by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner
Out of desperation, I have essentially shoe horned myself into the plot of the first novel. You’re not really supposed to do that — in fact, it’s seriously frowned upon — but I’m desperate. I realized there weren’t really any stakes in the first novel, so putting myself into the novel fixes that problem.
And, really, by the time the process is over, I doubt it will be a 1 to 1 when it comes to me being “in” the novel. Someone like me, someone I know, will be the protagonist, but it won’t be “me.”
But I am pleased with what I’ve managed to come up with. The story is similar to what I had, but not exactly the same. I had to do something radical to give the story some sort of point, however. Now it has a point, an emotional heart that people can identify with.
In general, my writing and storytelling ability have improved dramatically of late. I really understand these five novels well enough that I SHOULD be able to write them all pretty fast.
There is one logistical issue that I have yet to figure out — how, exactly, am I going to write these five novels. Am I going to go all the way through them, make one pass of a first draft for each, or should I focus on the first novel, try to get it published with the idea that I can, that I can then sell the other four novels?
I think, out of sheer stubbornness, I’m going to try to at least write a first (or second) draft for all five novels THEN try to sell the first one. I really love the arc of these five (3 + 2) novels and it’s just a matter of doing the hard work of developing and writing them.
