Facts, Figures and Findings

To complete the circle (kinda) on the (quasi) narrative flow of the past few week’s blog posts and to provide an (abridged) summary of the goings-on for this blog (for those out there in dark who haven’t been diligently following the random musings that have spilled out of my head), all points of entry into the Land of Exposition has been barricaded by the Real Life Brigade, the Muses embarked on a Quest for a Shrubbery and all entries (except for this one, obviously) for this insane interesting have been archived and the Grand Total has been calculated.

The Grand Word Count is 74,755 words written in 123 weeks, which is an achievement in and of itself – and far exceeds the word count for any actual!writing for work in progress, though if one counts all the musings, lists and other words written about the various works in progress, then the total amount of words actually!written skyrockets… to some extraordinary number.

But I digress.

Yet again.

Anyway.

The Muses are (probably) lost in a (very expensive) forest, the Sentinels from the Real Life Brigade are (diligently) keeping watch in the night, and the random musings for this blogging journey keep rolling in (and out). It almost seems as if my life now has become the tale for which I write.

Almost.

Maybe.

While the bulk of this blog (minus the handful of Writing Prompt pieces) have been archived (i.e. I copied and pasted them into a Word document) I have yet to actually!reread what I had wrote written over the past 123 weeks. While I feel I probably should reread them (if only to correct any errors and redundancies), I hesitate to do so, as I want each entry to stand as a kind of snapshot of what was going on in my head as I was writing them at the time (a sort of stream of consciousness during this journey). It’s a (quasi) known fact that I ramble on about random things, making stuff up as I go along, writing in whatever pops into my brain and out through my fingertips and into this blog. It’s a process that seems to be working (I hope) and I’ve gotten (some) feedback of how entertaining these blog entries have been (which is a nice, since I rarely ever see any kind feedback).

Thoughts such as these happen once (or several times since I think I tend to repeat myself on a quasi-consistent basis) and should be captured and preserved as they were/are/to be in that brief moment in time. Whether or not they’ll make sense in the Grand Scheme of Things is to be seen – but for now it’s happening Now and should remain as it is Now, because you can’t really go back to Then when we’re at Now now.

Then again, when will Then be Now?

Soon.

How Soon?

Who knows?

Anyway to be quasi-serious (for a change) I have to clear my thoughts and figure out where to start, or rather where the Beginning should be. Real life things are occupying my focus and attention at the moment, and those take precedence over the writing. Once those things are settled and secure, I can return to plotting, pondering and actually!writing.

That is, if the Muses return in time (and return fairly sane).

The Land of Exposition may never be the same again.

On Adhering to a Schedule of Rambling Quasi-Aimlessly

Still quasi-locked out of the Land of Exposition – negotiations with the Real Life Brigade have moved at a snail’s pace. Finding delegates among the (Literary) Muses willing to enter into negotiations with their Real Life Brigade counterparts  has proven difficult – the Real Life sentinels have proven to be quite adept at deploying distractions as well as effective (French) taunting (and farting) in their general direction. Thus, the Literary Muses have resorted to contracting the Knights of Ni! to act as a liaison, but their demand for a (very specific) shrubbery has left the Muses perplexed.

Meanwhile, as the general WiFi signal surrounding the Land of Exposition remains fully functional, access to the FanGirl Meter (patent pending) app [also patent pending] and the online archives has rendered remote plotting and pondering possible (whether or not this is a pseudo-olive branch from the Real Life Brigade or a false sense of security remains to be seen).

Anyway.

In an effort to pass the time quasi-productively while the Muses search for the Shrubbery, I’ve taken to archiving this contents of this blog, as I have written (and posted) them directly into the WordPress site with little to no editing or revising. As I have not (yet) re-read anything I’ve written here (aside from the handful of Writing Prompt pieces, as those were written beforehand via Word), I have no idea if I’ve repeated or contradicted myself over the past two years (and four months).

Or if anything I’ve actually!written makes any semblance of sense (including this entry).

But I digress.

Whilst archiving, (and keeping an Excel spreadsheet of the actual!word count of the blog contents – as the word count in Word will count the title and date along with the contents, and because I like keeping spreadsheets of stats) I have noticed a kind of rhythm and overall tone in the entries, and the (over?)use of some phrases (two of which have already been utilized in this entry). Also, (as I’ve repeated many times in these entries) I’m (still) stupidly proud of the fact that I’ve managed to write something for this blog every week since I started the blog (in April 2013), and written at least 300-odd words. Having totaled the actual!content in the first year of blog entries (except for the aforementioned, sadly unfinished Writing Prompt Project entries) the Grand Total (thus far) is 34.644 words.

So, over the course of the first year of blogging about my writing journey, I’ve (essentially) written (or rather rambled on quasi-aimlessly) the equivalent of half a novel, had I committed the same writing ethic to writing my (many) works in progress.

Maybe I’m writing in the wrong literary genre – I seem to be more adept at quasi-essay writing (if that’s what this is called – I have no idea – or maybe it’s quasi-conversational writing?) than actual!writing.

Though, technically speaking, what I’ve been writing over the past two years (and four months) is actual!writing, but not the actual!writing I actually!should be writing.

I’m not quite sure if that makes any sense.

Nevertheless, any type of actual!writing is better than not actually!writing, so at least I’m making some sort of progress in this long and possibly long-winded journey.

And hopefully the Muses will return with the right Shrubbery and negotiations with the Real Life Brigade can begin. While remote access is (clearly possible) at this point, the roadblock(s) into the Land of Exposition need to be cleared, as the ambiance within the Land of Exposition, and the fabulous amenities at the Character Development Inn is essential to the Writing Process.

I should finish archiving the rest of these entries by this time next week, so I’ll have a (grander) Grand Total (at least up until this week’s entry) of how many words I’ve rambled in this blog.

And whether or not they can be cobbled together into quasi-Meta story.

Finding Time (and Space) in the Land of Exposition

So, Summer 2015 is (slowly) winding down – the temperature is (still) moderately high, as it should be, though I could do without the intermittent bouts of humidity, and (for the most part) all is quasi-quiet on the Western Front (and probably on the Northern, Eastern and Southern Fronts as well, Who knows?).

Anyway.

After my quasi-meta/trippy post last week – absurd yet brilliant (or brilliant yet absurd) – not (too) actual!writing, plotting or pondering has actually!happened, as Real Life has gathered its minion Muse army to form a formidable barricade around the roads to the Land of Exposition. ‘Twas an unexpected move that happened whilst I was away distracted in Camp NaNoWritMo, pondering the ponders about 50 Shades of Sunset, that quasi-parody (with not as much smut as initially giggled) of the (amazing) film and (equally amazing) stage musical Sunset Boulevard. While I actually!managed to write (and record) a word count that exceeded previous Camp NaNoWritMo sessions (and somewhere in the midst of the regular NaNoWritMo sessions), I fell (extraordinarily) short of the goal word count (which was set at 10,086, for the obvious reasons). Yes, I’m (almost always) pessimistic about most everything but that’s just how I am – I should be reveling in my (minor-ish) achievement but somehow, comparatively, it still fell short. The aforementioned (incomplete) story has joined the other works in progress waiting (quasi-patiently) to be dusted off and continued – that waiting room has grown considerably, and redecorated a few times to accommodate the different personalities and perspectives of the characters within those yet-to-be-finished stories. A minor, merry war erupted once, and was resolved with the addition of sturdy, soundproofed partitions.

But I digress.

Again.

Whilst I was in the home stretch of failing to complete yet another Camp NaNoWritMo objective, the Real Life Brigade plotted and gathered enough debris to build that barricade around all the known paths leading into the Land of Exposition. Emotive singing ensued, along with a elaborate dance break (so I’m told), ending with a huge red flag fluttering atop the barricade. While it was distressing to see it there, impeding my entry to my writing sanctuary, it was (still) a marvelous sight to behold. A stern yet quasi-friendly bunch of sentinels were keeping watch at all times, firmly yet politely informing me of the reason behind the creation of the barricade. According to them, in an effort to maximize productivity, major renovations were commissioned, rendering the entire area “unsafe” for visitors at the present time. When pressed for an estimated time of completion, and when the barricades would be taken down, they presented me with a non-answer, and gave me an all access, carte blanche voucher once it was “safe” to return.

Needless to say that there was Something Rotten in the Land of Exposition.

As the sentinels were heavily armed, I dared not to ask further questions. Nevertheless, the yen to investigate this sudden, strange (yet not unwelcoming) turn of events compelled me to search for answers. So for the past few weeks (or so) I’ve been focused on the search for clues amid the Real Life contingent, finding a massive amount of red tape and shuffling between office locations. The literary plotting and pondering has happened (albeit sporadically) during this time, but it’s remained (mostly) in the back of the Mind Palace and has yet to reach the fingertips and into Word.

Eventually it will, but not as yet.

Anyway.

This interesting turn of events has consumed (far too) much of my time and energy, yet I will continue these weekly entries, because I am committed to writing and posting something every week, with the (unrealistic?) hope of actually!writing about actual!writing about the works in progress.

TTFN!

Distractions and Digressions (revisited)

Yet I’m determined (compelled?) to write and post something here each week, even if I don’t have anything substantial to share. After all the purpose of this blog (or at least the initial brainwave) was to document (to a certain degree) my journey whilst writing my novel(s), though I have been (curiously) vague about the various works in progress. Aside from the (few) entries posted outside of my usual weekly posting schedule last year (that Writing Prompt Project, wherein I [sincerely] attempted to write something every day using a 100 writing prompt list I found online), and the (quasi) fictional three part series about the (mythical) Land of Exposition, I haven’t actually posted anything remotely fictional.

Then again, from a certain point of view, everything I’ve written and posted thus far could be considered a work of (quasi) fiction or perhaps creative non-fiction (a term which almost seems like an oxymoron).

Maybe this isn’t real.

Maybe I’m a (reticent) character in someone else’s story.

Maybe reality and fantasy collides in a curious wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey manner, where what’s real and what is not is subjective and relative.

Or maybe I’m just overthinking things.

Or I’ve become far too engrossed with the sheer complexity that is Doctor Who to make sense of things – I have taken to binge watching the Classic and Revived series (more or less in order) so…

But I digress.

I think.

Anyway.

On the other hand, art can imitate life and life can imitate art, and in imitating art, life is art and art is life (or something to that effect). I suppose the point of that digression (if there was ever a point in the first place) was to say/write that not much actual!progress has been made in the actual!writing process.

I’m sure by now those who follow this blog and actually!read each entry (are there any who actually!do this?) I tend to ramble on quasi-aimlessly (inserting the word “quasi” every now and then, along with lots of parentheses and quasi-run-on sentences that may or may not make sense but are more or less a product of my typing whatever pops in to my mind without editing what’s been written). Which is what just has happened – another instance of art imitating life imitating art imitating life.

Again, wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey.

Where was I?

Oh yes.

So real life things have quasi-distracted me from actually!writing (and to a certain degree) and interrupted the plotting and pondering process, though I’ve written/typed a good amount of plot points and character summation and probable plot twists (!) that I have (almost) enough to work with and read though to figure out what can/should/needs to be used and what should be filed (back) into the Vault. In fact, I have several (college ruled) notebooks full of musings and such written many, many moons ago that I should read through to see if anything can be used/modified for the MASC Chronicles (or the Meta series).

On the other (other) hand, that might be too daunting (confusing?) a task to undertake at this stage – mixing plot devices and character development might not be such a good idea. I’m already treading water (so to speak) with all the various narrative arcs in the multiple book series saga, the Meta series and the various fan fiction works bobbing about in my Mind Palace. Thankfully it seems as if that Mind Palace is built like the TARDIS, so it’s (far) bigger on the inside.

Well, according to the word count footer thingy on WordPress, I’ve managed to (once again) write over 500 words for this week’s blog entry.

The fact that I can accomplish this on a weekly basis in the span of a few hours gives me (some) hope that I can actually!commit to actually!write a novel. Or at least a completed first draft.

Or I can/should archive this blog, make some (?) edits and declare it to be a novel.

I’m (96.8%) sure if I actually get around to copying and pasting everything I’ve written for this blog, aside from the few actual (!) works of fiction (which I really should run through the Hemingway app to get rid of the adverbs, passive voice and hard-to-read sentences) that the total word count (thus far) is at the 50,000 mark, the word count objective to “win” NaNoWritMo.

Nevertheless, I probably should take the time to copy/paste the contents of this (mostly unedited) blog into Word, if only to keep an off-line copy, as I type my quasi-random stream of consciousness musings directly into WordPress.

It’d be fun to see if there actually is a narrative flow to this weekly blog.

TTFN!

Updates on Works in Progress (and other Random Musings)

Well.

Not so much an update but more of a way to remind myself where I am in the process of plotting, pondering and actually!writing of the various stories that (more or less) make up the epic series saga that is the MASC Chronicles. Last month, I spent (most of) my time at Camp NaNoWritMo, with the most sincere intention of actually!writing a story totally unrelated to the aforementioned series saga. As quasi-detailed in the last four blog posts, I did manage to start writing that new story, which started as a daft idea during a Facebook chat session with a fellow writer that quickly escalated into a crack!fan fiction story that blended one of my favorite films and musicals, Sunset Boulevard with one of the most ridiculed book series, 50 Shades of Grey. For the record, I’ve never read 50 Shades (nor would I ever want to) but I knew enough about the plot and the (undeserved?) hype around it that I could attempt to use it as a launchpad to write a satire. After all, there are many, many other writers writing parodies of that series, so why not join them? Also, if there’s anything remotely positive to be taken away from E.L. James and her 50 Shades saga it’s that bad writing can be profitable (and marketable if the subject matter generates enough buzz – after all, bad press is still press) and that quality writing is a rare commodity. Whether it’s in literature, or in the entertainment media (TV shows, films, theatre) good writing, or rather original writing is hard to come by – almost everything is either a remake, a sequel, or prequel, usually with younger, “sexier” actors or gender reversed casting. Of course, there’s a reason for this (or rather several reasons):  with a remake, sequel, and/or prequel, there’s already a built-in audience/fandom that will (for the most part) go see it, though depending on the subject of the TV show/film/musical, a part of the fandom (actual size may vary) will rage over the (seemingly) unnecessary changes/omissions/additions made, while others will gush over the “hot” young eye candy.

But I digress.

Yet again.

While I did make (some) headway into actually!writing 50 Shades of Sunset, I never actually got to the absurd part of the parody (though I did have intermittent giggle fits thinking about it). And as a quasi-post Camp NaNoWritMo summation session, I did manage to actually!write and log in a higher word count than I had in the two previous Camp NaNoWritMo sessions. So that’s a quasi-victory in and of itself. Whether I have enough giggle fits or the (pardon the pun) balls to continue writing that absurd story, is debatable. It’s a crack!fic I want to write some day, but first I have the (more serious-ish) novels to actually!write.

Which leads me to the actual!point of this blog entry.

Since I had been (mostly) focused on the crack!fic for Camp NaNoWritMo, I hadn’t given much thought to my other works in progress – which was good for the purposes of focusing on that crack!fic and not getting distracted by the (literally) thousands of other ideas, musings and such for the MASC Chronicles or the Meta series. Yet now that that session of Camp NaNoWritMo has ended, I shall need to shift back to “reality”, which means I’ll be heading back to that fantastical realm that is the Land of Exposition.

Fun times.

Checking (back) into the Character Development Inn will be interesting, as is finding out what the Muses have been up to whilst I’ve been away, and seeing what new bells and whistles the FanGirl Meter (patent pending) has.

Actually, most of these blog posts could be construed as a running commentary for the Meta series, and the (lack of) progress thus far. I’m still stupidly proud that I’ve kept up posting weekly for the past two and almost a half years. It’s certainly the most actual!writing I’ve actually!written in that time span. Surely the fact that I can focus on writing on average 400+ words quasi-continuously in a (roughly) 1-3 hour span every Saturday is a positive indication that I can actually!write (and complete) a novel.

Right?

Well, enough blathering here – might as well pack my (metaphoric) bags and get thee back to writing.

TTFN!