Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Working Without A Net

As all of you know, I've recently begun an online novel dwelling in the realm of fantasy.  I think it's a fun way to both write and let readers see the raw process as it moves ahead.

However, there are a few drawbacks to writing this way, the most prominent of which is the way the story develops.  With most of the novels I write, I begin with a basic outline.  I'll jot down the general direction of the story, modifying it along the way.  This helps the novel stay coherent and not wander down a bad road.  With the current project you're reading, I'm not doing that.

Should I?  Possibly, but I'm not.  In all honesty, I don't have the time between working on a new book, reworking an old one before publication, and a full time "real world" job that takes up to 50 or more hours a week.  So I'm taking a risk by winging it.

This might very well come back to haunt me and both people reading this book.  An outline helps me stay on track, although I don't outline too far ahead(it threatens the story with untenable plotlines).  I have an idea of where I want this thing to go, but nothing super-solid.  It could be that I get to a point from which I can't extract a decent story and decide to quit, or I could somehow belt out a masterpiece that takes its place among the greatest tomes in existence.  It's that uncertainty that I believe will make the journey enjoyable as much for readers as for myself.

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