I had one goal that I wanted to accomplish today: I wanted to map out the next five chapters of "Perfect Life for Large Price" because I wanted to help myself understand where I was going, and make help light the fire for me to complete the next chapter. After a conversation with my mother yesterday, I just really felt motivated to get moving on this project and get it finished after all of the time and work I've already put into it. There is no reason it shouldn't get completed.
So, what did I do? I decided that I wanted to create a file for "Waited on a Line of Greens & Blues" and get the chapter titles going and put in order. For that novel, each chapter will be a song title, for a song that I believe would be the perfect soundtrack to that particular series of events that occur in the chapter. It's also helping me organize the flow of the story a little better. So, it wasn't a bad idea, it just trumped my original idea.
Then, as I was trying to organize all of my Word Documents into folders based on the novels they are associated with, I came across the first two chapters (well, one completed chapter and one partial) and the character bios for a story I started working on in February of 2010.
"Forever Got A Lot Shorter" was a novel that I started working on, and only abandoned because I fell in love with my concept for "Perfect Life For Large Price", if not for that Sci-Fi Novel (which I still LOVE), I'd probably be twenty-eight chapters into "Forever Got A Lot Shorter" - instead of just one and a half.
So, THEN what did I do? I spent two hours re-writing and expanding the characters biographies and personalities and interconnections and events that happen to them and the group. Now, I'm sitting here with hundreds of ideas and concepts spinning around those characters. Which is cool, and great, and I'm happy that I spent today writing and being creative and productive - but in a sad way, I wish I would have just focused all of this energy on "Perfect Life For Large Price", so that I can get closer to finishing that product, which I REALLY love. "Forever Got A Lot Shorter" actually started as a script for a feature film I wanted to write in 2001. It revolved around a group of friends who all worked in a bar (a concept that is sort of being integrated into "Waited on a Line of Greens & Blues") who had to deal with the drama of their customers, friends, and relationships. Things got complicated when one of the men got involved with one of the girls, who was more of a free-spirit and didn't take things as seriously as he did. This caused ripples and rifts in all of their abilities to work together. This script was shelved in 2003, when I began writing and working on my film "Reunion", and it never really got looked at again, until I came up with the idea for the novel. Once you read the following summary, you'll easily be able to see the evolution of the project.
So, while it's fresh in my head, here's the quick plot summary for "Forever Got a Lot Shorter":
June 7th, 1996 was the day the film "The Rock" opened in North America. It was also the day first day of employment at Clearwater Cinemas for teenagers Michael McKenzie, Leslie Newbury, and Troy Dolan. On this day, they would be introduced to their manager Damon Nelson, their co-worker Claire Clark, and a quirky projectionist named Jackson Hunter. On this day, these six individuals, from varying backgrounds, begin friendships that will stay with them for the rest of their lives.
Fourteen years later, the entire group has been brought back together for the funeral of one of its members.
Through flashbacks, their friendships and relationships are exposed. From their college years to all of the times when they each left the Cinema only to eventually return to working there. The group will share their dreams with each other, and stand by each other as they fail. Resentment and betrayal tear apart some members, and put other friendships into resolved states.
However, in the wake of losing someone so important to all of them, the group puts aside their problems and issues, to spend another day celebrating the years of memories they have given each other. During this time, secrets are revealed. Some small and innocent, regarding secret sexual encounters or anonymous mischief that was achieved. However, the accidental discovery of a letter, changes everything and puts their friend's life and accomplishments into a new light. But, a light that has damaging effects on some people outside of their group.
The novel opens in 2010, at the viewing for the deceased friend. This "present time" is being narrated from the first person, thus denying the reader knowledge of who the storyteller is. This fact won't be revealed until halfway to two-thirds of the way through the book. This is to keep the reader unaware of which character is actually deceased. Gradually, main characters will show up at the viewing, and eliminating them from the reader's query, until it is revealed who has passed away.
Odd numbered chapters will be set in the "present" at the viewing, and then eventually the funeral and the gathering afterwards. Even numbered chapters will begin on June 7th, 1996 and progress in chronological order throughout the next twelve-ish years. There will be some gap between the last flashback chapter and where the novel picks up. However, the important events of these two years will be covered in conversations once the plot shifts to only the "present" which will likely be the final five chapters, or so.
So, YEAH. Now I've got these gears turning and I'm coming up with all kinds of ideas to continue this novel.
Sadly, all I really want to do is finish up "Perfect Life For Large Price", get a couple of people to proof it for me, make some revisions and get it out there and try to move a few copies. It would get me to my goal of being paid for my writing. And once I hit that point, and actually got a few dollars for all of my hard work on that novel, it would be much, much easier to knock out the next two.
I'm hoping I don't come up with anymore ideas. I think this will be a nice trilogy of novels under my name.
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