Hi Folks,
It is early Sunday morning as I write this. Far too early. I
was up late watching old NCIS episodes with family last night. This morning the
dogs got me up before 6:20 a.m. Why? It is bright and sunny outside, that’s
why. After a week of dismal winter weather the prospect of a walk in the sun
must have gotten to them. Sigh, whine, snivel. I am definitely going to have a
nap this afternoon.
On to more fun stuff. Has anyone got a picture of an old
haunted mansion I can use for a book cover? My next romance is almost done
(first draft) and the action all revolves around a haunted house. Here’s a
sample (unedited) from the book:
He arrived in town mid-afternoon and stopped in at the café
for a meal and directions. The tiny waitress with the bright smile gave his a
strange look as she directed him to the old run down mansion on the hill overlooking
the town.
As Jace pulled up and parked the car he thought he saw
someone at the window. “Great,” he muttered, climbing out of the old car, “right
off the bat I’ve got burglars or ghosts.” Catching sight of the rose bushes blocking
the door he pulled out the machete.
Picturing himself as a knight using a sword to slash through
the thorns surrounding a castle, he waded into the rosebushes. “All right now,”
he breathed as he inserted the key into the lock and wrestled the front door
open. A feeling of great foreboding came over him, but he shook it off. “Too
late for that crap now. Let’s go see who’s in here, damsel or dragon.”
Now for ROW80
In spite of a week of winter madness (storms, ferry boat
issues, frozen cars, power outages, etc.) I did manage to get some writing
done. The current WIP (see excerpt above) now stands at 60,000 words plus. I
expect to finish it this week; at least that is the goal.
I confess, my mind has already moved on to the next book in
the series. I have a bad habit of getting ahead of myself. I don’t write
several scenes and then try to stitch them together into a book; I write a
story from beginning to end, the way you read it. The problem is I can’t type
as fast as I think. Hehehe
Anyway, that’s it for me, how about you? Do you tell your
stories from beginning to end or are you one of those magicians who can write
it in pieces then make sense of it later?
Until next week,
Bright Blessings,
Pru
Posts
I'm a pantser, so I kind of bounce around as the story begins to form in my head. It's not out of order in the sense that I write a scene from the beginning and then write a scene that will probably be in the middle. It's more like I start writing and then I move back in the scene and add some more and then I move down and add some more and continue writing. Then I realize I need to add something two scenes back, so I hop back and do that.
ReplyDeleteI do write from beginning to end, but often my first vision of the book is not the opening scene. I don't usually fully write that scene until I've written the ones before it. It all works better for me if I've written their journey to that point. Also, I may have typed "The End" a week ago, but during the read through this week, I added 2k words. The next read through will probably produce more words, but not as much.
ReplyDeleteIntriguing excerpt! Love that last line. :) Don't forget to take your nap this afternoon and I hope you find your cover pic. Have a great week!
Thanks, S.J. It sounds like your method and mine are quite similar. Thanks so much for stopping by. On my way for that nap now. :)
DeleteHey Linda, I too consider myself a pantster, but instead of writing that exciting scene, I tend tto make a note so I don't lose the idea. I greatly admire folks who can do that and get a great story. Rock on, fellow pantster.
ReplyDeleteI wish I had a cool picture to send, but alas I do not. Not that I haven't seen my share or cool creepy places, I've just never been able to capture them on film.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with sales and the next one.
Patricia Rickrode
w/a Jansen Schmidt
I know. When I think of all the creepy old houses I've seen and not one danged picture. ah well, have camera, will travel. tee hee
DeleteWe have lots of snow as well -- four more inches yesterday -- but still, great progress on that wip, Prudence. I really like how you describe how you think, write, and type from beginning to end. My problem is that I can type really fast, so unless I have a very clear idea of what's next, I bop around (pantser, pantser) to work on whatever scenes catch my interest. And yes, sometimes that includes scenes for the "next one"! Sorry no pics for that knight slashing away at the roses. But you will persevere!
ReplyDelete