Editing and Plotting

I’ve probably used the above photo, but it’s humid out, and I want to think of snow.

My first draft is always an ugly thing. A story evolves as I write it. Sometimes the end I have planned just doesn’t work. The characters take it elsewhere and I think it becomes a better story. This really happened in my newest book, the third Act was completely different. So… rewrites! The edits are progressing slowly, but man, this one has been fun.

This book is different, it’s not a hardcore military science fiction. I’m not going to pigeonhole it yet, I think a category can alienate people, so I’m just going to call it science fiction. (Not romance) There’s still starships, battles, power armor, but the main character is totally unique. And she has a 1200 year old AI trapped in her skull…

My newest book, to be titled Wright and Rong, is going to be about a Father and his Son-In-Law. As you could guess, they don’t get along. At all. Right now I’ve got a few thousand words written and I’m poking at the plotting. Even if it all changes by the end I like to have a plot, a pathway at least. Without a framework I find my writing ambles away. This book should be fun, it’s not a straight up comedy, but a lot of the characters are inspired by comedic people.

I’m currently reading John Flanagan’s The Rangers Apprentice and thoroughly enjoying it. It has a great storyline, is well written, and hits what I need for a good story. I’m looking forward to reading the next in the series. It’s definitely inspiration as well, I want to write something my son can get into when he gets bigger. Rangers Apprentice in space maybe? The Lost Cadet… that sounds catchy…

On the video game front : Not much EVE, Mostly Skyrim and Elite.