Last night I left work at 4:30. To those of you who think that makes me a slacker, I also came in at 7 and worked through lunch. Such is my day, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. My brain shuts down after about 2 or 3 pm, so making me work until 5 or 6 (or 11 or 12 like my last job) is pretty much a lost cause that garners nothing but “are we done yet? Ace (my Mabi character) needs to be level 70 before Saturday at 1”.
Anyway..at about 5:45 last night, I got an e-mail from head bossman. It said “…call me if you can.”
Let me say right now, one of the things I love about new job…I can’t get work e-mail when I’m not at work. No Crackberry. (‘oot ‘oot).
What does any of this have to do with writing? Not a clue. I’ve been struggling to draw a comparison, because it usually comes to be before the rambling is done, but I’ve come up with “I wrote yesterday at work” and “seven days a week, just like in real life”. Too loose a connection even for me. At least, right now it is.
I’ve finished a whole 2 chapters in my novella. Since it’s a novella, and therefore shorter than a novel, that should seem like a lot. Somewhere along the way, late last week, I decided it would be cool if my chapters were named after days of the week and the story spanned a week. I also decided that in between most of the chapters, I should have flashbacks.
Sweetie calls flashbacks my drug. As in I’m addicted to them and I could quit and time if I wanted, and I could definitley live without them if I decided to, but I don’t and I haven’t so I won’t.
/drug-induced tangent
After outlining two days ago, I know that my story has about 13 chapters. Which, when I think about it, makes no sense because I don’t work in chapters normally and it’s just another excuse for me to try and string random short stories together instead of writing one long cohesive story. But 13 total. As of right now, I’m only about 15% done.
Which is okay…because also after outlining the other day (and having a serious heart-to-heart with my Marine, who is an ass, but just a selfish ass and not an abusive ass like I had feared yesterday after lunch), I’m finally getting into this story.
So, for the next three hours I will sit in meetings away from my computer. I will stare at the wall while people talk about proofs and copy and all sorts of things I’m only peripherally involved in, and I will imagine how my next scenes play out. And when I get back to my computer and am waiting for sales figures to calculate, I will write them and they will be (sort of) brilliant, and all will be right with the world.
How do you feel about chapter breaks? Or, if you have no opinion, how do you feel about Blackberry’s and their place in life and business?
I never write in chapters, just let the story go. I never even thought about it until I started posting my novels on WDC and I had to break them up. In both my YA books there are fairly obvious places to break, so I used them, although it means some chapters are 2K and others are 8K. With P & P, I just chose the POV break closest to 2000 words and broke there. In my MS, there are still no chapter breaks and I don’t intend there to be…
But, in my new book, the one I’m going to try and knock out as my NaNo project, there will be chapters. It’s come to me that way. Which is kind of weird, really….
For most of my novels, I write in chapters. That is how I have things figured out and feel comfortable writing. Though, at the conference, the workshop on rewriting, suggested to write in scenes. If writing in chapters, it depends on the number and types of scenes in the chapter. Want the chapter to make sense but also to end in a way that will have the reader wanting to read the next one right away.
I used to have a blackberry and I liked it. Convenient to be able to get online whenever I wanted to, if I was lost and needed directions or wanted to check stuff on WDC. Never had a job that would use that aspect though.
As for the 4:30, I’d never say that is slacking but I leave work at 3:20 because that’s all I’m allowed to work. If I’m there more than 5.5 hours, I’ll get in trouble.
@Kate – I usually don’t write in chapters. It’s new to me for this story. I get a lot of grief on WDC for it. Not directly, but I try and split my stories into logical breaks when I post them and then people want to know why I thought that was a chapter. Decade (or whatever I call it when I give it a real name) was one that came to me in chapters.
@Dawn – I want to only be allowed to work 5.5 hours a day 😛 I have to ask permission if I want to work more tahn 8, though, so I kindo f know where you’re coming from.