Moving the Goalposts
The pen is the tongue of the mind. — Miguel de Cervantes
Be careful about what can happen when you start sharing your goals with the people you care about — they might just start suggesting you try for even bigger goals instead.
The idea behind Swordbearer's Light started off life as a crazy idea about trying to mold fantasy storytelling with super hero character traits — what if Superman and his ilk were running around in some kind of fantasy setting instead of the usual comic book fare? I happen to like comics as an art form and some aspects of their character building, even if I do think their storytelling chops leave a lot to be desired. I don't know if ANYONE takes a comic book character's death seriously anymore, unless nobody liked that character to begin with.
Over time, my idea shifted and changed into something that was more intended for an adult market versus one for young adults. It was longer, more grandiose, and sped along for 60,000 words or so until I ran straight into a war narrative I didn't want, along with realizing later that my main villain got pushed on-stage way too early. So I tucked the book away, kept the interesting bits and pieces for good measure, and worked on something else.
Fast forward to about a month ago. Neverend is finally out for sale, I'm hitting the e-publishing piñata for all its worth, and my little story about magic swords starts poking around in my brain, looking for a spare air-hole. I decide, both on a whim and as a challenge, to come up with something for the YA market that I can write and release to the market as soon as it's done, instead of having to shop the thing around like I'm used to. I start writing ideas down, keep what sounds good and toss what isn't, the usual. It's a good story, but unrefined and in need of more editing time (which I didn't realize until later).
And that's when the current incarnation of Light's world and universe comes into focus. It's bigger than I expected — way bigger — and by the time I'm done I've spent 36 hours on this puppy and I'm beginning to doubt that I can make it work. I tell my girlfriend about my concerns and wait for her to verify my suspicions that, yes, I've bitten off more than I need to chew.
But here's the crazy thing — she doesn't. She tells me to shoot high and to go higher still. This is a HUGE amount of storytelling, more than I've ever attempted before, and she had the audacity — or foresight, perhaps — to tell me to go through with it. Madness, I tell you!
Which brings us to yesterday. I doubt anyone's noticed, but I took my sample of Light down from where I'd proudly displayed it at the top of this blog. For one reason, I've done some necessary editing and tightened up the first chapter as always happens during these book-writing sessions. The other reason is that she suggested that I have all of my ducks in a proverbial row before I start pushing these books out — I need more than one book finished at a time before publishing it and starting on the next one.
It'll be a hard road, but something about making my goal even HARDER is invigorating somehow. I'm looking forward to seeing what I can accomplish on this series. How about you — made any writing goals lately that you've had to change later on to tell a better story?
