The Hobbit Hole VI - And Whither Then? I Cannot Say...

[ecurbh]

Welcome to The Hobbit Hole!

And Whither Then? I Cannot Say...

• First thread: New Zealander builds Hobbit hole
• Second thread: The New Hobbit Hole
• Third thread: The Hobbit Hole III - Journey to the Cross-roads! (Congratulations, we filled it up!)
• Fourth Thread: The Hobbit Hole IV - The Road Goes Ever On...
• Fifth Thread: The Hobbit Hole V - Where Many Paths and Errands Meet...

The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.

[My back yard]

Music is so important. Really. If I had to choose between having 1 change of clothes and not having the cds i want I'd choose the cd's. (did i say that right?) You know what I mean. They are the most important thing to food and water.

[Fedora]

There's SHARKS in them waters!!!

You go in the cage?

Cage goes in the water.

Shark's in the water.

Farewell and adieu to you, fair Spanish ladies. . .

[JenB]

She was a wimp, at Entmoot... all the warm-clime types stayed out of the water, us cold weather people had fun. Until the jellyfish arrived.

[Fedora]

Land shark!

No, ma'am, I am just a dolphin. Will you let me in, please?

[SuziQ]

Woo Hoo! That calls for a big old, "Praise God"!!

[RosieCotton]

Yeah, I feel the same way...plus I play music.

I'm facing the possibility of selling my beloved guitar, and it's just killing me.

[SuziQ]

all the warm-clime types stayed out of the water, us cold weather people had fun.

I am NOT a fan of cold water! Just standing in the waves took my breath away!!

[JenB]

But you stood in them!

[Fedora]

She was a wimp, at Entmoot... all the warm-clime types stayed out of the water, us cold weather people had fun. Until the jellyfish arrived.

I like warm water!--much better than snorkeling around here in 50-60-degree water, plus you can see farther down there because the water is clearer. Wouldn't want to be in the water with jellyfish, though! I can also sympathize with Renee not wanting to be in the water with sharks--seen too many documentaries on surfing "accidents" :)

BTW, did you get my last reply to you last night with regards to the writing question I asked you? I think I posted it right after you logged off, so if you missed it here it is again:

---

Does that help? I'm struggling with "make something happen, everyone's just talking", myself.

Thanks, that helps some--fits with the advice I'm getting from Ben Bova's book on writing SF, which I'm reading now for tips. On the thing you're struggling with, there's some good discussion of that in Monica Wood, Description, Chapters 2 and 4. If you can't find it in your library/bookstore I can write up a summary for you--should probably review that myself anyway. Offhand a couple things I'd suggest are 1) make the talking relate to the action and 2) when people are talking, whenever possible describe them as moving rather than sitting still--like for instance they might be travelling in a car between scenes; this is something I do in my novel so that there's still a sense of motion/progress even during dialogue.

[JenB]

Yes, thanks, that helps, and I'll look for that book! I'm doing some thinking about my plot structure... found some excitement, adventure and really wild stuff to throw in... or at least something that isn't just talking! Hopefully I can do some tonight...

[Fedora]

I am NOT a fan of cold water!

Me, neither :) I have a permanent injury from scuba diving in Lake Geneva in October. Went down to see a wreck and I came near to getting hypothermia. As it was for the next two hours my fingers and toes were frozen like carrot sticks and the combination of water pressure and cold water on my right ear was like having an icicle stuck in my ear. I was lucky it didn't turn out worse, but as it is my circulation has never been the same sense, in either my limbs or my right ear. Can't deal with cold like I used to. Like warm water, though :)

[Fedora]

Sounds good! What kind of wild stuff are you going to throw in? :)

BTW the same series that book is from has a really good book on plot structure:

Jack M. Bickham, Scene and Structure

If you click on that link, down the page there are also some other books from the same series you may find useful, esp. Ansen Dibell's Plot and Nancy Kress' Beginnings, Middles & Ends. I'd also recommend an out-of-print book Dean Koontz wrote a while back, How To Write Bestselling Fiction , which has a very insightful analysis of Stephen King's plot technique.

[Fedora]

PS: Meant to type "Ruthy" not "Renee"--my subconscious was combining the first letter of her name with the last syllable of her screenname--doh! Sorry, Ruthy! (Hangs head in shame and puts in Bakshi LotR as penance.)

[Fedora]

About to have supper--going to try out that chicken cacciatore recipe that was posted a few days ago--so I'll be back later to report! :)

[JenB]

Thanks for the recommendations!

My plot had all the action toward the end (hero is convicted of crime, sent to prison, escapes, comes back and seeks revenge, lives happily ever after) and it was going to take ages to set that up. So now I've inserted, into the plot build-up, at least one kidnapping/hostage crisis, a sightseeing trip to Earth, and a lot of my old reliable scene-padders, arguments between relatives.

It's not great, but it's going to be something special. In one form or another I've been working on this story for five years, almost.

[Fedora]

I'm back--the chicken cacciatore turned out very well :)

Arguments between relatives--never thought of that one, that's a good idea :) On the buildup, do you have some action in the opening scene? Koontz's formula for keeping the action flowing is that the opening scene should plunge the protagonist into some type of crisis, and every attempt to resolve this crisis should complicate things even further until the final scene actually resolves the crisis. As you describe your story, it sounds like maybe your opening scene would relate to how the hero became convicted of a crime. Maybe if you start at the crime scene you could get some action in there?

[JenB]

Um... wellllll.... the story starts out with a party scene. Not a lot of action, but it's where the guy meets the girl. Unfortunately it's a very... psychologically interesting, at least to me, scene, so, er, very little happens.

The bad guy doesn't even show up until chapter three. And you don't know he's the bad guy, really, until later, when he frames the hero.

[Wneighbor]

Gee, I got all the way wet in them! But yet you call us warm lovers wimps. Let me just bring you down here in August and see how you fare! While I laugh my ass off at your discomfort! LOL

[HairOfTheDog]

Hullo all..... just kinda markin' my spot...

ecurbh and I have to run to town.... see ya when we get back, if we don't get beat up.

[Wneighbor]

see ya when we get back, if we don't get beat up.

Danger!