Post Pico December check in #3

[elmey.livejournal.com]

One more week has passed! Have you been writing, editing, hitting the panic button on your holiday stories?

Here's the post for your snippets, comments thoughts.

Check in any time during this week of busy schedules.

Comments

[espresso-addict.livejournal.com]

~950 words. Spent most of the time editing my main Yuletide story, though it didn't change in more than detail. I did add a little bit in an attempt to fix a red herring that got left to stink and I also improved one key passage a bit, but mainly it was a lot of very minor style/grammar/punctuation choices trying to improve the pastiche that took ages & ages, and won't really be noticeable. It's up now, but I might have another read and play with the commas before the reveal...

Then I forced myself to finish the treat. I took people's advice and did a jump to the bit that interested me, and it worked! I actually got it finished in fewer words than I'd anticipated. That's in too.

I had yesterday off, and now I'm trying to decide what to do next. Jade Dragon's the obvious answer, but I really need to decide with that whether I'm going to try to repurpose it as an original novel or finish it as Earthsea fanfiction. I'm leaning towards the latter, and considering subsequently writing an original novel perhaps with Harebell (the female sidekick) as the protagonist. It feels a bit unending -- it's about 50k now and not halfway through, and I've been working on it on & off since 2011 -- but if I can write 15k words a month, which is doable, I could have it finished in under 6 months.

[ylla.livejournal.com]

Ooh, I have never thought of reading Earthsea fic, and I wonder why not... although I don't have time to start now!

Well done with the Yuletide fics - I love it when things untangle themselves more easily than expected :)

[espresso-addict.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I'm a huge advocate of Earthsea fic -- I've written quite a bit of it myself, and I have a big recs list (http://www.tavia.co.uk/recs4.asp?pm=recs&Fandom=esea&Sort=F_T&New=N) if I can tempt you that way -- after you've finished your story, of course :)

[nineveh-uk.livejournal.com]

I too find myself suddenly tempted to explore Earthsea fic, thanks for the inspiration!

[espresso-addict.livejournal.com]

I'm always happy to pimp Earthsea to the masses :)

[elmey.livejournal.com]

Long story and satisfying treat, you did good :)

You seem to be in a writing groove at the moment, but you were having so much trouble with Jade Dragon--do you think you can go back to it and avoid the same frustrations? Of course I'd be happy to read the results...

[espresso-addict.livejournal.com]

I was very impressed with myself for getting the treat done -- it's my first ever not for my assigned recipient. I'm forever having good ideas -- before I get my assignment -- and then failing to write them.

I do wonder what I'm playing at with TJD, sometimes. Bits of it are probably the best stuff I've ever written, but can I really finish something that looks to be heading for 120k? And can I deal with the fact that no-one wants to read it (I've got drabbles with more feedback, and what's up hardly even gets any hits). I am thinking about putting a big chunk up but the lack even of month-on-month hits does rather put me off.

[elmey.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the small fandom curse. You put as much if not more work into the stories but you pretty much have to settle for your own satisfaction and maybe one or two others'. There are no answers. What you've excerpted at pico is very very good though.

[espresso-addict.livejournal.com]

Thank you! Earthsea used to be a lot less dead, but after years of banging the fandom drum I've accepted my parrot rescusitation skills have been inadequate.

I suspect from what others have said at Pico & elsewhere about writing original work for potential paying publication that it can be just as heartbreaking.

[el-staplador.livejournal.com]

Sounds like you've made good progress in a lot of directions.

[espresso-addict.livejournal.com]

Thank you! It has seemed quite a productive period.

[nineveh-uk.livejournal.com]

Congratulations on finishing your Yuletide assignment + treat!

but if I can write 15k words a month, which is doable, I could have it finished in under 6 months.

I remember saying something like that once ;-) Though you do seem to have greater discipline than I do. I have resolved my fanfic behemoth by saying that I have learned a lot in writing it, which might be a justification that works for you.

[espresso-addict.livejournal.com]

Thank you! Actually you've been inspiring me to get back to it! I'm capable of being disciplined for short periods, and then it all goes to hell and I do literally no writing for months (or sometimes years). Sigh.

The big advantage of finishing one novel would be finishing one novel -- I have three on the go, two of which stalled at the around same word count (45–50k). I think at some point the complexity just gets to me. The difference between a novel & a novella is supposed to be multiple plot threads, so I might well need to learn to wrap up a multi-thread story?

[nineveh-uk.livejournal.com]

I warn you, I had the idea for this fic some time around 2006 :-) Disciplined for short periods and then it goes to hell sounds very familiar. Somehow this time I might actually be feeling I could be on the home straight, but the intervening period has had its longueurs...

The big advantage of finishing one novel would be finishing one novel

This I think is certainly true. My first (original) novel, was frankly crap. I suppose I learnt to keep going. I also learnt you can't polish a turd. And at greater remove I can see that it was doomed because I wasn't really interested in the central story, so much as the bits on the side, i.e. that you should probably pick which of the multiple plot threads you like best and not have that as the D plot. I think I've got that sorted better this time round, and with plot-lines that I'm actually interested in have learned more about handling them.

[espresso-addict.livejournal.com]

I find it very hard to keep writing when feeling discouraged about my output, and being self-critical & very thin-skinned that's a lot of the time, sadly. (This Yuletide has been sheer hell on that front.)

My first (original) novel, was frankly crap. I suppose I learnt to keep going. I also learnt you can't polish a turd.

I do wonder whether the Nano idea of just writing a novel's length of crap and then polishing it up is at all viable. I can't imagine it working for me, but others do seem to swear by it.

And at greater remove I can see that it was doomed because I wasn't really interested in the central story, so much as the bits on the side, i.e. that you should probably pick which of the multiple plot threads you like best and not have that as the D plot. I think I've got that sorted better this time round, and with plot-lines that I'm actually interested in have learned more about handling them.

First finish a novel, however terrible it turns out to be, then work out why it isn't very good, then write one that works... I might be finished by my nineties, if I'm very lucky...

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Good for you! Nice progress!

[espresso-addict.livejournal.com]

Thank you!