Monday, June 9, 2014

Stupid, stupid me

I think I mentioned here before that I did a stupid thing with my newest manuscript.  I got off the first six chapters then I got sick, so I stopped writing.
Months of research, I copied everything onto paper because I like that and can work on it without a computer.  Reams of information about WWII, the Merchant Marine, Long Beach Island. I did interviews with people who were alive then.  I went to two museums and searched records.  Sally and I drove around, placing where buildings were located all those years ago and what is there now.  That way, I could actually let my people walk to places and it would be correct. We found two Victorian houses, mirror images of each other, that will be perfect for the guest house in the story. Writer's privilege to move them around. There were actual houses and guest houses on the beach, which was much wider, but some of them got wrecked during the hurricane of '44.  So, I have just about everything set.
Last year, I made a timeline.
But, my big mistake was writing out of sequence. I just wrote here and there, whatever I felt like writing.  Little scenes, big scenes.
Anything but not in order. I tried to put what I had done onto the timeline, but I have since not learned my lesson and have written out of sequence again and these things are not on the timeline yet.
DON'T DO THIS, people.  Write in sequence.  Do not write whatever you want to write then get stuck having to fill in the big gaping holes in the storyline!!!!!!

I need to somehow make sense of the timeline which is written on legal paper, sideways.  I can't even copy it.  I may have to write it all over again, somehow, but not sideways or vertically.

Regrets, I have a few...for doing it my way.

3 comments:

  1. I've never tried doing that. Once or twice I've gotten a future scene out of my head because it bothered me, but that's about it.

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  2. I wish that was all I did. : )

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  3. Unfortunately, what I have written is a hand full of scenes for one story and the ideas for a couple of related stories. I didn't write a timeline. Because I'm still on the journey of meeting my characters. I know I'm a panster... not a planner. I live with the planner. He is a PITA sometimes.

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