And that wraps it up for another year.

I finished my second draft 1t 11:58.

The final word count is now 32,042. Silver Bullets was 33,161. So this is slightly more than a thousand words shorter.

Even more than last year, I have NO idea if this is any good. I've spent three days in it, and I've lost all scope. It went so quickly when it was going well, and so slowly when it wasn't.

It is, I think, already much improved for a simple go through to tighten things up.

Once I realized the central thesis of the book, it made it much easier to pull it all together.

Also I fixed all the times accidentally called the main female character the real name belonging to C3nobyte, on whom she is partially, but only partially based.

One thing you do, when you write at this pace, is check that you've not had any of your characters change names. It's not just me, apparently. It happens quite a lot.

Tomorrow I will print this up to send in.

I'm tired, but it's a good kind of tired, and I'm not a bit sorry.

This is me signing off. I will probably respond to comments, but I am still lying a little low on the Internet right now.

Thanks for your support.

First scene

One final post in this marathon: the last Illustration that I did. It also happens to be the first scene in the story.

Other nice things:

Puppies, roommates, and the spelling and grammar checker feature in Word.

It's the first level of my planned three-level revision. Two hours and twenty minutes to go.

Ahhhh

You know what's nice? Being clean.

Also, birch beer.

Draft 1 is finished

At 6:55 pm, the novel came to a close. At nearly the same time, I realized what this book was actually about. This leaves me about five hours to clean it up, and make changes that will strengthen that theme.

This feels like an insane luxury, but the writing today was easy, and I will take it, because frankly, this book is a mess.

Anyone wishing to read this tangled wreck is invited to contact me, but I'd advise you wait until I've gone through it.

It's currently 31,398 words. That's about 2000 words shorter than last year.

Unlike last year's novel, though, this has a beginning a middle and a definite end. There was no hasty drive to the conclusion this year. Last year I had done so much pondering and planning in advance of the writing that I had too much story to tell, I had to pick an end point and find a way to stop.

This year, I had literally no idea half the time what was going to happen, but I did know what the very end of the book would be.

So I built this crazy, chaotic story that ends abruptly in the spirit of that madness, and then I drop him back in his little bubble of peace, and hopefully, the reader understands a little better how he wound up there.

So I'm happy with the actual very end of the piece, and I'm happy with a lot of the early parts, but the whole Frankenstein plot needs some tightening up and some clarifying...but only some.

And I need a name, but I don't know what it is yet.

I also wonder if this book will get bigger or smaller before midnight.

Huh. I think I'm going to celebrate with a shower and some vigorous dog bothering before diving back in.

Anticlimax

All that remains of the story now, is the denouement. Tom goes back to his normal life, but with maybe the hint of a notion he might have some grown-up responsibilities to look after.
I think my biggest worry with this book is that I rather deliberately did a lot of buildup to a mystery that IS NOT revealed. Instead, as is often the case, somebody does something stupid, and a lot of bodies hit the floor.
Tom sort of just crawls away like Mr. Pink in Reservoir Dogs after the Mexican Standoff, and runs away.

I worry that people are going to feel a little ripped off, but that's kind of the point of the book in a couple of ways 1) the mysteries are better when we just see little glimpses of them and 2) sometimes excitement and involvement are overrated and it really is better to just have a happy little life.

I guess we'll see. I should be finished by 8, and then I can spend a few hours tightening and cleaning it up, and killing loose ends I dropped and did nothing with.

So there's that.

Bathroom break

I just wrote a letter from William S. Burroughs to William S. Frankenstein.

Either this book is funny, stupid, or sad. I dunno.

It's also probably incoherent.

But I am enjoying myself.

Okay. Going to pee now.

Then William S. Frankenstein meets his biological father/mother.

Heh. Heh heh heh.

Oh, and I also rewrote a bunch of stuff before moving on. Not traditionally a good idea, but it was stinking up the whole room just sitting there like that.

Monday morning

A few notes:

1) Good on you Grymm. Knowing you were out there in the slave pits with me buoyed my spirit. Also, I'm not too proud to admit that my male ego was threatened by the possibility you might last longer than I would, and without that spur I might have surrendered in those darkest hours on day 1. Thanks so much.

2) My dreams are often interesting, but rarely so useful as they were last night. There is no longer any question that I will finish the book. There is only the question of how much time I'll have to edit before midnight.

3) I am under no illusions this book is as strong as Silver Bullets, but considering I had two concepts and one name as I sat down at the keys, I'm just a wee bit proud of myself at how insane this book is. I just hope that the unanswered questions about Tom's life are interesting without making the story unreadable.

4) I slept until nine, and then went for breakfast out. I don't regret this, exactly, as I'm now feeling very relaxed and loose, but I may regret it in a few hours.

Back to it.

Thanks for your emails and comments, folks. Day three was my favorite day last year. Here's hoping.

Draft

As the counter indicates, I decided to call it at 15000 words (that is 51 pages), as I had written basically all I wanted for it. I will likely continue to revise it, and add illustrations to it, because it seems like it wants some pictures in it. I may post some of those.

If I do this again, I should consider actually trying to get more planning for it, probably 50 to 70 ideas to be covered, as I know I can get about a page an a half out of anything. However, I am not sure about it. I don't really do narrative fiction that much. Could be the gamer thing, but I like fictional worlds, possibly with an implied narrative, but ones that are more immersive. Things like false document encyclopaedias and the like, or collections of myths or the like. In this way, I wrote the type of work that I like, as it is more of a semi-narrative world building than a true novel.

Parts of it will likely be seen by others in likely the near future, as it could be seen as a setting chapter for something like 1st edition Vampire the Masquerade. We also have most of a cobbled together system, that if we filed the some of the cobbles down so they were more obviously our own, could make a compelling game of sorts.

(For those wondering, it is a Supers setting with very a high villain quotient, and questionable characters. The system is on the conflict resolution rather than task resolution side. It has meant that it is effectively a supers game with no specific rules for powers).

If you want to see it, ask.

Okay....

Im going to read some comics and go to bed. My brain is melting.

I think I know what I have to do tomorrow, and that's all to the good.

Now if I can just figure out the very next part.

In the morning.

I'd like to finish by about 8 pm tomorrow, and that will give me the last four hours to revise.

I just hope my pace is quicker tomorrow than it is today.

Coming up short

Well, I have used up most of my secondary ideas. It will still be over 50 pages, but that is short of the 100. I guess I could keep adding bits to the written topics, but it is getting rather done. Good that I didn't really enter. As I figured, not worth gambling on something that I know that I would never win with. I like the writing, but it is not worth dealing with.

I am getting the idea of inserting some illustrations, but everyone who follows this site should not be surprised by this. That will add some length, and really, some of the beings are better described through illustration than through prose. Also something that doesn't quite work with the contest.

Kim Jong-Il

is now a character in the book. Either this book has gone insane or I have.

Actually, that's not an either/or.

But I am only a short hop away from the part of the book I've been looking forward to. William S. Frankenstein is going to narrate his life story, just before I get Tom out of this totally unfeasible situation he's in.

Then, the denouement.

So I see the shape of it now. More or less.

Never underestimate the tenacity of a terrified mind.

I'm a whole different writer when I'm scared.

Breakthrough

I just realized that I shouldn't be spending my time writing a 3 Day Novel. I should be trying to save the environment by writing a hit album of catchy jams.

No?

Oookay.

Aargh!

Okay, I wrote myself out of that corner...sort of. Then I rewarded myself witha wee malenky nap.

Day 2 suuuuucks. It was the same last year. Many people say it's their favorite day. Not me.

Progress Report.

I hit a wall. I took an hour to grab lunch, and I'm about to hit the keys again. I'm really scared just at the moment about my ability to pull out of the tailspin.]

I shortlisted last year. I have to AT LEAST finish this year to maintain self-respect

Anyone out there with a few minutes, drop me a note or an email, and talk me down....

I'm up...I'm up.. Wha huh?

Thank god for dogs. I might have slept in even later. I am now going to have a quick breakfast and check my email and plunge back into the book.

A thought occurred to me as I lay in bed last night, and has been bothering me.

In order to do this without an outline, you pretty much have to dive into your comfort zone and write from that place.

Why is my comfort zone so dark and violent and creepy? What does this say about me? I don't know. I like to think that the relationship between Tom and his upstairs neighbour girl is sweet and loving in the midst of all the dark. So maybe I have that in me too.

Anyway, now is not the time for self-examination I suspect.

I have two-thirds of a novella to make.

bracketing text

The day was pretty good. However, this basically ate what preparation I had. Basically, this portion is a series of loresheets (ala weapons of the gods). This portion is what I really wanted to get completed. However, this is only about 40 pages. I will be continuing, but I realized that I would need to bracket in an actual story, vs the format I was writing before. I am going to move into this new format tomorrow.

And so to bed.

Okay. Tom Bradstreet has just met William S. Frankenstein face to face. I am better than a third of the way into the book, and I'm going to bed now.

I have an idea how Tom ends up in that shipping container, but I have no idea what happens when he gets out.

He will almost certainly get out tomorrow. That also means another tense switch.

So I will have to figure that part out, AND cope with present tense.

Unless a solution occurs to me in bed. I expect it may.

Impressions so far?

This is a less ambitious, and more straightforward story than Silver Bullets, but it's ten times more weird and bloody and dark. It's a lot sloppier than Bullets and no wonder. I had the plot totally sketched out for that one, and I could focus on the writing a lot more.

This time it's just a struggle to make a coherent narrative.

I don't think I'll be shortlisting with this one, but there's no shame in that. Considering the prep time i've had, I think it's going well.

Once revised, I think it will make an excellent addition to the Sel Souris cycle of stories. Certainly a major revelation is forthcoming.

And so to bed.

Pace.

Okay, the book came to life on me somewhere this afternoon. I have a sort of loose skeleton for the story, and some concepts I want to use. My pace is getting better. I think I can hit 12,000 before I sleep tonight. Maybe more. Unless I hit one of those annoying stumbling blocks.
I had the joy of finding a character in the middle of the action I did not know would be there. That's always good.
I've been getting a few people to read my first two chapters and see if I'm on target. So far, I'm getting the impression it's worth going on. Thank god.
I just typed this to my friend Arthur, "All I need is the gut. And I appreciate the hell out of this. It's like doing a tightrope walk naked. I have no idea how the performance is going.. All i can think of is that I'm naked, and it's cold up here."

That about sums it up for me.

The good news is that I'm now enjoying the work. It isn't just work. Nice feeling. I'm still far more behind than I want to be.

Back to it.

Panic.

My progress is very slow, and this is much harder without the huge prep I did last year. I predict a very late night to get back on pace.

Grymm, how are you finding the experience?

For me, last time it was exhilarating. This time, it's really hard going.

Normal

Sleep is important. But I usually sleep about where I did there. Being up till six is not unusual for me.

Writing on 4 hours is also not unusual. That is one complete melatonin cycle, give or take. I spent six months on a very similar schedule when you were finding out that sleep was important.

Someone stayed up late.

Me, I learned last year that sleep was worthwhile. I also think a night of subconscious mulling should help me out here.

Now for a quick breakfast, and then back to the word mine.

It is more fun with at least one other

As Ryan mentioned, I offered to play along, though I am not entering the contest. This is for a number of reasons. First, I decided to join in too late. Second, I have many things that I would rather spend the money on. I have done multiple 24 hour comics before, and much in the same way, I know I have the motivation to do it for myself. Third, as somewhat explained in the next paragraph, it is not going to really be a narrative. Fourth, though the work is going to be all mine written now, the world that I am dealing with has been developed collaboratively so far, and will be afterwards. I don't want to limit myself to being tied down by being the only author on this.

All that being said, my work is somewhere between a yanyi, a hagiography, a cosmogony, or perhaps just a history of the forces of Conglomerated Union for Dastardly Deeds and Licentious Endeavours. As these works tend to be, it will be rambling and somewhat directionless. I guess in some ways it won't exactly be a novel be some standards as it won't really have a plot. But I knew this from minute one.

Okay

So it's a mystery, though not a murder mystery. And it's a sequel to my book Now England Sees and to Silver Bullets but it requires neither to be read. I hope.

It's a start, but a small one. I know where I'm driving now.

Tomorrow.

And so it begins

Thank you again to all who offered suggestion and support. To be honest, I'm still not a hundred percent sure what I'm doing, but I've started. I'm going to write for an hour or so and then get a good night's sleep and see what comes in the morning.

Lordgrymm has, in private correspondence, indicated that he has decided to do the challenge himself, though unofficially. So I may have company. Hooray!

I will create a sidebar for him as well, and he can update it as he sees fit.

So far, I think mine is a kind of murder mystery.

More before I retire.

A follow up suggestion from the same bloke

"Hey Ryan

Just thought of one.

Nice Cream.

The name of ice cream company for which a struggling actor works inbetween endless auditions with only moderate success (including wearing the Lion suit outside the theatre when Lion King is playing).

He is an ice cream van salesman, going from snot-nosed neighbourhood to over-privileged, spoilt rotten neighbourhood, selling ice cream to little shits.

There is one particulr kid who pisses him off immensely with his bad manners and attitude. One day he decides to stuff the ice cream in the kid's face and then tell him it's on the house.

Things escalate and as he's driving off one day, the kid grabs hold of the back of his van. He speeds off and the kid falls off. He laughs and carries on.

Days later he gets called into his boss' office to be told the parents are suing him and the company. It all escalates from there.

That's all I've got for now. As I said, all taken from real life experience (my brother was the ice cream man in question and all of that happened). It could get all Travis Bickle and could be fun. Or you might think it's a shit idea. Either way, it's the best I could think of at short notice!

Good luck, amigo."

That is a hell of an idea, and on my short list in one form or another, but I don't think I have the comic chops to pull off a sustained novel. Hm.

Another piece of advice...

This one is received from one of G's trenchmates two years ago.

"You're in deep do-do, mate.

The only thing that will get you out of it is to stick to the old adage - write about what you know (and, more importantly, who you know). This way, you don't have to invent a story or characters, just take them from real life and exaggerate the hell out of them.

Maybe go back to something that happened out of school and turn it into something resembling Colombine. Or your first, really boring job job turns into a major adventure in which you come out with your life intact by the skin of your teeth.

Three days is such a short time, don't waste any of it actually creating too much, just exaggerate and expand on what you already know.

Bonne chance, mon brave."

Ideas thus offered

1) Someone wins a lottery, does something weird with the money.
2) An organized crime story.
3) My serial killer story I talked about last year, where the killer is an angel, and the detective solving the case is unaware of this.
4) A Quincy style story that starts with a corpse and works backward from there.
5) "Just saw an article about Twitter stalkers who follow people's Twitter
positings -- so that they can determine when they're not home, then break
into their homes and steal things. Thought to myself, 'there's definitely
a story in that...'"

Do keep them coming.

3-Day Novel Contest 2009

Long time no post, texterinos.

I have been on a deliberate retreat from the blogosphere for reasons I'll talk about eventually, but I'm coming online here for the next few days. Here's the why:

I had assumed that my job was going to interfere with my participation in 3-Day this year. At the last minute, I've discovered that it won't. So, without preparation, without outline, without any actual idea what I'll write, I'm plunging in and doing it again.

Just like last year, I'll be regularly posting here. Unlike last year, I don't think I have a team mate. Nonetheless, I beg of you to post and cheer me on, and all that good stuff.

Any suggestions on a topic would be welcome at this point.

I'm at work right now, so I can't post further. Expect another update later tonight. For those of you who still even check this page. Which, I suspect, must be nobody. This is why I'll be emailing folks as well.