Sunday, 23 October 2011

We need to plan this, people!

This week's chapter total is... *drum roll*... 2 and a bit!!  Woo!!  Still a bit crap but, if we're doing the positive thing again, more than double what I did last week!

I quite enjoyed these chapters too.  While they started off in the slower pace I'd established, we're now back with the action - right in the middle of it at the moment actually - and I'm glad it's returned.  Talking as if it's someone else who is deciding the story rather than me.  Because I'm a little crazy (but I think we covered that last week).

I'm slightly worried that I might be going into too much detail though.  I've had this action bit planned out for a while but, although the bits preceding it haven't felt superfluous, I do feel like it's taken longer than I expected to reach this point.  I get too into the descriptions or conversations maybe.  But - second voice-in-my-head argues - those conversations imparted some very important information.  AND a frequent criticism of earlier chapters was a lack of description.

So the conclusion I've almost come to is to write a chapter plan, stating clearly what I need to happen when.  I'm aiming at fifty-one chapters (why not fifty?  Because I'm strange, we've been through this!) thus bringing the unedited word count to a approximately 100k.  Unfortunately (sort of) I've just started Chapter 31 which means I really don't have that many left.  And while I have already started planning vague ideas for the sequel (again, me = insane) I still need to get to a certain point at the end of this novel.

This chapter plan should, therefore, make sure I don't go rambling too much.  Note the word 'should' there.  Fingers crossed and grab the rabbit's appendage.  I think some major rewriting - or rethinking - is going to be needed before the end.

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