[renmerc446]

Got some more worldbuilding questions printed out for future reference. I like hard copies, especially if I decide to go to the coffee shop (once indoor seating is permitted) to work on my writing but forget/don't want to bring my laptop. This will be a lot easier to get up and go if the coffee shop gets too crowded or I can't access a plug for my laptop. And I can work on them if the power goes out at some point (at least during the day). Having something to work on without the glare of a computer screen is nice too.

 

[renmerc446]

Got some writing done today with a little bit of forward motion. Haven't been doing as well on the worldbuilding. Worldbuilding is definitely addicting, although I do make sure I keep Sundays for actual writing.

 

[renmerc446]

Got some writing done on Sunday but right now I'm a bit stuck. I'm hoping the writing class that will start in a couple of weeks will help kick start things again. I made sure I at least opened up the story and spent a little time on it. I don't want to just let that slide, even if I just spent 30 minutes on it.

But I did get some worldbuilding done over the weekend. That's been fun, although there are a couple of things that I'm not sure of (at least not yet). I also have a couple of writing lectures from the Great Courses series. One is on the science of science fiction (How Science Shapes Science Fiction). That is interesting but a lot more technical than I expected. It also doesn't really apply that much to the stories I'm writing but is good to know in general. I also got another one on Science Fiction (How Great Science Fiction Works) and one on writing fiction in general (Writing Great Fiction) that should be better suited to what I'm doing. Just ordered another lecture series on detective/mysteries and I'm waiting for it to ship. I may be writing fantasy but I'm sure mystery/detective stories bleed over a bit. Especially the one I'm working on now since it's a bit of a quest for information.

 

[renmerc446]

Tomorrow's my first writing class. I have the zoom link from the teacher already so that's good. But I also have a late PT session tomorrow, although I go back to my 'usual' time on Wednesday, starting next week. So I'm going to be a bit late.

 

[renmerc446]

Wasn't too impressed by the first writing class last night. I had rushed home from PT because this week's session was at 6 pm, rather than my usual 5:30 pm. Then there were issues trying to log in to the zoom meeting. I would've been ok with that, despite it being frustrating.

The biggest problem was the teacher pretty much just rambled for the better part of an hour with no clear direction. I nearly fell asleep. I just hope it's better next week.

 

[renmerc446]

Last week's class turned out to be the best one yet. Finally got everyone involved with critiquing a short story. I suggested working on plotting and creating outlines for plotting for this coming Wednesday's class. I'll see how it goes. I also started the Great Courses lecture series on writing fiction. That course has 6 eps/lectures on plot alone so I'm looking forward to that. I've watch three lectures so far and it's good so far.

Still working about an hour on Sundays but not really getting anywhere.

 

[renmerc446]

Not sure if there was a writing class yesterday or not because I never received the zoom link for it, if there was one. Part of me is ok with that. On the other hand, I was the one who asked about outlining for plot, which would be done during yesterday's class. I think the Great Courses lectures on writing is going to be the way to go, at least for me.

Again, did sit down to write on Sunday but didn't really get much done.

 

[renmerc446]

Still getting some writing in on Sundays, although definitely not as long as I would like to. I'm starting to watch episodes of one of the Great Courses writing lecture series on Sunday as well. Right now, it's the "Writing Great Fiction" lectures. I have a couple of other writing related courses that I'll get to eventually. The one I'm watching now suggests writing exercises that I may go back and do at some point.

 

[renmerc446]

Still trying to get writing done on Sundays but not doing as much as I would like. Right now, I'm finding I'm distracting myself and I need to knuckle down again.

Found something called the "Story Engine Deck", which sounds interesting. The original SED focuses on characters and character motivations/prompts. This should be helpful for more minor characters in my current WIP. If nothing else, going through the deck should help get me thinking on things. There is also an expansion deck on Kickstarter for locations and such, which works with the original deck.

 

[marthamfi]

Nice that the classes are working out for you!

 

[renmerc446]

Nice that the classes are working out for you!

Martha, the online classes ended up not working out for me. I ended up being more frustrated than anything else. Haven't finished the Great Courses lecture series just yet. But I think it will likely be the first one that I'll watch more than once at this point. (I have so many lectures that I haven't watched yet that I want to complete before repeating anything besides the writing series.)

I did get the Story Engine Deck and its expansions. So far so good. I'm enjoying it, what little I've done with it so far. I've gotten a few minor ideas from it but I haven't actually sat down and written anything based on it yet. The thing I really want is the new deck that's still in its Kickstarter campaign stage. That is geared towards creating landscapes and sites, rather than characters (which is the original SED). Both decks are based on the same concept and are supposed to be able to be integrated together.

 

[marthamfi]

Too bad. maybe some online groups or things will open up in the fall and you can do something in person. Find some writing groups. The storydeck sounds like fun and helpful. I look forward to reading some of your work! cus it is a skill!

Both my kids took creative writing last year and I was why lol cus I appreciate people writing but not my skill set lol. I took it in school but that was cus we moved so new school and limited what I could take.

I have a friend who wrote blogs etc and now as his kids are older..got some stories in books etc. entered contests too. nothing that will make him rich but progress and makes him happy.

 

[renmerc446]

I find that most libraries usually have the critiquing groups where people share/read sections of their work and the rest of the group responds to what worked or didn't work for them.

But there is one group that I hope to be able to get back to once things open up more. This group is an actual working session for writers. We bring our laptops and such and write/do research. A lot of the time it can be pretty quiet but it's nice to be in a group setting while writing. And it has the added benefit of being able to throw out ideas or questions and brainstorm as needed.

Hope your kids liked the creative writing class, Martha.

 

[renmerc446]

Spent a good portion of the afternoon today working on some things for my story. I did get some actual writing done on it, a bit more than I had been the past couple weeks. But the big thing was working on the GMC of several of the characters. The Story Engine Deck has proven to be really helpful in that regard. I did enjoy the book on GMC (Goals, Motivation, Conflict), which does a really good job breaking things down on the subject. It also does a good job showing how to create GMCs by hand. But the Story Engine Deck is a really quick and easy way of doing the same thing, which makes it really helpful in fleshing out characters quickly. I'm using it to help flesh out characters for my current WIP, but it can be used for D&D campaigns as well.

The creator has a Kickstarter campaign currently in progress in order to create another deck that will work hand in hand with the SED. The new deck is geared towards creating settings and worlds for stories and RP campaigns but it looks like the deck won't be completed until sometime next year. (The Kickstarter campaign ends next week.) I pledged to that before finding the SED, which is separately. I don't mind making the pledge that I did (for the whole kit and caboodle) since I can donate my current SED either to friends who run D&D campaigns or even someplace that caters to kids and encourages them to write or something like that.

 

[renmerc446]

Got some more work done on my WIP on Sunday. Hopefully, I'm now at the point where I can really start to push the story forward. I will probably go back later and cut out a good portion of the stuff I've written so far. It was a bit meandering.

Did a bit more work using the Story Engine Deck. Had a prompt that surprised me for one of the characters but now that I'm thinking about it, it fits really well for the character. I can always go back and pull more prompts if I want to for the various characters. As a matter of fact, I did that for one of the characters I had already pulled prompt cards for.

The Story Engine Deck of Writing Prompts & Story Ideas

Beat writer's block with The Story Engine: a deck of endless creative writing prompts, story ideas, and D&D campaign ideas. Our decks make the perfect gifts for writers, and are the ultimate D&D accessories and D&D gifts.

storyenginedeck.myshopify.com

 

[renmerc446]

I did a bit more work with the SED prompts since it was too hot to crochet today. I've been doing these prompts for the different characters I've identified so far for my story (I still have a few more to do). I had a general idea of what I wanted to do with most of the characters but the prompts helped me fleshed those ideas a bit. I started getting into characters I hadn't already fleshed out as much before, as they were more secondary/support characters. So I was amazed to get some really cool ideas based on the prompts I pulled yesterday and today. Those ideas both flesh out the plot I already had in mind but also gave me ideas for other competing interests of some of the characters. One was a character I already knew was hiding secrets from the others but another character surprised me with where I could possibly go with those prompts. They work so well with the plot points I already started using.

I also started creating a list of story prompts that work for the MCs as a group as well. I supported the Kickstarter for a second, related deck (the Deck of Worlds), which focuses on building landscapes, locations and sites, rather than characters. (The Story Engine Deck focuses on characters and can be used with the DoW and the other way around.) But the Kickstarter just ended yesterday (it was fully funded and so were a lot of the stretch goals) so it will be a while before I get my copy.

I'm so excited to getting be all these new ideas and making the links between both the characters and my original plot ideas. I had been getting frustrated with not knowing where the story was going. I just hope I can corral the story where it needs to go.

 

[renmerc446]

Didn't do as much writing today as I had hoped to do. But I'm re-reading what I have so far to see how much I can keep or need to remove. A good portion of the early stuff I think I may be able to use, with some tweaks.

 

[renmerc446]

Did more cutting than actual writing today. The story's taken another turn from what I had originally thought it would go. But I do have a better idea of where it will likely go now. Things are starting to link together better. I also did a bit of a re-read of an old draft to see I could lift anything from it. I think some things I can reuse but the new draft will not be the road trip that one was. Although I may use some of the road trip plot points, just make them closer to home.

 

[marthamfi]

The kids liked it but don't know what they wrote or if they still do write. not like they do blogs etc. more woodworking, drawing etc. Sounds like the deck is really helpful for you! I agreed it is nice to hang out with people who are going though the same things as you and can offer input.

 

[renmerc446]

Got a little work done on my latest draft yesterday. Granted it was only some minor tweaking as I work on changing directions for the plot. I should be getting to the new material soon.