Thursday, 25 September 2008

The Week After 'The Week After'

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Anyone got any boxing gloves?

After struggling through the weeds (or rather the Sunken Woods of Corpsetithe), I finally emerged from Chapter One of Strange Bones with a woo-hoo! Then I remembered that although it was the first chapter it wasn't actually Chapter One. I've just spent 10 days (Ha! And she thinks she can do NaNoWriMo) battling with the rewrite of the not-first-chapter and it's puny 'The Week After' header, and now I'm having a fight with the actual 'The First Chapter.' Perhaps it's angry that I've been ignoring it for days. Apple has spent the last hour glaring at Lily, but they're both glaring at me. :)

I'm not frightened girls I will get you to stand up, leave the room and go on some hideous adventures.*

*P.S. If I'm still stuck in The First Chapter in a week someone please unplug my internet connection.

20 comments:

Jamie Eyberg said...

I don't know where my writing would be without the internet too, but on the other hand I think I would get a lot more done in a day without it.

Cate Gardner said...

It's both a blessing and a curse...

Anonymous said...

Best of luck. And hey, don't sweat it...those Prologues can be tricky to write (assuming that's what "The Week After" is...)

Cate Gardner said...

Sweat? Me? As if...

sruble said...

"I'm not frightened girls I will get you to stand up, leave the room and go on some hideous adventures.*

*P.S. If I'm still stuck in The First Chapter in a week someone please unplug my internet connection. "

Ooh, hideous adventures sound fun! I'm trying to get my MCs to go out on adventures too.

I love the internet/I hate the internet. Balance is hard to find with it, isn't it?

Michael Stone said...

Hahaha! Sorry, but it's kinda funny to come across somebody who agonises over first chapters as much as me. When I started my current novel I wrote and rewrote this particular scene that I thought was Chapter One. But it felt wrong, so I decided to make it Chapter Three, maybe Four. I'm now on Chapter Fifteen, and I've yet to insert that scene.

We should be committed, you know that don't you? We're certifiable.

Jamie Eyberg said...

michael-that is so true, but once I chew through the straps it is all worthwhile.

Ed Wyrd said...

I'm not unplugging your internet! Then who am I going to avoid my own writing with?

Anne Spollen said...

I have Internet induced ADHD -- it's all so interesting sometimes.

It's just like old fashioned wool gathering, and probably good for our writing. (I'm hoping...)

Kimbra Kasch said...

It's an addiction. But there's no cure - short of loss of electricity.

:)

Aaron Polson said...

Ah, the interweb world net. What would we do with out ye? I think I feel another ode coming on...best of luck with the revision.

Cate Gardner said...

sruble - let's send them out into the woods together. :)

Michael, Jamie - I'd be certifiable even if I wasn't a writer. I love how connecting with other writers makes you realise you're normal - either that or we're all abnormal.

Ed, Anne, Kim, Aaron - Someone is going to find us stitting at our keyboards covered in cobwebs someday.

Anonymous said...

I hate it when my characters start glaring. Usually when they start misbehaving I trunk them or kill them off. I wouldn't reccomend that for Apple, of course.

J.C. Tabler said...

You have a tag stating "I'm going to kick the second chapter's ass".

I just....love that. See, I have nothing to add here. I write short stories, and wouldn't know where to begin on the novel length works.

Carrie Harris said...

You better believe that you're going to kick that chapter's ass. And then you're going to come procrastinate with the rest of us so you don't make us look too bad. :) Please?

Cate Gardner said...

Jeremy - Oh those two are always misbehaving.

JC - You're about to find out seen as you've signed up for NaNo. Besides, at 35,000 words I feel a bit cheeky calling it a novel.

Carrie - I couldn't give up procrastinating if someone ran off with my computer. I'd just have to be more creative.

K.C. Shaw said...

Hideous adventures, yay!

First chapters are horrible, especially when they're not even first. Maybe you could fool yourself into thinking it's just some chapter in the middle that's not really that important and you'll probably cut it later anyway. No pressure that way.

Mary said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Mary said...

First chapters are the worst! And the Sunken Woods of the Internet can be far too distracting. ;)

My MC is currently stuck in a garage.

Cate Gardner said...

KC - I normally hit my stride about the fourth or fifth chapter. The first always kills me. :)

Mary - Mine doesn't want to get out of bed.