Category: inspiration

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inspiration NaNoWriMo news Novel 4

Another novel in the works.

This past week, I began my venture into another novel–Novel 4 to be exact. NaNoWriMo doesn’t come around quite as often as I’d like, it seems, since I end up itching to start another novel shortly after NaNoWriMo in the past couple of years.

What I have been trying to do with each novel I have written so far is to experiment with different genres; my first novel, Writing the Past, can be described as Mainstream Fiction (for the timebeing anyway); my second novel….well, I was trying to write it as a mystery/suspense, but I need to go back and seriously tweak the plot after rewriting the first novel; my third novel…adventure/travel. This fourth novel leans more towards a memoir; so far, it’s been challenging writing in this genre since I am trying to get the general true facts down.

Well, it’s refreshing to have something new to work with, although I know I should be focusing more on rewriting my first novel since I intend to publish it by summertime. Watch my progress on Novel 4’s wordcount in the sidebar, and wish me luck. =)

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#amreading contest inspiration Novel 1 Work in Progress

Finding Inspiration From Others & Delays

Recently, my bus rides have been consumed with reading Blind Your Ponies, by Stanley G. West. It is a thick monster of a book, and at times it’s hard to follow the plot since West writes from multiple points-of-view, but nonetheless, I have enjoyed the story so far. It’s been captivating my attention on the bus rides to and from work that I don’t even have the time to think about using my iPod these days.

Reading the book, however, has made me also realize a lot of things about my own writing. The prose in West’s book is smart and rather lyrical; I continue to wonder if my writing will reach that point someday. Yesterday, I went back to the public library to do more research in the writing magazines; I found myself feeling more humbled by the articles I read on how to improve my drafts and my general sense of writing.

The past week or so has been dry for me, writing-wise. Things began to slip a little bit last Wednesday, but I’ve still managed to keep up the momentum for my daily Novel 1 check-in. I should really start referring to that book with its working title, so I can feel more sense of completion. Since the deadline for ABNA is already less than a week away, I’m disappointed to say that I will not have my manuscript ready for submission. Well, it was worth the try to aim high so soon; I will still continue to aim for self-publishing the book by this summer.

Well, my Muse will come back yet.

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editing inspiration learning Novel 1 Work in Progress

Novel 1, inching step-by-step.

Another week down, another week closer to rewriting Novel 1.

I refer to my first novel as simply “Novel 1” not because I don’t have a title for it, but more because it’s just easier. The working title is “Writing the Past” but something about the simplicity of the title bothers me; I’m not sure if that’s the kind of title I want the public to use.

Anyway, aside from that tangent–there was some shuffling of cards/plot (see previous post’s picture) and I think I have decided upon a new, re-structured plot to work with for revision. There are still many plot holes to fill in and also some character development to work on; throughout this process over the past three weeks, I have noticed some areas I need to improve upon regarding my writing.

One area I know I need to improve upon is how to end stories with a resolved, (relatively) satisfied feeling. I have been practicing writing some short stories/flash prose and, even though everything starts out with a huge force of momentum, the speed slows down by the end and suddenly things just stop. That, or they flop down in a lackluster fashion. Is the only way to improve in this area just through practice, practice, practice?

I finished reading How NOT to Write a Novel on Thursday; it was an easy, hilarious read, but it also gave me a lot of insight into what I have been doing wrong with my manuscripts and writing in general. I can’t expect to be perfect from the beginning, so I feel very grateful to have been able to secure a copy of this book early on in my career. A lot of the mistakes pointed out in the book were quite eye-opening to me: although I already knew I had horrible plot holes and strange characters in Novels 2 & 3, the advice given in How NOT to Write a Novel helped me figure out what I can do to improve on those aspects in my novels.

My beta readers gave me some feedback on my plot synopsis for Novel 1, so that helped me figure out which areas to expand upon for revision. The next tasks I have in mind are to do some research on certain topics mentioned in the novel, and to also just decide on how to develop the characters more.

This weekend and the next may not give me as much time as the previous weekends (due to Chinese New Year and birthday plans), so I will have to try my best to get some writing/revision time in during weekday mornings. So far, the journey has been very enjoyable, and I hope for the most part it stays that way.

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inspiration

Inspiration for more writing.

I don’t know what was running through my mind last night, but I suddenly became inspired to start up another novel. I have yet to edit my first novel, Writing the Past, but that shouldn’t stop me from beginning another novel, right?

I feel like so far my writing style leans towards real-life events, either happening to me or to my loved ones. Fantasy would be nice to write about, but my imagination doesn’t really run into those realms these days. Perhaps I’ll venture into that genre when I start reading fantasy/scifi books again.