Writing a novel?
POSTED BY: NervousPete
UPDATED: Thursday, May 6, 2004 16:10
VIEWED: 8681
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I have three novels on the burners, a Sci-Fi one, Pulp (yeah you read that right) Alt History one and a Fantasy one.
Curiously enough my fantasy one doesn't have non-human races in it either. Must be a Firefly fan sorta thing that we don't like elves. 
And a screenplay that's almost finished, World War II espionage/thriller/air fighting one. More interesting than it sounds, trust me. 
Whether any of them see the light of day as far as publishing goes...who knows.
~-~-~-~-~-~-~-
"Oh hey, I got an idea. Instead of us hanging
around playing art critic till I get pinched by
the Man, how's about we move away from this
eerie-ass piece of work and get on with our
increasingly eerie-ass day, how's that?"
My eerie-ass website:
http://gunhandsfirefly.homestead.com/Index.html
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I hold to the theory (expounded, I believe, by Frank Herbert) that you use up the same energy talking about something you're writing as you would writing it. But because I can't resist talking about myself and my work, I'm going to do it anyway.
It's not so much a question of "am I writing a novel?" as "what number am I on?". I have something like six or seven novels (depending on what you decide is the minimum word count for a novel) sitting in my garage-- novels that numerous editors have sneered at, laughed at, ripped to pieces, urinated on, fed to their Dobermans, and returned with nasty comments about my abilities, ancestry, and habits. I produced my first complete novel in 1990; neither that one nor any subsequent one has sold.
Does this discourage me?
You bet it does.
But somehow, despite some lengthy hiatuses (hiatusi?), I eventually drag myself back to the computer and start plinking away again. I was once told by an author in a seminar that persistence is 90% of getting published. Also, I have stories and characters in my head that WON'T GO AWAY, as much as I try sometimes to bury the bastards.
Anyway, the novel I'm working on at the moment (about 45,000 words at this point) is a military alternative-history, the history of which diverged about 1560. Without going into painful detail, the Tudor dynasty gets transplanted to North America, and its subsequent history is one long struggle with a Spanish-dominated Europe. The main character is an up-from-the-ranks officer. I have two other complete novels in this universe, both of which were laughed out of every publishing house I submitted them to. So maybe I'm 
-- but, again, the story won't let me go.
Firefly obviously didn't inspire this story, but for me Joss Whedon's work in general has been like a graduate writing course, especially in learning the importance of doing the absolute worst thing to your characters. I've learned a lot from him, and I hope someday to prove it by getting published.
Good luck to any of you writing even a short story, much less a novel-- any sort of writing takes guts.
Oh, bugger! Now I have to wait for someone to wake up!
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Yes, I am writing -- again! My first novel, "Noble Savage" (ISBN 193204745x), was released last year through Llumina Press and is available through online bookstores such as Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com.
"Noble Savage" is the story of a self-proclaimed prophet who brings about Armageddon through the use of technology. He saves people who agree to follow him, but there are those who are naturally immune to the weapon's effects (coincidentally, my weapon is a large-scale version of the one the men with blue hands used in 'Ariel' -- and I wrote my manuscript before I'd heard of Firefly!). If anyone's interested in more info about the book, you can go to Amazon and read my five-star review.
While that sounds very exciting, I'm still working on building my own fan base more than a year later. The work doesn't stop with the writing process. Still, there's nothing else I'd rather do than sit down and create worlds of my own. If only I were as talented as Joss in that area...
Liz Moore
Firefly fan and author of "Noble Savage"
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Quote:Don't let it get you down; How many times was Stephen King rejected for his first few novels? Couple hundred?
Originally posted by Peace:
I produced my first complete novel in 1990; neither that one nor any subsequent one has sold.
Does this discourage me?
You bet it does.
Have you tried looking into self-publishing? It's losing the stigma that used to be attached, though now you'll end up having to do the marketing and publicity on your own (without hitching your work to the coattails of a big House, IOW).
And Gunhand, my assorted faerie, dragons, elves, and gorgons are giving you an Inara-esque arch look.
-----
We applied the cortical electrodes but were unable to get a neural reaction from either patient.
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Quote:
Originally posted by Cybersnark:Quote:Don't let it get you down; How many times was Stephen King rejected for his first few novels? Couple hundred?
Originally posted by Peace:
I produced my first complete novel in 1990; neither that one nor any subsequent one has sold.
Does this discourage me?
You bet it does.
Have you tried looking into self-publishing? It's losing the stigma that used to be attached, though now you'll end up having to do the marketing and publicity on your own (without hitching your work to the coattails of a big House, IOW).
I've resisted self-publishing; in the first place, I'm broke, and in the second, I'm broke. And I do think that what I'm writing should have have mass-market appeal that might not be there with self-publishing.
To me the number of "trunk novels" I have gathering dust doesn't discourage me in itself; I've heard a number of writers say that almost everybody who gets published will accumulate a number of early manuscripts that never see the light of day-- that these are necessary practice works that help hone your skills.
The main difficulty I have is the self-editing/self-critiquing that goes on while I'm writing; the thought often comes to me, while I'm writing, that this is crap and nobody's going to want to see it. This, too, is normal, I hear, but I'm still learning how to fight past it.
There is a book I can recommend for those of you who might want some encouragement: "The Courage to Write: How Writers Transcend Fear" by Ralph Keyes. It's very good about how hard it is to get up the courage to write something for publication, and how to finesse the fear most writers feel look at a blank page. I have no association with the author and I'm not getting anything for recommending it; it was just a very helpful book for me.
Oh, bugger! Now I have to wait for someone to wake up!
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Yes, I'm writing a novel as well. It's at about 26,000 words right now, which I banged out in a couple of weeks. Problem is, I've been so busy with school work (got finals right now) that I really haven't been able to write anything on it in about a month.
--------------------------------
It's sickening how comforting the privacy of the mind can be.
"Bible's broken; contradictions, false logistics. Doesn't make sense." - River
http://stripe.filetap.com
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Yes. I'm writing a novel and I'm not sure if the previous posts are encouraging or discouraging. It's my first one and I'm pretty excited about it. It's called 'Flicker' and it's about a movie geek who starts seeing his life as a film. Starts off as a romcom and slowly falls through hardboiled mystery to horror and onwards to insanity. I too see my characters as film actors and my page as a movie screen. I try to put in pans, fades, jump cuts, closeups, use the rhythm of the words to simulate cinematic processes while still retaining a zeitgeisty punk-lit feel.
Hmm. Talking of zeitgeist I guess there's a strong Whedon-esque inspiration in there. Joss doesn't just have his finger on the pulse, rather he has the entire length of himself pressed up against the body of popular culture, probably in the process of violating it in an incredibly dirty but pleasurable way.
Anyway, the novel is the cause of more heartbreak and hope than I could have ever imagined but I'm pressing on because there are thousands of Earths in this galaxy of ours and the meek have inherited not a one. (to bastardise the Captain)
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Not writing one myself, but my husband is a novelist. Once he gets through the Movie Novelization From Hell (in more than one way...heh) he will return to his original stuff.
A couple of comments:
1) 26,000 is a great start! Try to remember that the average length that a publisher will be looking for is between 100,000 and 120,000 words. Anything longer than that will have to have massively-wide appeal and will be a difficult sell.
2) Watch out for self-publishing. Now, if you're talking about putting stuff up for purchase on your own web-site, there shouldn't be any pitfalls. You sell the work; you make the money. Also, there are places that publish online work that ask for nothing up front, pay no advance and you get royalties as copies of your work sells. No problem there either. HOWEVER, beware of anyone who asks for money up front to publish your work. In the real world, money flows from the publisher, through the agent, to the author and NEVER the other way around. Anyone charging up-front is scamming you. Period. No exceptions.
3) The "Hot Item" right now in fiction is a female character who can kick-ass, so it sounds like many of you are on the right track. Even Harlequin is coming out with two new lines of books that promote this character archetype. One is a line of fantasy/romance the other is modern day/thriller type.
4) Anyone wanting info on technical details such as where to find publisher's writing guidelines, how to format manuscripts feel free to write me or visit my husband's website at http://www.sff.net/people/spiziks/. He has a TON of info for new writers.
5) I almost forgot this one! Had to come back and edit. There is a brand-spankin' new editor at Asimov's SF magazine. After many years, Gardner Dozois has left. The BEST time to submit short stories is when a new editor has come to a magazine and may be unsure about what direction to take the publication. I don't have a web address for them, but can get one if anyone is interested.
Good luck to everyone!
--Kala
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Quote:
Originally posted by kalathena:
Not writing one myself, but my husband is a novelist. Once he gets through the Movie Novelization From Hell (in more than one way...heh) he will return to his original stuff.
A couple of comments:
1) 26,000 is a great start! Try to remember that the average length that a publisher will be looking for is between 100,000 and 120,000 words. Anything longer than that will have to have massively-wide appeal and will be a difficult sell.
2) Watch out for self-publishing. Now, if you're talking about putting stuff up for purchase on your own web-site, there shouldn't be any pitfalls. You sell the work; you make the money. Also, there are places that publish online work that ask for nothing up front, pay no advance and you get royalties as copies of your work sells. No problem there either. HOWEVER, beware of anyone who asks for money up front to publish your work. In the real world, money flows from the publisher, through the agent, to the author and NEVER the other way around. Anyone charging up-front is scamming you. Period. No exceptions.
3) The "Hot Item" right now in fiction is a female character who can kick-ass, so it sounds like many of you are on the right track. Even Harlequin is coming out with two new lines of books that promote this character archetype. One is a line of fantasy/romance the other is modern day/thriller type.
4) Anyone wanting info on technical details such as where to find publisher's writing guidelines, how to format manuscripts feel free to write me or visit my husband's website at http://www.sff.net/people/spiziks/. He has a TON of info for new writers.
5) I almost forgot this one! Had to come back and edit. There is a brand-spankin' new editor at Asimov's SF magazine. After many years, Gardner Dozois has left. The BEST time to submit short stories is when a new editor has come to a magazine and may be unsure about what direction to take the publication. I don't have a web address for them, but can get one if anyone is interested.
Good luck to everyone!
--Kala
Good advice, and the web-site is excellent! One of the best compendiums of writer's knowledge I've seen in a while (that you don't have to pay for). Everybody should check it out.
Oh, bugger! Now I have to wait for someone to wake up!
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I am working on my first novel, not something I usually feel comfortable sharing, especially when people ask what its about, and I then explain the premise behind my Fantasy Novel, all the while watching the confusion form on their faces, and later come to find they aren't big Fantasy or SciFi fans. It really does make a difference in perception.
I had a comment for those who mentioned not being able to start or finish their novels. I was also having difficulty on this score, lots of ideas but no way to organize. Then I found the wonderful book The Marshall Plan for Novel Writing by Evan Marshall. It is a 16 step program guaranteed to take you from idea to completed manuscript. (Standard disclaimer, no affiliation, yada yada yada) By the end of two 14 hour writing marathons, I had made it through step 8. I highly recommend this book.
For those thinking about self-publishing, www.publishamerica.com is a small publishing house that covers the cost of printing however does not provide marketing, and books are only available through their web-site. They do not accept everyone for publication, but can be a good starting point for first time authors. (My mother's first novel Perfect Ending was just published through this site. They did great cover art, their concept etc. If you are curious and would like to check it out, when you get to the site go to search, romance, Perfect Ending (I would have just provided a link to the page but it won't let you 
There, my shameless plug, mom can't say I never do nottin for her.
And, I have also been writing short stories, however all of mine have been in the romance genre as there are more publishing oportunities for this type of writing. However I do have some Fantasy/SciFi stories that I haven't attempted to have published because I don't know of any magazines that accept unagented writing of this genre. Any suggestions out there?
And yes, I too have found it disconcerting upon receiving rejection letters. It is hard not to. Especially when you have read other works published by the magazine that are not as good as what you have writen. I say this without arrogance knowing that I am by far my toughest critic and therefor do not hesitate to make this statement.
And, I find a lot of my inspiration in Joss shows, especially episodes that are written by him. I download pieces of transcripts that inspire me from www.buffyworld.com and often read them to help get me in the mood to write. The Angel voice over narrative from the episode Passion of BTVS is one of my favorites. You should check it out.
And...if you have not visited www.writersdigest.com or www.writersmarket.com do it today. Both have a lot of valuable information. And you should also pick up a copy of Writer's Digest, Special Issue Writer's Yearbook on stands now. (standard disclaimer...) This issue covers 100 best book markets for new writers, 10 agencies for NW, finding publishers in your genre, and tips on how to start or finish your novel by best-selling authors and much more. I found it both helpfull and inspiring.
Good luck to all of you.
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