Mark Twain’s Daughter

[cathschaffstump]

I managed to get some words down, and I have the first draft of Mark Twain’s Daughter.

Yes, it’s stinky. My first drafts are always chaotic and stinky. It’s that massive mess that you make when you first redecorate the room, and there’s no real shape but a box. The plaster is in everything, and you wondered why you went into the room to rip it up in the first place.

2,464 / 4,000 (61.6%)

I *can* go up to 10K in word count. What I want to do now, is to pump up the levels of description and capture Susy’s character more. Susy is visited by notable fictional characters: Edward, whom she portrayed in a home production of her father’s novel The Prince and the Pauper, and Huck Finn, who turns out to be her opposite.

Lots of folks are referenced in the novel: her father, mother, sister Clara, long term companion Katy, and the man she thought herself in love with in Italy, the Count de Carly.

I NEED a lot more description. Dialogue. Slower pace. Characterization.

Why can’t the words just come out golden? How unfair!!!

Meh. I’m going to start some laundry, dust, and take care of cats. Not sure what I’ll do this evening, as I’m sure tv continues to be a waste land.

Catherine

Originally published at Writer Tamago. You can comment here or there.

Comments

[kizmet-42.livejournal.com]

Now for something completely different...

I was in the Oreck shop last week with my (now retired) vacuum and they have an air-filtration system that sounded like both you and Bryon would like. It sounds and moves air around like a fan, but it filters the air of dust, pollen, etc.

No idea of the cost, but I thought of you. It may be worth looking into.

[awelkin.livejournal.com]

Thank you. I shall look into this.

Catherine

[latteya.livejournal.com]

Fabulous premise!!

[kurtoons.livejournal.com]

The story I'm working on right now is told from the point of view of an orc who is having a crisis of faith. Yes, that's what I said. And I'm having difficulty getting his voice right.

In order for the story to work, it has to be told from his point of view. And although he is not civilized, he's not stupid. He's grappling with philosophical ideas and needs the vocabularly to deal with it. So I'm trying to walk the line between the two without veering into: "Ugh. Thag but mote caught in existential vortex of karmic despair" territory.

[awelkin.livejournal.com]

I think my reaction to this is nervous laughter mixed with riotous laughter.

BTW, you should read Jim Hines' goblin series for a perspective on this sort of thing. He has 3 books, predictably all the titles beginning with the word Goblin.

Catherine

[awelkin.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Catherine