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| Recent breakthrough https://archive.holyworlds.org/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=3054 |
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| Author: | Timotheus [ May 2nd, 2011, 9:53 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Recent breakthrough |
Not enough space in the subject line to post all the areas I had a breakthrough in while doing tedious chores today. I'll start by saying I had 11 hours at work to sit at my computer and brainstorm. I became severely discouraged about the following areas of the book I'm rewriting: 1)My rewrite is getting further and further from the 1st draft, so much so that my outline is even less than a suggestion, it's barely in the same world. 2)Who's my audience? In the 1st draft, the character who became the hero 1/4 in, gets saved. In worldbuilding the religion of their past, I felt trapped in having to have my hero get saved and without a way out of it being preachy or only geared towards Christians. *Note, I want to write a book Christians can enjoy, which is subtle enough that non-Christians will subconsciously learn basic truths about the Gospel and/or lessons from God. 3)What level of technology is my world? The 1st draft was more advanced than ours, but took place in the outback of "Australia" with caves, volcanoes, magic, monsters, and steampunk kind of projectile weapons, missiles, cars, planes, etc. Today, I've thought about steampunk (don't have a clue how to write that), Iron Age type of sword and sorcery (unoriginal, but possible), and modern day with solar energy as the main source of power (don't know if that's even plausible). 4)My hero is a drug-addict, deadbeat dad that needs saved to overcome his addiction and walk with God, but I get the feeling drug-addicts are becoming a cliche. I just wrote a story with a drug addict and I'm afraid it is too much of a crutch used to garner sympathy while showing hardship. I want something special and empathetic to garner sympathy. 5)I know nothing about specific geography of where my secondary character is from, especially if I don't know the level of technology. (i.e., I don't know any of my characters without a shadow of a doubt what I know is a good choice) Alright. Here's the good news: I have answers to all these questions, whereas only hours before these all seemed helpless. This is what writing is like. You get stuck, you let your brain relax doing monotonous stuff like reading, or chores, and bam! the answer hits you right smack in head. Answer to 1) My rewrite will be better, so I don't care. Period. Get over it, writing takes time (talking to self). 2)Instead of having my character "get saved" I will have him choose to turn 180 degrees and go against what people say is evil, by trusting what "God" tells him is evil. I will have prophets and God mentioned, but it won't be like "Turn from your sins and believe in the Savior." I can show his contrition and turning to God without being so blatantly Christian. I'm not writing just to Christians, and those who are will hopefully enjoy me making them think about what he's doing. The scepter he will wield will be an illustration of him walking with God and being empowered by His Spirit against evil. 3)Originally, I had them in modern age tech. But, I feel like I struck gold when the idea came to me that they are at the end of the revolution, and the last scepter has just been taken (maybe even thrown in a volcano...no wait, too LotR). You see, the people not gifted with powers from the scepters rebel, against the gifted and all their technology. So, books are burned, buildings destroyed, scepters taken and hidden and then all who know are killed. What we have at the start of the book is a Dystopia where everything is burning or in ashes and people are looking towards the next generation of leaders to emerge from the wreckage. The cool part about this, is that the other half of the globe, which has been off limits...may not be anymore. Rumors are spreading that ships have landed from the Dark Lands to take the captive gifted ones. This sets up all of my characters like I always knew them. 4)Hero: Orino left his family on their island to help fight in the revolution on the mainland (of their island continent). He's been gone for 12 years and has seen some nasty things, mostly from his own people, and the book will start with him being ordered to torture information out of a gifted-sympathizer, who is the secondary character that will lead him back to the straight and narrow path. Instead of him being a drug addict, he is merely doing what he feels is the only way to take care of his family - war and rebellion against who he is told is the enemy: authority. This way I can show that authority, and even bad examples of authority does not make the basis for that authority wrong - such as people criticize Christians for the actions of bad Christians. Secondary: Trev is a believer forced out of hiding to rescue his insurgents inside enemy camp who have been monitoring the Drakans (Dark Land people) crossing over and funding the revolution, as well as the location of the scepter now that it has been taken. He is captured when Orino arrives and must convince Orino to set him free, risking both of their lives, in order to stop the Drakans from taking over and making the whole world dark. Antagonist: Tyree is the leader of the revolution, and old friends with Orino. He has personal motivation for rebelling, since his father was killed by his now step-father en route to taking over his father's mining business. This step-father, Feritz, faked Tyree's death and sent him to work in the mines where he was a slave for 14 years before leading the rebellion. 5) The geography is a place once booming with technology, lying in waste due to war that has lasted for over 50 years. I'm almost there for a subforum on this story, but you can see posts labeled with 12SS if you're interested. |
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| Author: | Airianna Valenshia [ May 3rd, 2011, 8:48 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Recent breakthrough |
I.... am very impressed. Good problem solving, Tim! |
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| Author: | Aisha H Mimetes [ May 3rd, 2011, 9:09 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Recent breakthrough |
This sounds interesting! ~Aisha |
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