Posted on 12/23/2024 8:51:04 AM PST by Lazamataz
Merry Christmas, all!
I'm finding that the act of writing a novel is very hard work. My writing style tends to be very concise. I can pack a lot of thoughts and ideas into a small number of sentences.
This does not work well with my current project. Various sources tell me that 90,000 to 100,000 words is the typical count for a given novel. I'm only at 15,900 words. I have quite a few chapters to go, but it's a struggle to flesh out this work to the right size.
I have a first draft manuscript, and if anyone wants to request a copy of that, I can provide it by email. Perhaps one or more of you have ideas on how I can improve this work.
Also, I've had to learn how to handle dialogue. I've been using the 'Claude' AI site to do proofreading. It's actually pretty good at making suggestions.
I'd be happy to co-critique if you want. I can also provide my work-in-progress in PDF format.
Although attributed to about 15 famous writers, one source found it was probably first said by Blaise Pascal in a letter in 1657:
“I have made this longer than usual because I have not had time to make it shorter.”
Je n’ai fait celle-ci plus longue que parce que je n’ai pas eu le loisir de la faire plus courte.
You get your work published, even by yourself, I’ll will buy a couple of copies. I don’t like Kindle, I like a book that will rest on the shelf until I open it. Like books, maybe I’ll learn something sometime.
My advice: Resist the urge to pen “filler” to meet publisher guidelines.
Better short and good, imho — and the publishers may all just turn you down anyway.
Have you guys read any of the “Murderbot Diaries” by Martha Wells? She keeps the story short and sweet. They are great. It can be done!
Brevity is treasured by many readers (especially after hearing a Kamala answer).
“Those who know don’t talk. Those who talk don’t know”
—attributed to Lao Tzu.
When historian Will Durant, co-author with his wife Ariel of the 10 volume Story of Civilization (13,549 pages) was asked what he could say to sum up the findings of his research he said:
“Nothing is often a good thing to do and always a good thing to say.”
Write as the parts come to you. Dont try to accomplish it in sequence. Tolkien wrote parts of The Hobbit and then The Lord of the Rings as he felt inspired to write. If you try to do it in one continuous take you’re going to get burnt out and frustrated. Write about what interests you most at that moment. Do it some more. Until you have a really nice collection of scenes that all you need to do now is write connections between them. That’s more or less how I wrote my book. There were bits and pieces I did over the course of a decade. When I sat down with dogged determination in August to finish it there was already a basic endoskeleton to work with. Movies are VERY rarely shot in sequence. Same goes for books. I’ve read what you’ve got so far. You can do this! I believe in you :-)
.enil yrots eht tuo sdnuor ,redaer eht rof noitamrofni erom ,liated erom deen taht saera rof hctaw dna sdrawkcab ti daer nehT?
I definitely agree regarding not “padding”, however I do believe that vivid descriptions help to teleport the reader into the story.
I refuse to cheat.
Of course, if you were asking different questions, a study of Robert Heinlein, Poul Anderson and Gordon Dickson. Heinlein doesn’t pad, while the others add a bit. For bigger padding, Roger Zelazny managed. But I imagine you a more Pournelle/Niven hard science writer.
Lastly, to handle the delicate romantic scenes, may I suggest Richard E. Geis, aka Peggy Swenson and most of the Pethouse Forum authors?
Worked with SMIT, always liked that they gave me the syntax of the commands.
Writing a novel is a big undertaking. Congratulations on your progress. I’d like to read it.
My background is in tech, but my degrees are in education (MEd) and creative writing (BA). I also completed a two-year film program, and have a theater major. My first screenplay is sci-fi, and that is one of my favorite genres. So, maybe I can offer some constructive feedback as well as suggestions on how to publish/monetize your novel.
“Brevity is the soul of wit.”
The party isn't over until the code goes to the test group and gets hammered by the test protocols. Hacking is always a concern, so I use tools like ZAP, BURP and Fortify to look of avenues of hacking. After all the fine details are resolved, the final approval comes from the customer.
Hán was the next to speak, “Chén Xiù, I have been sent here from China on a most important task - a mission that is critical to all life on Earth. But I would also like to assure your safety. Do you think that you might care to travel with me for some days and assist me in completing my mission? I know that you might normally think my story to be a little crazy, but given that you’ve just witnessed my arrival, you may find it more believable.”
Chén smiled slightly and wiped back tears from her beautiful and delicate face. “So, am I to understand that a mighty secret agent from the Peoples’ Republic of China is traveling in a super-intelligent submarine named ‘Lotus Blossom’?”
Hán replied, “Apparently the engineers back at Mission Control are not without a sense of humor so, yes, I have been traveling in a mini-sub named ‘Lotus Blossom’. The mini-sub I trained with was named ‘Sea Dragon’, which I thought was a name much more appropriate . . . inspiring.”
The two shared a fleeting smile.
Hán continued, “Should you decide to accompany me, your knowledge of the country might prove critical to the mission’s success.”
It was Chén’s turn to reply, “I believe that our meeting was fated. So yes, Mr. Hán Lì, I will travel with you. I also believe it would be in the best interest for us both if we got underway as soon as possible. What is our destination?”
Hán Lì: “We’ll be traveling by road to an area near the center of the state of Colorado. Our challenge now is to secure transportation. Do you have a vehicle, or shall I secure one for us?”
Chén Xiù: “So, the same ‘engineers’ that sent you here in a miniature, artificially intelligent nuclear submarine did not think to provide you the means to travel across a continent?”
Hán Lì: “You may have a point, however I have been specifically trained to be resourceful, and I’m confident I can obtain transportation easily enough.”
Hán Lì took few minutes to make mental notes of distinctive beachside buildings so that, at the completion of his mission, he would be able to return to this precise location at the appointed time to summon Lotus Blossom for his return home, He briefly wondered if General Luó would honor his commitment to pay respects at his parents’ gravesite during the Qingming Festival.
Time enough for such musings after the mission is completed!
Hán Lì observed “I see a light along the beach in the distance to the south. Let’s walk down the beach in that direction, while we get to know one another a little better, and I tell you more about the nature of our mission.”
Hán and Chén began walking south in the surf towards the light in the distance, conversing in low tones so as not to draw unwanted attention. The incoming tide occasionally rushed up to their bare feet as the stiff, chill ocean breeze bristled the hairs on the back of their necks. The wavering reflection of full moon danced across the tops the the waves as they crashed along the rocky shore behind them.
As Hán and Chén continued walking the point of light grew, and they began to hear the sound of distant, raucous music that seemed to grow more distinct with each step they took. Eventually the outline of a building framed the source of light, and they could make out the shapes of several motorcycles parked on the sandy beach outside the building.
Approaching closer, a sign could be read on the side of the building . . . 'Crimson Horde Motorcycle Club'.
Hán Lì: “What is this ‘crimson’?”
Chén: “It means ‘red’, like blood.”
Hán Lì: “What about this word ‘Horde’?”
Chén: “It means a large group.”
Hán Lì: “This does not sound friendly to me. It think maybe it’s not a good idea to knock on the door!”
Chén: “Good thinking, Albert Einstein!”
Hán Lì: “Who is this Albert . . . ?”
Chén: “Nevermind, let’s continue down the beach!”
Hán Lì: “Wait . . . I can get us that motorcycle under the tree at the edge of their parking area. With a little good fortune we’ll be well on our journey before it is missed.”
Chén: “Are you crazy? You’re going to get us kill. . . !”
Looking to her side, she could see that she was talking to empty space, as Hán was already scurrying along the edge of the parking lot towards the motorcycle that had caught his attention.
Hán arrived at the motorcycle unobserved. He had watched enough old American movies, as well as mechanic training videos, that he was confident he could get it started easily even though he did not have the key. Fortunately this was a very old cycle which did not have modern security features that would present a bigger, more time-consuming challenge.
One feature Hán did not care for were the overly tall handlebars that would extend above his head. He did, however, appreciate the large black leather, silver-studded saddlebags that flanked either side of the rear wheel. These would provide all the storage they would need for their trip to NORAD.
Hán removed his backpack and retrieved a small tool box that contained wire cutters. Quickly he snipped the wires feeding into the key switch, stripped away a small amount of insulation, and wrapped each bare wire around the ends of a small electrical switch that he also retrieved from the tool kit. Hán then toggled that switch to its “ON” position, which he knew would, at least theoretically, allow him to kick start the motorcycle.
Pushing down hard on the starter pedal with his right foot, the motorcycle roared to life. Because this was a common sound around the biker club, and because the music inside was playing so loudly, the rumbling of the engine did not immediately draw unwanted attention. Closing his tool box and placing it back into his backpack, Hán crammed the backpack down in front of his abdomen until he could reach Chén and properly stow everything into the saddlebags.
Working the foot pedal, Hán was able to get the cycle into low gear and, feeding it some fuel, put the machine into motion. He slowly idled, with headlight off, around the perimeter of the parking lot until he reached Chén’s concealed position.
Waving his hand, Hán quickly motioned for Chén to grab the other canvas bag he had left with her and to mount the motorcycle behind him. Chén moved quickly - maybe a little too quickly - pushing the canvas bag into the saddlebag that was facing her, while Hán quickly stuffed his backpack into the other saddlebag.
Thus far things had gone very smoothly . . . Too smoothly.
Both Hán and Chén heard the sound of the music increase as one of the bikers opened the door and exited the building. Hán throttled the engine to full life and started circling around the parking lot. The sudden noise and motion caught the biker’s attention, who immediately called out for them to stop as he ran towards the street to block their exit. The motorcycle shot forward as Hán gunned the throttle, even as the biker dived towards them. While he was unable to stop their forward progress, the biker did manage to grab and yank free the canvas bag that Chén had hurriedly pushed into the saddlebag seconds earlier.
Hán and Chén continued onward and disappeared into the night, leaving the lone biker screaming at the top of his lungs as he rose up from the pavement, tightly clutching Hán’s canvas bag.
Yang lamented, “I guess I’m going to have to go do this for myself!”
I've always put a help option into my code for new users to ensure they invoke the code correctly. In recent years, the code editors provide a "tooltip" style of documentation that shows the argument types to a function call (and the return type). That saves time tracking down the documentation. The compiler (or interpreter) is going to complain at the first detected error.
After reading through about 100 posts, I am reminded why I always dreaded English class.
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