Sorry for the late post today. For whatever reason, I'm occasionally expected to be social and this is the day people have available, so , you know... sacrifices. On topic, though, I'd like to talk a little about where I'm going with everything. I'm looking at my word count and trying to figure out what's going to have to go. I'm saddened that I'm going to cut some fun scenes, but, in much the way I rewrote scenes for the opening and like them better, I know that I can save these cut scenes and use them for later works. I'll have to swap some characters around and change a few circumstances, but otherwise, I'm confident that I won't lose the scenes. I'll just have to put them in storage for a little while. If there's anything that makes me feel better about all this editing and word cutting, it's the idea that it's not only helping this novel look better, but it's helping write my next novel. So many things just can't fit into this story, but they're still good. Yes. That's it. This is my story. Is broken, but still good. Seriously though, I'm over the depression from yesterday and realizing that everything that can't fit in this story is only going to make the next one that much cooler. It's liberating, I suppose.
Have any of you had to deal with something like this? Have you had to cut something really good, but were okay because it only made things better? Let me know. Oh, and don't forget to be awesome!
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I've replaced a good chunk of my opening. It's smoother. It's nicer. And it's not any shorter.
I keep checking different sources online to see about word counts, but nothing seems to want to tell me what I want to hear. It all needs to be less than what I have... and what I'm afraid I'll be able to get it to. Don't get me wrong, I know I have to shave stuff down, but it's depressing when I'm fixing stuff and I hit this wall of words. I have a LOT of the novel still to comb through and I know I can shave a bunch off, but it's not looking great at the moment. I hate being an overwriter. I know this story can be told with less words, but I'm having trouble seeing it. At this rate, I'm not certain that word trimming will be enough. I'm going to have to cut entire chapters and plot elements to keep things within the confines of a debut novel. Otherwise, I'll be rejected without editors even looking at the text. Word counts. I suppose if I go with self publishing I won't have to worry about that, but ... I'm not ready for that yet. There's absolutely nothing wrong with self-publishing, I just need to try traditional first. I'm not certain that I have the resources to afford all the services I'll need to self-publish. There's editing (multiple times,) buying ISBNs, paying for cover art, marketing, and so much more. I just don't think I can do that, at least not right now. It'll be okay, though. I know I can push through this and get the word count down. I don't really have a choice. One way or another, I'll get this thing into the hands of an agent that is willing to take a chance on me. DFTBA It's officially up! I did a game review for the website dlh.net on the adventure title World to the West. You can find the full review here: World to the West It was pretty awesome to do a game review, mostly because I love to freakin write. Much like with my novel, I was given a word limit of 700 (I hit like 690-something, go me!) and of course my initial draft blew past it around 1600 or so. It's a good exercise for cutting down my word to just what's important. So, let's talk about the game, shall we? So that title screen is misleading. I suppose if you placed Teslagrad, the game before this one, perhaps it makes more sense. Spoiler, that man on the bridge isn't seen again. Maybe if I 100% the game, but this is pretty much the end of his story. I think that might be one of my first gripes: the story. It's pretty light. You don't really have to pay attention to understand what you're doing. You play as group of four adventurers from different backgrounds all dragged together to save the world. It's funny and self-aware, but beyond names and BRIEF backstory to each character, I couldn't tell you much. Knaus, for example... You hear enough of his story to be invested, but not a drop more. He's a "very brave boy" that works in a mine. He can dig to hide from enemies or crawl under obstacles, use dynamite to destroy boulders, and apparently thought he and all his child labor friends were on the moon. Why they thought that isn't really elaborated on. For the record, they're not. They're being used to mine... something? The main villain gave some gear to the "older kids" who bully Knaus and his friends and have been telling them that they all launched on a rocket to the moon and are currently digging moon rocks. It's an intriguing story idea, but it's not explored! I have no idea why they think that or agreed to go to the moon to mine rocks! Or what about this chap? That's Sir Clonington on the left there. He (I) punched that big monster to death. You learn, blatantly, that his scientist companion, who plays no role in the actual game, cloned him. He warns him a few times not to go getting into dangerous situations because cloning him is a hassle. That's it. He's apparently part of the upper crust and can attend fancy parties that others can't, but that's it! I want to know more about this guy, but the game never tells me. So, yeah. Story is important. I can understand rewarding your player for sticking with the game, for completing things 100%, but in the end your player needs to feel like they have some closure. One hero, Lumina, who was lost in this world, gets to travel back home. Her father was apparently the chap on the bridge, but we don't see a reunion. Teri, an adventurer, has almost no backstory to speak up other than, her name's Teri and she's an adventurer. She apparently stiffed an airship rider on the bill for taking her someplace once, but that's about it. I'm not say that a GAME needs a deep, rich story to be fun. This was a great little adventure game (though the ceaseless backtracking was annoying,) but I like to know the story I'm going through. I got the main conflict story. Big bad steals an ancient machine to control the weather, four heroes gather to stop him, they stop him, everyone goes home. But... there's so much left! There are some things left to do in the game, but closure shouldn't be hidden behind extra exploration. Now, something like Skyrim (which is so much bigger and different than this as to be unfair in comparison, but whatever) does it right. There's the story you need and there's the story of the world. If you go around and read books, you can learn the lore of the world and all about it's rich history. But as far as your character, you learn just about everything you need to know through a normal playthrough. No need to play again to understand WHY something is the way it is (unless you literally didn't go that route, which is more than possible in a Bethesda game.) Overall, yeah, I liked this little game. It had some annoying moments, like me getting to places with the wrong character and almost getting permanently stuck... ... or having to navigate enemy heavy areas in a game with less than stellar combat mechanics... ...but barring those annoyances, there's a good game with delightful humor to be found in it.
Here's hoping the next review is just as fun. Be Excellent to each Other! It's a good week for me. This marks the twentieth consecutive week of keeping this blog updated daily. Haven't missed a SINGLE DAY! I am super proud of that, considering my social media skills prior to this were the occasional share of a meme on Facebook. But, this blog isn't the only place I'm thrilled. I actually hit 100 followers on Twitter! I know that's not a lot for most people, but it's incredible for me. I'm thrilled that that many people care enough about what I'm saying to keep tabs on it. So, I'm hoping I won't disappoint as I moved forward. Also... tomorrow I'll be filling you in on one more voyage into the net, my first published game review. But that's not what today is about. This is Paladin Playlist. And you know what that means. I have an awesome song that puts me in the proper headspace to write specific scenes and today, it's Monster by Skillet. When I first heard this song, I knew I was hooked. The words, the intensity of the beat, and that "monster" voice halfway through. It gets you moving, fuels this idea of internal conflict. And trust me, I have a character or two in The Paladin that is fighting some internal conflicts. Some are even literally monsters, so I mean, how is this song not perfect? Seriously though, if you need a song to help you write scenes of internal conflict, of waging war against oneself, this is the song you need. Skillet's Monster. I had a few things I could do with today's blog post. I had, of course, the Paladin Playlist from yesterday that should've run, but before I posted it, I realized it's Valentine's Day. Oh beloved V-day. Arizona's birthday! Whatever you choose to think of it, it's hard to find someplace that isn't talking about love and romance today. So, I asked some Facebook friends if this was inevitable or if I should try to buck the trend. This blog post shall reflect their answer.
Cthulu. Sacrifice. Sacrifice to Cthulu? No, that wouldn't be right. The Elder Ones seemed to care little for human life, much less the expenditure of it. Still, themes of sacrifice (for Lent) and Cthulu (because why not?) were asked for and so, here I am. Ritual and religion. Sacrifice, either in a spiritual way or in a more traditional altar and knife way. These are elements that your world will have to deal with at some point or another. Eyes are rolling. I can see it through your monitors. Hear me out. Perhaps you're writing high fantasy, something like Lord of the Rings or whatnot. The parallels are obvious here, but what if you decide to set your story in Pennsylvania? Well, the spiritual beliefs (or even lack thereof) are defining traits for your character. If they don't engage in them, you have to believe others around them will. Even if it's not the central theme of your novel or story, it's part of who your character is and needs to be addressed. It's something that can and should influence their decisions throughout the story, regardless of whether or not it is plainly stated to the reader. Now, Cthulu, and by extension, HP Lovecraft, is a strange case of modern mythos. Nothing the author wrote really took off in his day, but his creations weren't just set in stone invocations. His contemporaries, proteges, and friends all drew from his work, added and altered, and he took those back and reincorporated them. In essence, he did in one lifetime what civilization tends to do with religions over generations. It adapted, traveled, changed, and returned, eventually creating something greater than it's initial inception. After Lovecraft's death, his universe only expanded with more gods, more monsters, and more lore. It's hard to nail down what is "cannon" in Lovecraft like it's hard to nail down what is "cannon" in the legend of King Arthur or the trials of Heracles. A good world needs these elements. What motivations beyond your character move them, what do they sacrifice for? Obviously in Lovecraft, there's little point in attempting to appease or sate Elder Gods that carry nothing but contempt for humans and life in general, but in your mythos, this doesn't have to be the case. Are there gods in your story? Are they benevolent? Look at Lord of the Rings and the intense, extensive hierarchy of beings that exist above the world. I say LOTR, I suppose what I mean is The Silmarillion. The creation mythos in that universe is crazy, but so intriguing. It's beautiful and inspiring, though, again, that doesn't mean yours has to be. Full disclosure here: I think a few people might have some misconceptions about my novel when it comes to this aspect. My story revolves heavily around Catholic dogma and Christian mythos in general. This might lead one to believe that this is the kind of the novel that would end up in a Christian bookstore. It is decidedly not. I want to be clear that I am using these points as a setting. It's something much closer to The Exorcist or Hellsing. Heck, there's some Supernatural in there too for fans of Sam and Dean. Still, these elements are drawn from Catholic and Christian lore at large. It's appropriate and it's central, but I would not say that this is what the story is about. Like Lovecraft, I've looked at what I had to work with and have remodeled it, reformed it, and adjusted it to work with what I need. It's dark, it's intense, and I really hope you'll all love it as much as I do. That is not dead which can eternal lie, and with strange aeons, even death may die. Today is supposed to be Paladin Playlist number 20. I even have it written in on my schedule. Unfortunately, I have a wandering mind and something struck me today. Something totally rambly and incoherent, but you know what? This is my blog, so let me share this with you. Today, I couldn't stop thinking about this fool. Yes, you recognize him, don't you? For a bunch of you, your childhood quote machines are going into overdrive. "If you like it all that much, it's yours." The Book Seller from Beauty and the Beast. We all loved this dude, right? He's like the one person in Belle's village that seems to be even a halfway decent human being. But he bothers me. He bothers the hell out of me.
Let's analyze this. According to Belle in the song Bonjour, she's headed to the book shop, having just finished the most wonderful story about an ogre and a beanstalk and... we have no idea. Marie needed to get those damn baguettes out. Point is, it certainly wasn't a library, it was a store that made it's money selling books. Look at all the people in that village. For the time period, literacy wasn't very prevalent, and it wasn't uncommon to think that books were a distraction the same way some people think video games are a distraction today. People reading a lot would be mocked, as Belle is. "With her nose stuck in a book." I find it highly unlikely that anyone that took part in that song was an avid reader. I'm going to be generous and say that some of them were literate, but I have my doubts. I mean, Gaston clearly could barely spell his own name (we know LeFou couldn't!) and everyone thought he was the ultimate role model in the village. Clearly reading is not a big priority in this town. Now, let's put this together. You're a book store owner. Belle is likely your only real customer. But she doesn't buy books from you. She borrows them! Borrows! She borrows one book enough that he insists on giving it to her as a gift. How in the blue hell does this man survive? Where does the money to buy food, book store aprons, and pince nezes come from? You have, at best, two people in that village that read enough to buy anything from you, Belle and her father. Daddy is too busy almost murdering his family with ax wielding machines, only Belle is clearly shown to frequent this establishment. And not only does this guy not charge her, but freakin' gives her books. Beauty and the Beast is a nostalgic, intriguing story, and we all love Belle (I like Gaston, personally) but seriously... I need to know this man's story. Who is this generous book store owner? How can he afford to run a shop in a village of illiterate provincial yokels? This is more confusing to me than figuring out how Rarity sells so many clothes to a species that is largely nudist. Someone out there. Please. Tell me this man's story. Lie to me. In fact, write me a fan fiction. Explain to me how this man EXISTS! Tomorrow I'll have your regularly scheduled Paladin Playlist. Thanks for humoring me. Don't Forget to be Awesome! So the first time I tried to write a novel, I fell into a common beginner's trap. I envisioned an epic fantasy setting with magic and swords and a hesitant blacksmith at the center. The problem is the world was so huge, I couldn't get things straight. I was building nations, cities, races, and cultures, all from the ground up and, well, I'm sure you can see where this is going.
World building is fun and intense, but it's a rabbit's hole if ever there was one. If you want to build a new world from scratch, it requires a lot of planning and research, because your settings have to feel as alive as your characters. If your character comes from a village high in the mountains, there aren't dining on coconuts. Now, while that's kinda of obvious, it's meant to demonstrate that there are a lot of little details that you might not think of in world building and that can seriously effect how the story goes. An unrealistic setting can distract a reader just as easily as an unrealistic person. It's important to put just as much time and effort into both. Fortunately, I learned something from that... let's not say failed, but temporarily sidelined project. The Paladin takes place in a modern setting, something I'm familiar with and something that the average reader won't need lengthy descriptions to understand. My world is no less magical than one set on the edge of an enchanted forest where dwarfs war against gnomes for the riches of the mountain. Instead, by giving my story a contemporary setting, I'm free to tweak the norm and give it a new kind of charm. I'm free to focus more on the cultures that inhabit this world that are different from the norm; I don't have to waste time establishing the norm. So to anyone travelling down the same path as me, I invite you to set your first big story someplace familiar. If you're like me, you want to get down to writing, but you need to have the world mapped out and understand before you stage your players. Coming up with the ins and outs of the world after the fact is half-hearted and shows. Give it the love and attention it needs. Focus on something you already understand so you don't have to map out every detail. Don't Forget to be Awesome Today I wanted to share some of my creative agony. As you know, I've gotten some amazing pieces of artwork from an artist friend, but in exchange, I've been writing stuff for them that incorporated original characters of theirs. Both Val's Blog and Wolves and Wild Roses incorporated some of her wonderful characters. I'm looking to do another one, but I'm trying to do something different. I want to step out of my comfort zone and play with new genres and worlds. Unfortunately, I've set myself up for something difficult.
I don't want to get too far into details about what I'm writing as my friend might actually be reading and it would spoil things. Suffice it to say, I've never quite written in like this before and its requiring a crap ton of research I wasn't prepared for. I'm loving it, really, but I'm also agonizing. I want to get this written and presented, but I am out of my element on this particular story. I'm looking through so many other works in this area to help spur my imagination, but it's just so ... complicated. I guess I just wanted to vent a little. I'm excited, incredibly so, to do this new story, but I just have no experience in writing something like this. It's supposed to be just a short story, but I feel like I'm doing as much mapping and out outlining for this as I did for my entire novel, The Paladin. In the end, I'll get this written and I'll be all the better for it, but right now, it's a sweet agony. I don't want to disappoint my friend, so I'm trying so hard to make sure this works on all levels, but that's taking time. I guess it doesn't help that she's talented enough to go from concept to finished art piece in just a couple days where my craft can take weeks to months. Oh well. That's my rant today. Thanks to everyone for listening. I'll try to have something more informational for you tomorrow. Until then... Don't Forget to be Awesome! Well, I've finished my first review game. It was certainly an interesting, if somewhat frustrating game. I highly doubt I would've come across it on my own if not for this gig.
The people I'm doing the review for asked for 500-700 words in my review. Look back at yesterday's blog post and take a wild guess about where my review is currently sitting. So... yeah, I'll be taking some time to cut that down to a manageable piece. Still, I have to say, it's really kinda refreshing to being doing some work with my words. Getting my first review out there feels like the start of something. I think I might have mentioned this before, but I do have a YouTube channel that has a lot of video game material on it. I haven't had the space or time to pursue it for some time. I'm thinking now that I might have some steady work doing reviews, I can add this to my channel and maybe pump some new life into it. Either way, I hope this is brand new start to getting my name out there as a writer. When I started work as a journalist, I was, to be honest, a little disappointed. It's not what I trained for and not what I wanted to do. Still, the money was decent, and I knew what I was doing. But now, even if the pay isn't amazing, it just feels so good to be doing something that is closer to what I was trained to do, what I want to do! Be Excellent To Each Other! If you're new to my blog, you need to know something about me. I'm an over writer. What that means is that if my word goal is 20,000 words, I'll end up with 50,000. More practically speaking, my word goal for The Paladin was 95-110,000 words. Last I checked, I was down to 139k.
I bring this up because I'm in the process of rewriting some of the early chapters, which, yes, means I'll need to update the links on the front page because those chapters are no longer current. It also means that, while this is a chance to severely slash that word count, I'm afraid I might waste it by just filling it up with a whole NEW set of words instead. It's a freakin' conundrum. Now, I'm pretty certain that this rewrite is going to result in a net LOSS of words, but at the moment, it's solely a gain. I'm hoping to replace several of the slow chapters (around and including chapters 7-12) with shorter, faster paced material that will keep my reader's attention. Unfortunately, it's like writing from the start again. Everything I'm writing now needs to be checked, edited, rechecked, and reedited. I'm fighting myself, because I know I need to cut down words, but I can't restrain myself while I create, essentially, brand new content. Every word I write I do so knowing that my word count is growing, but I have to get this down first before I can go back and edit it. So, that's where I'm stuck at the moment. Fighting with myself, because the creative side needs room to spread his wings, but the editor is auditing every single word that's added. Sheesh... DFTBA! |
Matias TautimezKeep your eyes open for my debut novel, The Paladin. Archives
January 2023
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