It’s a bachelor weekend around here. Old What’s Her Face decided to brave the $5 gasoline and visit some family in Nevada. I had big plans for moving at least one story ahead.
I spent Friday night with a huge bottle of Old Rasputin Imperial Stout, Obi Wan Kenobi, and Crime Story. No sense getting greedy about writing, and I deserved an evening of whatever the hell I want.
I woke up early and intended to make the pixels fly. No real target or agenda. There’s a scene that I’ve been dreading in Mari’s story and rather than put it off I faced it head on.
There are some scenes I don’t feel like I write particularly well, but I’ve learned a pseudo-trick. I kind of write them from the side. I don’t have to write erotica to include characters who are intimate. I just pick it up from the other end. Works for me. (I need to dwell on this and I might get a Story Empire post out of it.)
This scene involves a personal failure on Mari’s part and she paid the price. Rather than feel every broken rib, or penetrative act, I skipped ahead to her being roused by a rescuer. Fire ants found their way into the story.
The old woman who rescued her is going to become a kind of mentor. This lady was actually in the war Mari sees the remnants of. There are some new bushcraft and frontier skills headed Mari’s way, but I never made it that far.
This is also the character that’s going to bring that little bit of Voodoo to the tale that makes it one of my stories. I’ve done my research and this is a gift from an entity known as Papa Legba.
I never did a formal count, but it feels like 3000 – 3500 words. Sounds awesome, but I had about seven hours at my disposal. I got up early. It’s also likely to be my weekly word count as well as my day. I’ll see how far I get tomorrow. Right now it’s at 15,160.
Mari’s story involves a lot of moving around, and I’m trying to get into the scenery. This includes remnants from the war, like the night she spent beside the burned up hull of a Blackhawk helicopter.
I’m also touching upon some of the exotic wildlife that has made its way into the Gulf Coast area. Nothing preachy, but there are iguanas and pythons present already. A few Quaker parakeets also exist. I’ll probably step it up from there, but so far it’s been realistic. Don’t know if I’ll include a bit about global warming, but it feels like something that could work here.
Poor Mari is really going through the crucible in this one. She’s tough and well prepared, but not as well as she thought. Perhaps this mentor character can provide a bit more that she’s lacking.
This mentor will provide some things, but not everything. I have another stop far down the line that will deliver a bit more, but it’s Mari who’s going to have to make the ultimate evolution before the big showdown.
I’m probably going to go back to some television for the rest of the day. Stormy and hot here in Idaho. It’s a weird combo, but the weather all year has been weird.
Have to say, this sounds DAMN interesting! I’m not much of a sci-fi, apocalyptic type reader, but this has made me curious. And voodoo attracts/repels me, so that’s interesting, too. Sounds like a great start.
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I think it’s going to turn out pretty good. I need to remind myself not to rush it and include the setting more. I want it to be novel length.
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Really intriguing description. I like that you’re touching on the exotic animals.
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I’m going to include some wild farm stock, a recovery of an endangered species, and some more exotics. Only peripherally, but it’s a healing world as far as the environment. Society, maybe not so much.
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That’s really cool. Sounds like a nice world building aspect.
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Sounds pretty good to me.
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Thanks. I’d like to have made more progress, but I also get the idea there could be a few rewrites until I get it right.
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I’m loving the progress, Craig… sounds very different too!
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It will be different than my usual fare, but still one of my projects.
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I envy your imagination, Craig…
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It may be all I have, but it’s a strong point.
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a very strong point, Craig. Just think, some people try to manage without one…
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It’s a muscle. It improves with exercise.
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Good to know!
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Four or five years ago I had a female character confront a drunk. I skipped the details opting for ‘a move that put her on the bathroom floor with a broken jaw and two missing teeth.’ There’s an an indie parasite out there who said ‘show, don’t tell.’ I’m not about to assault a woman in detail. The result of the incident is the turning point, not the details.
Just an aside, try to avoid the James Lee Burke in depth descriptions of Louisiana flora and fauna need a botany textbook to get through it stuff.
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I don’t mind short depictions for these things. I brought a concussion along PDQ and she can figure it out when she wakes up.
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I really like where this story is going, Craig. I like dystopian settings, and the details that you’re bringing into it sound rich. That’s not a bad word count at all! I write about 250 words an hour, so 3500 words… well… not happenin’ in 7 hours. Happy Writing.
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I always struggle with transitions and there are a lot of them here. Might pick up the pace once a few things settle.
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Sounds reeeaaallly interesting! How are you liking Obo-Wan? I love it – a good taste after the Boba Fet series.
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Much better than Boba. It’s hard to get full emotion regarding characters we already know will survive. They might have done better using someone other than Leah. Still enjoying it, though.
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Sounds intriguing, Craig. I’m looking forward to reading more.
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Fingers crossed I can make it come across well.
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3,000 to 5,000 words is fabulous in my opinion, Craig! Congrats!
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Wound up being decent, but I had more hours than the words indicate.
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Sounds like a nice balance of work and relaxation time.
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Thank you.
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Nice word count! I’m really enjoying Obi-Wan, and that young Leia is something.
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HI Craig, that is a great word count and your tip is a good one. I’m not keen on writing sexy stuff as it doesn’t really interest me in a written form. I never read it either.
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I may work up a post about it for the other site.
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