Archive | On Writing RSS feed for this section

Finishing a Novel

22 Mar

Today has been a great day – both as for the writing and the rest of it. This morning I had one of the best writing sessions for a long time yet. I finished the novel that I am working on. That is I finished the basic structure of it, meaning that I have written all the scenes that I am going to write. I have been working on it – more or less intensively – since November 2010 so I have been looking forward to this day. All that is left now, which of course is a whole lot, is to flesh out the scenes that I have written too fast to make sure that I captured the story, improve continuity (it’s a quite complicated narrative, so this will take some time) and generally edit a lot. Once I have finished that process I will read it in its entirety, preferably in one sitting. Edit again. Then I will have my most trusted readers try it out and get their feedback. Then I will edit again and again and again.

Still I do believe it is worthy of a small celebration to have a completed the first draft. And I was crying my eyes out as I wrote the final two scenes of the book as it was a bit like saying goodbye to the characters. I will be spending a lot more time with them yet but the story is now set, they will no longer do the wonderfully surprising things that characters sometimes do that require an interesting plot twist or change the story completely. I am so sentimental about my writing and I love that!

Our great postman (who knows everybody – we’re in the countryside after all) delivered my latest stack of books from Amazon. I have already read the first book out loud to my son this afternoon: Neil Gaiman: Instructions. It is awesome, a very quick and short read but a wonderful and very inspiring story. I’m actually contemplating writing my own version, a set of instructions, just for fun, sometime soon. I’m very inspired by other people right now, trying out things. As for instance my version of an Erin Morgenstern inspired tale earlier on the blog. It’s a lot of fun to try out writing different things. This is of course especially the case when you sometimes feel stuck on a certain big writing project. But I am no longer stuck. Now it’s on to work on the second draft and I am so excited about that!

I also have the rest of the new stack of books to look forward to:

Philip Pullman: The Firework-Maker’s Daughter. I think it was my brother, a great Pullman fan, as am I, who told me that this was an awesome story.

Anna Sewell: Black Beauty. I want to read something to my son that I remember fondly from my own childhood. I was very much into horses when I was a girl and had my own horses so of course I loved this story. I hope it is as good as I remember!

Frances Hodgson Burnett: The Secret Garden. I have never read it but it sounds fabulous.

Brian Selznick: The Invention of Hugo Cabret. Having lived in Paris for a while I am looking so much forward to reading this story. It sounds magical.

Alain de Botton: The Architecture of Happiness. Until reading The Art of Travel I wasn’t really a fan of de Botton. I have a bachelor’s degree in Philosophy and tried to read his Consolations of Philosophy but it really couldn’t keep me interested. However the topic of this book, architecture, interior decoration etc. is really on my mind right now as I have spent the last year planning and designing the renovation of my grandmother’s and my father’s childhood home, a wonderful farm in the countryside. E.g. I am pondering why it seems to make a difference to me that my family history is tied to this place. Because to me it really does. More on that later on the blog, I suspect.

Oh and I almost forgot: Neil Gaiman: Odd and the Frost Giants. I read the first chapter to my son this afternoon. It seems promising!

Tags: , , , , , ,

My Erin Morgenstern-Inspired Tale

16 Mar

As I wrote in the last post I think the idea of writing ten-line tales is amazing and as a tribute to Erin Morgenstern I have in fact written about two people falling in love in a circus. So here it is, my tale:

A Destiny-Altering Performance

The first time he saw the late night performance in the circus he knew nothing would ever be the same.

The implication of these magic tricks was almost incomprehensible.

He knew deep down in his heart and mind that he too was meant to achieve great things in the world of magic. Even change the world.

Making his first experiments on people he realized that the consequences could be grave indeed but considering the purpose of his actions he knew he needed to pursue his destiny.

The first time he saw her he knew that their destinies were intertwined. She knew too but none of them knew exactly how.

He was falling in love with her and utterly seduced by the magic she was able to perform.

She was falling in love with him too but uncertain of his emotions towards her she wanted to make sure that he loved her.

When she enticed him with her magic she created an illusion that was too strong and too far removed from reality.

He walked right into it and got lost.

And so it was that because she didn’t trust him to feel the same way she did her love remained unrequited and her fears turned into a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Tags: , , , ,

Spontanious Tales

16 Mar

A few days ago I visited Erin Morgenstern’s blog. Erin is the writer of The Night Circus which I think is one of the best novels ever written.Her ability to imagine another world and write about it is amazing. The best reading experience is when you read a book you wish you had written yourself. I wish I had written The Night Circus and of course that made me curious about Erin. So I was amazed when I discovered that she publishes so-called Flax-Golden Tales every Friday. As it is Friday today I would like to dive into that concept. Erin writes short stories of ten lines. Ten lines people! This actually means that you could write a short story in two minutes. It makes writing so spontanious and accesible. I am in love with the concept and I am considering practising my imagination by writing one every day for a while.

Just because it is possible to write a short story in two minutes will not mean that it is good (as Erin’s are!) but I think the idea of using such small tales as a breathing room from all the writing that has to be good, at least at some point, and just write something for the fun of it. I think it could be quite interesting to write a number of tales without revising them and then at some point to be able to look back at them and review which subjects and writing styles one was preoccupied with at that time. It might even open doors into an unknown territory of writing that you wouldn’t even have discovered if you only write on your large and serious projects.

So maybe it will be a weekend project for some of you to write your own tale! It is a lot of fun! Erin’s tales are accompanied by photos by Carey Farrell so if you’re into photography as well (as I am!) then you could incorporate this into your tales as well.

Tags: , , ,

Better to Have a Deadline and Fail than Never to Have a Deadline

14 May

Deadlines are a dreaded word. And even so most people need to have a deadline. Why? Because we’re lazy. It’s part of my essence to write, yes, but I’d much rather watch re-runs of Lost or my new found obsession starring the modern Sherlock Holmes. So how do I get to produce any writing? By approaching it in the same way as I would an assignment at work. By adhering to a deadline.

I utterly failed to keep my last deadline. ScriptFrenzy in the Literary Princess version crashed and burned. Oh well. Better to get on with the writing than to dwell on missed deadlines!

My next deadline was originally to complete the novel I’m working on before my summer holiday. Things change and my revised deadline is to complete the second part (it consists of three). And now, on to the writing. I have no time to waste!

Tags:

From one Junkie to Another, or Life is Good for this Writer!

6 Apr

I’ve pretty much been addicted to coke for the last ten years but that’s not really the issue I want to discuss today.* I want to write about being a writing junkie and how to decide on how you want to fund the writing habit. People seem to think that in order to write you need to retreat to a place of calm, a cottage in the country, a beach house or some other wonderful place and you have to have a blank calendar. Then you’ll have time to write they think. I say: that’s not true. I have never ever wanted to write anything when I was bored and I would be bored if I had nothing in my calendar and you will too. It might be nice to have a week off from the real world however you need input in order to write.

Creating the conditions to write such as the perfect place and time is an illusion. There really are no prerequisites for writing. All you need is a pen and paper or a laptop. I started writing at night when it was dark outside then I proceeded to writing on the train when I had to commute five hours every day for a job. Did you know that J. K. Rowling actually began writing Harry Potter on the train? What a great use of time!

I think time management is an important issue but the thing is that if you want to write you’ll find the time. You don’t need to quit your dayjob. In fact I would say: don’t under any circumstances quit your dayjob just yet, you need inspiration and the workplace might be an excellent place to get ideas.

Like everyone else I need a dayjob to fund that writing habit and on May 1st I’m changing job which in Greenland also usually means you have to move as the housing is connected to the job. Yesterday I saw my new apartment for the first time and although it may not be a cottage in the country it’s an apartment in one of the most beautiful countries in the world and from the bedrooms there is a view of the fjord and from the outside staircase pretty much the same wonderful mountain view that we have from our current living room.

So I’m looking forward to moving into the new beautiful apartment and to start my new job at an engineering firm. Some of my best friends are engineers so I’m looking forward to going from working at a place with an engineering department to a whole company full of them! I consider myself an ambitious writer but I’m not going to be put off my ambitions because I have to have a dayjob to support my artistic endeavours. In fact I think I’m writing stuff that’s more interesting because I have that connection to the real world. I say: A happy dayjobber is a good writer!

*Besides my brief addiction to aspartame almost ten years ago, which was followed by real withdrawal and a promise to never ingest diet coke again, I’ve never really been an addict – except perhaps a sugar addict, which is bad enough – but it’s a great headline isn’t it? Of course the headline shares elements with attention grabbing annoying headlines in the paper in which the story has nothing to do with the headline. However the dangers of aspartame are important enough to validate an attention grabbing headline! In fact I think everyone should get off aspartame. It’s dangerous people! If you can get withdrawal symptoms after only a couple of months drinking a couple of liters of diet coke every day then that stuff is really bad for you, so kick the habit. Go for regular coke with sugar instead if you have to (I drink way too much of that at the moment, I really need to stop doing that). Regular coke has the added benefit of allowing you to look at your waistline and see when your intake is becoming a bit too much! It’s not that I advocate eating too much sugar but it’s a lot better than aspartame! And, if you have to drink coke then use a straw. It’s really bad for the teeth!

Tags: ,

Writing about Guys or One Girl at Guy’s Night

2 Apr

Being a straight woman I like guys. A lot. And I like writing about guys. I’m generally more interested in writing about guys because I’m curious about them. I know a lot about being me. Maybe not everything, as there’s this thing called the unconscious, but I know more than anyone else. And I know quite a lot about being a woman. I will never really know what being a guy is like and that is strength and a weakness when writing about guys. A strength because I am forced to use my imagination to an even greater extent and a weakness in that I don’t know if what I write is plausible.

Hence the need to peek into the world of the all important guys arise. And tonight I had an excellent opportunity to get into the minds of guys as I had three of them over for dinner and some prying questions about relationships between men and women, men’s relationship to other men and men in general.

One subject that I wanted to talk to the guys about was violence. I am currently reading a book on violence (Violence – A Writers Guide by Rory Miller) and having an ex-army guy present made for a very interesting discussion of the nature of violence and war. I made him promise that he will be my military advisor before I submit the script to my future Hollywood agent!

Although observation changes the subject of investigation and this Saturday night will therefore not in a strict sense fit the label guy’s night it was definitely interesting, I got some answers but first and foremost I was very well entertained by some super guys with a great sense of humour. I’m lucky to have such good friends! And now there’s only two days till my favourite and number one guy returns home from Denmark bringing some family members and hence more distractions from Script Frenzy! An exciting week lies ahead but tomorrow it’s Sunday and I have an entire day to write. What a luxury!

Tags:

Frenzyland: Title and Logline

2 Apr

As I revealed yesterday the screenplay I’ll write for this years Frenzy is an action thriller. And the revelations continue today as the working title as well as the logline are set now. If not in stone, then in something else that sounds almost as persuasive. Here it goes:

Working title: The Northern Frontier

Logline: A communications officer at a secret Canadian military facility in the Northwestern part of Greenland is accused of spying for the Russians in what is about to become a war about the oil and gas ressources at the North Pole.

Some people say write what you know and given my past that has involved training in the Danish Air Force and Denmark has the military authority over Greenland and that my current job is in the Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum in Greenland I should be able to write a somewhat believable story.

However – because there’s always an excuse for not wrting – I’m currently preparing a small feast as I’m having some friends over tonight and hence a huge jump in my page count is probably (hopefully!) going to come tomorrow.

Tags: , ,

I’m in Frenzyland

1 Apr

I have written six pages. And I’ve decided to go with the plot from yesterday. The working title and the logline is coming up tomorrow when I’ve polished it a bit. The adventure has started and in front of me is an entire month in the wonderful world of Frenzyland.  This is going to be great!

From Frenzyland it’s time to go to Invasion-land. Sweet dreams and watch your back. The plot of my script is in serious need of a fall guy and even though I have identified him he might bring others down with him. Did I mention that my script is going to be an action thriller?

Tags: ,

I’m now the owner of Final Draft and ready to Enter Frenzyland!

30 Mar

Tonight I’ve gone and spent some serious bucks on the scriptwriting software Final Draft which is going to make it a lot easier to reach that final draft or – in the case of Script Frenzy – reach a 100 page first draft in 30 days.

I’ve just played around with it for a couple of hours now. I wrote one page of dialogue on the novel I’m currently outlining. A great way of consolidating the main characters voice. And then because I’m too tired to write anything serious I’ve just written three pages of Prison Break fan fiction.

I used to detest fan fiction. I considered fan fiction to be beneath me because I didn’t think it was real writing. What I overlooked though was the fact that writing fan fiction offers an excellent opportunity to borrow other people’s characters and not having to think them up yourself, thereby giving you easy access to a host of characters whose lives you can meddle with and practise your writing skills on. It’s great!

Two days left till I enter Frenzyland. It’s going to be some adventure. I never had such a vague idea of what this story is going to be about. As I’ve said before it’s partially because it’s plot driven and not character driven and hence I’m so far out of my comfort zone but I take comfort in the fact that Frenzyland was never meant to be your comfort zone. It’s supposed to be an adventure zone. And there’s still time to sign up, so if you need an April adventure you might just want to go ahead. Have a look at www.scriptfrenzy.org

Script Frenzy Programme Director Sandra Salas describes the Frenzy as the Mount Everest of script writing. That’s really something isn’t it? Who has never dreamed of climbing Mount Everest? I know I have. So if you’re up for an April Mount Everest trek then sign up! If you’re too busy, if real life has laid a claim on you that you can’t escape, then you could participate by proxy and follow my efforts here on the blog as I report from the mountainside and try to avoid altitude sickness. In case I win I’ll issue no guaranties that I wont be affected. Bragging rights are reserved for winners!

Tags: , , ,

Script Frenzy Countdown: 4 days till the writing begins!

28 Mar

Today I’m very pleased with the quite serious subject of my screenplay. I think we need some things to be serious. I actually think a lot can be said for taking things seriously. Sometimes I wonder when people will want to spend time on serious subjects. I think the time for serious subjects is now. So I’ll write about a serious subject (death and dying) and hope that people will realise that seriousness is the new black.

It’s not that I don’t get that we all need to escape the seriousness of our lives and have fun from time to time but I think popular culture is eschewing serious subjects to an extent that worries me. Todays frustration with this issue was kickstarted when I bought the Danish version of ELLE (not a very interesting magazine but about the only fashion magazine you’ll be able to get your hands on in Greenland) and I got really angry when I saw Kate Moss the addict in a commercial for a product called Dior Addict.

Is it supposed to be funny or are we supposed to take it seriously? I love fashion but I never understood the appeal of Kate Moss and using Cocaine Kate in an add for a product called Addict is just plain stupid to me. And I was even positively biased towards Dior for plastering the entire city of Paris with huge billboards of Jude Law when I lived there.

No matter the trends, with only four days left to plot for this year’s Frenzy I really need to get serious and get down to business. I find it a bit hard however. Tonight for instance I fell into the trap of finding the novel I’m outlining a lot more interesting to work on. Oh well, there are still a couple of days left and if I don’t have a plan the story will just have to unfold itself during the writing process, right?

Tags: , , ,

← Older Entries

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.