It's an ugly truth: I'm a novelist

[pjthompson]

Nothing to be done about it, I'm afraid.

I was looking through my folder of half-finished projects and ideas yesterday after finishing the rewrite of my story, "Loose Dogs." I felt a strong pull towards "The Heart of the Western Tide," a story that's been patiently waiting for me to get around to it. I conceived of it as a novella, but when I worked on it yesterday it started to get novelistic pretensions. I told it not to put on airs, not to get ahead of itself, but it stuck its tongue out at me and proceeded on its merry way. I still think it's a novella, but I'm going to let it have its head and see where we end up. That's can be dangerous, but often you get to see unexpected scenery.

This story has some powerful mojo. It was a dream, a powerful dream, and when I woke up from it I hurried right to the computer and wrote an opening and many pages of notes--about 1700 words in one sitting. I played with it for several days but I was deep in the heart of Night Warrior at the time and didn't want to stop long enough to work on it.

Yesterday, I'm glad to say, when I read through it I was able to recapture some of that remarkable feel and had a good time working on it.

I've managed to bore myself with Charged with Folly doing all that research reading. Probably a good sign that I've done enough reading for now, huh? I put down the books and I'll let that idea simmer. It'll come back into focus. And then maybe I won't have any more excuses not to write it.

I conceived a startling plan yesterday, inspired by the prolific jasperh: working on more than one novel at a time. I've always had several novels at various stages of development at any given time, but usually once one of them reaches a tipping point and decides to push for the finish, I become so obsessed I concentrate on nothing else. I suspect that will still be the case, but there's no harm in trying something else in the meantime, is there? It might allow me to advance some of those other projects quite a bit before I become transfixed by one and turn all my focus on it.

Comments

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

I love working on several novels at once--if one flags a bit, back it goes until the subconscious is ready for it, and out comes another one!

[pjthompson]

That's usually how it works for me, too, and it's fun. But at some point one of them takes over and then I get rather obsessed with it. I'm going to see if I can do it a little differently this time. Maybe I won't get so worn out.

[kimberlychapman.livejournal.com]

Yeah, me too...and I find the obsession generally dictates which is the better novel. Somehow being obsessed means I work better.

[pjthompson]

Yeah, same here! So I have absolutely no faith that I'll be able to sustain two novels at once all the way through to the end because that obsession is a kind of necessary step. But I'll keep it going as long as I can.

And that obsession--or the lack of it, rather--is why some of these perfectly lovely ideas never get written.

[kimberlychapman.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I often have great ideas but if the characters don't come alive in my head enough that I'm thinking about them frequently, the book never seems to get written. Pre-baby, I'd generally find something else to do, like play a computer game.

If I tried to work on two at once and was obsessed with one, the obsession one would dominate and infiltrate the other. For instance, I'm so thoroughly obsessed with Nick and his life and that series right now that if I tried to write something different, aspects of his personality would come through in the other book, storylines would get polluted, etc.

I do sometimes wonder if this is why some prolific authors seem to write the same story over and over just with the names and places changed.

[pjthompson]

I do sometimes wonder if this is why some prolific authors seem to write the same story over and over just with the names and places changed.

You may be onto something there. I'd think that being able to turn out books that fast doesn't leave time for obsession. *sigh*

[jasperh.livejournal.com]

I really didn't do it on purpose. I was quite happy working on one but then the other two just wouldn't shut up and wait their turn.

It seems to work out that the stronger voices gets their chapter and then they quieten down and someone else pipes up for their turn. I can't claim writer' block, though because it doesn't happen with this crowd.

Go for it. The experience is quite something else as well as being fun.

[pjthompson]

I figure I've always got novels in various stages lyin' about the place so I might as well give it a try.

[kmkibble75.livejournal.com]

I've often thought of working on more than one novel at a time, but then I wind up getting depressed about how little progress I'm making on two or three, rather than just one. ;-)

[pjthompson]

But who knows? Maybe they'd feed each other creatively like...like...you know, things that feed each other creatively...

[java-fiend.livejournal.com]

Nothing wrong with being a novelist! If that's the way your pieces want to go, just roll on with it.

[pjthompson]

Oh yeah. I've long since stopped trying to fight it.

[java-fiend.livejournal.com]

Good for you. :-)