Allegory – what’s that?!
From Google (of course): a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one.
That’s an allegory. That’s what the new novel is: Fantasy-allegory along the lines of Animal Farm, but contemporary. And even though I know it’s not going to be the cup-o-tea for many people, it was what happened, and it is what it is (the link on the title below takes you to my Books/Stories! page, not a sales page).
Who Will Rule Magic? Kraken, Dragon, Cat vs. Kangaroo, Cockatoo, Crocodile
is finished and published and in paperback.
My aim at the beginning of November (NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month, see here) was to: (1) write at least 50k words (with the incentive being to get Scrivener at 50% off) – DONE!; (2) Start at go (nothing in hand, no plan, no idea) and end with a product – DONE!; (3) review, revise, rewrite (as required) and proofread – DONE!, and finally (4) to get it out there and published as a finished product IN ONE MONTH – you guessed it – DONE!
Today is 25 November 2017 (in Australia), and the paperback (always the last thing) was completed yesterday. There you have it – a novel (yes, a short novel) in less than 28 days (4 weeks, rather than one month, because months are variable in length).
Okay, I may have had the idea for the original story in BS form (that’s Beat Sheet, mate, so watch your thoughts!), but was told it was so cliche that everyone would figure it out without even thinking about it. And even though I hadn’t actually decided more than to use the ‘idea’ of what would follow from that BS (hold that thought – it’s still beat sheet and does not refer to the comments made about it!), it came out in a torrent.
I wrote in two sessions each day and reached the 50k goal on day 9. Of course, probably 50% of that was notes, research, potential research ideas, etc. And I wasn’t anywhere near finished!
It wasn’t until I was at day 14 that I found the best way to get the ‘deal done’ for the finale. It was an ‘aha’ moment, and totally relevant to the genre/theme.
As for the proofreading and oversight editing – I’ll have to wait and see, because there’s always something (damn and blast it! – yes, found two already, but minor, so …).
There are issues with how to ‘slot’ the story into the various publishing locations and Bisac codes, but I did the best I could (what is Animal Farm under? – used those).
So, fair warning – allegory = political, and I’m clutching at straws to find a way to warn you. Fantasy, yes, but strongly political allegory – and you are warned.
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The back page of the paperback version – just wait a day or two to see it added to the list.
