A World of Speculation

Jonah and plot structure

I got to read the book of Jonah at this year’s Holy Saturday services. It’s a short book, maybe a five-minute read, even aloud, and it offers some some great insights into story structure.The book is in four chapters. There’s little or no ordinary...

Word count, April 23

Word count Tuesday, zero, zip, zingo. Bad me!Word count Wednesday, 1,000, bringing the book total to 14, 400. The added words were all in the same scene where the story went its own way Monday, and now I’ve “discovered” that my characters are distant...

Words of wisdom

It’s 6:45ish here in the land of sun and snow, where you have to ask whether that white stuff on the ground is the current form of spring shower (I blame global warming) or a drift of cherry blossoms — anyway this would make great weather for my book, but...

Word count, April 21

Word count as of Monday, April 21 — 1,000 for the day, and 13,400 for the project. I took Sunday off, and I think a day off once a week will do me good.It was a hard thousand words, and I almost quit for the day after 500. The story took off on its own, and my...

Word count, April 19

Word count as of Saturday, April 19 — 1,125 for the day, and 12,300 for the project. I haven’t made up my recent slackery, but progress continues.A police interview gave an opportunity for backstory, but I haven’t made nearly the deft use of it that...

Word count, April 18

Word count as of Friday, April 18 — only 650 for the day, but past 11,000 for the project.Very bad writing, which is still better than no writing. My protagonist crossed the threshold into the special world.I need to know a lot more about murder prosecution....