Blurb 1.0

Right. Here it is. My first attempt at a blurb for Calibre. Some feedback would be awesome, but I'm self-aware enough to know that nobody actually looks at this, and if you have it's probably because of my direct instruction for you to do so, so just go back to my MSN/Facebook IM window and tell me there. As I said... this is my first attempt. I've never really created a blurb for a finalised product (I've made one here and there to try and stir interest amidst my friends, then go on to write nothing to assign it to). So I really do what to know how it sounds... so without further ado...

The giant pods of Pen Expers that somehow hang in the air; the town of Photo, where it always rains; the monstrosity that is Building 12... The world of the Fectoprine is a curious one. But something is terribly wrong.

As man attempts to scrub the world of a deity, the extraordinary are the enemy. Acting as the remnants of the mysterious Ruben Storm, those who possess calibres - supernatural abilities granted to seemingly random individuals - are dubbed competitors and hunted down. For it is only a matter of time until they become the ‘host’ - nothing but a projection of Ruben himself - and potentially destroy the Fectoprine... or redefine humanity itself. But what place does humanity have in this world?

Eric Paradinas is a competitor, possessing a tongue of silver that only the deaf can defy, who becomes reluctantly entangled in the ongoing battle between the two distinct sides. While both parties seem to share the same goal - destroy Ruben Storm - they have very different ideas as to how it will be done. And the clock is ticking, but only the elusive nemesis knows the ring of its chime...

So yeah. Let us know. Any good? Would you consider reading a book with this blurb? Thanks!

Actual progress!

About four weeks after I finished the first draft, I started marking it up. Admittedly, I did not pick up many errors, which was kind of frustrating as I knew they would inevitably be there. But my main goal - to ensure coherence in the next draft - is mostly achieved... on paper, at least. I'm yet to go through the actual documents and make the changes I've outlined, but I'm actually up to that stage now.
Right now, I actually feel rather stupid - it took me two fairly long days to mark up seven chapters. I could have finished this stage months ago. Now that I've arranged to have it looked over for errors and consistency by somebody else, which I believe will easily be a more effective method, it frustrates me that I put off doing something so simple for so long, thus meaning I can't send it right to them yet. However, at least soon I will have a coherent draft, with all of the crap that I don't want, cut.
I have a headache. Ttyl.

Just a note

Due to the fact that I have actually finished the first draft of Calibre, and don't really care too much to talk about the mundane editing process which I'm yet to begin, I'm probably going to start using this like an actual blog. With that said, onward...

Last night, tired impulse had me consider trying to do something a little more experimental with my time before beginning another large novel project. Funnily enough, though, the idea may be simpler when it comes to the storytelling side of it, but its complexity in structure will probably be enough to put me off the idea the moment I try to start it. Yet... that's what I thought about writing a novel less than six months ago, so I might as well talk about it.

At the moment, it's titled Erin Decides - Erin being an intentionally unisex name, as the character's identity to the reader is pretty irrelevant. It is going to be a create your own adventure. There's not really a better way to put it. And I'm well aware that, if you are my age - a nineties kid - your mind has automatically presented you (hopefully) fond memories of the CYOA Goosebumps books. That's not really the kind of thing I will be going for, though.

Instead of presenting the reader with a choice at the end of segments, Erin Decides will instead be a 'flowing' narrative - essentially a free-flowing narrative - in which the reader interacts via 'denial'. Because the reader is not Erin, Erin is able to make their own decisions. But you can deny said decisions. In context of a digital version, which will probably be the only kind, decisions are distinguished from the rest of the body of the story, like Erin doing something as simple as pouring themselves a cup of coffee. You can deny this decision, and thus the story changes accordingly. The idea is that the initial decisions made by the reader will create completely different scenarios (which means there will be no single plot for the experiment).

This will result in a huge web of possibilities - every single decision in the project will affect the story in some way, from obvious things like somehow lagging Erin's progress; to more complex interactions, most probably with other people, that will go on to echo throughout the narrative and affect it in ways that you will not realise unless you do it all again with minor changes. Yes, it is going to be fairly difficult to make, and I intend to do planning. I'm not particularly optimistic about it actually working, but it's an experiment! What's there to lose? Free time I'm currently spending on nothing, really.

Back to Calibre briefly... at the moment, I'm not touching it. I've decided to let it cool off before getting stuck into the editing. Plus, I would like to kick start another project, whether it be Erin Decides or Time & Place or Surrogate. Whatever happens, really. But I hope to brush off all of the errors and course-correct oddities in Calibre before my birthday. *shrugs* I'm not really rushed any more, but I still would like to move onward all the same.

First Draft

On Tuesday the 12th of July, I completed the final chapter of Calibre, thus finishing the first draft as a whole. I began on the 15th of February and aimed to have it completed by the 15th of August. ^_^

So, this weekend, I will officially begin editing, which I'm slightly reluctant to get it rolling, but I'll definitely regret not doing so if I put it off. I doubt I will be updating this with Calibre-related stuff for a while, so forgive neglect. However, I will update with any projects that happen to come up!

This Must Be It

Chapter Fifteen, This Must Be It, is complete. I started it this morning and finished it about five minutes ago, with several breaks (mostly spent browsing the internet and eating). This is the fastest turnaround I've ever managed.

This means there is one chapter to go before the first draft should be completed... Shit.

Chapter Fifteen focuses on... actually, no, I won't go there. :P

Somewhere Only We Know

Chapter Fourteen, Somewhere Only We Know, is complete. It's one of the shorter chapters in the story, but is still over 6'000 words. It is one of the darker chapters of the story, taking place after C13 (at first about an hour after it before returning to the immediate events after 13). It contains one of the most important revelations in the book, plus the long-awaited emergence of what Victor has described many times as "something bad".

I will be starting C15 tonight probably, which is (based on what I intend) titled This Must Be It. And this is it. C15 and 16 are the final chapters of Cailbre. Most of it is going to be wrapped up before C16, which will focus on consequence.

I'll probably find myself hopelessly procrastinating like I did with Chapter 14 out of fear that I will handle it poorly, but alas, I am still on schedule! C14 is due on the 15th, and it is the 10th. ;)

First draft should be finished by September, which is what I've hoped for for a while now (perhaps even August, depending how confident I am the moment I begin C15).

WISH ME LUCK.

Progress - 27th of June

This morning, at around one o'clock, I finished Chapter Thirteen - titled Suddenly The Trees Are Giving Way. This obviously means that Silence Before The Storm has also been completed, and right now I'm having a small break before finishing the opening segment of Chapter Fourteen, Somewhere Only We Know. (suddenly the trees are giving way somewhere only we know? GET IT?!)

Chapter 12 is a largely flash-back driven chapter, revealing something important about Vivian and Sebastian Wyre that, hopefully, will offer some kind of insight on the Fectoprine, perhaps managing another dimension in the realism of the intentions of the different sides in this story. It also presents Angelica and Marie's "coming out" stories, although I dare say these might be moved back pretty far.

Chapter 13, on the other hand, has no flash-backs at all - it is all about the nearing to the encounter of Treefingers, and a rather vicious battle between two old enemies. He's a fun little spoiler-free extract from this said battle:

It was probably fortunate that Tide was still in a daze, as it was fair to say that he may have been spared that split second of agony as he combusted, every little thing that built up his rather buffed, well-treated, young body splitting into hundreds of fun-sized pieces and riding on the torrents of blood that covered the trees and grass around him.

Anyway... Chapter 14 will introduce Ian Treale. Yes, I know, Chapter 4 did that. But Chapter 4 and most of the information in it has become dud, anyway. Plus, I have come to agree with both Charles and Jared that holding off on throwing the reader that far in the past of the timeline is a good idea and, because the fate of Treale has been decided and laid out, it is far more meaningful to look into his strange life now.

... 14, 15, 16, and, according to my (admittedly mostly mental) plan, Calibre will be complete.

Silence Before The Storm

Chapter 12 is completed, finally, at around 7200 words. It is very much a flash-back orientated chapter, focusing on some of the more grizzly encounters between competitors and enForcers. It also offers a different perspective of some events already presented in the story, as far back as Chapter 2. It mostly follows the mysterious enForcer Vivian, who shared the spotlight with Wade in the previous chapter, and Sebastian Wyre prior to his death.

I have started C13, which I haven't chosen a name for (I could call it Treefingers, but that's a little too obvious), and it is the beginning of the final stretch of the story: the group finally cross the fence into Treefingers' territory; Seth and August arrive as do Jai and Heath, a little later; and the largest pack of enForcers any of them have had to face are heading in the same direction.

Basically, everything you need to know about the past has been covered. It's time for the story to accelerate and keep its foot off the brake. ^^

The first draft of Calibre is going to be finished before August. This. Is. Exciting. I have never come close to managing this, and I never would have thought this idea of all of them - one that I was particularly precious about executing - would be my first full-length novel. Of course, a shit load of editing will follow its completion: I may or may not try getting some of my shorter story ideas on their way in this period, but my ultimate focus will still be on prepping Calibre to attempt to get it published. :)

Missing the deadline

Well, it was the fifteenth yesterday, and Chapter Twelve was not completed. I don't feel too bad about it - it's not really a case of laziness regarding why I've fallen behind, as my trip to New Zealand had a lot to do with that. But it means I'll be putting more pressure on myself this month to complete four chapters, although I might just settle with three so next month - which, according to the plan, will be the final month for the first draft - I'll be able to create a kick-ass duo of closing chapters. Right?

Chapter 12 is going to include a series of flash-backs regarding the birth of the circle which the entire book has essentially revolved around, plus the confrontation with Wade Valentine and the situation in the water station (which I don't plan to keep going on for too long). The effects of the bond will also be fleshed out more... Yeah, at this point, most of this will probably only make sense to me. But this is for self-reference, after all.

I've done a lot of thinking regarding the nature of my antagonist and, to be honest, I'm overly pretty pleased with it: it's something a little different for the kind of book that Calibre is, and it's an idea I've tried many times with little success. In fact, I know enough about what's going on now (as I damn well should) to put together a blurb... but I'm too tired to bother right now.

Five chapters to go (according to the plan)

Chapter One
Title: Come With Us by The Chemical Brothers
Focal characters: Eric and August
In lure of a potential supporter of their cause, August, Jai and Marie head to the famous Building #12. Meanwhile, an anxious competitor, Eric, is slowly but surely stalked by the Fectoprine.

Chapter Two
Title: If You Have An Enemy by Leafcutter John
Focal characters: Heath and Seth
Sebastian Wyre, a high-ranking enForcer, heads to the hotel Eric was staying in to investigate his mysterious disappearance. The fate of August is revealed, along with Seth's past encounter with the Fectoprine.

Chapter Three
Title: In All The Wrong Places by Ulrich Schnauss
Focal characters: Eric and Jai
After his disappearance from Prada Hotel, Eric heads to green hill in an attempt to distance himself from potential capture while Marie pursues him due to Victor's unusual desperation to have him join them. Jai attempts to outrun the Fectoprine after August's fall at Building #12.

For the sake of trivia, it should be noted that the first three chapters string together to make a sentence - Come with us if you have an enemy in all the wrong places.

Chapter Four
Title: Untitled
Focal characters: Marie and Heath
This chapter is to be revamped.

Chapter Five
Title: No Solitude for the Patient by Eight Frozen Modules
Focal characters: Eric and Jai
Eric finally arrives at the circle's "The Other Woman" and meets other calibre-bearers for the first time. Jai awakens in the much-feared complex, Pen Expers.

Chapter Six
Title: Pen Expers by Autechre
Focal characters: Jai
The rescue attempt begins with a semi-suicide mission to Pen Expers, while Jai is guided to some level of safety within the facilities by a mysterious accomplice, Demi.

Chapter Seven
Title: Who's Afraid Of... by Namco Sound Team (from Tekken 5)
Focal characters: None
Pen Expers lands in Photo after an unnatural flight, and The Other Woman winds up in Voteporix. The effects of the hitruix are thus revealed, and the sentique make an appearance for the first time.

Chapter Eight
Title: What You Waiting For? by Gwen Stefani
Focal characters: Victor and Yvonne
Victor's past is revealed, and the nature of Ruben Storm is explained while the circle transit from Photo back to Tirus to begin the first proper stage of their mission.

Chapter Nine
Title: You Are The Reason by capsule
Focal characters: None

Phase one of the plan goes underway - the infiltration of Dario FM begins.

Chapter Ten

Title: Between Us And Them by Ulrich Schnauss

Focal characters: August

Phase two of the plan, and Jai's sentique catches up with him while August discovers a potential strategy to deal with them.

Chapter 11 is also complete, being the second-longest chapter in the book so far. I have three days to complete Chapter 12, currently titled Silence Before The Storm. This will cover the group's encounter with the new Wade Valentine, better known by the crude nickname Treefingers. I dare say the story will be complete in sixteen chapters... which means I am almost on the home stretch, with the main characters fleshed out enough for me to go back and touch up their human-ness, and the intentions of the Circle now revealed.

In good time (most probably after Calibre is complete), I will probably be writing a short story about the character Vivian, who has only appeared in a few chapters (1, 4, 11). There is also a lot of potential for a short story - perhaps even a novella - of another calibre-bearer that has been mentioned a few times in Calibre but is never to be seen in the book. The significance of said character is omitted due to the spoil factor.

Anyway, today and tomorrow are going to be very busy if I'm going to meet my 3 chapters per month deadline, which is on the 15th. I'll update this accordingly.

You Are The Reason complete

I never thought this would actually happen, but I finished a chapter within a day of beginning it. Chapter Eight took about two weeks to complete... Chapter Nine took two days. This puts me ahead of schedule, although I'm still sure Chapter Eight will implode in the second draft.

Chapter Nine, You Are The Reason, is act one of Victor's major scheme, which involves infiltrating a radio station. The chapter also offers further insight into the characters' attitudes towards the events going on, and, more importantly, tells the reader what happened to Seth in Voteporix (which will probably be moved back into C8 when it isn't broken).

6 days left

I have six days to finish Chapter Nine, which I have begun with a decent 2000-ish words. I have completed Chapter Eight, although I don't think I will be sharing it - the whole thing is very broken, and will kind of be spread over previous chapters, particularly C4. So, I dare say after the second draft, an entire chapter will be gutted.

Chapter Nine introduces a future time line for the first time, although it is nothing drastic - the current time line is set on the trip to where the second one is set. Basically, I have done this to decrease the transportation, which would probably come across as needless filler.

Basically, C9 sees the first properly structured stage of Victor's scheme, having the group return to Tirus (the city) temporarily to attempt to discover the whereabouts of the corpse of Ian Treale. So, I have basically chosen what is going to unfold. So it's a pretty exciting time for the writing process. With the Pen Expers happenings over with, I can finally begin to draw the curtain.

Chapter Eight Progress

I have been very lazy.

Chapter Eight, Fly Like An Eagle, is currently sitting at around 6000 words... So, it isn't far from being finished. But at the same time, it carries a kind of burden: because I decidedly changed my mind about what's going to happen, I had to lay out a description of the 'problem' in the book with a wall of dialogue. It does work well enough in context (Eric finally demands Victor tell the others and himself what's going on and why they're doing what they're doing), but a lot of it should be eased in during the earlier chapters. This'll be fixed during the second draft, though.

Fly Like An Eagle focuses mostly on Victor, somebody who has been around since the second chapter but has never really stepped into the spotlight... the only other character who hasn't done this yet is Angelica. It is the most dialogue-intensive chapter of the book so far, I dare say, thanks to Victor's explanation on Ruben Storm.

What I've decided on isn't something completely surprising to myself - the first time I attempted a super-power based project, which was called Black Calibre, it had a similar threat. I've always favoured the idea of having a non-human antagonist, which is going to be the case in Calibre. It is also not unconditionally biased towards the protagonist's intentions, which is something I feel helps make the world seem more vivid: there is always to sides to a story, and that is going to be the case with Calibre.

Anyway, I hope to finish C8 by tonight. I'll update this if I manage to do so.

Chapter Seven: Complete

I should probably get back to updating this more regularly, as the idea is to offer myself a fairly vivid chronology of the writing process... but oh well. I completed Chapter Seven, Who's Afraid Of..., last night at around eight o'clock. I will have another look at it (a few events aren't really tied up, which I feel should be done in that chapter), but at the moment it's sitting at 6713 words. It reveals what occurs after Jai and Seth's exposure to hitruix, and introduces two brand new locations: Photo, a riverside community tucked in a forest where it always rains; and Voteporix, which is essentially the Antarctica of this world.

Chapter Seven is the chapter I have been most pleased with since the first one. I think this is because now that I have a solid idea what's going on, the chapter feels like it has proper momentum behind it. It also begins to introduce the Sentique, which is a huge deal in terms of plot points.

I'm hoping I will get a decent chunk of Chapter Eight done this weekend. I might be working on Saturday, but still, I have no plans that night or all day Sunday at this point.

Some things I'm definitely going to need to touch up on the second draft is, predictably, alluding more to what is going on instead of hiding it behind a curtain, pointing at it, and saying 'what's behind that is a big deal, k?' Because of the mysterious, unique nature of the story's true antagonist, I'm thankful I have Chapter Four which, at this stage, is acting much like a blank slate (because of the removal of Ian Treale, I can radically change it without affecting surrounding chapters too much).

Anyway, it's a Thursday, which means it's production day at the newspaper. Hurk. Better stop stealing McDonald's Wi-Fi and get going.

Decisions

Last night, I spent a couple of hours sitting on my thinking hammock, rocking back and forth, listening to music, and was thinking about the story. And I'm pleased to say... after six chapters, I know what's going to happen.

But this outcome comes at a price, which means extra work for the second draft: I will be removing Ian Treale as a character. He was developed as a kind of 'saviour', but was completely absent in the first three chapters. What was evident in those chapters, however, was things like a 'greater fate' than things like Pen Expers, which has also been looked into in 5/6. Despite the removal of Ian Treale, however, Treefingers will still be in Chapter 4, and will be a big deal later on...

I'll admit, I haven't done much for Chapter Seven yet. But because it is essentially the first chapter of part two of the book, I don't think this is a huge deal - I think it'll benefit if I write it on the weekend when I have a clear head and an empty schedule. :)

Chapter Six: Complete

Very late, I know. But it's complete. And it turned out very different to how I imagined it would.

It doesn't really strictly follow any one given character - with the full cast introduced, it was time to not just gently push the ball into motion, but give it a solid kick. Hence, Chapter Six includes the full infiltration of Pen Expers, and basically all of the competitors leave the city altogether by the end of it.

However... this was a decision I made about half way through it. So, the actual tying up contrasts with the first half of the chapter. This is something I don't feel I need to address at this point - it is still coherent, and will be fixed in the second draft. If I was to rewrite any chapter or do any major change to one at this point, it would be C4...

Chapter Six is currently titled Pen Expers and is currently the longest chapter by far at 8738 words. This will undoubtedly decrease in the second draft.

Because I was in a real writing mood, I started to get into Chapter Seven, Dead Men Can't Talk, They Can't Do Anything, and am at around 1000 words with it. Chapter Six's finale is similar to Chapter One's in the sense that it doesn't give much information as to what has happened to the characters and where they're going to turn out... and now it's out of the city, the tone is almost a little more lighthearted than usual, I guess you could say.

Anyway. I'm hungry. 'Bye.

Quick update

I've done some more of Chapter Six and expect it will be complete by tomorrow afternoon, leaving Sunday free for kick-starting Chapter Seven, Pen Expers. Which will ultimately mean that I finished this trio of chapters a few days faster than the first... not too bad.

This is a bit late, but a friend did a sketch of Eric, one of Calibre's main characters. I was so excited when I saw it. ^_^ Here it is...

Hopefully by tomorrow afternoon I'll be able to post a 'chapter completed' thing on here... wish me luck.

... Failure

Right, so, I missed my Sunday deadline and have done absolutely no writing this weekend, as I have been in Perth and have been spending every moment taking advantage of that fact. So, Fly Like An Eagle, Calibre's sixth chapter, will probably not be complete until this coming Sunday. However, in terms of my monthly deadlines, it will still be 5 days ahead. Yeah, that system doesn't really make that much sense, but shut up.

Chapter Six is far more fast paced than any of the other chapters in the story, presenting the readers with the first part of the infiltration (that I dare say will conclude at the end of C7). It also offers insight into different characters' attitudes towards the workings of the Circle and just generally what's happening around them, which is finally actually being unveiled.

It has sort of been indefinitely decided that the story of Calibre will be in three parts (all in one book).

Right. I'm about to watch a movie. My V pocket rocket has not had any effect on my energy levels, so I doubt I'll do any writing. D:

C6 Progress

Unlike other weeks, I have actually written a decent amount while it isn't the weekend - on Tuesday, I wrote over 2000 words, and after another heap of writing last night after work, Chapter Six is now at 3841 words. Originally, Chapter Six was going to introduce Angelica's sister... but I have actually decided to remove that character altogether. So, it will be following pretty much all of the main characters, which is something the story has not done prior to this chapter.

The chapter is currently titled Fly Like An Eagle. It is far more fast-paced than chapters before it, but it's yet to actually hit Pen Expers - however, it is offering important insight into "the pianist", who has decidedly become rather crucial, and the importance of Ian Treale and hitruix in the current events. Yeah, Chapter 4 was probably the worst of the bunch, but the information in it is important, especially in this chapter.

One of the main questions roused in this chapter are the importance of each character individually - previous chapters showed that they have a tendency to be sent out in a small group (C1) or pairs (C2/3), but the actual reason each character is involved in the Circle is at least being questioned in C6, with a few answers: eg, Angelica's 'mission' will be revealed, whereas August's will be kept a secret (with good reason...)

I dare say I'll have this chapter done by Saturday, giving me another two days to get into Chapter Seven, which will probably be called Pen Expers. Tonight, I'm going to be trying out the local writer's group - the only reason I have never done this is because I usually work late on Thursdays (it runs on the first Thursday of each month), but production night was last night... so yeah. ^_^

Jared's thoughts

Here's what Jared had to say about No Solitude For The Patient...

"No Solitude For the Patient significantly boosts the pace, and is reminscent of the high-quality writing featured in C1. Now that the world and main characters have been introduced and covered in sufficient detail the ball has clearly begun rolling, as in actually rolling... ...as opposed to stopping and starting as it had done previously. Eric is a great character and his past, while running the risk of being cliche, is handled nicely. This chapter also makes clear the timeframe of some events in previous chapters, such as the horrible situation Jai has found himself in and why Eric is needed.

However, the lack of Treale is disappointing, if only because C4 so revolved around him, with an ending that suggested he would go on to become a subject of much debate or importance throughout the succeeding chapters. Actually C4 is the most confusing chapter when compared to the other four: it is mostly in flashback, and the events that happen involving Treefingers are not particularly clear... who is Treefingers exactly? Why has Marie put everyone in danger? How is their arrival a sign?"

So, yes. I'm elated. ^^ Get it? Elations? For elated? HUR HUR HUR HUR.

No Solitude For The Patient Complete

I actually managed to get Chapter 5 done at 7090 words - about ten minutes ago, I typed the final segment of No Solitude For The Patient (named after the song by Eight Frozen Modules), rendering the chapter complete. The chapter follows Eric, who has been taken to The Other Woman; and Jai in Pen Expers, which Chapter 4 did not even really mention. Both timelines are almost parallel, maybe a few hours apart. It doesn't really matter. But the story is actually beginning to move - the wheels have begun to turn, and I'm happy with how I have started this process with C5.

So, yeah... I have now finished five chapters of Calibre... YEAAAH. If I manage to complete Chapter Six by the end of next weekend, I would have beaten my first triplet of chapters by about a week and a half. Which is cool.

Considering it’s only just struck 10pm, I’m going to try and start C6. ;)

Chapter Five Progress

After a relatively lazy week writing-wise (certainly not work-wise... gah), at around 5.00pm on Sunday, I'm at 4516 words with Chapter Five, titled No Solitude For The Patient. I've enjoyed writing what I have actually written for the chapter. It's similar to Chapter One in descriptive style (meaning there's a fair bit of it, mostly dominating the dialogue in the first two 'segments'), but is the baby steps into creating the full momentum of the plot. And yes. It will feature Jai in Pen Expers.

I'm hoping I will get it done tonight, and consider it possible to do so, as I am thoroughly enjoying the process of this chapter and have not actually had to cut anything major thus far (Chapter 4 had many parts which were removed because they were so damn boring).

Anyway. Thought I would update this. I'm going to have something to eat and then get back into it.

Chapter Four Renamed

I was browsing through some old (data) CDs and found the soundtrack of Requiem for a Dream on one of them, and noticed one of the song titles in particular. The title is far more fitting for Chapter Four, and suits the darker, calmer moments of the chapter, imo.

So, Chapter Four will no longer be named Ripples (by The Orb), and rather Ghosts of Things to Come (by Clint Mansell).

Depending whether I decide to include a particular character in the chapter, Chapter 5 with either be called No Solitude For The Patient or Who's Afraid Of... Yeah, it's pretty much dependent on the one character, and if you've read Chapter 3, I doubt I'd need to tell you who it is. If you haven't, then it wouldn't mean a thing, anyway.

Ripples - Complete

Finished the fourth chapter of Calibre today after doing the majority of it on the weekend. I'm not sure what to say about it because I'm not sure how I feel about it... But I'm sure I will revise it and fix some oddities up.

As I will be housesitting from tomorrow night, I hope to actually finish Chapter 5 by the weekend so I can make a promising start to Chapter 6 on Saturday. Somehow I doubt that will happen, though. :P

Because I'm tired and in a state of can't be fucked, I'm going to list the song references in Calibre so far for no particular reason.

• Come With Us, the title of C1, is by The Chemical Brothers from the album of the same name.
• If You Have An Enemy, the title of C2, is by Leafcutter John from the album The Housebound Spirit. Unlike C1, this track actually suits the chapter.
• In All The Wrong Places, the title of C3, is by Ulrich Schnauss from the album A Strangely Isolated Place.
• Ripples, the title of C4, is by The Orb from the album Okie Dokie It's The Orb On Kompakt.
• Pen Expers, the name of "the facility" mentioned in the first three chapters and named in C4, is by Autechre from the album Confield.
• The location Echo Beach is named after the song by Martha & The Muffins.
• The term "little fluffy clouds" is used in C3, referring to the song Little Fluffy Clouds by The Orb.
• The presence of a path on Green Hill is purposely mentioned to refer to the song Green Hill Path by Wisp.
• The Treefingers is referring to the track from Radiohead's Kid A.

That's all I can remember from the top of my head. There's probably a couple more. -shrugs- cbf.

Ripples progress

It's nearly 5pm on a Sunday afternoon and I am 4669 words into Chapter Four, now titled Ripples (after the song by The Orb). It's unfortunate that I did not get much writing done over the week to ensure I would have a solid momentum to getting it done sooner than this, but I still hope to be able to print out the completed draft tomorrow afternoon. I'm having a break at the moment, but I'm pretty confident I'll get it done.

What it's about has changed since my last update, too: it has three timelines going on and probably won't feature August at all. Instead, it will be following Ian Treale, a scientist in a time of the Fectoprine where competitors are actually called the gifted; Sebastian Wyre, about a week before the hotel incident; and finally, Eric and Marie on Green Hill, where they meet the infamous Treefingers.

It should be a more interesting chapter than Chapter 3 in the sense that it is finally shedding light on what is going on, and is easing in the last few characters who are going to be essential for the rest of the novel.

Chapter Four

I'll be honest - like every other week, I have no gotten far during the weekdays, basically falling into a "one step fowards and two step back" routine, thus I hardly make any progress. At the moment, however, it looks like it will be opening with an introduction to Ian Treale in a (so far) unidentified location. I'm hoping to also introduce Angelica and Owen, although I think I will be using C1+2's style and following two people almost exclusively: these two people for C4 being Treale and August.

I have essentially decided on what the plot is going to be sort of about, although I'm not entirely sure what is going to happen, which is what gives me more incentive to write: the less I insist on occurring in a chapter, the more I enjoy writing it. I think that's why I had a bit of trouble kick-starting In All The Wrong Places - I had decided by the end of C2 what was going to unfold in C3.

So far, I'm sitting around 500 words for Is It Any Wonder?, which I hope to do some work on tonight (considering writing tomorrow is basically out of the question). I would like to have at least 1500 words before the weekend, when the real work is put into it. I'm looking forward to writing this chapter, as I'll be introducing Pen Expers - which is to be a very important location - from two very different perspectives.

I'm pretty settled with this kind of routine - I found that when I was writing Come With Us, the "mandatory" 1000 words per day didn't really work for me at all, meaning the chapter took a lot longer than I wanted it to. So, each Sunday, I hope to be able to type the final word of the chapter of the week, print it out the next day, and then move onto the next one. Hypothetically, I'd imagine this would mean that Calibre will take approximately 16 weeks to complete. Am I going to finish it in that time frame? Probably not.

I've already started considering writing spin-offs, although I'm not going to bother just yet. I've been developing the world of the Fectoprine to be suitable for other stories - the events surrounding the ensemble of main characters, in terms of the world as a whole, aren't going to overshadow any possible sequels or other stories set in the world (so, no, Calibre is not going to end with the city exploding or anything like that at all).

OH SHI-time to do some actual work.

Chapter Three renamed and completed

After Chapter Three evolved to be fairly different to how I imagined it at first, the title Shadows did not quite fit with the what occurred, so it has been indefinitely renamed to In All The Wrong Places, named after the Ulrich Schnauss song from his album A Strangely Isolated Place.

Oh, and it's finished. Without a revision, it is currently sitting at 7212 words. This means that in my first 30 days of writing Calibre, I've written a total of 21249 and completed three full chapters. My deadlines are not based on word counts but just completion of chapters, and so I have managed to meet my own a few days ahead of schedule. I hope by this time next month, I'll be able to post a notification regarding the completion of Chapter Six. ;)

In All The Wrong Places is unlike the other two chapters in the sense that it isn't totally strict with who it follows - its main purpose in the story is to outline what happened to the characters after Come With Us and bring the two timelines into perfect synchronization. It has a bit of action orientation, particularly with Jai's part, and also actually names the 'redhead' who appeared in If You Have An Enemy.

I'm looking forward to writing Chapter Four, as I don't really feel obligated to do anything. With Chapter Three, it was really about time that I said what happened after the Building #12 incident at least. But Chapter Four will hopefully introduce some new important characters, and will definitely begin to lean towards letting on what the hell is going on. :P

Right. No moar typing.

Shadows Progress

So today I bought iWork for my laptop for $75 from work, thus getting rid of the additional step in starting up Pages. To celebrate, I did some actual writing, which is more than can be said for Monday onwards. In fact, I did over 1500 words, knocking up C3's word count to 3623 so far (yes, it seems contradictory of my last post, but I deleted a lot of one particular scene because it was crap before).

So far, Shadows is following the same kind of thing as If You Have An Enemy in the sense that it's significantly different from the chapters before it - there isn't really any strict focus characters when it comes to what the narrator actually follows; rather, it presents what's going on with the characters sometimes indirectly. Shadows basically starts right where Come With Us left off, so it's sort of getting the ball rolling a little more than C2 did. In what I have written so far, it has introduced a very important location. I'm still not sure if I'll be introducing any new characters until I feel I have fleshed out the mains so far (Eric, August, Jai, Marie, Seth). But this is undoubtedly going to be following an ensemble, so who knows...

Right. 12.24am. I'm going to sleep.

(Lack Of) Progress

I've had a fairly solid start to the third chapter, Shadows - it's currently sitting at around 2000 words, which is more than could be said when I stalled a little with C2. So far the main focus has been on Eric after the hotel incident, while also giving the redhead some attention. It will also feature Marie and Jai (will probably be more focused on Marie as C1 almost ignored her), showing what happened at Building 12 after August's fall.

I'm pretty confident this will be a less confusing chapter than If You Have An Enemy, with further insight on what the city is like, as well as a bit of the history of calibre-related incidents. Hopefully by the end of the chapter, I would have killed the lagging timeline altogether so I can go further back in later chapters (which is something I hope to do in C4). I'm unsure if it will introduce any new characters, though, which is a bit of a bummer.

Right. I'm going to go in my room and try to do some writing (and probably fail). 'Night.

Thoughts

Here is what Jared has said about Come With Us and If You Have An Enemy:

Both chapters convey different moods and tones: C1 feels very morose with a hint of mystery and danger, whereas C2 gives off a 'calm before the storm' vibe and, with the exception of its jarring final scene, feels very retrospective.

When comparing both chapters Come With Us is very descriptive - you could possibly shorten some of the description and still tell the same story. I don't necessarily mean get rid of sentences, but to shorten or replace them with something a little snappier. Obviously it's incredibly well-written and one of the greatest things that can be said of it is that it doesn't end on a cliff-hanger.

If You Have An Enemy has perfect description yet feels a little bit like a kaleidoscope. It is more varied than C1 in its locations and events, so therefore quite a lot happens. In ways it is more interesting than C1, yet some things stand out for me: Calibre-bearer hunting being described as a "popular sport" feels cliché... and the use of blue smoke raises questions which I trust you'll address...

I like how C2 goes back in time and how the reader is thrown into the scenes; it is surprising and works brilliantly. Seth's portrayal in the two chapters is also strikingly different, yet believable - I liked this a lot.

The final scene is probably the most poorly handled thing in the entire chapter because, although interesting, jars completely with everything that previously occurred within the chapter. It's a massive shift in tone (a calibre capable of THAT, the others seemed relatively innocent). It's a good idea and the execution is by no means 'bad', the only problem is that it requires I continue reading C3 immediately after it to really appreciate it - which of course I cannot do yet. ;P Until I can this paragraph is more of an observation than a criticism.

To be honest there are no real problems to whine about... just keep on doing' what you're doing - you're onto something great here. ;)

Oh! Name a chapter after an Autechre title. XD (Haha… DON’T. !_!)

Needless to say, I am very pleased. ^^ Oh, and Chapter Two now stands at 6582 words after a revision.

Oh, and here is what Charles had to say about C2:

Another captivatin’ chapter. I did find the changing of scenes confusing, as well as the different characters - just working out who was saying and doing what at some points was a bit of a task. However, it’s always a good idea to explore the backgrounds of characters in the second chapter, and you’ve done so quite brilliantly.

C2 Writing and C1 Responses

I've just completed the first draft of Chapter Two, If You Have An Enemy. Indeed, I'm at least a week late in doing so, but it is pretty much done now. I have 11 days left on my Pages trial (the word processing software I am using), which means the first two chapters of Calibre took 19 days to complete. Considering I work full time and the chapters are rather long, that isn't too bad. Oh, and Chapter Two is 6352 words long at the moment.

While I do consider it to be complete, I am definitely going to revise it tomorrow when it is a suitable time - it just struck 3AM, and so I frankly cannot be assed to do something like that right now. It may or may not bump up the word count a little, as no doubt what I have written between 1AM and now is probably pretty sketchy, but the events won't change much.

Compared to Come With Us, If You Have An Enemy is less description intensive and has more dialogue than its predecessor. It follows Wyre, a new character, and Seth, who was introduced in C1, but not really developed at all.

Speaking of Chapter One, I have received a bit more feedback since my last post. I sent the chapter to Charlie, and in return had it sent back with a series of notes which have proven to be very useful (detailing things that the others didn't really mention, particularly consistency of writing style). Jared's "Kane is a God." response was very encouraging, to say the least.

Stephen also read it, responding with "I enjoyed Calibre. Action Jackson. V. nice." on my Facebook wall, although going on to argue that the end of Chapter One was rather terrible. However, as will hopefully become at least a little clearer in If You Have An Enemy, it was important for this to happen. The others just thought that that particular calibre may be a little overpowered. I'm still waiting on a response from Damian (www.oddscribblings.blogger.com) and Nicole.

As I've said before, chapters from now on are only going to be given to an exclusive few, and I probably won't be sharing Chapter Two until I am completely content with it (so, no, you won't see anything like herpy derpy in it).

So now... I'm going to sleep, damn it. 'Night, nobody.

So far...

If you've come across this blog and are facing this post, it is probably to my own misfortune, as I was not intending to really share it around until there was actually some decent material on it. This is really mostly for self-reference: I doubt Calibre will be a serial release, except to a select few. But nonetheless, my progress so far...

I have created a solid draft of Chapter One, titled Come With Us, which introduces calibre-bearing characters like Eric, who has a curious charm and a tongue of silver; August, a girl with an icy touch; Jai, who can walk on walls; and Marie, who can walk through them. It offers very little explanation of the workings of the city or what it consists of (it leaves out the name entirely), and mostly just alludes to the character's unique abilities. This chapter in it's current state (finished, but no doubt riddled with errors) is 7653 words. I have considered including a prologue, although I probably won't end up doing so.

I've sent this draft to a few people, and the two who got back to me were very positive and eager to see Chapter Two when it is complete (although I am not sure if I will share future chapters beyond the few people I am going to use for primary feedback, who are not yet completely determined).

Since then, I have started working on Chapter Two, as I have had a bad habit in the past of making a solid first chapter and then just ceasing writing. It is titled If You Have An Enemy and introduces a new character, General Sebastian Wyre, and that's all I really want to reveal at this point. It is currently sitting at 3858 words. I'm pretty sure it will be shorter than Chapter One, although I never expected Come With Us to be as long as it is, anyway.

The thing that has really motivated me so far with this attempt (and believe me, I have made many failed attempts at writing this story, which I am extremely precious about) is the fact that I have gone into it blind, enabling myself to take my time with each moment, and be fairly unaware what is going to happen with the characters I am creating.

Anyway, my lunch break is nearly over, and I doubt I will revisit this until a few more chapters are done... Christ, I sound so serious. Have fuuuuuuuuuuuun.