Any, DS Muse told me in no uncertain terms that if I want to be a writer, I need to act like one. No more letting stories languish just because I'm waiting on the decisions of agents and editors. No more vascillating between my favorite book-of-the-week. I was told that I need to sit down, shut up, and write.
So yesterday and today, I hammered out a synopsis for my time travel fantasy. I now have to choose between the following projects (not counting my low reading level young adult novellas, which are languishing in maybe-land):
Title: A Hollywood Miracle
Genre: Hollywood Mainstream/Inspirational (it's too edgy for Christian, I think)
One-sentence blurb: Martial arts expert meets angel and is given the ability to work a single miracle in order to rescue the soul of his childhood hero, actor John Raven, who has sold his soul for worldly success.
Progress: 20,000 of 80,000 words
Title: Any Woman
Genre: Hollywood Romance
One-sentence blurb: Small-town girl refuses to date big-time actor unless he can remain scandal-free for an entire year, but the media learns of her challenge and she finds herself at the center of a scandal of her own.
Progress: 10,000 out of 80,000 words
Title: On the Highway of Time
Genre: Contemporary Fantasy
One-sentence blurb: Brother/sister travel writing team take a road trip back in time to rescue a girl from Colonial times who got lost in time and ended up an opium-addicted gun moll in the 20s.
Progress: detailed synopsis only
I like 'em all, and I keep floating between the three of them. I'm asking myself, what would Nora Roberts do? She would pick one and go for it. So that is what I must do.
Well, the first one still sounds really fun, but I'm liking the sound of the time-travel fantasy too. O:)
ReplyDelete*sighs* My muse is unfortunately an anti-establishment activist who likes creating chaos just for the fun of it. :|
But in theory, I agree that picking something and finishing it is a good plan. ;) Hopefully it works for you!
~Merc
My muse and I also had a conversation earlier this week. I promised to quit threating to drop kick it's arse if it would cooparate with me. It agreed as long as I quit being so lazy about writing. Maybe it's in the air.
ReplyDeleteAll of these sound really good, but I'm liking the appeal to story number 2. Just go with the flow or whatever story your muse seems to want to tune into at the moment! (That's how mine works!)
-Amber
Ooh, a new commenter! Welcome, Amber! I don't often get new people here, so you've made my day.
ReplyDeleteAny Woman is probably my oldest idea, but my middle is not well thought-out. I guess I need to sit down and hammer out that synopsis as well.
Merc, I forgot that you liked A Hollywood Miracle! I may want to send a few test chapters your way.
Oh man, if the drill sergeant from Full Metal Jacket were my muse, I'd have supplanted Dan Brown by now. Frankly, sometimes I think my muse got the swine flu (or polio) and just said "all yours, buddy" before he/she/it crawled cackling under the boulder of busy lifestyle. Muse schmuse, that's what I say. The metaphysics of writing are dead to me.
ReplyDeleteIt's great to post your progress, though. That way in a month you can come back and see how far you've traveled.
It's all in playful fun. Obviously, my muse isn't very scary, because I'm only getting my butt in gear now.
ReplyDeleteI should get one of those progress widgets for my sidebar.
Widgets rule, but a lot of us use Google Reader so we miss out on them. (this goes for you, too, Merc)
ReplyDeleteYeah, I agree, but it might be motivational for me to have it there.
ReplyDeleteThey're all great ideas, but I like the first one best.
ReplyDeleteLucky you, having a muse that tells you to get to work. My muse has ADD and always tries to switch to a different story -sometimes as I'm typing!
I think my muse has ADD. It likes to switch between stories. I like the first story idea, `Hollywood Miracle.' I admit, I prefer my Christian fiction to have a bit of an edge. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Chicory! I'm very heartened by how much you guys seem to like my Christian story!
ReplyDeleteThey all sound interesting to me. {Smile} I think On the Highway of Time sounds the most intriguing, with A Hollywood Miracle next, and Any Woman third because of stiff competition. {Smile}
ReplyDeleteWhat I'd do is rank them. Picking one leaves me too open to writer's block on that one. Ranking helps me switch off when one story gets stuck. Then all my stories have to get stuck at the same time for writer's block to be a real problem. {SMILE}
Anne Elizabeth Baldwin
I like the Highway of Time story as well, and it's really starting to come together in my mind. However, I still think it's at the thinking stage, so Hollywood Miracle it is.
ReplyDeleteSo you've picked a story because it's redy to be written, instead of just thought about. That makes sense! {SMILE} You can be thinking about the other one in those spare moments when writing the other just doesn't work. {SMILE}
ReplyDeleteAnne Elizabeth Baldwin