I is for Ideas and Investment

(Post 9 on my WIP)

I’d tried NaNoWriMo a few times with the same old idea that I’d had since before uni (which involved Vampires! – Pre-Twilight but Buffy had just started) and I barely made 2,000 words for a number of years, I think because I had already started it and was already invested in making it ‘right’.
So for November 2010 I decided I’d try something new that I wasn’t so invested in. The whole idea of NaNoWriMo is to go for quantity over quality, cutting off your inner editor and just writing, writing, writing that first draft with the plan to edit at a later date.

I really wanted to succeed having decided to gain sponsorship for completing the challenge. My Auntie had been diagnosed with cancer so I chose Cancer Research UK as the charity to support (she actually passed away in December 2011 and I still have plans to organise something to raise money for the Hospice that cared for her in her last days).

I read a post last week (sorry can’t remember where now, visited too many good blogs – do tell me if it was yours) about people thinking writers have to have some special power and one foot in a special world of inspiration and then once they have their idea everything forms and comes together like magic. But as most writers themselves know really it takes a lot more hard work and stress and hair pulling than that.

So, where did I get the idea for Training Time?

Well after I’d decided I was in NaNo for the long haul this year I woke up one morning with this idea. Magic, hey?
Well no, not really. To be honest I wish I’d written down then what the actual dream had been about because I can’t remember now. I just know that there was a girl and she was going to a time police academy. I think (sorry my memory really is shocking) this was actually only a few days before the challenge started but I decided to do a bit of work on identifying characters and I came up with a list of 30+ prompt images/scenes etc to keep me inspired. So I guess I started with a bit of ‘plotting’ but only at a basic level – then I moved to a lot of ‘pantsing’ writing in a notebook or iPad on trains in Italy while I was on holiday. Then I came back and went to work and didn’t get much written. Eventually in the last weekend of the challenge I wrote 12-15 thousand words on the Saturday and Sunday to reach my target skipping to the end because ‘I wanted to know how it ended’.

Then I literally did nothing with it until Nov 2011 other than look at it every now and then and only managed to add 10,000 words in that month before sending it off to Beta-readers (as I’d promised). Now I’m back to ‘plotting’ stage and using Scrivener (more about that in a later post) to organise myself. I think because this book is about time travel it is going to need more intricate planning to make sure everything is where it is meant to be (more on that later too). I also think I work better in chunks of time. I know all the advice is to write a little every day but this just doesn’t seem to work for me (it never has with essays either).

Of course I’ve heard all of the horror stories of your first completed novel being a load of rubbish and often consigned to the back os a drawer never to be seen again but I really hope thats not the case and that it gets to be published even if I’m the one doing it myself. Because now I’m well and truly invested and already talking about sequels before I’ve completed the first.

Do you write everyday or have a different routine?
Where do you get your Ideas from?
Do stories pop into your head fully formed or require lots of nurturing?

Actually I’m wondering if everyone just has a bad memory like me so thinks ideas come from nowhere.

H is for Hand-to-Hand Combat

(Post 8 on my WIP)

Everyone needs to know how to protect themselves and the trainees of the time police academy are no different.
Sergeants Loughlin Hall and Diana Knott are responsible for developing the trainees’ fitness and physical skills, putting them through a gruelling circuits test (which most of them fail on their first attempt) and teaching them specific techniques to use in hand-to-hand combat or to deal with grabs or attacks with hand held weapons when they themselves are unarmed.

The two trainers aptly demonstrate that size isn’t everything and that everyone can use these techniques with success.

I have selected Dwayne Johnson to represent the ‘built like a brick shit house’ – well over 6’ Loughlin and Kristin Bell, at 5’1” as the petite Diana – and believe me she doesn’t need that gun to be scary. She was closely involved in investigating the serial killing case involving Angela. Working undercover as a ‘homeless teen’ she became extremely close to the killer’s third victim.
The trainees complain of having to practice these techniques so frequently but I know from clinical practice that it is so easy to forget them if you aren’t using them regularly. They are told in no uncertain terms by Diana, ‘You use it or you lose your life.’ She wishes that she had taught her friend these skills and plays the ‘what if’ game far too often.

On a side note I remember having ‘Personal Safety’ lessons at school with Phil Norman of UK Gladiators fame (Yes, really) where we learnt some useful breakaway and ‘floor’ techniques, some of which I vaguely recollect, such as carrying your keys between your fingers, using a personal alarm and as soon as you can running as far away as possible.
Of course in some situations using de-escalation strategies would be just as important – they are taught these in Communications by Sergeant Graham Brand who I’ve decided could be played by Martin Freeman.

Now hands up who wants to be first to tackle Loughlin or Diana?

G is for Gabrielle Sanders

(Post 7 on my WIP)

Gabrielle has already introduced herself on this blog – here.

This is what we overheard her saying to her groupies, Linda and Jessica.

Jane is not an academic rival. I know I’m far superior to her in almost every subject. I also know I’ve had to work hard for that achievement, and she seems to waltz in on the back on nepotism, maybe Commander Trainer should review ethical principle one.
The hottest guy in the class Kyle seems to have fallen for her and is attracted to her for some reason. He is so my type. He’s asked for help with his assignments so I think he might like me too. I’m sure he’d have no problems completing them himself but I’m happy to help and get to know him better.

Character wise Gabrielle shares similar character traits with Blair Waldorf from Gossip Girl, is Kyle her Chuck Bass? (Image from imdb.com)

Also, I’m after your help for my Q post which will be on  ‘Questions Answered’ – please head over to my Facebook Page if you’ve been inspired to ask me anything and then come back on Thursday 19th April for the answers. Of course I’m still more than happy to receive your comments on today’s post too.