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: