Okay, get the hammer.
Friday, May 4th, 2018 05:09 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lizvogelAs I threatened mentioned a while ago, I went back and checked if I'd written anything useful about my process while finishing the Haley novel, because I'm feeling a similar sort of stuck on FFG.
I don't generally record much detail of that sort (which is something I should probably work on, so I don't have to keep re-inventing the clue stick). But I did find three posts that seemed to have something to tell me.
Those posts are probably worth re-reading in their entirety, though my habit of vagueing things up to avoid spoilers makes them a bit opaque even for me in places. However, for quick reference, here's the distilled highlights:
Write a troublesome scene from another character's point of view. I did this for Highway of Mirrors, and I did the thought-experiment equivalent for Haley. And it worked both times. So what is the 2C thinking right now? I thought I didn't have a feel for her PoV -- she's pretty much a cipher to the MC and has been all along -- but then I thought about her being annoyed with the MC. That's definitely my entry point. ;-)
Don't let the desire for a clear plan get in the way of getting something written. Yes, sailing ahead without thinking about where I'm going has gotten me in trouble more than once on this book. And I am at the point, approaching the end, where I probably need to keep the target in mind. But winging it and writing whatever sounds good at the time is still the core of my process, and if trying to brainstorm the next plot point or scene or whatever is brick-walling me, maybe I just need to put fingers on keyboard and give my back-brain a chance to give me something I can use.
Play to my strengths. What am I good at? Setting and character, especially angsty character-abuse. What am I currently beating my head against? A plot problem. Uh, clue-stick, anyone? And didn't I just sort out a stuck bit by thinking about not what they find out but where they find the person who knows it?
So I should probably be waxing eloquent about the spaceport (which I glossed on the way in, but that made sense for the MC at the time). I think I've fired most of my ammo as far as character angst goes, though I shouldn't rule it out if another opportunity arises. Setting doesn't just warm up my fingers, it also primes the pump for the word-generator in my brain. And if they're effin' bored with carved rock and duraplas, well, that can be useful, too.
I don't generally record much detail of that sort (which is something I should probably work on, so I don't have to keep re-inventing the clue stick). But I did find three posts that seemed to have something to tell me.
Those posts are probably worth re-reading in their entirety, though my habit of vagueing things up to avoid spoilers makes them a bit opaque even for me in places. However, for quick reference, here's the distilled highlights:
Write a troublesome scene from another character's point of view. I did this for Highway of Mirrors, and I did the thought-experiment equivalent for Haley. And it worked both times. So what is the 2C thinking right now? I thought I didn't have a feel for her PoV -- she's pretty much a cipher to the MC and has been all along -- but then I thought about her being annoyed with the MC. That's definitely my entry point. ;-)
Don't let the desire for a clear plan get in the way of getting something written. Yes, sailing ahead without thinking about where I'm going has gotten me in trouble more than once on this book. And I am at the point, approaching the end, where I probably need to keep the target in mind. But winging it and writing whatever sounds good at the time is still the core of my process, and if trying to brainstorm the next plot point or scene or whatever is brick-walling me, maybe I just need to put fingers on keyboard and give my back-brain a chance to give me something I can use.
Play to my strengths. What am I good at? Setting and character, especially angsty character-abuse. What am I currently beating my head against? A plot problem. Uh, clue-stick, anyone? And didn't I just sort out a stuck bit by thinking about not what they find out but where they find the person who knows it?
So I should probably be waxing eloquent about the spaceport (which I glossed on the way in, but that made sense for the MC at the time). I think I've fired most of my ammo as far as character angst goes, though I shouldn't rule it out if another opportunity arises. Setting doesn't just warm up my fingers, it also primes the pump for the word-generator in my brain. And if they're effin' bored with carved rock and duraplas, well, that can be useful, too.
