TrampInaTux

Yesterday I went bowling and went and saw Alien Autopsy with this girl I'm seeing. Was a good day.

Don

Around 3,000, and I did it in Word. Wanna know the plot? It was an idea I had with me for around seven years.

DontRunMeOver

Yes please.

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Don

It's basically about issues that deal with epistemology and about free-will. It's an epic look at the world of tomorrow, a world where a chain reaction leads to people thinking differently about what it is to be human. And I borrow a lot from the divine command theory but made up a theory of my own which basically says that no one should be responsible for their actions, which isn't original but I elaborated on it and things just progressed from there. I force the read to ask the questions "What truly is knowledge, if I somehow KNOW a 10 yr old boy is going to grow up to be the next hitler, why can't I stop him now?" and "Just because I've lost my loved one, does it mean I should feel wrath?" Questions about what it means to be "good" and "bad" are prevalent throughout, and a common theme throughout is that there is no such label.

That's the shortest "plot summary" I can give without giving away key ideas that haven't officially been copyrighted yet :P

I have had one short story published and it didn't go so well. It didn't exactly flop, but I thought it would have went better, and obvioulsy my publisher thinks so as well which is why I've been given a second chance. It was about a serial killer who locks himself with several people in a room but doesn't hold them captive, he tells them he's one of them but they don't know which. And they have to solve riddles, etc. I wrote it before I saw "Saw," but it's similar to that I guess.

DontRunMeOver

Sounds like it should be good. 3000 pages is a monster. As you're not in a position to say any more about it at the moment I won't ask more about the story, but could you tell me a bit about the writing process? Did you start writing with a plot and theme already outlined, or did you just have the theme and the plot came along later, or which/what/huh? Also, how did you create the characters, did you write about their actions and let these actions describe the characters, or did you work out individual personalities and then decide what they would each do in a situation?

I'm asking this partly from natural curiousity and partly because a guy that I know here has also been writing a book. He's got about 300 pages so far, but when I asked him what the plot was and what it was going to be he couldn't really describe it. He had a theme, which he could describe, but beyond that he didn't seem to have any plans beyond going where the writing took him (which seemed a bit ill-concieved to me...).

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Don

Sure can.

Usually when I have an idea I try and develop it inside by head for a very long time - perhaps writing down a few things too so I won't forget. That's a pretty important step in my writing because I don't want to just sit in front of a monitor with no direction, or a limited direction. So in that seven years I thought about everything from characters to conflict to possible endings. When I go to type it out, I first like to give an outline of the plot minus figurative techniques and thusly any sort of description or background into the characters. When that first rough draft is done, I go back and add around twice the amount of pages with details and give the story more depth. Of course, that first draft is probably a decent book already and tell you all there is to know about the book, but for me, without significant descriptions (that don't necessarily add anything to the overall plot) are extremely vital in creating a memorable and fascinating novel.

The characters came to me in the most uncanny of times/places. e.g: I'll be walking along some path on my way home and see someone and be thinking about my novel and just think "man, he/she's gotta be in it," and so I predicted their personality from the way they looked and obviously described the way they looked in my novel :P shh don't tell anyone, they could sue.

It took me a very long time to complete, and there were times where I almost gave up because I couldn't think of a way to link a particular chapter because I saw it in my head wrong or perhaps I forgot something. But it wasn't pretty; sometimes I would be marching up and down my hallway for almost an hour at a time. These last few days I've been particularly edgy as I just finished, and you probably noticed me acting that way if I posted here as of late.

Your friend is going to have a very hard time trying to conceive a novel if he is writing it as he goes along. It could be good, but most likely it will just be ideas that seem randomly stitched together that don't flow well. I think it's best to write out a structure before even starting.

Can I ask for your thoughts regarding the topic(s) of my novel?

DontRunMeOver

Got to be brief here, have to pop out in a second...

In as much as you've decribed your current book, your writing approach and the book you wrote before, the book sounds like it could be great. There certainly aren't any major issues I'd have with what you've told us in the last few posts, it sounds very interesting actually and would be the kind of book I might read, or at least attempt to read, if it gained decent reviews or was recommended by anybody - I choose books based on the reviews more, as they need more effort than music or films.

The fact that the theme for your last book was quite ingenious (at the time) and that you've based your characters around real people, both bode well for the book too.

That's what I thought. Writing songs, I always spend more time planning and outlining than actually writing. The written part of a song can fit onto one page, so it seems almost idotic to write a book (which is much longer and more difficult to tie together) without a lot of careful planning.

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Don

Right, and also being a composer, I can tell you that writing novels is much, much harder. And even I though sometimes compose for the entire orchestra. But yeah, I can see a relation between the two.

For me, I will read a book if it has an interesting blurb, I'm not that fussed to start it, but I'll stop as soon as it gets dull without hesitation.

adidasss

well, you wont believe this boys and girls ( and right-track ), but i actually passed that goddamn exam today....i'm not very happy at the moment because i got a D and i feel that's not a realistic representation of my current knowledge of the subject matter. i was very unlucky with the questions the professor asked me....but what is done is done...at least i don't have to look at the same goddamn book anymore.....onwards and upwards i say.....:-/

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“Think of what a paradise this world would be if men were kind and wise.” - Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle.

Last.fm

Levithan

Well done mate a D's not that bad...what I wouldnt give for a D in my exams lol

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