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Martin, Revisited
Interlude One:
TURNING A WRITING PROJECT INTO A NOVEL
Copyright 2016 - 2020 Christina M. Guerrero
INTERMEDIATE DRAFT
PROLOGUE, FIRST SECTION - Martin - Thoughts while falling asleep. Which led to a short story. Which led to a novel.
CHAPTER ONE - The English Rose - Martin in love.
CHAPTER TWO - The Mooch Message - You may think words don't matter. But they do.
CHAPTER THREE - Congratulations - Time to celebrate. Or is it?
CHAPTER FOUR - The Heart Of Man - Who we are.
INTERLUDE NUMBER ONE - Turning A Writing Project Into A Novel - A few things to consider
CHAPTER FIVE - The Dead Thing - The green spaceship theory.
CHAPTER SIX - TBD
CHAPTER SEVEN - TBD
CHAPTER EIGHT part one - Their Children, Again - Life as a child.
CHAPTER EIGHT part two - Their Children, Once More - Growing up.
CHAPTER ELEVEN- A Scent Of Roses - Pondering infinity.
IN PROGRESS
CHAPTER SIXTEEN - The Spirit Of A Good Man - Don't underestimate people. You'd be surprised what they're capable of.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN - G-Rated Swear Words - What pays the bills is not easy.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN - His Place Full Of Space - What makes a place a home.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN - Hallelujah - In search of the truth.
CHAPTER NINETEEN - Recovery - The body, soul, and spirit need time to recover from injustice.
CHAPTER UNKNOWN - A Bit Of Heaven - The holidays are difficult for some.
CHAPTER UNKNOWN - Who's The Hero? - Looking for hope.
CHAPTER UNKNOWN - Zombie Caleb And The Holidays - Dealing with flashbacks.
CHAPTER UNKNOWN - The Mystery Of Spasiba - Are babies paying attention?
ABOUT THE DRAFTS
Draft One:
Nothing, yet
DISCLAIMER
Except for the first section of the prologue and the interludes, this is a work of fiction.
The rest is either a product of the author's imagination, or used fictitiously.
Any resemblance to real persons, places, things, or events is coincidental and unintentional.
About Martin, Revisited: We’ve got the prologue, the first four chapters, a bunch of characters, and some sort of story going. There are also other assorted chapters, but those are subject to change.
That’s fine and dandy, but an editor might read this stuff and then say, “What is the plot? Who is the protagonist? The antagonist? What are the goals? Where is the conflict? What exactly is going on? Is it about Martin succeeding? Carter doing the same? The other characters and their lives? Address these in future drafts. And consult Campbell’s Journey.”
The editor might appreciate the characterizations, the humor, and the dialogue. But those are not enough, when it comes to completing and submitting a manuscript for consideration and then possibly published. Without those other things, the project is just a writing exercise.
When I first wrote the story, it was like exploring a new frontier, and getting acquainted with new customs. Now that I’ve been there, I can see what else needs to be done.
Here is what the novel still needs:
Plot. Should be easily summarized as the main story of the novel.
Protagonist. The primary character or characters.
Antagonist. Their enemies or challenges.
Conflict. Believable and strong challenges that the protagonist needs to overcome.
Goals. What the protagonist wishes to accomplish.
Campbell’s Journey. While there is no formula specific to all stories, I often refer to Campbell’s Journey when making sure my stories have a beginning, middle and end. The full list is lengthy. Basically, there is a beginning which usually shows a protagonist about to experience a change or conflict, a middle during which the protagonist deals with the change or conflict, and an ending that is either worse or better than the beginning (or it could be the same).
What happens now, is that I go back to the beginning and once determining the plot, re-write here and there so the story is consistent with that plot, keeping in mind that in the best books I’ve read, the questions on my mind are: What is going to happen next? Will it get resolved? Will the characters get what they want? How is this going to end? I want my readers to ask some or all of those questions, even if they believe they might know the answers way ahead of time.
It’s also important, even in intermediate drafts, to consider every word. Does every word contribute to a good story? Are there some that could be cut? Are there any sections where the narrative is too wordy or repetitious, or perhaps too curt? Is anything confusing? Are the descriptions vivid? Have I used action verbs as much as possible? Have I shown why the story is being presented the way it is, without giving away the ending? My favorite writers astound me with their style and word choices; and I strive to be like them.
I will also look at the names already chosen, and consider whether they accurately represent the characters. It is a strange and mysterious process, but the characters are there ... just there ... and look and sound their best when they have their own proper names.
In addition to the above, consistency must be reviewed and corrected if necessary. If India is a detective in Chapter Four, and a police officer in Chapter Eighteen ... oops. Likewise for dates, relationships, sequence of events, and everything else.
Accuracy is also important. In a work of fiction, facts are used fictitiously, but it’s still important to present things as accurately as possible, without writing an instruction manual or a textbook. Martin, Revisited covers PTSD, police procedures, the music industry, living in New York City, recovering from abuse, and a wide assortment of other subjects. Each of those subjects should be researched, and I should be able to cite my sources should I agree to share them.
Along with the above, I also subject intermediate drafts to my “This Needs To Impress Me Every Time I Read It” test. If it does not, I tweak the manuscript until I’m satisfied. This was a challenge with Chapter Three, “The Mooch Message.” I did not want to describe just a bland meeting about a disagreeable incident. I wanted to present complicated and diverse people explaining the complicated and diverse reasons why they choose to lie, and I wanted the conversation to be touching, and humorous, and satisfying. It’s still not quite what I had in mind, but it’s getting there.
Another test: Is anything contrived, and not quite a “natural” and logical part of the story? Sometimes these things sneak in. A good writer will either foreshadow, so things don’t look weird or odd or out of place, or may abruptly go in a strange direction and then skillfully weave the strangeness into the story. Sometimes logic will work, too.
There are other things I need to do, in order to turn a writing exercise into a novel. These are the main tasks.
TO BE CONTINUED
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