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| The outline on the window |
First, the end of summer is in sight, and soon the kids will
be returning to school. It’s in that spirit that I hope you enjoy my diorama story. I really enjoyed writing it. Be sure and stick around Daily Science Fiction to check out
some of the other great stories on this site. This fine venue has been reliably
publishing fantastic writing for years. I am so proud to be published by them!
Second, Patrice Sarath tagged me for a Writing Process blog
tour, which is tricky as my process is almost certainly still evolving. The
best I can do is give you a snapshot of what my process is today.
What am I working on?
My first novel! Well, technically no. I’ve made a couple attempts
before this one including a couple NaNoWriMo novels. But, I won’t be
inflicting those on anyone else’s eyeballs. Those early attempts taught me a lot about the
craft. It’s good to have a couple novels to line the bottom desk drawer where
they can live out their days in dark and quiet solitude.
How does my work differ from others in its genre?
I dunno. I love reading both literary and genre fiction, so
I guess my work sits at the crossroads of those two. I’ve always liked being
hard to categorize, except when I’m asked to describe myself.
Why do I write what I do?
I love exploring our world in all its gorgeous complexity. For
me, both reading and writing is a way to slip the surly bonds of reality, to
travel places that can only exist in our dreams and imaginations.
I’m devoted to science fiction and fantasy, but animal
stories were my first love: Call of the Wild, Watership Down, Black Beauty, The
Incredible Journey, Charlotte’s Web. You get the idea. I find that animals
often show up in my stories. I am intensely interested in how we go about
defining ourselves from the natural world around us.
How does my writing process work?
Since I’m working out how to go about writing a novel, I’ll
speak to that. Frankly, right now, it’s a journey of discovery with all its
pleasures and frustrations. I put up a word counter on the side bar, but
haven’t added any new words yet, because I had to stop drafting and go back
create a better outline. I’m pretty sure I’m not a pantser (someone who writes
a draft by the seat of their pants). Outlining helps me develop the story as
a whole, and I need that in order to have the confidence to wade in. I don’t
think I can just cast off into open water. I guess
I’ll find out more about myself as a writer as I work through this project.
Now, I’ve got a card for each major scene. I’m journaling to
work through the many questions that have presented themselves as I worked on
the outline. Next, I’ll start going card by card, scene by scene with some time
in the evening devoted to working out “meta” thoughts and story problems in my
journal. This way, with a rough road map and solving problems as I go, I hope
to make steady progress.
So, that’s my process. Today…
Here's a cheetah and a dog playing tag.
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