Lifting the moratorium…
I haven’t written about the novel in a long time here. That isn’t going to change dramatically.
But I’ve been working on it lately and having a lot of fun doing it, so that I do want to talk about.
For those of you playing at home, my novel is a (switching apps) 763 page behemoth of a Word document that I am editing down to its fighting weight.
Most of the time I wasn’t writing about it, I wasn’t working on it. I have always insisted that the mood of the writer as they write their book is present in the subtext of the book, so whenever I didn’t like what “subtext” I would be putting out there, I didn’t work on it.
But lately, it has been fun again. I see a lot of my previous stumbling blocks as procrastination in disguise. The framing device that I believe I went on and on about in previous entries? I don’t think it matters. In “Reading Like A Writer,” Francine Prose eviscerated my notion that the narrator had to be rooted at some fixed point in time and have a reason to be telling the story, by showing example after example of amazing works of fiction that break this rule blatantly. Even my own reading of Mansfield Park found the device to be naked and useless. So, if Jane Austen can break the rules…
Of course, a framing device that helps ratchet up the tension actually just indicates a narrative that needs more action.
But, honestly, the writing isn’t as academic as all of that, either. Most of this stuff is all happening under the hood; when I’m working on a chapter, it is just about two things, making that chapter the best it can be and making sure it is funny. Funny books don’t just have a joke here and there, they make people smile for the duration of the read, between laughs, as well. That is the goal.
I have mentioned to a few people how much the structure of my novel would lend itself to being a Broadway musical, and I can say that nothing would fascinate me more than seeing such a thing. But, for today, I need to process words and finish the book.
I found a great quote the other day, or did it find me (well, it was on the cap of the iced tea I ordered at herbivore. Damn, just writing herbivore means I have to have a shwarma there in the next few days now, oh well). Anyway, the quote was from Josh Billings: “Be like a postage stamp. Stick to one thing until you get there.”
Not really pithy, but oh well…
Oasis has been a lot of fun, now that the launch is really on. I’m still coming up with ways to make it seem like one unified site and not a weird hybrid of a celebrity/pop culture site fused onto a youth community site, but that will sort itself out. Plus, the distinction will be less important when both URLs are up and running, as teens who want a community site with celebrity stuff more in the background can enter the second URL instead.
Might be some odd jobs floating my way soon, so that will smooth rent over a bit longer. Worst case scenario, I may have to dip into my retirement stuff a bit to get me through the novel and the possible move to NYC. We’ll see what happens.
In other news, I screwed up my ankle somehow (probably just had it awkwardly positioned for a session of aggressive cardio), so haven’t been to the gym lately. But I got a nice little ankle thing that has an insert you can put in the freezer, so that’s good. Easy to toss some frozen corn on it on the couch, but this hooks onto my foot nicely, allowing for it to heal while I sit at the computer, too. Should be resolved by this week, and I can go kick-start that again.
Ok, if I’m talking about putting frozen corn on my foot, i think that’s an indication I’m running out of material and should instead go work on the novel some more for today. 
