The Matchmaker world needs to be quite complex for a couple of reasons. First, I can see several novels taking place in it, so there needs to be plenty to explore. Second, each novel should be 100-150,000 words. That's a lot of story, to the uninitiated. Longer than the average novel. Why? I figure if you're going to think at all, you might as well think big, and so this world and novel are being designed with the Luna imprint in mind. Luna is a division of Harlequin that features novels in a fantasy setting with a strong female protagonist and a romantic subplot.
The first draft of Majai's Fury (aka Marks of Repentance) came in about 93K, my longest ever. The re-re-revised version that is currently seeking its fortune is 101K. The matchmaker novels could/ should come in at one and a half times that.
Gulp. That's a lot of story. That's a lot of world.
I've been *seeing* this world for a couple years now, catching glimpses of Kaesa, the first heroine to have her tale set here. About a month ago I decided to focus on her story and see if I couldn't get her ready to write in just a few short weeks.
Insert maniacal laughter here.
I've followed my mind into whatever paths seemed to entertain it and possibly pertain to the Plan. I've played with mythical flying beasts and Yiddish matchmaking sites. I've downloaded Scrivener and created characters and twists and plot cards.
There are many layers composting in the Scrivener binder called Matchmaker. Trust me on that. There is a very cool story in there. Somewhere. But many holes remain. What I don't know is if the projected length of the project is messing with my mind or whether there's something else wrong. I'm pretty sure it's fixable, but I can't quite grasp the problem.
Metaphorically speaking, I've added layers of leaves and vegetable peelings and rotted hay to the compost. I've sprinkled it with water, and I can see the steam coming off the pile, so I know something in there is doing its job. I've taken the pitchfork and turned it over a few times. I've spread it out on the story seeds, but the sprouts are small still. Nothing can hurry growth. You can apply light and rain in the appropriate amounts--add a bit of fertilizer--but a strong story needs time to grow, to reach its roots into the good stuff in the compost and be strong and green and beautiful.
And the Matchmaker novel isn't ready to do that. Not this week, anyway. I'd welcome that flash of inspiration that would pull the threads together, but it seems it has to come to me--that going out and looking for it isn't quite working.
Enter Tempest, stage left.
She presented me with a complete, if skeletal, synopsis on Sunday and I've been trying to ignore her ever since. Today I gave up and created a new binder in Scrivener for her. It looks like her story should have no trouble coming in at 80-90K. I'll let it land there if it likes as I'm not sure it's really a Luna story anyway, though it meets the other basic requirements. I guess we'll see.
I hate abandoning projects, and I feel like I've been doing a lot of that lately. It does feel better when I tell myself that they're just composting. Let's see if I can convince myself.
Showing posts with label Matchmaker. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Matchmaker. Show all posts
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Monday, June 09, 2008
Scrivener
If you're writing on a Mac, hie thee over to download the trial version of Scrivener. Seriously. There's a decent video there to show you why you need it.
Here's why *I* needed it! I often plot/ outline with physical 3x5 notecards, but I have issues with them. I like color-coding things, but committing to writing plot points on a green card is difficult. Green cards belong to the MC. What if I later I decide to write the scene from another character's POV? Then it should have been on a yellow card! Or even a pink card. You can imagine the dilemmas this causes. Seriously. I've sat and stared at the cards, afraid to commit.
Okay, so that's silly. I can just use white ones, and once I for sure decide whose scene it is, I can run a highlighter across the header to match the character. That helps, but I still lack space to spread them out at work.
And then there is the issue of what to do with the random bits of information that I'm not sure what scene it's going to belong in. I see a setting, but what will happen there? So really, I need to know quite a lot about the story before I pull out the notecards. And then...I may as well go straight to Word or Excel, eh?
Only the cells in Excel really aren't big enough for all the information I might want to have in them--notes for each scene. And sometimes they're a pain to rearrange. I've lost stuff doing that.
Back to Word. There each scene takes as much space as it needs. I can list the POV character, the setting, etc no problem. But there still is that random stuff that might become a scene if it found the right other information to collide with.
And with the matchmaker, I've gone round and round in Word and Excel and was pulling out the notecards a couple days ago (in desperation!) when I remembered that I now have a MacBook.
You'd think I couldn't forget such a thing. I've overcome much of the learning curve and am no longer panicking every five minutes that I don't know how to DO whatever it is I'm trying to do. (That's now reserved for like once a day!) But with the remembrance that I now use a Mac, I remembered that Holly Lisle uses Scrivener. (Ha. You thought I'd never get to the point.)
So I asked around a bit and then downloaded the trial version this morning. By the time I'd gone through the tutorial I had a bit of a headache. So much information! But then it was lunch break and I went for a long walk, came back, and decided it was time to see what would happen when Matchmaker met Scrivener.
I think they're in love.
First, importing files from Word is easy-peasy. (And they're still there in Word, too, should I need them in that application.) Scrivener arranged things fairly intuitively. I only moved a few things to new locations, and it was easy to do. So on the left of the screen, it's like an organizational tree program. There's tons out there, several of which I've used from time to time and quite liked. But this does more.
It has a virtual corkboard with 3x5 notecards! :D And because I am not actually wasting notecards by changing my mind later what color I want them (lame, I know...), I can randomly type whatever I want on a given card, and change it later.
Each card has three *levels*. There's a title, which shows in the tree down the left side. Then on the actual card itself, below the title, is enough room to write a decent synopsis of the scene (about the same amount as on a physical card). BUT, for all the little details, you can add them basically behind the cut. All of these can be color-coded and rearranged to my heart's content.
Which is cool. At the moment, I'm resisting the urge to title the cards in my outline section of the file, though of course I've labeled them in the character section. I'll save the title slot for numbers when I have them the way I want them. But one synopsis section simply says *picnic*. Because I think one scene will take place on a picnic. But I have no idea what will happen there that is significant, and I don't know if it will be early in the story or late. But for now, I have a card for picnic. Later, hopefully, one of the other cards with some other random word will decide it wants to hang out with the picnic card, and I'll combine them. Eventually, I hope, I'll have 80-90 cards with actual scene synopses on them.
The few cards that I know for sure belong to the beginning of the story--ones where characters meet each other, I've tinted light aqua. I've reserved pale yellow for middle scenes and pink for climax/ending scenes, but I haven't used any of those yet.
A person can easily write the entire novel in Scrivener. (Exporting back to Word is just as easy as importing, for the final formatting and such.) I think it would be especially cool for folks who write scenes out of order, because you can rearrange all the scenes simply by moving their cards around. So far I've always written linear, but this setup loosens the cells in my brain a little and makes it okay to play. I don't know if I will, though!
So, after one day, I'm really excited about some of the odds and ends that are stuck to my virtual corkboard and how I might arrange them and add to them. I've still got quite a ways to go to have a full and complete plot, but it's really looking positive at the moment!
Here's why *I* needed it! I often plot/ outline with physical 3x5 notecards, but I have issues with them. I like color-coding things, but committing to writing plot points on a green card is difficult. Green cards belong to the MC. What if I later I decide to write the scene from another character's POV? Then it should have been on a yellow card! Or even a pink card. You can imagine the dilemmas this causes. Seriously. I've sat and stared at the cards, afraid to commit.
Okay, so that's silly. I can just use white ones, and once I for sure decide whose scene it is, I can run a highlighter across the header to match the character. That helps, but I still lack space to spread them out at work.
And then there is the issue of what to do with the random bits of information that I'm not sure what scene it's going to belong in. I see a setting, but what will happen there? So really, I need to know quite a lot about the story before I pull out the notecards. And then...I may as well go straight to Word or Excel, eh?
Only the cells in Excel really aren't big enough for all the information I might want to have in them--notes for each scene. And sometimes they're a pain to rearrange. I've lost stuff doing that.
Back to Word. There each scene takes as much space as it needs. I can list the POV character, the setting, etc no problem. But there still is that random stuff that might become a scene if it found the right other information to collide with.
And with the matchmaker, I've gone round and round in Word and Excel and was pulling out the notecards a couple days ago (in desperation!) when I remembered that I now have a MacBook.
You'd think I couldn't forget such a thing. I've overcome much of the learning curve and am no longer panicking every five minutes that I don't know how to DO whatever it is I'm trying to do. (That's now reserved for like once a day!) But with the remembrance that I now use a Mac, I remembered that Holly Lisle uses Scrivener. (Ha. You thought I'd never get to the point.)
So I asked around a bit and then downloaded the trial version this morning. By the time I'd gone through the tutorial I had a bit of a headache. So much information! But then it was lunch break and I went for a long walk, came back, and decided it was time to see what would happen when Matchmaker met Scrivener.
I think they're in love.
First, importing files from Word is easy-peasy. (And they're still there in Word, too, should I need them in that application.) Scrivener arranged things fairly intuitively. I only moved a few things to new locations, and it was easy to do. So on the left of the screen, it's like an organizational tree program. There's tons out there, several of which I've used from time to time and quite liked. But this does more.
It has a virtual corkboard with 3x5 notecards! :D And because I am not actually wasting notecards by changing my mind later what color I want them (lame, I know...), I can randomly type whatever I want on a given card, and change it later.
Each card has three *levels*. There's a title, which shows in the tree down the left side. Then on the actual card itself, below the title, is enough room to write a decent synopsis of the scene (about the same amount as on a physical card). BUT, for all the little details, you can add them basically behind the cut. All of these can be color-coded and rearranged to my heart's content.
Which is cool. At the moment, I'm resisting the urge to title the cards in my outline section of the file, though of course I've labeled them in the character section. I'll save the title slot for numbers when I have them the way I want them. But one synopsis section simply says *picnic*. Because I think one scene will take place on a picnic. But I have no idea what will happen there that is significant, and I don't know if it will be early in the story or late. But for now, I have a card for picnic. Later, hopefully, one of the other cards with some other random word will decide it wants to hang out with the picnic card, and I'll combine them. Eventually, I hope, I'll have 80-90 cards with actual scene synopses on them.
The few cards that I know for sure belong to the beginning of the story--ones where characters meet each other, I've tinted light aqua. I've reserved pale yellow for middle scenes and pink for climax/ending scenes, but I haven't used any of those yet.
A person can easily write the entire novel in Scrivener. (Exporting back to Word is just as easy as importing, for the final formatting and such.) I think it would be especially cool for folks who write scenes out of order, because you can rearrange all the scenes simply by moving their cards around. So far I've always written linear, but this setup loosens the cells in my brain a little and makes it okay to play. I don't know if I will, though!
So, after one day, I'm really excited about some of the odds and ends that are stuck to my virtual corkboard and how I might arrange them and add to them. I've still got quite a ways to go to have a full and complete plot, but it's really looking positive at the moment!
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
The Villain
So the matchmaker novel (that needs a name) is starting to pull together. I've done a few character bios the last few days, playing around with the voices of the major characters in journal format. I've learned some interesting things about them that way, though I'm planning to write the novel in a single third person point-of-view: Kaesa.
However, the villain had me stumped. Not all my stories have a clearcut bad guy, but this one will. But why? Why does he do his evil deeds? What are his history, his motivations, his quirks? I could envision him sitting in an armchair across from me, leaning back, arms crossed, a sardonic grin on his face, waiting for me to figure him out while offering no clues.
Weeks like this, the store gets a really thorough cleaning. I was nearly desperate enough to start a round of price checks. Definitely time to break through Petrek's shell and figure out some things.
He likes power. He doesn't like to gamble, but goes for the sure thing with as little risk as possible. Once we got going (this one I wrote as a Q&A instead of diary) I quickly had over 1K in notes.
The villain ticks.
All I need now is an outline and a little more worldbuilding. I have a rough synopsis, so it should be possible to build an outline out of it. Maybe tomorrow.
Book needs a name. It's driving me crazy.
However, the villain had me stumped. Not all my stories have a clearcut bad guy, but this one will. But why? Why does he do his evil deeds? What are his history, his motivations, his quirks? I could envision him sitting in an armchair across from me, leaning back, arms crossed, a sardonic grin on his face, waiting for me to figure him out while offering no clues.
Weeks like this, the store gets a really thorough cleaning. I was nearly desperate enough to start a round of price checks. Definitely time to break through Petrek's shell and figure out some things.
He likes power. He doesn't like to gamble, but goes for the sure thing with as little risk as possible. Once we got going (this one I wrote as a Q&A instead of diary) I quickly had over 1K in notes.
The villain ticks.
All I need now is an outline and a little more worldbuilding. I have a rough synopsis, so it should be possible to build an outline out of it. Maybe tomorrow.
Book needs a name. It's driving me crazy.
Friday, May 23, 2008
On dragons...
I came to the realization yesterday that there is a reason dragons are over-done in fantasy literature. Sure we think they're cool, but there's more to it than that. Really, there are only so many mythological beasts that are willing to transport humans, so if the writer is looking for something beyond horses and sailing ships, most animals slink off into the distance, unwilling to do the job.
The current short list for this novel includes dragons, gryphons, hippogriffs, and centaurs. I'm not extremely wild about using any of them. But this world deserves something beyond horses. No offense to my friend Flicka.
The current short list for this novel includes dragons, gryphons, hippogriffs, and centaurs. I'm not extremely wild about using any of them. But this world deserves something beyond horses. No offense to my friend Flicka.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
a bit of backstory...
I couldn't decide which was more stare-worthy--my brother Lann or the jewel he'd casually placed in my hand. The jewel won. I'd seen Lann before, though this might well have been the first thing he'd ever given me.
"Father wanted you to have it," Lann said, and I realized he'd said other things, too, that I hadn't paid attention to.
The deep purple stone glowed from its depths, every facet gleaming as I turned it. I'd always thought a jewel would feel cold to the touch--if I should ever have the opportunity to touch one, which had seemed unlikely, poor as we were. But not only was it not cold, but a pure warmth emanated from it, spreading down my fingers and up towards my elbow.
"Kaesa. Are you listening to a word I've said?"
I should be, I knew. I had no memories of my father, who had died when I was but a babe. But it was difficult to tear my attention from the jewel. I leaned closer, fancying I could smell the fragrance of a heady wine.
Lann's fingers closed over mine, blocking the gem from my sight. "Kaesa."
"Father wanted you to have it," Lann said, and I realized he'd said other things, too, that I hadn't paid attention to.
The deep purple stone glowed from its depths, every facet gleaming as I turned it. I'd always thought a jewel would feel cold to the touch--if I should ever have the opportunity to touch one, which had seemed unlikely, poor as we were. But not only was it not cold, but a pure warmth emanated from it, spreading down my fingers and up towards my elbow.
"Kaesa. Are you listening to a word I've said?"
I should be, I knew. I had no memories of my father, who had died when I was but a babe. But it was difficult to tear my attention from the jewel. I leaned closer, fancying I could smell the fragrance of a heady wine.
Lann's fingers closed over mine, blocking the gem from my sight. "Kaesa."
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Keeps on coming...
Been a busy week since we got home from Victoria. We've finally got Hanna and Craig moved home for the summer. They're hanging out in the folks' motorhome and using our spare bedroom as an office. Yesterday we got all the rest of their belongings moved into storage in their college town, ready for them to find a new abode in September. Craig's working at the local wildlife center for the summer and Hanna is taking time off from lifeguarding to develop her web and graphic design business. Need anything done? I have the gal for you!
We've also gotten the yard mowed--huge job. It was barely turning green when I left for Victoria and when we got home, it was 8-12 inches high. Even the riding lawn mower argued about the task, and the yard is large enough that it takes several hours. Hard on the neck too as the thing doesn't have power steering and a lot of maneuvering is required. (Whine, whine...I know). So we've all taken our turns at raking up the mounds of shorn grass and stacking it between the raspberry rows. Might as well get some good mulch out of the deal.
Much of the garden has now been planted--all the tomatoes and squashes are in. It was hot over the weekend but cooled off considerably yesterday and is raining today, which ought to make the little plants happy. We still have more planting to do, but it's a good start.
On the story front, I've tried to get back into the worldbuilding for the novel I was working on in April, Puppet Prince. I've been fighting with the story line on and off for a couple of years and apparently it still isn't composted enough to grow a decent plot. I don't know. It makes me yawn, which can't possibly be a good sign!
So I'm poking around with the matchmaking novel, which ought to get a name someday, I suppose. If this one pulls together, I can see several novels in this world. At any rate, this concept feels like it has some promise. Perhaps even a promise it would like to fulfill this year. However, it wasn't as far along as the Puppet Prince novel, so I'm further back on my timeline of getting something ready to start writing.
And when I'm this tired and my life is this busy--and I'm THIS out of practice at plotting and writing--it seems easier to take a nap than push myself to work on it. Not that I'm...er...napping at work or anything. Really.
We've also gotten the yard mowed--huge job. It was barely turning green when I left for Victoria and when we got home, it was 8-12 inches high. Even the riding lawn mower argued about the task, and the yard is large enough that it takes several hours. Hard on the neck too as the thing doesn't have power steering and a lot of maneuvering is required. (Whine, whine...I know). So we've all taken our turns at raking up the mounds of shorn grass and stacking it between the raspberry rows. Might as well get some good mulch out of the deal.
Much of the garden has now been planted--all the tomatoes and squashes are in. It was hot over the weekend but cooled off considerably yesterday and is raining today, which ought to make the little plants happy. We still have more planting to do, but it's a good start.
On the story front, I've tried to get back into the worldbuilding for the novel I was working on in April, Puppet Prince. I've been fighting with the story line on and off for a couple of years and apparently it still isn't composted enough to grow a decent plot. I don't know. It makes me yawn, which can't possibly be a good sign!
So I'm poking around with the matchmaking novel, which ought to get a name someday, I suppose. If this one pulls together, I can see several novels in this world. At any rate, this concept feels like it has some promise. Perhaps even a promise it would like to fulfill this year. However, it wasn't as far along as the Puppet Prince novel, so I'm further back on my timeline of getting something ready to start writing.
And when I'm this tired and my life is this busy--and I'm THIS out of practice at plotting and writing--it seems easier to take a nap than push myself to work on it. Not that I'm...er...napping at work or anything. Really.
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
a spark
Once upon a time a long time ago now, my friend Random Walk Writer was copyediting a travel guide to Ireland and passed along some links from it that amused her about the Lisdoonvarna Matchmaking Festival. Something began playing at the back of my mind, but only a few random ideas emerged, then refused to play nicely together. Then they went away and wouldn't play at all. Which was okay.
Today, however, I was pestering Maripat about her character Mia. I teased her that I could see Mia running past in slow motion. Then I said, 'wait, that isn't Mia.' She wondered if it was Taifa (from Marks), but it definitely didn't look like her. Or anyone else currently on my roster of stories.
Her hair was long and blond and sort of curly and quite messy, like she'd been running for awhile. In the few seconds I saw her, she glanced back over her shoulder and stumbled. Her skirt was tiered and flowing, and I think she had on a peasant-style blouse with the top tie undone. The only color in the image was green. Kind of a green misty background (out of focus trees?), and greenish clothes, but I'm wondering if it was more a colored filter than actual color.
I began to wonder if she was the girl from Matchmaker, whose name I suddenly realized was Kaesa. And now I'm back to wandering the web looking for cool sites on matchmaking traditions. And maybe I should watch Fiddler on the Roof.
Here's the Wikipedia link about Lisdoonvarna. Here is a little info about the history. There's apparently a movie about this tradition: Lisdoonvarna: Lourdes of Love. Anyone seen it?
And hey, the official matchmaker has his very own website!
I do hope Kaesa wants to make some plans now. I need a light at the end of the tunnel. Something jitteringly ready to write when this round of Marks is done.
Today, however, I was pestering Maripat about her character Mia. I teased her that I could see Mia running past in slow motion. Then I said, 'wait, that isn't Mia.' She wondered if it was Taifa (from Marks), but it definitely didn't look like her. Or anyone else currently on my roster of stories.
Her hair was long and blond and sort of curly and quite messy, like she'd been running for awhile. In the few seconds I saw her, she glanced back over her shoulder and stumbled. Her skirt was tiered and flowing, and I think she had on a peasant-style blouse with the top tie undone. The only color in the image was green. Kind of a green misty background (out of focus trees?), and greenish clothes, but I'm wondering if it was more a colored filter than actual color.
I began to wonder if she was the girl from Matchmaker, whose name I suddenly realized was Kaesa. And now I'm back to wandering the web looking for cool sites on matchmaking traditions. And maybe I should watch Fiddler on the Roof.
Here's the Wikipedia link about Lisdoonvarna. Here is a little info about the history. There's apparently a movie about this tradition: Lisdoonvarna: Lourdes of Love. Anyone seen it?
And hey, the official matchmaker has his very own website!
I do hope Kaesa wants to make some plans now. I need a light at the end of the tunnel. Something jitteringly ready to write when this round of Marks is done.
Friday, December 15, 2006
Goals for 2007
Time to think about the upcoming year and what I hope to accomplish writing-wise. There are so many things I need to do MORE of, and yet the days are the same length as they ever were. I'm not sure what to make of that. Priorities are a nasty thing.
In 2006, I wrote one new novel, The Girl Who Cried Squid, during Nano. That means I had gone 11 months without creative writing. It was too long. I either need to write two books next year or slow down (skip Nano) and let the writing of one novel take much of the year. Which means I would need to learn to multi-task, and THAT is a problem in its own right.
In 2006, I revised two novels and a partial. Yikes, that doesn't sound like a lot at all. I revised False Perceptions and I'm not happy with it (after feedback) so it's shelved, at least for now. I revised Marks of Repentance and all the crits are now back. I plan to go through it again as soon as I complete the partial, Quest to be Queen. I always have this problem. I like writing first drafts better than I like revising, but the honest truth is that if each novel takes at least two additional drafts, then I need to block that into my schedule.
I thought I would start contacting agents in 2006, but I haven't. Nothing has been ready. I refuse to send out something I don't like. So I'm hoping again for this coming year.
What else is there? Conferences: I'm keeping an eye on a couple that may work out in 2007. Reading in the genre: trying to. Reading outside the genre: trying to. Networking: trying to.
So what are my plans for 2007?
1. Finish this revision pass on Quest to be Queen.
2. Complete one (or, if needed, two) passes on Marks of Repentance and GET THE THING KICKED OUT THE DOOR!
3. Write something. Maybe two somethings.
4. Revise something else if time permits. Squid?
5. Work on the recipe book project.
Writing contenders at the moment? Well, there's the long-ignored 2yn project, Puppet Prince, but it's not yelling all that loud. Currently there is a fantasy romance floating around in my head, something to do with this site on the matchmaking tradition. I asked Kaesa nicely, but she doesn't want to play in the Puppet Prince world; she wants her own. **Rolls Eyes.
What are your goals for the coming year?
In 2006, I wrote one new novel, The Girl Who Cried Squid, during Nano. That means I had gone 11 months without creative writing. It was too long. I either need to write two books next year or slow down (skip Nano) and let the writing of one novel take much of the year. Which means I would need to learn to multi-task, and THAT is a problem in its own right.
In 2006, I revised two novels and a partial. Yikes, that doesn't sound like a lot at all. I revised False Perceptions and I'm not happy with it (after feedback) so it's shelved, at least for now. I revised Marks of Repentance and all the crits are now back. I plan to go through it again as soon as I complete the partial, Quest to be Queen. I always have this problem. I like writing first drafts better than I like revising, but the honest truth is that if each novel takes at least two additional drafts, then I need to block that into my schedule.
I thought I would start contacting agents in 2006, but I haven't. Nothing has been ready. I refuse to send out something I don't like. So I'm hoping again for this coming year.
What else is there? Conferences: I'm keeping an eye on a couple that may work out in 2007. Reading in the genre: trying to. Reading outside the genre: trying to. Networking: trying to.
So what are my plans for 2007?
1. Finish this revision pass on Quest to be Queen.
2. Complete one (or, if needed, two) passes on Marks of Repentance and GET THE THING KICKED OUT THE DOOR!
3. Write something. Maybe two somethings.
4. Revise something else if time permits. Squid?
5. Work on the recipe book project.
Writing contenders at the moment? Well, there's the long-ignored 2yn project, Puppet Prince, but it's not yelling all that loud. Currently there is a fantasy romance floating around in my head, something to do with this site on the matchmaking tradition. I asked Kaesa nicely, but she doesn't want to play in the Puppet Prince world; she wants her own. **Rolls Eyes.
What are your goals for the coming year?
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