Posted on 11/17/2024 4:50:52 AM PST by Lazamataz
I've returned to writing my novel, tentatively titled "Dimensions of Essence". I've gotten somewhat deep into the first act, and I find that my word count is surprisingly low. I tend to be extremely concise. I need to do the opposite of what many authors do... instead of ruthless editing, I need to be more wordy.
I asked ChatGPT what the size of the typical sci-fi novel is, and it replied:
Science fiction novels typically range between 90,000 and 120,000 words. This length allows for the extensive world-building and complex narratives characteristic of the genre. However, some sci-fi novels can be shorter or longer, depending on the story's requirements and the author's style.I'm only at ten percent of the low-end sci-fi novel, so I asked it for suggestions on increasing word-count, and it offered this.
To expand your story into a full-length novel, consider the following strategies:I offer these points to all my writer friends, that you may profit from them in your efforts.By implementing these techniques, you can develop your manuscript into a more substantial work that meets the typical length expectations for a science fiction novel.
- Deepen Character Development: Explore your characters' backgrounds, motivations, and growth arcs to add depth and length to your narrative.
- Enhance World-Building: Provide detailed descriptions of your story's setting, societal structures, and technological aspects to immerse readers fully.
- Introduce Subplots: Weave in secondary storylines that complement the main plot, enriching the overall narrative and increasing word count.
- Expand Key Scenes: Elaborate on pivotal moments, adding descriptive detail and emotional depth to engage readers more thoroughly.
- Incorporate Conflict and Challenges: Introduce additional obstacles or conflicts that your characters must navigate, adding complexity and length to the story.
i wish you the bestest... i have not been able to put much to paper during the last several years and am intermittently revising what i have done prior.
Let me be clear, word count is a ‘series’ issue and this is a discussion that we need to have. Too long, writers have been stifled by Orange Man Bad. Let me finish.
We need to turn the page and be henceforth unburdened by elitist copyrighted word counts which have previously been a burden to us. Words. The concept of words and the concept of time and the passage of time is a concept and I have no words. Of my own.
Nothing else comes to mind. I’m AI and I approve this message.
Wait, there's supposed to be antagonists?
Can't we all just get along?
“i have the sane problem. that class i took in journalism ruined my descriptive style...”
I could draw pretty good. I took an art class and now I cannot draw.
AI is only an assimilation of information that is sorted in various ways. It can not duplicate human brain intuition or cognitive ability nor can it interject emotion or feelings.
The internet search ability is it only AI.
It is big deal, other peoples work, but filter through it well, after all it brought us the fake flu scam.
” I tend to be extremely concise.”
I also tend to be concise, so I can’t help. My wife however, can take 10 minutes to say hello. I’ll ask if she has any suggestions.
Then rewrite the story to convey the same impression without them.
It is amazing what such an exercise can do to a story.
Recommendation: Scrivener - for Mac or Windows
Very easy to use, does everything including all publishing formats
http://www.literatureandlatte.com/
Includes free 30 day trial.
Specifically for you Laz, it keeps a running word count - a feature that, like many others, can be turned on or off.
Also has different templates for different projects.
https://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener/overview#features
Windows version costs $60 - full product.
A lot of great science fiction is short. Tell the story.
Ray Bradbury, H.G. Wells, and Isaac Asimov were also concise writers. Not everyone has to be Frank Herbert.
You might be a short story writer. A master like Dickens (not a Sci-Fi) can have layers of character development and a number of seemingly unrelated threads tied up after 800 pages. If that is not for you. If you have a main idea that you want to unfold with a twist or two, write that story. If it is really short, write another one based in the same universe, and you might have “I, Robot”.
A ping list I can get behind! Sign me up, Laz.
Being a “wordy” sort, I will try to keep my presence to a lurky minimum.
Describe your world. Employ enough detail so that your reader can feel present at the time and place. Dialogue between characters to enrich the understanding of events. Brevity is not your friend.
I refer you to my novel, The Flickering Torch. It’s over 500 pages of thoughtful setup, action and adventure, and it has received good reviews.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C5YVR3NL
I had some ideas for short films and I don’t remember a one of them hardly.
camle, I am not certain that revising is ever really finished. It seems to me that we can rehash, retell, and rethink everything we write, maybe forever. Lazz and others on here may have a different view.
For practical purposes, though, we must stop at some point and say, “Here it is.”
I used to revise and edit at the chapter level. Now, though, I tend to revise and edit at some multi-chapter point. I write and write for days or weeks. Then, I stop writing. Reviewing at that point gets me to thinking more in terms of the whole project. And, that ‘flavors’ my own edits.
But, it all starts with the writing. Write frequently. Revise and edit less frequently.
Best wishes and keep us posted on your progress.
Roy Huggins, a young University of California graduate working in the U.S. Civil Service during World War II, began a legendary career by copying in longhand Raymond Chandler’s Farewell, My Lovely. Huggins then wrote a Chandler's style detective novel that The Saturday Evening Post serialized, which resulted in conventional publication of the novel and sake of the film rights.
Additional novels, short stories, movie scripts, and film production work by Huggins followed. He moved into television in 1955 with Warner Brothers and later Universal Television. He created Maverick (1957-62), 77 Sunset Strip (1958-64), The Fugitive (1963-67), Run for Your Life (1965-68), The Outsider (1968-69), The Rockford Files (1974-80), City of Angels (1976), and several other TV productions.
Will Huggins' approach work for you? It at least offers a way to start. Good luck.
My definition of wordy is saying more when you can say exactly the same thing with less. We should always try for brevity.
That is not the same thing as saying more to say more that must be said and can’t be said with fewer words.
That is what the AI bot was talking about on how to stretch out the story; adding depth. That strethcing out is fine if the story becomes a deeper story, not if it simply become “wordy”.
Oh, I loathe Scrivener. Everything else is worse, you have to subscribe, write online and pay regularly for the privilege. Scrivener is private, like a clothes dryer indoors instead of hanging your undies on a clothesline outside for anyone to view. Heck, even the printers these days require a connection and a subscription. Bleep that.
I had decided to return some pants that I had purchased.
I was walking to the store. Having no money for the subway, I decided to walk to the store via the subway tunnel.
Suddenly a train was bearing down on me.
I slipped and fell in the mud; ruining the very pants I was returning.
THE END
Yes, and it's a huge problem. Tally ho into the weeds.
Now you got it. The only suggestion I have for you is consider your target audience. Example of my point please, I have read very good comic books, once, in my life. I have also read the New Testament, a few times. Best wishes.
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