Episode 36: Finding Direction (or: Chasing Amy)

Tonight at work - while I was supposed to be doing my job - my story found a direction, and took off.

I'd had nothing. No major plot, no over-arching themes, no structure, no real character development... nothing. It was just page after page of story.

I've been writing it in small chunks, or chapters if you will, out of any kind of sequence and without any real regard to any of the content I'd produced before it, or had in my head to produce after it. Sometimes this material was dependant on other, like-material, but most of the time it was not. Each chunk told its own, small story, then moved on.

Off topic: "Rocky Balboa" is a fantastic movie and I want to watch it RIGHT NOW. It would probably make me cry at some point.

Anyhow, tonight, while coming up with my very first named character (aside from the main one, I'd been using placeholder names that described the character. For example, mine would be [Author] instead of Skyler), a female character named Amy Headwright, and the situation Amy resided in, it all came together.

Now my story has a place its going. It will need a clear origin, and then after that some form of structure. Both my greatest fear and greatest hope is that, when I finish writing this monster of a story, that I will be left with all its bits and pieces strung about in no order for me to shuffle about and use to shape its final form; Safer Sephiroth.... I mean, a complete story.

But I'm far from that, now. If I had to give its completion a fraction of some kind, I would probably say it is near 2/13ths of the way done. But I just hit that second 13th tonight, and I'm thrilled as hell about it.

So, if you ever read this thing (if I ever finish, first, I guess), and you get to the first page that has Amy Headwright's name on it, know that I thank her with all my heart; she's made this mish-mash of ideas and short vignettes into something far more grand... An honest to God story.

In the near future (i.e. Thursday) I will be posting my nearly-a-week-late review of Fantastic Four 2, as well as giving you a sneak peek at my summer-long photo project.
See you all at the picture show,
-Skyler