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Monday update
I swear, I'm gonna catch up on my movie reviews soon. I haven't been writing them because I know I'd be using that as a way to not write this fic: I'm really, really struggling with this one scene/chapter and I'm at the stage where I'll take any excuse to write something else and I mustn't let myself.
Sunday I went to Memorabilia at the NEC. I met Sue and spent money I shouldn't have. She bought me a cool fantasy dagger and I got a couple of t-shirts. I almost bought some stuff on DVD, too - one guy had the Dexter DVDs - but I bought myself the complete Buffy and Angel a couple of weeks ago, and the complete Xena just before that (Xena was my birthday treat to myself) so I resisted. I think my DVD-time is spoken for for the next month at least!
Over ice-cream and tetley tea we talked about this fic I'm having trouble with. Sue's generally a great help when I write myself into a corner, but I don't think I explained myself too clearly. That's the problem with trying to talk in a setting like that. There was this...um, I don't really know what to call it. A giant inflatable net the people were kicking a football (I think) into - really, really hard. And it was right behind us while we were talking. Kinda distracting and I couldn't really get my thoughts in order.
My problem is I primarily write plot. No plot, no point. But for plot to work, the characterisation has to be right. I can't, say, have Jim Ellison going to the ballet just because that's where the crime is going to happen. There's got to be a reason he'd be there - undercover, maybe, or to watch a suspect. This is my problem with the scene I'm trying to write. I've already re-written it four times; I've tried different points of view, different sequences. But the issue is there's no way this particular *thing* can happen without it being a major angst-fest. And the angst-fest doesn't serve my plot. The plot needs 'em to deal with it, make a decision and move on. But that just won't work. So I've got to try to find some middle ground between the two: get the angst in there, at the same time hit the points I need to hit for the plot to move onward, provide the info, and not have my characters melt into a puddle along the way. I'm sure once I'm past this scene the rest of the story should fall into place.
Other news... we had a bit of family drama Saturday night but I'd best not talk about that as it's really about sis. Oh, and I made Irish stew in my new slow cooker: scrummy! I must try sweet-and-sour next...
At work all is frantic as our next press release is next week. All our work is done, the data's in line and everything, but before it can go to press it's all got to be approved by several bigwigs, and, well, they're all kind of occupied lately dealing with the fall out from another civil service cock up. Y'all probably saw the headlines. That wasn't my department (I suspect I wouldn't be able to blog about it if it were), but the fallout is affecting all of us. Usually when the civil service cocks up you can say "well, it could have been worse". Hard to see how this month's little disaster could have been worse.
Hope to post the next part of my fic soon!
Sunday I went to Memorabilia at the NEC. I met Sue and spent money I shouldn't have. She bought me a cool fantasy dagger and I got a couple of t-shirts. I almost bought some stuff on DVD, too - one guy had the Dexter DVDs - but I bought myself the complete Buffy and Angel a couple of weeks ago, and the complete Xena just before that (Xena was my birthday treat to myself) so I resisted. I think my DVD-time is spoken for for the next month at least!
Over ice-cream and tetley tea we talked about this fic I'm having trouble with. Sue's generally a great help when I write myself into a corner, but I don't think I explained myself too clearly. That's the problem with trying to talk in a setting like that. There was this...um, I don't really know what to call it. A giant inflatable net the people were kicking a football (I think) into - really, really hard. And it was right behind us while we were talking. Kinda distracting and I couldn't really get my thoughts in order.
My problem is I primarily write plot. No plot, no point. But for plot to work, the characterisation has to be right. I can't, say, have Jim Ellison going to the ballet just because that's where the crime is going to happen. There's got to be a reason he'd be there - undercover, maybe, or to watch a suspect. This is my problem with the scene I'm trying to write. I've already re-written it four times; I've tried different points of view, different sequences. But the issue is there's no way this particular *thing* can happen without it being a major angst-fest. And the angst-fest doesn't serve my plot. The plot needs 'em to deal with it, make a decision and move on. But that just won't work. So I've got to try to find some middle ground between the two: get the angst in there, at the same time hit the points I need to hit for the plot to move onward, provide the info, and not have my characters melt into a puddle along the way. I'm sure once I'm past this scene the rest of the story should fall into place.
Other news... we had a bit of family drama Saturday night but I'd best not talk about that as it's really about sis. Oh, and I made Irish stew in my new slow cooker: scrummy! I must try sweet-and-sour next...
At work all is frantic as our next press release is next week. All our work is done, the data's in line and everything, but before it can go to press it's all got to be approved by several bigwigs, and, well, they're all kind of occupied lately dealing with the fall out from another civil service cock up. Y'all probably saw the headlines. That wasn't my department (I suspect I wouldn't be able to blog about it if it were), but the fallout is affecting all of us. Usually when the civil service cocks up you can say "well, it could have been worse". Hard to see how this month's little disaster could have been worse.
Hope to post the next part of my fic soon!
no subject
And I enjoy your movie reviews, but you have purchased so many new TV DVDs I cannot imagine your leaving hearth and home for a theatrical release for quite awhile!
Good luck with dodging the angst-fest! I love your plots and your deft characterizations so I will trust your need to avoid the angsty situation but I cannot help but think you could handle it. Heck, I was struck by Jim as a retired ballet dancer, crabby and limping with the pre-requisite walking stick, the still magnificent body in black unitard & jazz pants, bulky casual sweater over the shoulders and knotted just so and Blair bent over the barre... stretching... ; )
Wicked woman.
no subject
LOL! No, my weekly movie is part of my normal routine. I've got several films I've seen but haven't reviewed yet. I pay for a season ticket at the theatre, you see, so if I don't use it I've wasted my money.
I will trust your need to avoid the angsty situation but I cannot help but think you could handle it.
Oh, I can. The trouble is...well. See, this is a ghost story. I started it knowing that this particular ghost was going to show, but not whether it would be real. I'm still not certain (I think maybe it's better if that stays obscure), but whether or not the characters believe it's real makes a huge difference to what happens next. And I've got to drop certain information into the scene or the story will get totally off track. Trouble is the characters seem to want off-track, because there's a lot of unfinished business in there... and so on.