A Flagrant Misuse of Free Time

So this is my 50th post. Yay?

I got really behind on my word count last week, because I was doing things and being social (unheard of, right?). At any rate, I started to catch up this week. See, to stay on track, I have to write about 320 words per day. Monday and Tuesday, I wrote about 540 each day. Wednesday I went to bed early and wrote nothing. So now I'm falling behind again.

I'm not super certain what's happening in the plot right now. Things got a little romantic, but I put a stop to that, knocked some stuff over, and exploded a lightbulb in someone's face. Because that's what I do. I have a couple of ideas for the future. A future piece of romantic subplot involves mac and cheese. That'll be fun. Also, I have introduced The Typewriter (the aforementioned stuff I knocked over) to go with The Desk. I'm not sure if it still just misspelled "flagrant." I like how random that is, but how often is someone going to type "flagrant"? Not very often. Unless you're me. I use it twice in one paragraph, apparently.

Does anyone else have an ideas about what the typewriter might do? I'm open to suggestions at this point.

I don't have much else to report on right now. I am getting a little more okay with this romantic subplot. There seems to be a running gag starting where it looks like they're about to get it on, and then they just… don't. I have every intention of continuing this.

See you all Tuesday.

Revenge of the Writing Desk

The quest to figure out the story about things that do stuff continues. Of course I've decided to throw myself into this totally new idea a week before Camp NaNo starts. We wouldn’t want time to plan or anything.

I have determined that the desk that makes things disappear should be central to this tale. All the other items should have come from that desk. Now, in an effort to reclaim its lost property, it slowly pulls in everything else. So the other items should be things you’d find in a desk. An antique fountain pen that only writes limericks (filthy ones!). A journal that snickers when you write in it. A typewriter that always misspells "flagrant." Whatever. Desk stuff.

So, where did this stuff come from? I had this idea the other day about hypnic jerks. That's when you're on the verge of sleep and you feel like you're slipping or falling and you do that twitch thing. But what if that was you almost slipping into another reality but catching yourself? I'm not sure if that's going to play a part in this story or if I’ll save it for later. Either way, I think the stuff must have come from some other reality. You just don't get stationery with attitude otherwise.

Then there's the question of characters. I want some kind of a roguish character that you don't know whose side they're on. I'm half considering having a female main character. I don't really have a reason not to other than "girls are lame." I always have a hard time writing female characters. You’d think it would be easier. Maybe I'll try it anyway. For the challenge or whatever.

And while we're issuing challenges, maybe I'll try for a *shudder* romantic subplot. As much as I hate the idea, I'm also kind of looking forward to it. What is happening to me?!

Well, shit, let's open this up to the public. Does anyone have a challenge for me for this story? I can't guarantee I'll do everything, but I can at least try. Leave a comment!

A Tale of Infinite Weirdness

On Tuesday, I proposed a story involving one or more mysterious items. The more I think about it, the more into the idea I get. It's this bizarre little pocket of sci-fi and fantasy, and it's something I need to explore.

Ten years ago, there was a miniseries on the Sci-Fi Channel (so much of my life revolves around these, apparently) called The Lost Room. In it, well, there's all the Objects from the titular room, and they do stuff. Like boil eggs, or rotate things, or send whoever touches it to a stretch of highway outside Gallup, New Mexico. Some of them do different things when combined with other objects. That's the kind of weird-ass story I want to write.

This is probably a good example of how the writing process can be for me. It's not always that I have a vague plot that needs to be filled out. Sometimes it can be as vague as "there's some things that do stuff." From here, I have to figure out what it going to happen with these things, and who they are going to happen to.

Do people want these items? Does someone not want them? What will people do obtain or get rid the things? What's the best and worst thing that could happen because of these things?

What sort of characters could be involved? Taking aside our protagonist for a moment, do they have a thing? Do they want a thing? Why? What about our antagonist?

These are the sort of questions I have to answer. Also, what sort of a world is this? I'm leaning towards an urban fantasy sort of deal, where fantastical elements are thrown into our modern world. Basically, our world, with some weird shit thrown in. A lot of the time, the weirdness exists under the surface, known only to a few.

The thing that I know for sure is that these weird items that may or may not do stuff are not common, and not known to the general public. The protagonist probably just stumbled upon one, maybe in their attic, maybe at a flea market, wherever. There may be some person or organization who wants the items. But what will they do to get them?

In times like this, when I need both a plot and characters, there's no clear answer for which to create first. It's possible that one will lead to the other. Maybe a plot will imply a certain sort of character. Maybe a character has a particular story that they want to play out. Right now it feels like the whole thing is right on the tip of my tongue, like it already exists in my head, I just have to pull it out.

Join me Tuesday, when I may have a clue as to what this story is about.

Look At This Stuff, Isn't It Neat?

After careful consideration, I have determined that I will not be rewriting The Midnight Circus for July's Camp NaNo, or possibly ever. The general consensus on that was "write an entirely different story." So I will. I'm not going to waste my time trying to fix a story that no one would ever want to read. So now I have to figure out what to write in its place.

I have a partial story about a guy who can see the future that I could finish. I could try to rewrite any number of my old novels. There's one currently on draft three that I could try to figure out.

On my quest through all my story ideas today, I came upon my list of McGuffins. A McGuffin is a thing, that you probably want. Maybe it’s a thing that does something. That's real clear, right? It's the One Ring. It’s Dorothy's ruby slippers. It's the Holy Grail, and that suitcase from Pulp Fiction. It's either the cause of, or the solution to, all your problems. Maybe both.

Anyway, I have some great McGuffins on the list I have assembled from the NaNo forums. I'd like to share some with you. Maybe one of them will play a vital role in my next story.

• A desk that seems to swallow anything (or anyone) who spends too much time around it.
• A map that shows the location of something that you want the least.
• A tiny, metal puzzle box that is impossible to solve.
• A large, old book that doesn't open, and occasionally drips salt water from between its pages.
• A weather vane in the shape of a rooster that comes to life on the 14th of every month.
• A broken music box, which plays distorted and ethereal notes to a nursery rhyme tune.

Can you imagine a story around one of these things? Or a story involving all of them? Maybe it's time for me to write a delightfully weird fantasy/supernatural type story. Maybe that's what I should do for July.

What do you think? Any of my McGuffins stand out to you? Or might you suggest some of your own? Let's get collaborative in here.

I think we might be on the right track with this. These particular items and their odd style evoke a feeling I'm not sure I can explain. It's like… sliding sideways into a sunny room. It’s summer, twenty years ago, maybe. There's no way in hell anyone's going to understand that. I've got a good feeling about it, is what I'm trying to say.

So please, comment and tell me what you think. I don’t care if it's on here, or on Facebook. I'd just really like to hear your thoughts. All of you.

See you Friday.