#ROW80 Check-in 6/14/15

I’ve made some progress since my last check-in! Yay!

Things have been a bit dicey with my eye and now having dizzy spells. I think it may be my ears, so looks like a visit to the ENT doc is going to happen.

Here’s the rundown:

Fireborn – Nothing new since last check-in, but have been pondering the next scene.
Survivor – Finally restarted it today. 941 words, a rewrite of the current scene.
Ever Touched – Nada, but thought about it this weekend. Leaning toward the clone/psychic connection angle.
Covenant – Up to 3,091 words. Yesterday’s scene was a tough one.

I’ve found I can handle about 3 active novels before my brain turns to mush. I’m really good at keeping things separate — it’s the same reason why I can read 4 books at a time with no problem. Everything has its own place and nothing merges together. It’s great.

Whether I can keep this going remains to be seen. I haven’t done this in years…almost ten, if I’m figuring it right. Sure takes me back!

That’s really about it. I got hit with a freaky mermaid plot bunny and I had an equally freaky dream that might become a story. It’s just that freaky. And, of course, I need to get it out of my head and onto paper. I woke up and was glad it was only a dream. It was scarily dystopic and a bit out there. My kind of thing completely. Thank you, brain and muse. You’re conspiring against me again.

Chocolate consumption has been, as of late, through the roof. Most of it I’m ashamed to admit is stress eating. I gained a few pounds, so I should cut back but damn it, I NEED my chocolate!

Dreams.

I dreampt that my book was published (Pirouette) but that some of it was deleted and then put back in at my request.  Also, my name was a bit strange.  It sounded royal to me, which is odd, as I am not royalty (although a family rumor says we are descended from royalty).  I thought it was interesting.  I’ve only dreampt about being published a few times.  I can count them on one hand.  In the dream, I was really, really excited and I was telling everyone who’d listen.  Particularly my father-in-law, who’s into writing and reading. 

Is this a prophetic dream?  Dreams of mine have come true, and I can’t discount it.  It was just weird though, with the deleted stuff and my name being different.  Not sure what it all could mean, if anything.

I’m still plugging away at Pirouette the Third, resolving to keep writing and not worry about it.  It’s getting a bit long again (126k) but I plan on doing some cutting to get it down to at least 120k, maybe less.  I don’t know.  And I seem to be pantsing it.

Flamebound’s revision is coming along as well, if a bit slower.  I’d still like to get it dome before I revise Pirouette the Third so I have a good idea of the technique.  So far, I really like it.  It will be interesting to use for Pirouette the Third.

I’ve also had stirrings of something new.  Well, new as in different, and actually older works.  One in particular is The Sacrifice, which I’ve renamed Surrender.  It’s completed at 50k, and  I wonder what the HTRYN revision could do for it.  Just something to think about.

Also participating in April Fools with a goal of 5k.  Don’t want to pressure myself.  It’s doable, and if I can, I’ll write more.  We shall see.

Update.

Finally getting back here.  I’ve been crazy busy these past few weeks.  Well, I signed up for Holly Lisle’s How to Revise Your Novel class, and I’ve been working on it almost every day.  I’m revising Flamebound, since it’s short and it’s one of the things I haven’t tackled all year.  It’s been interesting and eye-opening, to say the least. 

Pirouette the Third is almost to the halfway point on the rewrite.  Yay!  I added a few new elements and scenes to it, and I feel that it is stronger for it.  Still trying to stay within the acceptable wordcount limit, which has been challenging.  But overall, it’s going pretty well.

Unforgiven is still simmering in my head.  Had a few revelations which helped flesh out the main character, Amara.  I also know what direction I’m going in — paranormal/thriller — and possibly how it ends (although that’s always subject to change).  I will be starting on it January 1st to coincide with a challenge. 

Yesterday was the 2-month anniversary of when our family drama happened.  I’m still mostly numb, but I’ve been dreaming about a specific person lately and that’s a bit worrisome.  In every dream, I’m saying goodbye.  I think there’s a connection here.  Perhaps I am working through my feelings through my dreams?  I don’t really know, as I don’t feel comforted by them, just confused.

Christmas is like, just over a week away!  My shopping is done.  I can’t wait.   l love Christmas.  It’s my favorite time of year besides my birthday.

Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays to all.

Plotbunnies, Inc.

My writing partner and I were brainstorming a new book idea, and I thought I would talk about my brainstorming process in the hopes that maybe someone out there would find it useful in some manner.

There are a few things I regularly use for plot ideas:

1) Conversations.  Any and all.  Often, it will be a nondescript, non-writerly type of convo, but something said will spark an idea.  For instance, recently a friend of the beloved’s parents was talking about live TB germs still hanging around someplace.  Scary huh?  So then I wondered what would happen if someone came into contact with them, and then others came in contact with him, and so on.   It’s still fermenting, but the wick has been lit.  😀 

2) News.  Not usually the local news, either, although occasionally I’ll find something intriguing.  Nope, I’m talking about world news and the Peculiar Postings on MSN.  A plot element from What Lies Beneath came from a story about a boy who’d drowned.  Sometimes health or science news also gets the gears going, too.

3) Science.  On Thursday I discovered Discover Magazine.  Found some very interesting information on the sleep cycle (which is always interesting, after having almost been diagnosed with narcolepsy), minimally-conscious states (not a vegatative and not a coma –a cross between the two), and some intriguing news on memories (another passion of mine — memory in some way or another always creeps into my books).  Just from persuing the headlines and reading articles that looked interesting.  I should have been a scientist, I swear.

4) Dreams.  I have very vivid, very unusual dreams that I can usually remember in graphic detail.  It could be that I’ve trained myself to ponder things unconsciously, or maybe it’s my meds (a certain medication is known for inducing vivid dreams and nightmares).  I have at least 3 plotbunnies connected to dreams, and other plot elements that came from a dream.  If you find you can’t remember your dreams, tell yourself as you’re drifting off that you will remember.  Be prepared to jot down anything upon wakening.  Dreams tend to dissolve the more awake you become.  I try to latch on to something and more or less “memorize” it before it vanishes.  Those few minutes upon waking are the most critical.

Another thing I do is ponder any issues I’m having with a novel as I’m drifting off, which insures that I will dream about it.  Recently, a tiny part of a dream spawned the sequel idea for Pirouette.

5) Juxaposing two or more very different ideas.  I purposely look for strange or contradictory ideas to combine for novels.  I take what I mine from other sources and work it out in my mind, asking myself “what if?” questions.  The entire concept of Requiem in Blue was built this way: combining cyborgs, underwater, and mind control.  Same with What Lies Beneath — empathy, insanity, and dolphins.

6) Other books.  Books inspire me.  I don’t ever copy; rather, I twist and bend the core idea (sometimes juxaposing stuff as above) to come up with my own spin on it.  This I disocvered from Holly Lisle’s workshop: How to Steal Ideas Ethically (or some such.  Can’t remember the exact title).  Requiem in Blue was originally one of these.  I read Starfish by Peter Watts and fell in love.  What I liked the best was the underwater millieu and how the people were modified to live in deep sea.  I took that, and ran with it.  If you hadn’t known this ahead of time, you probably wouldn’t be able to tell: the plot, combined with the mind control, is completely and entirely different, as are the circumstances as to why these people are living deep in the sea.  The only resemblance to Starfish now is the core idea that sparked it. 

Same thing with Holly Lisle’s Talyn.  If you haven’t read it, go read it NOW.  It is awesome, thrilling, terrifying, and beautiful all at once.  Well, the idea of enemies joining together (and a few other things too — don’t want to spoil it) intrigued me.   What Lies Beneath has elements similar to that, in the romance end of it.  But the similarity ends right there.

7) Song lyrics.  Now, I have what I call “movie images” appear in my head as I’m listening to music, pretty much without any conscious control.  I’ve always done this, even as a kid, and it helps me brainstorm and get new ideas.  But some lyrics will actually inspire plots as well as the imagery.  Queensryche’s “Suite Sister Mary” became the template upon which I plotted (ok, semi-plotted) Requiem in Blue.  “Silent Lucidity,” also by Queensryche,  inspired a VR plotbunny very recently.  A song by the band Creed inspired an alternate reality romance plotbunny I’ve had for gosh, years.  Queensyche’s “The Hands” inspired parts of Requiem in Blue (it’s also the protagonist’s theme song).  It’s really amazing what cool things happen with music.

I also use music to help me write.  Oftentimes if I’m stuck, I’ll just close my eyes and let it do its work.  Usually, it’s enough to get me moving again, and that’s what counts.

8) Real-life events.  There are a few novels that started out purely as semi-autobiographical, as a way to make sense of something that had happened to me.  Usually, they grow beyond that, and take another form, but that’s how some of them start.  One such novel, “Transparent Eyes,” started out as a way to get back at someone (fictionally)  who’d hurt me.  TE grew beyond that, and is now Footsteps of Ghosts.  The original elements are completely gone, and it’s a story in its own right.

Take caution when plucking things from your own life — there’s always the chance of lawsuits.  Granted, the law can be a bit ambigious, but it’s always good to hide any real-life stuff behind a good fictional situation. 

Another old plotbunny is a multi-generational family story that I’ve been meaning to write, to help cope with some of my own personal issues.  It’ll be fantasy or sci-fi, most likely.

And, Dagmar, another plotbunny, came from my grandparents’ love story.  War romance, Irish heritage.  The rest is completely different, but that was the inspiration.

Once I get the kernel of the idea, I let it perculate.  I have a good memory so that’s not hard, even with multiple ideas (although I have been writing them down as of late).  I always ask myself “what if?” questions, and try to tighten the screws on the poor characters.  Torture, that’s the name of the game.  I’m evil, LOL.

Sometimes I use Tarot cards, using them to answer those “what if?” questions.  I’ve come up with some awesome ideas that way.

So now you know my process.  It works very well for me.  And it’s basically just being aware of things, and always looking at different perspectives.  The belief that anything can result in a story idea helps.  😉  And perhaps that’s why I have so many…..because I see them everywhere.  I don’t think I will ever run out of ideas.

Hopefully this helped you in some way!

I dream in infrared.

Well, not really, but I had a really bizarre, yet insightful dream about the Pirouette Rewrite.  Apparently my muse has been working overtime, while I wasn’t paying attention, because she handed me something really important for the ending.  Something that will be really good.

But first, the dream.  I was in this restaurant-like place and I fell asleep, and was dreaming (dream within a dream, how trippy!) that I was working on the Rewrite of Doom, and I thought of the ending, and was writing it.  Not gonna get into it here, b/c it’s a spoiler, but it’s a really good thing.  It ties in perfectly with not only the whole thing, but the basis of it — Alisia’s need to dance, and her ultimate undoing.  It also ties in an element from Pirouette 1.0 that I got rid of due to well….not fitting.  True, it didn’t fit the exact place, but it fits in the Rewrite as part of the end.  The freaky part is, I not only remembered this upon waking, but I see it as utter brilliance.  So, thank you, muse.

Two of my exes and my current beloved were also in attendence, but I don’t recall what they did or why they were there.  Weird.

S.L. Viehl had an idea for figuring out your story.  It involves asking your main character three questions:

1) Who are you?
2) What do you want?
3) What’s the worst thing I can do to you?

For Pirouette (Rewrite), the answers would be:

1) Who are you?  I’m Alisia, and I’m heir to the Faerie throne.  I am also a necromancer, having a rare power to control the dead and vampires (since they aren’t dead in my books).

2) What do you want?  To live in peace and safety outside of Faerie, and also to be able to dance, silence the ghosts.

3) What’s the worst thing I can do to you? Force me back to Faerie, back to possible danger and death; also, take away my ability to dance.  Permanently.

She loses her ability to dance early on, but later, this element will be revisited.

Also, let me just say that sometimes computers suck.  I spent my entire afternoon troubleshooting what I thought was a video card/motherboard/possible virus issue that made my puter unusable, only to find out that somehow, gremlins were pulling my leg. 

I was not amused.

We now return to your regularly scheduled life.