Fearing to Go Into "The" Battle
Saturday, November 21. 2009
As I've further fleshed out my characters this week and also refined my plot arc to reach the end of this (first!) book, it has become clear to me that there must be another major battle on Hell.
I've already written one battle on that pseudo-planet, where my protagonist met a being he calls the Devil and, despite his best efforts and those of some of his friends, he was overcome. Of course, his defeat wasn't final, and Evan lives to fight another day. He'll be back, but with reinforcements, a great deal of soul-searching behind him, a new sense of his place in the multiverse, and greater confidence in himself and his capabilities. It'll be a rematch, taken to the next level.
It's going to be cool. I'm afraid to start writing it.
That first conflict on Hell just flowed from my fingers (a year ago now!), and though I've done revisions on it over the past several months, I haven't changed the essential structure of the prose, the order of events, or how anyone acts and reacts in the scene. I've just done a little "tidying up." But as I've mentioned before, I sometimes have trouble trusting myself to simply write what I ought to write.
There are no less than three "twists" in the action during this final battle that I've already planned; one of them is the climax of the entire novel. Can I set myself loose and expect that I'll be able to weave in all the requirements for the scene, without writing myself into a corner?
I guess I'll find out soon. I want to write that final battle sometime in the next week, because it's going to be the scene that defines the book, and will really make me feel that I can finally finish it.
I can't help but feel a little nervous as I prepare to go into battle, though.
As I've further fleshed out my characters this week and also refined my plot arc to reach the end of this (first!) book, it has become clear to me that there must be another major battle on Hell.
I've already written one battle on that pseudo-planet, where my protagonist met a being he calls the Devil and, despite his best efforts and those of some of his friends, he was overcome. Of course, his defeat wasn't final, and Evan lives to fight another day. He'll be back, but with reinforcements, a great deal of soul-searching behind him, a new sense of his place in the multiverse, and greater confidence in himself and his capabilities. It'll be a rematch, taken to the next level.
It's going to be cool. I'm afraid to start writing it.
That first conflict on Hell just flowed from my fingers (a year ago now!), and though I've done revisions on it over the past several months, I haven't changed the essential structure of the prose, the order of events, or how anyone acts and reacts in the scene. I've just done a little "tidying up." But as I've mentioned before, I sometimes have trouble trusting myself to simply write what I ought to write.
There are no less than three "twists" in the action during this final battle that I've already planned; one of them is the climax of the entire novel. Can I set myself loose and expect that I'll be able to weave in all the requirements for the scene, without writing myself into a corner?
I guess I'll find out soon. I want to write that final battle sometime in the next week, because it's going to be the scene that defines the book, and will really make me feel that I can finally finish it.
I can't help but feel a little nervous as I prepare to go into battle, though.
I've already written one battle on that pseudo-planet, where my protagonist met a being he calls the Devil and, despite his best efforts and those of some of his friends, he was overcome. Of course, his defeat wasn't final, and Evan lives to fight another day. He'll be back, but with reinforcements, a great deal of soul-searching behind him, a new sense of his place in the multiverse, and greater confidence in himself and his capabilities. It'll be a rematch, taken to the next level.
It's going to be cool. I'm afraid to start writing it.
That first conflict on Hell just flowed from my fingers (a year ago now!), and though I've done revisions on it over the past several months, I haven't changed the essential structure of the prose, the order of events, or how anyone acts and reacts in the scene. I've just done a little "tidying up." But as I've mentioned before, I sometimes have trouble trusting myself to simply write what I ought to write.
There are no less than three "twists" in the action during this final battle that I've already planned; one of them is the climax of the entire novel. Can I set myself loose and expect that I'll be able to weave in all the requirements for the scene, without writing myself into a corner?
I guess I'll find out soon. I want to write that final battle sometime in the next week, because it's going to be the scene that defines the book, and will really make me feel that I can finally finish it.
I can't help but feel a little nervous as I prepare to go into battle, though.
Jimmy Anderson on :
It's easy for me to sit back as an inexperienced writer and say 'just do it' - so I will.
Just do it! Leave that up to your editors to say "I don't get it" or "this doesn't flow." Trust your instincts and just put the words on paper as you see it unfold in your mind/heart...
Brent on :
1) New writers don't generally get to have editors who make comments other than "interested" or "not interested."
2) I'm not so much worried about others' opinions as I am my own. (*I'm* the first editor.) I'm flinging paint onto canvas and expecting to get the "best" image the first time. I can edit later, cleaning up the rough edges and so on, but once I've committed the essential action of the scene to paper, it's difficult to let go of how I've already made things transpire. That's why I second-guess myself before diving in.
Of course, you're right that I must just go "plfffff" and simply write, and I will. Doesn't erase the trepidation, though.