Another 50k!

Today, I wrote until I had two and a half pages, then got annoyed that Adir was being so blah today, and wrote someone else until I had gotten through 2k. I took a break to play Star Wars cards with Tom (which I lost, miserably, surprise). I kept writing until my word count hit 50k, then came over to check and see what the Official NaNoWriMo Word Counter sapped out of my count, while another scene was still in my head to write.

AND IT ADDED WORDS!!!!?!?! This has neeeeever happened to me ever. I gained almost 200 words.



So, as usual, I came nowhere NEAR the end of the story itself. Just as well really, as I now have like 473902 other side-stories that need battered into shape. For as much as I meant this year to fill in gaps of the first version... I've added so, so much content. Relationships like whoa. I'm really, really happy, I feel like it adds so much depth, having given the characters more room to spread out a bit and gain some extra dimensions. (We'll just ignore today's bit with Adir - he killed Sadie out of desperation, really, he had to do SOMETHING. bleck.)

As usual, more will be added to the story as time rolls on. Haven't decided if it will go here, or if I'll be a more reasonable person and build a page for the story itself, now that I'm moving so many chapters and things around. If you're interested in the few bits I haven't re-posted here, follow the link on the right to the '07 Amaranthus - the Carey chapter near the end is probably going to be changed to Adir, and maybe be tacked onto the crappy Adir section I just wrote. There will be some more ominous bad things that happen, and then the last chunk posted over there, with Luce and Azal. Things get REALLY bad, and then everything goes to hell. Only sort of literally. <3

Notes

Alright! Just shy of a day behind on the wordcount. I snuck in an hour or so of writing last night before bedtime, which helped a little. I wrote a little extra today, and hopefully can squeak some more in. If not.. well, I'm off work on Monday and Tuesday, which are the last two days of November. ;)

The Official NaNoWriMo Word Counter usually tells me I have fewer words than I'd thought (every word count works differently) - I just found a forum thread that explains what Open Office's issue is. It likes to count the end-quotation marks as a word. This can be fixed by turning off the smart-quotes-like feature, so the quotes all stay straight instead of curly.

...unfortunately, mine are already all curly. I have a TON of conversation in the novel this year. I miiight go in and find-and-replace the quotes, but... more likely, I'll just write extra, cross my fingers, use the official word count, swear and fume and spew out a few hundred more words, and then hopefully hit 50k. Next year maybe I'll set it up properly from the start, and avoid the annual trauma.


On another topic - yes, I forgot about Cerise too. ^^; I've already made note to bring her into the middle areas of the story more, sometime when re-writing. I need more female characters! And she's a lovely little contrast to everyone else. Also, she will be a catalyst for the closing scenes, and.. well, she was in my dream that gave me the opening scene at the rose party. So, she stays, and needs to gain enough presence to merit staying. I have no idea why Luce, of all people, is her escort, but that's what he demanded of me this morning.

I'm glad I thought of a way for them to die, but be incapable of dying. I think it's a good balance. They need to be generally immortal, but... I suspect Veri ought to die, and it's going to break my heart to do that to Meres. Honestly, they were supposed to have a happy sweet little reunion like two scenes after the rose party! I have no idea what is happening to them, but it's making me really, really sad. It was supposed to be the love between the two of them that was the bright spot in the story...

Notes

I only sort-of cheated on that beast of a chapter. In the re-workings of the behemoth from the first draft, I had, as mentioned, decided to move some chunks around. What I didn't realize, until I went to work on this one today, was that this chunk? Was originally written from Carey's viewpoint, and Meres was his companion. Which means that everything Carey said, Meres was now saying, and everything Meres did in reaction, Azal was now doing.

So, I basically re-wrote the entire thing. I kept the old stuff at the bottom of the screen for reference, and so some of the content was kept (i.e., they said much of the same things as before), but the wording, the setting, all that was changed. What Meres' reactions would have been are not what Azal's would be. And then I added in lots, took some things out, moved a sentence I liked out of a paragraph I cut...

I have no idea how this was all accomplished today. Let's not discuss today, it was not a happy evening, except for the amazingness of my coworkers.

I am likely going to cheat my way out of naming the actual books they're looking at, at least for November. Enoch, I need to re-read before adding much detail here. And I suppose I should look into the Babylonian stuff some more as well, I haven't read anything directly, apart from Gilgamesh (which I also should re-read).

Two things about this chunk that are making me superhappy right now:
1) Giving myself a freaking sweet loophole, in the line about how a single mispronounced syllable in an incantation can screw the whole thing up. I'd been worrying more and more about how close the names I've used for the characters are to the grigori listed in Enoch. Meres - Meresin? really? he forgot that? But I think the point I made is a really good one, and enough to stand on.

2) Azalya. Only Meres would call Azal this. I am so in love with this pet name. (Once at home with internet, I double-checked the meaning of azaleas - an unintended connection. Romance and temperance. Which at first made me laugh, that seemed so far off... but then I realized, maybe not? Because Azal shows extreme temperance in his romances - he keeps things strictly physical, and does not let his emotions become attached, after having been stricken so hard after his first human love.)

I. Love. This. Story.

Notes

I took apart and re-assembled the over-large chapter with the Enoch stuff from the '07 NaNo. Originally, it was all Carey's pov, all at once, and it was just freaking huge. So, part became the just-posted Adir bit (with only a few slight additions and new bits). Another part became the just-posted Luce bit - I added a beginning and ending, and took out a middle chunk, which will be in tomorrow's Meres bit. I decided soon after finishing that year that Azal ought to be involved in all this, and so he will be. Adir/Carey could nooot have cared less, and so, they are removed when convenient. ;) I think it'll be a smidge less overwhelming now than it was before.. at least I hope so!

(And no, I didn't count any previously-written stuff in my wordcount. I even failed to count some things I wrote into the old sections, to make up for the couple of half-sentences I smuggled into the new sections. I'm a good lil NaNo'er.)

Notes - characters

Sometime after the 2007 NaNo, I wrote a short scene between Meres and Veri, where Veri yells at Meres for abandoning him during the rose party, and thus humiliating him. Then they make up and are all sweet and loveydovey, and it was really beautiful to see the love between them, set against all the selfish fixations of the others.

I had planned to stick this into the story long before now. But somehow... there wasn't enough for it to have the impact I'd wanted. So I kept stringing out Veri being angry at Meres, trying to build it up more.

Then Claude stepped into that little conflict at the mermaid party, and I suddenly realized he was trying to break them up, and have Meres for himself, not thinking Veri worth Meres' effort. Which is when the idea popped up for Claude to confront Veri, which sounded fun to write.

Yet, after writing that bit yesterday, it felt.. flat, like not much was accomplished in the scene. I decided Luce should step in and do some meddling. Which he was, as always, more than happy to do.

I knew Meres would be annoyed that Veri didn't come to the play - but I realized this morning just how deeply upset he could be. "The Nightingale and The Rose" (which I summarized poorly - the language in the original is so heartbreakingly lovely, go to Gutenberg and read it, preferably from the pdf at archive.org with the stunning illustrations) is--- wow, good morning run-on parenthesis. The story is about Love in its purest sort of form, self-sacrifice for the happiness of another - the nightingale gives up her life, that Love might have a chance to flourish in the heart of another.

Given that the Grigori were once angels, and thus beings of pure compassion, and now are fallen from that and trying to forget their better natures... I suspect the story will have more than the usual poignancy. Meres in particular... I have a hunch he really, really wanted Veri to hear that story, told, visually at least, by Meres. I haven't sorted out all the rational yet, but... I think Meres is going to be seriously heartbroken.

I suspect that make-up scene in the garden is going to need some hefty re-writing. I'd never intended Meres and Veri to almost lose each other, but I'm afraid that's where it might be going. Wheeee drama!

Note

I was in such a rut this morning - it felt like one of two scenes should happen next, and they were both ones I'd already written. xp Luckily, it took some setup to reach where I wanted to stick in Azal watching his dancer in the garden.

If that scene seems familiar... It's a re-edited version of "Fuschia", which I posted over on Amaranth and Jasmine whenever it was I wrote it. Unfortunately, I think I had Meres in mind when I wrote it, because I'd originally made a reference to Azal in the thing. A few other minor changes were made this morning, but... it was really pretty. I wanted Azal to have a moment of comfort after all his recent trauma. (Especially as he has more coming, the poor dear.)

I'm not entirely confident it's properly in his voice, but I have more trouble with his voice than anyone else's. Meres - artistic commentary. Veri - whiny. Luce - devious and philosophical. Mephisto - daydreamy and theatrical. (I am still swooned from last night's chapter. I am so in love.) Adir - uh, a non-voice, largely. I still go back and forth as to whether he should get anything from his pov at all, but, I'm a bit attached to the contrast. Also, there's a scene I wrote him (or Nila, or Carey, I forget) for the original 2007 version, coming up soon I think, that had some elements I really, really liked. So, for now, he stays.

Music and translation notes

So, the song in French is possibly a little late - the site that posted it dated the recording between 1898 and 1900. But the opera it's from was 1888, so, plausible. And the words were just far, far too lovely to not use it!

I do not know French. Like at all. But GoogleTranslate gave me this, which provides a clear enough sense of the thing:

Jocelyn's Lullaby

Hidden in the asylum where God has led us
United by misfortune during the long nights
We rely both asleep in their sails
Where to pray against the trembling stars.

Oh! does not wakes
For a beautiful angel in your dream
Unrolling his long golden thread
Child, allowing it ends.
Sleep, sleep, the day just to him.
Blessed Virgin Mary, watch over him.


I swear to you all, I did NOT even make the connection between the title and my character, not until I wrote the song into the story and decided to mention the name of the song. Suddenly I realized I HAVE A CHARACTER NAMED JOCELYN AND OMFGWTFH SHE GAVE THE RECORDING TO MACKIE. It almost (almost) made me not want to use it anymore, but by then a) it was too late, b) I was too freaking attached to the song. Follow the link, and you can listen to it too. :) Quite a bit of static, of course - the recording is over a hundred years old, and on a thing made out of freaking wax, but.. honestly, that just makes it all the more amazing to me.

I did some writing this morning, a bit more in the afternoon, and then finished up just now. And I am in such a state of sheer bliss - I crossed the halfway point without even noticing it! And, more importantly... I felt like I really fell into the world of the story tonight. I was so caught up in Mephisto and David... and it was partly the music I had cranked on my headphones (Mackie playlist, natch), and partly the absinthe I was sipping (yay!), but...

Those moments, those are the reasons I've kept on doing this year after year. It's those moments, that artists live for, when another world just blossoms almost unbidden under your fingertips...

(I hadn't even thought of the implications when I picked out David's song: Link to sheet music, Googled for the missing verse. I just saw that it was pretty and a bit fantastic, I didn't even realize at first it was to be sung by a woman originally. And then he sang, and... and then everything got really, really beautiful. <333)

Note

Luce and Meres totally hijacked my plans for that scene. Started in this morning, and Luce decided that taunting Claude was not as fun as it was yesterday. Instead, he heard something, and next thing I knew they were running off toward...

I had no idea what.

Wound up surprising me more than it surprised them, apparently. I had to keep referring back to the last chapter with Azal, to remember what the room looked like, and make sure I wasn't contradicting myself too absurdly. (Explanation: Azal thought he was okay. Ordered some wine to calm himself enough to head back to the party. Kept drinking. Couldn't clear his head, and things got worse instead of better. Kept drinking, and then made poor decisions. wtg Azal.)

Notes

I am trying to make Claude into a little snot. He was not as much of one in the original story, but, I think he should be one. Poor Luce - I, and thus he, could barely contain massive gigglefits at some of the things the boy said.

(I realized yesterday that I should probably have made it clear earlier on in the story that by "boy", my Grigori mean someone late teens, early twenties. Young man, really. But they're a bit too demeaning for that.)

Luce can be both my hardest and easiest character to write. He likes to ramble on about the psychology of people and that sort of thing. It's really, really intimidating to think about the sheer volume of epigrams that he ought to be spouting, but once he starts talking... it's hard to shut him up.

David is younger than Claude, and I realized this year that they were far too similar in my head, so I'm working on differentiating them better. Unfortunately for you, they're only coming clearer in my own mind as I write them. :p So please bear with.

Originally, I was just going to have this scene cover some general notes on character relationships, and then have someone (probably Luce) observe and comment on a sniping little bitchfight between Claude and David. That fight has yet to happen... and I have to admit, I'm a little upset about subjecting poor little David to it. Claude is a snot, and is going to be terribly unkind, I'm afraid. The purpose of this fight, I have yet to discover, I just know they should have one. (Though, I'm starting to think Claude should instead pick a fight with Veri - the motivation is clear, and it would be FUNNY AS ALL FREAKING HELL to watch him try it.)

...why are my characters all so sadistic? I'm a nice person! Really! I can barely insult people, let alone plot their moral demises.

Notes

Back-dated the previous post - I worked a day shift, and when I got home, a fabulous dinner needed to be made. Pasta, homemade meatballs cooked in a yummy sauce, italian bread with dipping oil, some badly-smelling but yummy-tasting cheese...

After dinner, two episodes of Farscape, and some sips of a little bottle of Irish Whiskey (which was surprisingly yummy), the boy and I were too sleepy. But I needed to write. I was cranky and had no idea what to write, and we were both tired, but I wanted to get something down.

Tom was doing a bit of coding (his November project is learning to code for the Droid phone - he wants to make a Sabacc game, to be played on the R2-D2 Droid). But I interrupted his audible conversation with the computer screen to plead for an idea.

He told me I should have one person get stuck in the mud, and then two others fight over who has to stay with the whiny little bitch while the other goes for help.

While this made me laugh, it also struck a chord. That could actually work. I'd been flipping through my binder of notes, and stopped on the page listing the seven sins and their Latin names. Sloth. I could work with that.

But as I started in writing, I decided Claude would injure his hand, and be unable to paint. Meres would neglect to attend to him. And then I realized what I had written earlier - that Meres was using Claude's art as a substitution for his own. If Claude was hurt, that plan wouldn't work anymore. So, on seeing Claude hurt, Meres can just wander off to go do his own painting - and thus, not give a crap about Claude any more that day. (Not that Phistos need an excuse to be self-centered. It's basically the core of their nature.)

A few minutes later, I suddenly realized something, and actually gasped aloud and clutched at my heart, because I realized Claude's little painting should be destroyed. And it hurt me to think of doing it. My chest ached at the thought. Tom, I think, looked at me like I was crazy, but this was not something I needed his input on - if it hurt me that much, then it was a strong enough image that I had to put it in there. damnit.

I pounded through until I got to the end of the section, and though it fell short of my quota yesterday, it was something, and I hadn't the energy for more. I'm not working today, so between massive stacks of dishwashing, baking goodies for a baby shower, and going to said baby shower, I am going to get caught up.

Really.

As soon as I figure out wtfh I'm writing next.

Research Notes

I've done a lot of research in the past few years of the origins of the Bible and Christianity and things. A handful of Teaching Company lecture series, some Wikipedia, the Book of Enoch, assorted other things. (I blame Neal Stephenson's Snow Crash for starting this, with all of its ancient Mesopotamian mythos.)

Originally, I started out this morning by going over some Wiki entries on labyrinths and yew trees that I'd looked at yesterday, thinking those would be the topics of conversation. Buuuut that didn't really last, Mark went a little more into his studies than I'd planned. (This happens eeeevery time he talks. Convenient character flaw.) I did some double-checking before I wrote these passages out; a lot of this information lives in fragmented form in my head. I know the flood story variant is in Gilgamesh, but it had slipped my mind that even that description was borrowed from an earlier source. I knew the opening of Genesis paralleled the Enûma Eliš, but, having learned this from an audio lecture, I had NO frickin' clue how to spell it. (Ay-noo-mah AY-leesh.) So, this chapter brought to you by Wikipedia, Professor Amy-Jill Levine's course on the Old Testament, my mom who gave me a copy of Gilgamesh (and Star Trek TNG for causing this), aaand a little more Wikipedia.

November 1st again!

Hello, NaNoNovember! Halloween was, as always, total insanity at work. I have, as usual, too many crochet projects on my plate that really absolutely need worked on. I have not, as ever, been in the habit of seriously writing for months.

But I know full well how happy I always am during November, when I'm fully engrossed in the world of whatever story I'm working on. So, despite the usual trepidation, here I am again. :)

I'm sototally breaking the solemn interdiction of NaNoLand, and going back to work on an old novel. You're not supposed to do this, because a) it's restrictive, and b) insanely tempting to go into editing mode, rather than free-write mode. However, I'm feeling pretty confident after winning the last three years, and (sort of) feel up to the challenge. Also, I have huuuuuge swathes of story that need written in between the bits I wrote that year. Bits and pieces were added over the last couple of years, which I'm going to try desperately not to put toward my wordcount this month (if I decide to get them typed up). :p

Haven't yet decided if/what I'm going to re-post here - the early version has had several bouts of revision, lots of little things added, so I might copy-paste those sections here where appropriate, so anyone reading doesn't have giant chunks left out of the story. We'll see what time allows.


...and now it's past noon on Day One, and I haven't even finished re-reading the first chapter of the original version, in order to get back into my characters' heads. But! I have an outline! With vast expanses of asterisks and ideas sketched in and things that need to be added. (I only have ONE section from Veri's pov??? Really??!?) So I will be clinging to that, and lots of coffee&tea&hot chocolate& cookies.

Time to read, shower, think. And I think I'll copy-paste over here the early sections of the novel, as it stands in its latest revision. (I got about halfway through last time around, so these will definitely read prettier than the things to come!)