The Problem Child, or That Story You Just Can’t Get Right
It’s been over a year since I started the novel Screechers. It was something I wrote in a burst of inspiration…
AFTER writing 50,000 words of pure crap and throwing it all away.
(It sucked. It needed to be thrown away. You can read about that little detour into crapdom here.)
Then, after writing close to 60,000 words of absolute WONDER and PERFECTION in the new Screechers, I lost 40,000 of those words. LOST. Not that I didn’t back up my saved files…the program I was using wasn’t even MAKING files.
It’s my own fault.
- I didn’t check to see that the program I was using actually was saving when I hit “ctrl+S”.
- I wasn’t backing up files (if I were, I’d have realized pretty fast that there was nothing saved). So, after a week of words pouring from my fingertips, I discovered 150 pages were missing.
I cried. Then I rewrote them, but by the time I got to the end of those 40K, I was totally sick of the story.
So I set it aside, 75% written.
Then I picked it up again in January. I thought, “Wow, this is pretty good, but SOMETHING is off.” After pondering it a while, I decided it was the tense. I’d written it in first person past tense, and–on a whim–I went through and made all first person present tense.
Admittedly, this DID make the story read more naturally. It fit the high action of the story, the immediacy of the main character’s needs and emotions…
But STILL, something wasn’t sitting right.
Zoom to March. Two weeks ago. After discussing a book with a friend–a book we both agreed had so much potential but suffered from first person POV, that needed more viewpoints to really dig into the world–I realized that THIS was what was wrong with Screechers. Not that first person is bad (um, SS&D is first person! I changed it from third to first!), but it does limit what you can do. And as a result…
Screechers wasn’t meant to be first person, and it definitely wasn’t meant to be present tense. The story is sweeeeeeping, so shouldn’t my storytelling be sweeping as well?
The highlight of this book for me–what inspired me to write it and what still inspires me–is the world. It’s the mythology and the history and the clashing of cultures in this land called Shaava. The world shaped my heroine…but it also shaped the secondary characters. In first person, I was only showing the world from my MC’s POV.
But if I added multiple POVs, I could show more of Shaava. And–even better–I could really develop some of the subplots I’d only glossed over in first person, single POV. Basically, with multiple points of view building on the same story, I could add more dimensions to all aspects of the story. I could share the same world, but really bring it to life
Next week, on Pub(lishing) Crawl, I’ll really dig into POV more deeply, but the general idea of this long-winded post is that I finally had an epiphany for Screechers. And–fingers crossed–now that I’ve changed the POV and started writing in new characters’ viewpoints, this book will STOP being my problem child.
You tell me: do you have a book that has just KILLED you to write? That, no matter how many times you hunker down, just won’t work?
♥
March 28, 2012 @ 2:05 pm
Let’s here it for epiphanies! And yes, I’ve had many books that I started with promise but abandoned because they just weren’t working and weren’t going to. I’ve never felt bad abandoning them. It’s like, why waste my time slogging through to the end when I know it’s not going to work in the end. But if there’s ANY hint of promise—like you with SCREECHERS or me with my latest—I push through and tell myself I’ll work it all out eventually.
I hope the tense change does the trick for you!
March 29, 2012 @ 2:56 am
I know what you mean. I’ve DEFINITELY abandoned books. But this one has the hint of promise and–best of all–I still LOVE it despite the hell it’s put me through. 😉
March 28, 2012 @ 5:58 pm
I hope the additional POV’s help make SCREECHERS the story you want it to be. Having gotten a small glimpse at your concept, I know it’ll be awesome. 😉
And as for having a problem child of my own…YES. Dear God, YES. lol I haven’t figured mine out yet…but you’ve given me food for thought for sure.
March 29, 2012 @ 2:57 am
Yeah…well, it wasn’t until I talked about a different book–also fantasy–that I realized my problem might be the structure. First person is great for some books, but I think it’s too simple–too focused–for this one. 🙂
And then your post the other day got me really thinking about POV…
March 28, 2012 @ 10:30 pm
Hmm I haven’t finished my first book yet, but I think every author has had a story that they wanted to finish but just couldn’t:P
I’m actually still thinking about the story I wasn’t able to finish. Gah, and it had a banshee and leprechauns:)
Some day…some day…
March 29, 2012 @ 2:57 am
Oh, I have a TON of stories I never could finish. But I am DETERMINED to make Screechers work–even if it takes 10 years. 😉
March 29, 2012 @ 12:05 am
I’m revising a book that I would like to abandon. I started in first person, and then I switched to third. Now, I’m back to first. I’m continuing to revise, but I’m having loads of trouble. I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been working on it for so long that I’m getting sick of it, or it’s just not exciting anymore. I feel like moving on to something else. Hopefully, with the changes you’ve made your book will stop being a problem child for you! I don’t know how to help mine! It might just be a lost cause…but the world and characters are so interesting — which is what keeps me going.
March 29, 2012 @ 2:58 am
Oh, I ALWAYS take breaks when I get sick of a book. I usually give myself at least two weeks to work on something completely different. Even when I was dying on my deadline for book 2, I still took time off to work on my YA contemporary. Sometimes–if you’re like me–the best way to recharge your Muse and inspiration is to work on something completely different.
Good luck with your revisions! Don’t get discouraged–it’s totally normal to feel that way. 🙂
March 29, 2012 @ 2:35 am
Wow! I find it so interesting that you needed to turn to third-person to describe more of your world. I haven’t had such a drastic change, but with the contemp MG I’m working on finishing right now, this fourth draft that I’m on differs from the previous because it’s in first-person past, not first present. Somehow, it fits my protag’s voice better, I think.
Oh, and with Screechers: when you switched it to third, did you also keep it in present? Because that would be SO COOL. Although third person past is probably the safest, most well-read choice. 😛
March 29, 2012 @ 3:01 am
You know, I did NOT make it third person present. I’ve read books that did that, and they were marvelous. But–because my book is really meant to be this SWEEPING, world-building heavy fantasy with lots of threads that come together at the end–I think past tense works better. It gives you more room for exposition (which is also something you can get away with doing more of when you write third person instead of first). When I had it in present, there just wasn’t time to expound on the world and the characters and my MC’s grief. But in third person past, I can do that–AND I can add an almost “fable”/”myth” like feel to the way the story is told.
March 31, 2012 @ 8:44 pm
I definitely have a problem book right now. After starting to write a novel I’d already outlined seven chapters of, I came to the realization that, not only was I starting the story in completely the wrong place, I was also telling it from the perspective of the wrong character. It took me a week and a half to outline those seven chapters. Last night it took me about an hour to do the same amount of work. When it’s wrong, you know.
Anyway, I hope the changes you’ve made to SCREECHERS will make the going much quicker. Good luck!
April 1, 2012 @ 5:51 am
I’m finally catching up on blog reading and…YAY more SCREECHERS. I think it’s just gonna be epic in its fabulousness. <3 You write one hey of a book, lady.
April 8, 2012 @ 11:20 pm
I could lose my mind trying to decide whether a story should be in 1st or 3rd person. I love reading stories in 1st person, where you’re really in the head and heart of the main character, but sometimes, in 3rd person, it’s like you’re peeking in on everyone, and can often get a bigger grasp of everyone involved in the story. I think both work, but every story has to be told in it’s own way. I hope SCREECHERS will work out for you!