which has made this draft substantially less funny than I thought it'd be. It's actually serious and kind of dark in places, or so it seems to me, the writer. Someone else would really have to tell me. And maybe I need to re-read The Big Rusty Lie. But I spent a lot of the month a bit lost and uninspired, as far as the comedy goes.
There's plenty of good ideas in there, but I'm not sure I really like The Black Smoking Gun Of Temptation. Maybe I can silly it up until it's funny. Maybe not.
I'll really have to look over what I've got and see if it's worth continuing. I'm not sure what I should do with it. I'm not sure how far I am into the story, not knowing the ending or most of where it's going. I'd guess I'm 1/2 to 1/3 of the way through the book.
I guess my options are as follows:
A.) I give up and toss the book in a folder, never to look at it again. Not a great option or something I want to do, unless I look back and realize I really feel nothing for any of this.
B.) I get some friends to look over the 50,000 words so far and give me thoughts on what's there and whether or not it works. Not having friends that are vaguely willing to sit down and read that kind of shit, I'm not sure that'll happen.
C.) I go back through what I've got, rewriting it and trying to get it up to whatever par I've built up in my head. If I can get the first 15 chapters up to muster, maybe I'll finish it. This is probably what will happen after some time.
D.) I can obstinately finish the damned book and worry about how much it blows later. This also has a good chance of happening, depending on how I actually feel.
To tell the truth, I may take a break and write some short stories to get out from under the weight of carrying so much plot for so long. The plot of The Big Rusty Lie could be written on the back of a matchbook. I'm not even sure what the plot of BSGoT is, except to say "Everything set up in BRL is pushed forward by a murder and other stupid stuff happening." Not really much of a plot. It's a character-driven series of events, which makes it more like some indie film than the comedy I usually write, which tends to have really simple weird concepts leading everything. Maybe I should have had one of those for this novel. I kind of did in the "Bernardo gets a girl" aspect, but that's just a background theme.
So, we'll see what happens over time. At very least, maybe I'll finally finish the second Marty Drexell story, which I started around 2001 or 2002 and then never finished, and my second Dubo & Mooky story. And I've got a few other ideas lined up. We'll see how that shit rolls. At least I'm back in the habit. Now I just need support and interest. Especially the interest. Lots of interest. And it'd really help if you bought that book.
But, in a way, it was harder. I had less idea of where I was going. The Big Rusty Lie (makes a great Christmas present) was a simple but stupid Point A to Point B story with a lot of dumb side-trips throughout, expanding the plot and making everything silly and confusing. This time I had a Point A (a couple of months afterThe Big Rusty Lie) and a few points along the way, but no Point B that I was headed toward. I didn't even have an idea of what kind of points should be between, just that everything was built off the back of the first book, which has made this draft substantially less funny than I thought it'd be. It's actually serious and kind of dark in places, or so it seems to me, the writer. Someone else would really have to tell me. And maybe I need to re-read The Big Rusty Lie. But I spent a lot of the month a bit lost and uninspired, as far as the comedy goes.
There's plenty of good ideas in there, but I'm not sure I really like The Black Smoking Gun Of Temptation. Maybe I can silly it up until it's funny. Maybe not.
I'll really have to look over what I've got and see if it's worth continuing. I'm not sure what I should do with it. I'm not sure how far I am into the story, not knowing the ending or most of where it's going. I'd guess I'm 1/2 to 1/3 of the way through the book.
I guess my options are as follows:
A.) I give up and toss the book in a folder, never to look at it again. Not a great option or something I want to do, unless I look back and realize I really feel nothing for any of this.
B.) I get some friends to look over the 50,000 words so far and give me thoughts on what's there and whether or not it works. Not having friends that are vaguely willing to sit down and read that kind of shit, I'm not sure that'll happen.
C.) I go back through what I've got, rewriting it and trying to get it up to whatever par I've built up in my head. If I can get the first 15 chapters up to muster, maybe I'll finish it. This is probably what will happen after some time.
D.) I can obstinately finish the damned book and worry about how much it blows later. This also has a good chance of happening, depending on how I actually feel.
To tell the truth, I may take a break and write some short stories to get out from under the weight of carrying so much plot for so long. The plot of The Big Rusty Lie could be written on the back of a matchbook. I'm not even sure what the plot of BSGoT is, except to say "Everything set up in BRL is pushed forward by a murder and other stupid stuff happening." Not really much of a plot. It's a character-driven series of events, which makes it more like some indie film than the comedy I usually write, which tends to have really simple weird concepts leading everything. Maybe I should have had one of those for this novel. I kind of did in the "Bernardo gets a girl" aspect, but that's just a background theme.
So, we'll see what happens over time. At very least, maybe I'll finally finish the second Marty Drexell story, which I started around 2001 or 2002 and then never finished, and my second Dubo & Mooky story. And I've got a few other ideas lined up. We'll see how that shit rolls. At least I'm back in the habit. Now I just need support and interest. Especially the interest. Lots of interest. And it'd really help if you bought that book.