1381 Words

Though it feels like it should be more. But that's an entire scene there and one I really like. Another Paul and Stephen scene. This time Paul comes both real close to conquering his anger and loosing total control. I was hoping the scene would go longer than it did, though. It seems a number of my scenes are shorter than I was aiming for. As far as page-count goes, I'm still ahead of the game, though. Guess I'll just have to finish the book and see where it stands. Only 386 more pages to hit my estimated 500 for this book. I imagine rewrites will screw with my numbers a good deal anyhow. And if it turns out it's only a 100,000 word novel instead of the planned 125k, so be it. That's still a good length.

Reading News: There hasn't been much of this because I haven't had much time to read while working on the book and dealing with Real Life. I did want to gush a minute over S.L. Viehl's Endurance. Much darker and edgier than the previous books in this series, it's almost stressful to read this one (but in a good way). I found myself cringing in parts as poor Cherijo was put through hell that's too harsh to describe here. I liked this one a lot. What's great about S.L. Viehl's StarDoc series is that each book takes Cherijo to a whole new place, and Viehl writes on a whole new level. It's rare to find an author this reliable. Crime writer Robert Crais was one of these, each of his books getting better and better, until his latest, Hostage; not terrible, but nothing compared to his previous seven or eight novels. Stephen King's had a number of let-downs (though someone who writes as much as he does is bound to produce a few stinkers). I'm told Nora Roberts is a pretty reliable writer as well. Like pizza and sex, even when the books aren't great, they're still pretty darn good. (Sorry, Mom.)

What I'm getting at is go grab an S.L. Viehl novel already. I know. I've raved about her before. Maybe now you're finally getting the hint. She's good. She's damn good.

No Writing Today

Went to the doctor instead. My eye infection grew far too unbearable. I've been loosing sleep and getting headaches. It's no wonder I've hated every word I've typed since the beginning of the week. But I finally caved in, paid my $75 to see a doctor and get a prescription; paid $72.99 for a tiny bottle of prescription eye drops--you never realize how expensive this shit is until you don't have insurance. But it's done, and my eye will soon be better. It already feels a bit better since putting the first couple drops in. The plan is to make up my writing time tomorrow when I usually take Saturdays off. But only after I've slept in...of course.

Crash and Burn

One of those days. Only 429 words and then I hit a wall. All this is because I messed with my outline and threw some things out of whack that I didn't see when I made the change. Not that I'm regretting the change. I think it was vital, but now I'm suffering the consequences. I have an idea how to continue, but after sitting at my desk staring into space for the last forty minutes, I'm just not up to trying to execute it today. Not to mention I didn't get much sleep last night because of an eye infection I've had for a week now that won't go away by itself and I can't afford to go to the doctor to get anything for because of that pesky lack of insurance.

Enough whining for you?

'Nuf said.

1465 Words

And I've also passed the 100 page mark. I did have to drop back some a fix a glaring mistake, the kind I just can't let go, even in first draft because if I don't figure it out now, I'll remain confused for the rest of the book. Turned out I was able to fix it without too much disruption (almost had to cut over 1000 words, but saved them). All that and I still came close to 1500 words. How? I added an hour of writing time to my day. I'm experimenting with my time management, and if all goes as planned I'll have a new schedule with more writing time. With the new schedule I just might finish the first draft before Christmas, as I'd originally wanted.

1420 Words

And the bloodshed's about to begin. Sorry. Couldn't resist a little drama. Anyway, I put in a little extra work today, and I'm glad for it. Things are moving again, and while I'm still disgusted by the quality of my writing, I keep reminding myself that I've got a rewrite coming which will fix it all. It has in the past, it will this time. Not to mention that my writing is often not as bad as I think it is. Sometimes it is, but often it is not.

Finally in Liam's viewpoint and just inches away from page 100. I kind of like that structurally. Page 100 will be the first "on-stage" murder and I've got some cool ideas about how it's going to go. Not according to Liam's plan of course. Just a little variable to crank up the tension (I hope).

Reconstructive Surgery

No actual wordage today because I decided I had to rework my outline some. Cut a scene, moved a major scene, and had to work out some important information before I could go on with the story. There's still some things I need to know before I tackle the next scene now--which is a big and very important one I didn't think I'd be writing so soon. Hopefully I'll think up what I need before my writing time tomorrow. So, no I'm not too happy with my progress today, but keep your fingers crossed that I made the right decision in my revised plans.

1365 Words and Some Concerns

I'm into the writing of this and I'm starting to worry that there isn't enough death or thrills in this thriller. But it's hard to say. I mean, I started this project with the intention of having more depth to it than the standard thriller. I won't kid myself into thinking I'm writing a "literary thriller," but I did want a slower build, deeper characters, stronger relationships, etc. All that good stuff. But I'm nearly 100 pages into this puppy, and no one has been killed "on stage." Don't get me wrong, there is conflict in the story. The characters are struggling, slowly coming alive. But I'm worried that the "thrill" element is too lacking. I know it picks up later, but is it soon enough? It all looked so simple in the outline. But things change and look a lot different when you start composing the actual prose (i.e. today, I wrote a scene in a completely different viewpoint than I'd had planned). I think I'm just going to have to trust this though. Some of the best thrillers I've read had slow, intricate builds. Not slow as in boring, but I liken it to the climb on the first hill to a roller coaster. The longer it takes to get to the top the more you worry, the more time you have to think maybe this wasn't such a great idea, and (the best part) the higher the drop will be once you get over that hill.

I hope that's the case with this book. If not, I'm looking at a seriously ugly rewrite I don't even need to think about right now.