Of Page Fright and the Kindness of Friends :)

Posted on 02/06/2011 by Ruth Fanshaw

Greetings and felicitations! :) This time, I’ve missed 2 Round of Words updates in row. Heigh ho. At least I’m consistent! :D

Anyway, I’m back now, my lovelies. :)

First, I must report the attack of Page Fright which smote me last weekend. It’s the first time that’s happened since starting to draft this novel.

After my elation at getting to Plot Point 1, I became… shall we say, a little bogged down? I’d gone over Chapter 8 several times, because I knew it was so important; but I lost my forward momentum. It took me about 3 days to find the courage to embark on Chapter 9.

Thanks to the encouragement of my friends, though, I did eventually get going again. :) I’ve now finished Chapter 9, and my word count is very nearly at 1/3 of my estimate for “I Know an Ash Standing”, so that’s all good news. :)

Chapter 10 will see the first of the scenes I added during last week’s plot-strengthening extravaganza. Should be fun. :) Hoping to finish that one by the end of the week. :)

Incidentally, I did do more work on my plot during my bout of Page Fright. I’m still not sure I’m quite done with that. The plot-strengthening, I mean, not the Fright! :D

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In other news, the lovely Michele Strangis Stefanides has kindly nominated me for the Versatile Blogger Award, so I’ll need to do a proper post for that very soon. Haven’t so far had the time and energy at the same moment, but it’s definitely on my ‘To Do’ list! :D

I’m genuinely touched by the things Michele said about me, and I want to acknowledge that properly, and live up to her faith in me! :D

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And you, dear reader? What do you do when Page Fright strikes? Any helpful tips? :D

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New Directions

Posted on 22/05/2011 by Ruth Fanshaw

Well, my lovelies, I’ve managed to miss another Round of Words update. Sorry.

It’s been an interesting week, in lots of ways that I won’t go into here. Some good, others not so good. But on Wednesday and Thursday, I was just too tired to face posting.

Anyway, the good news is: I’ve finished Chapter 7. Which puts us at around a quarter of the projected word count, so it’s on to Chapter 8, and HELLOOO Plot Point 1! :)

For the uninitiated, Plot Point 1 is one of the 3 big turning points of a novel. You get things rolling from the start with a nice, juicy hook; you let the reader get to know your characters a bit and show what they have at stake; and then it’s like – BAM! This is where the story really starts! :)  Something happens that changes everything and launches the plot in a whole new direction.

So far, so good. But on Friday night, I decided that the middle part of my plot just wasn’t strong enough. The beginning, I’m very happy with. And I think the ending is pretty solid. But the middle needed work.

So I spent yesterday strengthening it. It now has a few more beasties :D , more conflict and tension, and I think is more balanced than before. It also has 30 chapters, instead of the originally projected 25, but should still come out at around the 75k words mark.

I think it’s a lot better now; but I’ll be open to changing things again if need be. It’s all about what’s best for the story.

Also this week, I’ve rejigged a scene in Chapter 2 that I knew for a fact wasn’t right before. It’s to do with that problem character that I mentioned in the last post; it’s the first scene he appeared in. But now that I’ve got him pegged and know his “voice”, I think we’re good to go with that as well. :)

And I’ve decided to allow myself a couple more weeks to finish the draft than before, because with my health as it is right now, I really can’t afford to push myself. So as of now, my official goal is to finish the draft by the end of July.

In ROW80 terms, this means that I want to have reached Chapter 22 by the end of this “round”, which should bring me to the “Black Moment”, right before everything starts to turn around again.

I’ll still be aiming to get half a chapter a day written, give or take. But with the word count split into more chapters, it’ll be that bit less pressured. :)

How about you, gentle reader? Have you ever found that your plot sags in the middle? And what did you do about it? :)

 

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Of Hooded Men, Gnomes and Elephants :)

Posted on 15/05/2011 by Ruth Fanshaw

This post will be the SECOND Round of Words in 80 Days update in a row that I’ve got in ON TIME! Yay me! :D

First, then, dear readers – I’ve finished writing Chapter 5 of “I Know an Ash Standing”. The manuscript is now 14,000 words long, which means that in terms of word count I’m 1,000 words behind where I wanted to be at this point. However, in terms of chapters, I’m still on target. Let’s focus on that bit… :D

 

In Chapter 5, a mysterious hooded man is stalking our heroine, and one of our friends winds up unconscious… And we are now within sighting distance of Plot Point One. :)

Chapter 4 took much longer to write than I’d anticipated. There’s this one character who’s been giving me trouble. You know how it is.

I’ve really struggled to get his “voice” right, because he has to be a character with a lot of weaknesses, but there needs to be something likeable about him too. But I think I’ve got him pegged now. :)

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In other news, I’ll now be going to see David Tennant in “Much Ado About Nothing” in September rather than June, which gives me more time to get my strength up. I’ll actually be going on the last night, and I have front row tickets. I’ll be able to see right up his nose! :D

In the matter of my health, I’m encouraged that I was able to sit out of bed for the entirety of the Eurovision Wrong Contest last night, so far without too many physical repercussions. What effect it has had on my delicate psyche remains to be seen… :D

On the subject of Eurovision: 1) I wish that the Moldovian Gnomes had won. 2) Our entry sucked. 3) Danny Wallace replied to my Tweet during the proceedings! :) 4) I was disappointed that Jayne Ferst’s prediction of elephants appearing in the show did not come to pass. Although all her other predictions did! :D

And so, gentle reader, I wish you a pleasant and fulfilling week. May it be productive, satisfying and liberally sprinkled with elephants. :)

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The Ravensong

Posted on 11/05/2011 by Ruth Fanshaw

Well, at the weekend I surpassed myself and missed the ROW80 update altogether. :P

However, I have a very good excuse, viz: a migraine in the offing – I had to lay off the computer on Sunday and didn’t get back online until Tuesday, which seemed absurdly late to start posting, even for me.

But please note that this one is ON TIME! :D

And so, dear readers, it is my pleasure to inform you that I’m now in the process of writing Chapter 4 of “I Know an Ash Standing”.

As you’ll see from the new Progress Meter to the upper right of the page – and by the way, check me out! :D – the manuscript is now almost 10,000 words long. :)

I’ve been able to stick to my half chapter (around 1,500 words) a day without too much strain. My wishful-thinking goal of finishing in 6 weeks altogether was based on memories of a time when I was less ill, and could turn out 3,ooo words a day.

But with things being as they are, I’m really quite pleased with my progress. 10% a week is quite a satisfying rate to work at. :)

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In other news, I’ve been looking into the practicalities of hiring a copy-editor, when I finally have a manuscript that’s fit to be seen. In the UK, there’s a professional body called the Society for Editors and Proofreaders. Their website is very useful, as it contains a list of suggested minimum freelance rates, as well as an indication of how many hours it should take to perform their services. Perhaps most important of all, it has a directory of their members, with contact information. I hope the above link will prove useful to others as well as myself. :)

I’ve also amused myself over the weekend by sketching out my hypothetical career for the next few years. :D There are several story ideas flitting around my fevered brain and crying to be let out, as I believe I’ve mentioned before.

I’m planning to do 2 releases a year, one in the spring and one in the autumn. I’m thinking the spring one will be good for people who like to take a book on holiday, and the autumn one will catch the Christmas market. I’ve a hazy idea that real publishers do something like this… :D

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And finally, dear readers, I’ve remembered what I was going to call my Norse myth series! :D It shall be called the Ravensong. *Pauses for you to be impressed, then realises that she kinda gave it away with the title of the post…* :D

It’s looking at present as though the series will be about 5 books long. My working title for the second book is “Ivaldi’s Elder Children”. :)

And so, my beloved readers, despite my health (or lack thereof) I feel that I’ve had a nice, productive week, all told. How was yours? :)

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A Promising Beginning :)

Posted on 05/05/2011 by Ruth Fanshaw

Chapter OneAnother belated ROW80 update – sorry folks! The reason this time was simply that I forgot it was Wednesday, until it wasn’t any more. If you see what I mean… :D

Anyway, dear readers – Chapter One of “I Know an Ash Standing” is done and dusted. :) I’m hoping to finish Chapter Two before the day’s out. :)

I seem to be getting about half a chapter done each day, so I’m pretty happy with that, though it does mean that the first draft won’t be finished within 6 weeks as I’d hoped. Not to worry, though. :)

I’m really quite pleased with how it’s coming together. I feel that I have several good “hooks” in Chapter One, including a sinister man, a healthy dash of mystery and a chase scene. And in Chapter Two, I think that my characters are starting to come through nicely. :) Chapter Two also contains a plot complication, a hint of menace and copious amounts of tea! :D

I’ve also got provisional titles for each of my chapters now. I’m not sure if giving your chapters individual titles is quite the Done Thing at the moment. But I figure, what the hell! :D It feels right for this story, so I’m going with it. :)

Enjoy the rest of your week, dear readers! May you reach all your targets and achieve all your goals. :)

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Setting the Worlds to Rights… :D

Posted on 01/05/2011 by Ruth Fanshaw

Update on my previous decision: I’ve now decided – stuff it! I WILL start actually writing my novel! :D

I shall commence tomorrow, which is when I’d planned to start, before my health took such a downturn and set me back. I’ll still be trying to catch up on my background work in dribs and drabs, but the A1 task will be to draft “I Know an Ash Standing”.

I’ll be aiming to get at least 2 scenes written every week day. But we’ll see how we go. This, of course, is the beauty of ROW80 – you can adjust your goals whenever you need to. :)

I’d really like to finish the first draft by mid June, which is when I’m due to visit with my best friend and go with her to see David Tennant and Catherine Tate in “Much Ado About Nothing”. :) :) :)

Now, there’s a huge question mark over whether I’ll be well enough to travel that far in 6 weeks time, given that I wore myself out on Friday by just staying out of bed for 4 hours straight to watch the Royal Wedding. Still, we live in hopes! I’ve really been looking forward to seeing David Tennant, and I won’t give it up without a fight! :D

As for my background work, I have the main framework of events sorted up to the end of Ragnarok. There’s still the aftermath of Ragnarok to do, and numerous minor events to fit within that framework, but I’m still pretty pleased with my progress. :)

I’ve also been trying to figure out how the 9 worlds of Norse cosmology were supposed to be arranged. There’s actually little specific data on this, and some contradiction, in the mythological writings, which leads me personally to believe that the ancient Norse people actually didn’t bother too much about such details! :D

However, this hasn’t stopped scholars from coming up with various models, so I figured I might as well have a go. :D I’m going with an ascending spiral, intertwined amongst the roots and branches of Yggdrasil, as shown in this rather crude diagram:

Yggdrasil should actually look something like this:

…Only, you know… BIGGER! :D

 

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Of Progress and Plans…

Posted on 28/04/2011 by Ruth Fanshaw

I apologise, dear readers, for the slight belatedness of this ROW80 update. Basically, I pretty much slept through Wednesday. :D

Anyway, without more ado…

I’ve begun working through the Poetic Edda in order to map out my personal chronology of Norse mythology. This is proving a slower job than I’d hoped – I’m averaging about 10 stanzas a day, and there’s no way I can push myself at present, because of my health problems.

 

At this rate of progress, it’ll take me about 3 months to get through the whole Edda. Then there’s the Prose Edda, though I don’t plan to draw so heavily on that one. I prefer the older stuff.

Those 3 months would put me well behind when it comes to writing the first draft of the actual novel. Now, as I’ve mentioned before, I do have my outline for the novel finished and intact, so I could start writing the draft tomorrow. But I wanted to replace the background work that I lost when my old computer died.

At the moment, I’m planning on a compromise. I propose to go through the poems that are particularly relevant to this story and get that material straight. Then I’ll draft my novel, but try to keep working through the Edda when I have spare time and energy.

I do need to sort out the other material, because I always planned that “I Know an Ash Standing” should be the first of a series of novels, culminating in the story of Ragnarok. I’ll need that info for the other tales. :)

At the moment, it looks like it’ll be a series of 4 or 5 books, but it depends how many stories I find in the material. :) I’m certainly not going to purposely string it out to 7 books just for the sake of reaching that number, though! :D

Do you aim for a set number of books when you plan a series, or do you just see how it goes?

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Forward to Yesterday! :D

Posted on 25/04/2011 by Ruth Fanshaw

My ROW80 update:

First, dear readers, I’m pleased to announce that I’ve finished my character outlines. Despite my health troubles, it’s only one week later than I’d planned to reach this stage, so I’m pretty chuffed with that! :)

Next up: sorting out my history of Norse mythology. Despite the size of the task, I find that I’m actually looking forward to the job. I find this kind of thing quite fun. :)

My health is still pretty rotten, but I’ve now got to the point where, if I get into a room and realise that I’ve left something behind in the previous room, I can actually go back and fetch it! Most days, anyway. :D I’m still working in 10 minute spurts, but as long as I’m demonstrably moving forward, I’m happy with that. :)

I’d like to apologise to my Twitter and Facebook friends for my prolonged absence. The reason is that I’m having to sit resting in bed for most of the day, and the modem wire doesn’t reach that far! But I look forward to being back in your midst before too long. Hope everything’s going well for you all. :)

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Small Steps in the Right Direction

Posted on 21/04/2011 by Ruth Fanshaw

I interrupt my busy schedule of sitting to bring you the following brief ROW80 update:

Though I’m still very poorly, I’ve managed to get one character outline done each day this week. I’m having to do them in 10 minute stints with rests in between, but the important thing is that I’m once again making progress. Every little bit I get done brings me that much closer to finishing. :)

The plan is to keep this up until Friday, rest all weekend, and then on Monday start on my chronology of Norse mythology. Fun times. :)

I’m also pleased to report that my health is slowly on the mend again. I have to rest in bed nearly all day, but I’m now able to sit in a chair for a couple of hours in the evening.

ME/CFS is very frustrating when you relapse, but there’s really nothing for it but to rein in all your activity levels and rest till it improves again. :)

Finally, many thanks to everyone who sent good wishes for my health and well being. :)

Normal service will now resume… :D

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My Character Chart

Posted on 17/04/2011 by Ruth Fanshaw

I regret that I have very little to report. :( I have got naff all done since my last ROW80 update, because I’ve been very poorly and my brain hasn’t been functioning properly at all.

This puts me a little behind my targets, but not desperately so. I think it’s still quite possible to catch up later. :)

In the meantime, I thought it might possibly be of interest if I post the following chart, showing the personality types of my characters. Primary Characters are named in bold type.

When I’m outlining my characters, one of the first things I do is decide what personality type they are. I use the “What Am I Like?” personality types on the BBC Science website, which roughly correspond to the Myers/Briggs personality types, but are easier to remember. :D

(The actual questionnaire for these types doesn’t seem to be available anymore – I can only find the “Big 5″ questionnaire – but I have it printed out, so I could forward it to anyone who’s interested. :) )

I find the chart useful, because I can see at a glance what the characters have in common, as well as their differences. It helps me to imagine how they’ll relate to one another; what they’ll understand about one another, and what will bemuse them.

Do you use personality types to help you get a handle on your characters?

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