Learn Writing with Uncle Jim, Volume 2

James D. Macdonald

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This year's Christmas Challenge:

It's the twelfth of December now, so it's time for the Annual Christmas Challenge!

Twelve days to go 'til the 24th, and on the 24th ... a short story of at least 2,400 words.

Here are the constraints:

1) Must be in a genre that you usually don't write.
2) Must be based on a song which is never quoted, or mentioned, in the story.
3) Must break at least one of the rules found in the "74 Reasons Agents Won't Read Past the First Page" article, in its very first paragraph (choose one at random). You have to make it work.
4) Have fun doing it.

Okay, 200 words per day (that's less than a page), every day.

Let's do it!

We've had a lot of Christmas Challenges over the years. If you haven't tried 'em yet, try 'em now.
 

FOTSGreg

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Uncle Jim, I'm currently up to 6 thousand words using your Secret Author Trick for outlining (and convincing a friend of mine to nag me about my word count every day). Can't say it's a great outline, but the method is currently working for me (I've used something very similar before when writing Hatchings). Two more days and the outline for the book is done and then the real work begins. I plan to raise my daily word count target at that time to at least double, maybe triple (I'll need triple to do 10 pages a day and the whole book in a month).

Thanks for the advice and the great "trick".

Unfortunately, it's starting to look like I won't finish this story in a single 80-90k work. Now, that's not necessarily a bad thing and a lot can happen between the outline and the finished work so I'm not worrying about that aspect yet. Just get the thing written is my current goal and my only goal.
 

Silver-Midnight

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Check out what he linked.

I think I might have to give this a go.

Oh, okay. I missed him linking it, and I wasn't sure how far back the page was that had the challenge.

@UncleJim: Sure, I could give it a try. I might get something. One question, for the "must be a genre that you don't typically write in rule", can it have influences from it maybe? Like instead of pure Suspense or Thriller, it's Chick Lit with a small amount of that element. Or instead of Urban Fantasy, it's Magical Realism. Just asking for clarification before I begin. And I know that it's only 2400. However, I still just want to make sure that I have a full grip on the rules of the challenge.
 
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bearilou

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Uncle Jim, I'm currently up to 6 thousand words using your Secret Author Trick for outlining (and convincing a friend of mine to nag me about my word count every day). Can't say it's a great outline, but the method is currently working for me (I've used something very similar before when writing Hatchings). Two more days and the outline for the book is done and then the real work begins. I plan to raise my daily word count target at that time to at least double, maybe triple (I'll need triple to do 10 pages a day and the whole book in a month).

Thanks for the advice and the great "trick".

Unfortunately, it's starting to look like I won't finish this story in a single 80-90k work. Now, that's not necessarily a bad thing and a lot can happen between the outline and the finished work so I'm not worrying about that aspect yet. Just get the thing written is my current goal and my only goal.

Which trick is this? *begins the great hunt*
 

James D. Macdonald

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One question, for the "must be a genre that you don't typically write in rule", can it have influences from it maybe?

That's just an aiming point. (And I don't see how it wouldn't have influences.)

For that matter your finished story may turn out to be in one of your usual genres. As Stephen King once said when asked why he chose to write horror, "What makes you think I had a choice?"
 

FOTSGreg

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I neither know nor care whether or not it's the technique or the (gentle) nagging/coaxing from my friends (now there are 2 that have been enlisted - one apparently by the other), but it works for me and has before a couple of times. I hit 7031 words with 28 chapters outlined tonight after only 7 days time.

Of course, the hard road still lies ahead, but after Thursday night at the latest at least I'll have a road map for the way forward.

What counts, really, is that I'm writing again and who cares if it's complete crap. It's a roadmap - and I'm writing again after a long dry spell.
 

Ink-Pen-Paper

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Another year in the world deemed real has passed with little thought about writing, at least writing for fun. Then the worm turned.

West Wing became available for streaming on a certain DVD and streaming company's website. The former politician in me had to watch what I missed during those years it was on television. The pilot started something stirring in my brain, the next several episodes made it feel like popcorn bouncing around inside, each kernel bashing a hole and creativity started flowing around.

What is happening is I am breaking through the mid-novel slump. This time it took the writing of a stoned television drama writer. Whatever it takes.

For my fellow slumpee's. You never know what will start it up again.

Oh, yes, I do enjoy using bad cliche's in inappropriate locations.
 

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One thing I'm getting from a lot of these posts on outlines (as well as from some other resources) is: don't worry too much about structure right away. Don't worry about a first act, a second act, a third act, an inciting incident, etc. etc. etc. If it's really a story, it will have a beginning, a middle, and an end anyway, and I can get it in the structure in the first couple of editing passes. The outline for the first draft is -- well, "road map" is a popular metaphor for a reason.

I find that very helpful.

(As always on AW, if the structured outline works for you, it's what works for you, so that's all right.)
 

James D. Macdonald

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If anyone's in Boston this weekend, so will I be, at Boskone.

Here's my sked:

Saturday 11:00 - 11:50, Military Motifs in SF, Harbor I (Westin)

Saturday 12:00 - 13:00, Kaffeeklatsche, Galleria-Kaffeeklatsch 1 (Westin)

Saturday 14:00 - 15:00, Safety & Security - Now and in the Future, Harbor I (Westin)

Saturday 16:00 - 16:50, What If--What's Left?, Burroughs (Westin)
Younger fans take it for granted that TVs are big and flat (or tiny and totable), computing is ubiquitous, female astronauts travel in reusable spacecraft, and humans long ago swung down from the trees and walked on the moon. Which big "what ifs?" are left to explore? How can science fiction challenge readers who have grown up in an SF world?

Saturday 17:30 - 17:55, Reading, Lewis (Westin)

Sunday 11:00 - 12:00, Autographing, Galleria-Autographing (Westin)

Sunday 12:00 - 12:50, How Cons Have Changed, Carlton (Westin)
 

Komnena

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I'm currently working on a messterpiece and I'm worried because these supervillains have appeared who seem to have no redeeming features. I hate such things in other people's creations and yet here they are in mine.
 

Komnena

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Thanks for the advice. I may kill all the characters though because I get an outline in my head and then the characters refuse to do what I want them to do.
 

janfinson

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I've been told by several writers that the best way to learn plot and structure is to write 100k words that you don't intend to let see the light of day. What do you think James?
 

James D. Macdonald

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I've been told by several writers that the best way to learn plot and structure is to write 100k words that you don't intend to let see the light of day. What do you think James?

I think this is a terrible idea.

Yes, you'll probably write 100K (or more -- you see a lot of references to your "million words") that will never see the light of day. But you should write them to the absolute best of your ability and with the full intention of marketing them. Then carry through on the intention.

You may get an impressive number of rejection slips. This is unimportant.

You may also hit one out of the park on your first time at bat. This isn't unknown.

I am of the firm opinion that if you can't interest an editor or agent in your work that it isn't ready for publication. Don't be tempted to self-publish something that isn't ready.
 

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I think this is a terrible idea.

Yes, you'll probably write 100K (or more -- you see a lot of references to your "million words") that will never see the light of day. But you should write them to the absolute best of your ability and with the full intention of marketing them. Then carry through on the intention.

Thank you. That's how I feel about it. I've just seen where several people have said similar things, like "have no expectation of your first novel being published", or "consider your first novel practice only". I'd like to think I can do better than that.

Now if only I can keep a work in progress going. I can write short stories all day long, it's trying to figure out a workable plot for something novel sized that I have trouble.