Tag: writing community

Well, *I* Think This Novel Is Getting Pretty Damn Good

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I’m in full swing editing and rewriting the first act of this novel as I prepare to get into the second act and things are going surprisingly well. Thinking about what I know about this novel in my mind, the big takeaway is it’s just not scary or twisted enough to be directly compared to, say, Gillian Flynn’s “Gone Girl” or Stieg Larsson’s “The Girl With Dragon Tattoo.”

But, even I, who have EXTREMELY HIGH expectations for any story, have to admit that this is shaping up to be, if nothing else, a really entertaining yarn. It’s the kind of story that will suck the reader in pretty fast just because they will want to see how I have a part-time sex-worker solve a murder mystery, if nothing else.

And, yet, I am so blasé and matter-of-fact about that element of the story, that I’d like to think it will be a unique twist to what people will compare it to — the “hooker with a heart of gold” and “sexxy, slutty assassin” tropes.

But there’s one thing I know — you just can’t win. If you take any risks, you are BOUND to somehow, someway offend a small, vocal minority of the audience who will be mad specifically because a smelly CIS white male dared to do anything other than stare at the ceiling and twiddle their thumbs.

So, I press forward.

I still need to work on a backup novel or two. But it’s tough. It’s really tough.

Modern Gender Politics & Pop Culture Are So Fucked Up

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

There is a small — but vocal — group of the reading audience that simply can not, will not, validate the idea that I, as a smelly CIS white male, would, at times, write from a female POV in this novel.


And it’s only going to get worse the moment they learn my heroine is a part-time stripper.

And, yet, fuck it, we’ll do it live.

I am so matter-of-fact about the sex worker side of things that I think, within the context of the novel, that it won’t be seen as too terribly gratuitous. It’s just there’s a lot –a LOT — I can do with the whole stripper side of things to make the story really interesting and enjoyable so, lulz, why not.

And Barry — which dealt with an equally surreal professional life — was a success. But that was a comedy, so, I suppose it’s not a one-to-one.

And I am well aware that someone might steal a creative march on me, given how long it’s taking me to write this damn thing. As such, I really need to start to work on some backup stories.

Welp, A New Beginning For The Third Draft — AGAIN

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Within moments of looking over the beginning of the third draft of the novel, I came up with a new, better (?) beginning. The key thing is I really get right into the part-time sex worker (stripper) element of the story.

I never know how much of these changes will stick and how much is just part of the “breathing” process of the novel where everything moves around for months and months until I FINALLY reach something I kinda, sorta like.

But I think if I’m going to do this editing and rewriting right, I need to calm down some. I need to be more methodical because otherwise, I’m just going to spin my wheels for months and months and lulz, nothing will ever get done.

Part of that is to be more active with my setting and descriptions. In past drafts, I’ve kind of been lack about shit like that because the point was to get something, anything down.

Now that I’m on the third draft, I think I need to give a lot more consideration to describing things. I have a feeling I’m doing all of this wrong, but lulz, I’m doing it in a vacuum and have no one to tell me “no.”

Squaring The Circle

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I had a bit of a conundrum on my hands today about how I was going to proceed with the development of the third draft of this novel. I finally figured out what to do — I’m going to start from the very beginning of the second act.

Maybe I’ll write a break out hit novel and it’ll be adapted by Hollywood.

I’m going to go through and read everything and fill in those scenes that I have to fill in. This way, I have some sense of where the act is beginning and don’t have to risk getting waded down in the first act. I won’t waste a month trying to make the first act “just right” before working on the second act.

Anyway, I’m pleased with the plan I’ve come up with. I have to not think too much about the convergence of AI and XR technology that may make all my hard work on this novel….quaint and moot.

I think I have a pretty good chance of at least being able to query this novel before America either turns into an autocracy or has a civil war / revolution.

I Have No Idea What I’m Doing With This Novel, Redux

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

While things feel like they’re doing pretty well, I honestly have no idea what I’m doing with this novel. But I continue to press forward. I also continue to think about how I need to give my life some structure.

Maybe my novel will be adapted into a movie one day.

I’m very grateful for this peculiar situation I find myself in that affords me the ability to — essentially — be a professional aspiring novelist, even if I have to live in poverty to do it. Of course this particular situation won’t last forever and any number of things that could happen that will, if nothing else, dramatically change the context of what’s going on in my life.

And I continue to grow unnerved with political events that are totally out of my control. Way too many people believe that if only we can defeat Trump at the polls that magically that will be enough to end the threat of MAGA.

My heroine looks a lot like this woman in my mind.

The events of January 6th, tend to make me believe that Trump could very well demand a National Divorce, and as such, prompt a civil war even if we defeat him at the polls fair and square.

As all of these thoughts fill my mind, I also worry about the possibility that AI will make all my hard work…moot…just as I’m preparing to query in late 2024, early 2025. But there would be something poetic if, rather than querying my novel, I’m dodging bullets from MAGA fascists.

But, who knows. It could go a lot of different ways. And, as such, I need to buckle down and work hard. Or, at least, a lot harder than I am at the moment.

A Complete Reboot

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Now that I’m in the second act of the third draft of this novel, I realize that I have to totally rework both the second and third acts. Pretty much, I have to throw everything up in the air.

This is obviously going to slow me down, but I know the general story of this novel so well that I think I can still — maybe –hit my deadline of roughly the April — June timeframe.

I hope.

But this week I’m going to switch gears and focus a lot more on development than writing so that by the end of the week I — should — be ready to write again. I also hope to give me life a lot more structure so I can work on some secondary stories, reading and watching.

I really, really, need to stop being so fixated on producing media and start to think about consuming other people’s content — especially if I ever hope to figure out what novels to “comp” my novel to when I query (hopefully) in late 2024, early 2025.

About To Sprint Forward (Soon)

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I’m just about to sprint forward with the “Fun & Games” part of this novel. I’ve been doing a lot of constructive daydreaming the last few days in an effort to figure out how to game the rest of the story out. It’s been really, really tough.

But I do think if I just let this process play out that I should get to writing full time again pretty soon. I was kind of sweating it there for a moment until I realized what the problem was. There really wasn’t so much a problem as I needed to go into aggressive daydreaming mode so once I left it, I could throw myself back into writing again.

As all of this is going on, of course, I realize I need to do a lot more reading and watching of TV — and develop other projects. I don’t want to be left holding the back if someone — God forbid — should somehow steal a march on me story wise and I have to fall back to some other project from scratch.

I don’t know when everything is going to sort itself out, but it should be pretty soon. That’s the plan, at least.

Of The Future Of Streaming & AI Generated Entertainment

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Streaming has totally changed the media landscape for better or for worse. And the economic equation is just so radically different that it makes you wonder what, ultimately, will be the endgame.

It seems to me that streaming is just a speedbump until AI generated entertainment takes off. And, in the end, the big winner could be live sports because people will crave some sort of real, human generated entertainment. As this is happening, we may see a pretty significant shift into people physically going to see theatre, sports and music acts for that very reason.

I’m no expert, but I do think that streaming will be seen, ultimately, as just a blip. In the end, pretty much all entertainment will be AI generated and the tiny sliver that isn’t will be given a lot of cultural value for that very reason.

Man, Was I Crazy Back In The Day

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Me (background) with an acquaintance back int my crazy days in Seoul.

At some point in late 2006, everything changed in my life. I met the now late Annie Shapiro and she changed my life. A whole lot of crazy things happened that culminated in A VERY CRAZY THIING happening around my 35 birthday.

But I try not to think about that now, many moons later.

I’m a far more sedate, introspective person now. It’s like I’ve had a brain transplant. And, really, all I want now is the opportunity to finish and query my first novel with hopes of it being a break out hit success.

To this day, I think someone could write a screenplay based on what happend between Annie Shapiro and me back in the day. That was all very, very crazy.

Revamping The ‘Fun & Games’ Portion of The Novel For The Third Draft

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

It has occurred to me that I have changed so much of the first act of the novel that I have to change the rest of the novel to accommodate those changes. As such, I am trying to give each of the investigators in the story that have a POV a “beat” that they cover.

This really helps clear things up a great deal and keeps the novel focused on a structural basis. But doing so means I pretty much have to start the Fun & Games portion of the novel (the first half of the second act) from scratch. I have some general ideas from the Second Draft, but the Third Draft is going to be, in some respects, radically different just because of all the changes I’ve made in the first act.

But, in general, I’m really pleased with what I’ve come up with in the transition from Second to Third Draft. Yet I do think I’m going to kind of chill out for a day or so to think about the exact nature of the Fun & Games part of the novel. I need to make this story a lot more clear, focused and engaging if I have any chance of pitching it to a literary agent.

At least I see the problems that exist, instead of making a fool out of myself when I try to query.