Tag: novel

Worried About The Singularity Making My Scifi Dramedy Novel Moot

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Predicting the near future is tough. I keep putting my self on the edge of what may happen, not knowing if by the time the novel actually comes out it all may seen rather quaint.

But, given what the tip of my technology spear is, I kind of have to indulge in those type of calculated risks.

The big thing I’m most worried about is the idea that the Singularity will happen between that magical time I actually sell the novel and when it actually comes out. That would really suck. The Singularity and a civil war / revolution happening are my two big fears about this novel, over and above if I will ever actually get it sold before I die.

Anyway. It’s just on of those things. My dad said no one ever got anywhere in this world without taking a risk and he was right. So, lulz? I just have to accept that I’ve kind of gotten myself into a situation that I don’t really have any control over. I really like the premise of this novel, but there are some innate, inherent risks associated with writing the type of novel I want to write.

Especially given the way I want to publish it, which is the traditional manner, rather than self-publishing. I will just be glad when this damn thing is over with and I go to the next phase, which is querying.

I Guess My Female Romantic Lead is More Like Alexa Chung or Emma Chamberlain Now

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I found a new setting for the scifi dramedy novel I’m working on and, as such, I realized I needed to ditch the Emrata element of this novel and make my female romantic lead a fashion It Girl.

Emma Chamberlain

In my mind, she’s more Emma Chamberlain than Alexa Chung, but lulz.

I just need to shut up and write, as they say. But I’m totally extroverted and have no one to talk to, so I vent on this blog.

But, in general, I’m reasonably pleased with how the novel is going, even with a dramatic reimagining. It’s just a matter of putting in the hard work and getting things done.

I just hope things don’t collapse again. That really sucked.

Black Mirror Is Probably Going to Totally Steal A Creative March On Me

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

The premise of my scifi dramedy novel I’m working on is very much similar to a Black Mirror episode of TV. So, I’m kind of worried by the time I finish the novel that people will dismiss it as just a really long Black Mirror episode.

And, yet, I can’t think like that.

I have to keep going. I can’t just give up because of something that might happen.

Though, I am a little nervous my idea literally already has been a Black Mirror episode and I just don’t know about.

I Resemble That Remark

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner
In another instance of Tik-Tok knowing a little bit too much about me, I got pushed a video of a female comic who essentially nailed my novel ideal down exactly and made fun of it.

This has rattled my cage on more than one level.

One issue is I really need to confront head on the criticisms of the comic as I write the novel, at least for own peace of mind. I know she was just joking around, but there was a serious undertone to the humor. I need to buckle down and really confront head on her observations in the text of the novel.

And, yet, I have to keep going. This is a really good idea and it’s just a matter of going through and writing the thing out. I have — with the help of Claude LLM — a general sense of the novel’s flow via an outline I just have to fill out.

It is going to be interesting to see how long it takes me to do that. I still would like to wrap this thing up by late spring 2026, but…I don’t know. I can’t afford to have the novel collapse in on me too many more times.

Collapse & Rebirth

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Welp, the Emrata-inspired part of the novel is no more, or, at least, its context is going to be dramatically different. The whole novel collapsed once I started working on the “fun and games” part of the beta draft.

My hero was was, way, way, too passive. He did not move the plot forward in his actions and there came a point when I realized the whole plot was collapsing in on itself. I just did not believe in what I was writing anymore.

So. Back to the drawing board. I have started an entirely new outline. I’m really leaning into the astonishing creative writing abilities of Claude LLM to help me develop this new version, to the point that I’m seriously thinking of subscribing to it. I don’t know if I’m prepared to pay $20 a month for ANOTHER LLM, but it’s so good at what I need it to do, that I’m tempted

Very tempted.

I’m just barely making ends meet at this moment and I don’t know if I’m prepared to incur yet another monthly bill. I think if I can get off my ass and cancel some of the streaming services that I never, ever use that I can better afford Claude. But, I don’t know, I’m not QUITE there yet.

But I’m drifting in that direction.

I still really enjoy using Gemini 2.5 pro, it just glazes me too much and while it’s really good at conversational stuff, it is somewhat lacking in creative writing.

Anyway. I’ve been down in the dumps the last few days since this plot collapse took place because it’s like, “Fuck. Not again.”

I’m running out of time. And, yet, I do have AI to help me, so will hopefully speed the process up some.

Ugh. A New Worry About This Scifi Dramedy Novel I’m Working On

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I can be really insecure about my writing at times. And today is no difference. I am worried that me basing my novel, essentially, on how beautiful Emily Ratajkowski is will come across as…uhh….creepy?

Emrata

And, yet, it’s not fan fiction. I don’t use her literal name. Think of her as more of…a muse.

So, I think I just have to prepare myself for that possibly, while staying true to myself. I think it should be fine, but I guess I had to kind of get that particular fear out of my system.

The State Of This Scifi Dramedy Novel I’m Working On For October 5th, 2025

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I’m coming up on the 20th anniversary of a confounding, astonishing moment in my life. The brief period between July 06 and February 07 was simply the craziest, most interesting time in my life to date.

The female romatic lead of the scifi dramedy I’m working on looks like Emrata in my mind as I write things out.

With that in mind, I’m hoping that I can wrap up this scifi dramedy novel I’m working on and query it no later than the fall of 2026.

But. I was using Claude to help me with development recently and it said some shit that really gave me pause for thought. It made it clear it thought my protagonist was too passive. Also, it did not like that my “fun and games” portion of my story was a little too dark and tense, as if it was more the second half of the second act, not the first.

And THEN, later, it also proposed that I totally restructure the story altogether.

Once I gave it some pushback, however, it seriously backtracked from its criticism and kind of threw up its arms and said, “Whatever. Let’s get to work.”

But the experience has left me with lingering self-doubt and insecurity. And, yet, I’ve kind of gone too far down the path of doing things the way I have set up. It could take me months to reconfigure the novel to meet Claude’s demands.

So. I’m just going to wing it, keep going the way I am and hope that I can make my hero as proactive in the context of what I’ve already established. I’m also going to keep going and hope for the best.

It Is Better To Have Loved & Lost, Than Never Loved At All

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I look back over my life and I sometimes wince. I’m not perfect. No one is, but I worry that maybe my wild life in Seoul may come back to bite me in the ass if I should happen to somehow, magically “make it big” via this scifi dramedy I’m writing.

I didn’t do anything THAT BAD in Seoul (or otherwise) but we live in a very touchy world and some of the things I did do, if seen out of context, might…uhhh…not exactly help me going forward.

But the old Shakespeare quote about it’s better to have loved and lost than never loved at all comes to mind. I’d much rather have a taste of success and have it taken away from me for a dumb mistake in the past than never experience it at all.

The only reason why I even bring this up is I’m kind of pumped about this scifi dramedy I’m working on. It’s not perfect, but it’s definitely shaping up to be good enough to query.

I just hope my life doesn’t collapse before I at least have a shot at querying this thing. It really is that good.

I Need To Distract Myself

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Now that I’ve finished what I hope will be the first act of the second draft of this scifi dramedy I’ve been working on, I find myself in a bit of a limbo. I know I want to throw myself into the first half of the second act, but…I also want to pause just a moment to collect my thoughts before doing so.

If I had *any* money I would take the Chinatown bus to NYC this weekend. Or something. Something like that. But, alas, I’m flat broke. As always.

So. I don’t know. I have been toying with the idea of seeing One Battle After Another AGAIN but…I don’t know about that, either. Seeing a movie twice typically isn’t my style.

I think what I might do is just cool my creative heels for the rest of today and then throw myself into writing and developing again tomorrow. That seems like a tentative plan.

Just About Done The First Act Of The Second Draft Of The Scifi Dramedy Novel I’m Working On

After strategic expansion to improve narrative flow, I’m close to completing the first act of my sci-fi dramedy novel. The quality feels query-ready, though I’m experiencing some anxiety about the timeline and competitive landscape.

I feel urgency to finish quickly, driven by multiple concerns. The novel’s premise is fairly accessible, which makes me worry someone might execute a similar concept first. That said, multiple works can successfully explore the same territory—the execution matters more than the idea.

Part of me still wishes this could be a screenplay instead, but I’ve accepted that’s not the path forward. (Unless the technological singularity grants me anti-aging technology and a 500-year lifespan, but I’m not counting on it.)

I maintain my “AI First” approach to development while keeping a clear boundary: AI helps me develop and refine the structure, but I write every word of the actual prose myself. This distinction matters to me. I’d rather produce flawed human writing than polished AI-generated text. The novel’s quality needs to reflect my craft, not an algorithm’s output.

For story development, though? AI assistance has been invaluable.

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