10 Day Hiatus

Currently Listening To: Eye Of The Storm, By Bullet For My Valentine

Unfortunately, I have not spent much time planning for NaNoWriMo...

but I did get some advice from Stephen King (via reading a book of course!). He states that if you are a science fiction fan, stick to writing science fiction! If you like mysteries...then write mysteries! He says it's not good to write a particular genre just for money...your works just won't be good!

I'm going to look over my character designs. I had some thought-provoking debates with some friends last week and I feel that it can help me shape my character the way I want to. I mean...they should be human in nature right?

Planning Round 1 - Cutting up the pie.

Currently Listening To: Conflict, by Disturbed.

Well shucks, I am in quite a conflict.

It's Labor Day weekend! Time to spend with friends and family! Time to enjoy the good weather!

I am not going to get another free weekend like this to plan out NaNoWriMo 2010 though...

Where do I stand with the whole planning out part you ask?

Let's split it into three parts.

• Characters - This will be a character-driven story. As I learned in my fiction writing workshop by reading works by Flannery O' Connor, the main characters need personality! It's what makes them interesting! We're humans right? Well we'll connect with humans! So I have to spend some time developing the protagonists, antagonists, etc. In the end, I should be able to introduce the main guys and gals to you all.
  
• Plot - Now come on, I need a believable plot! O'Connor made an interesting point in one of her essays. When you are writing fiction or fantasy, you have to make it somewhat believable. Sure the story can take place on the Planet of the Squids where the rouge group of Jellyfish take over various kingdoms...but something has to make sense in the story! So I will be spending some time working through quick outlines of how I want the plot to advance. Rise, Climax, Fall, etc.
  
• Setting - This is an area I have neglected over the past few years when I have done NaNoWriMo. In the end, I really can't describe the world my characters are living in to a friend. I am in control of their [the characters'] Universe,  I need to make them a remarking setting that anyone can visualize as they read. For this one...well I'll just say I will be quite observant.

I won't really assign percentages this time, but I will sum up what has been happening.

• Characters - I am still in the process of creating the protagonist. I have a basic appearance down and some back story about him/her. I have neglated the other characters, but I have some ideas.
  
• Plot - I have a very basic outline down. The story only seems only somewhat believable. I am shooting for a realistic fiction plot this time around.
  
• Setting - If the weather is good next week, I can begin working on this section.

Remember,  I am making a wiki as the primary tool for planning this tool. I do have to give credit to the Scott Pilgrim vs The World  website for providing a nifty little tool that can make custom avatars.

(Give the movie a try).

Planning Round 1 (and the very first post!)

Currently Listening To: Gimme Shelter, by The Rolling Stones

Evening guys and gals!

I meant to start posting on this blog about a week ago. However, classes have begun, leaving me with little time to do some pre-NaNoWriMo work.

That said, how I am planning out my novel for this year?

Previous attempts have included:

• Winging it. (2007 - barely 10k)
• Writing out ideas in a journal. (2008 - barely 50k but the story was not worth editing)
• Drawing flowcharts, character designs, and a simple outline (2009 - finished the novel at 94k. It could have been better).

So, what will I do this year?

Create a wiki for the novel.

You read that correctly.

Create a wiki for the novel.

After consulting with a good friend, I decided this might be the best way to go about planning a story (for me that is). Articles dedicated to each of the main characters. Articles about the setting. Articles about...anything!

Where is this wiki?

Good luck finding it! For the time being, I am keeping the wiki hidden. However, for the very curious, I will post a brief overview of the novel in the days to come.