Lol, I had posted it on Inspired Writers, too, and then I finally got to post it here. XD You can read/critique/whatever it here or there, doesn't really matter to me.
Ugh. I pretty much failed NaNo as far as reaching 15k goes.
But here's my other problem. I'm lacking in ideas for plots...but short term plots. I've gotten some long term plot ideas, as in...towards the end of the book and even in to the second one, but I'm out of ideas for anything between where I am currently (chapter three) and the end of Archer's Legend. I have nothing in my outline beyond what I have for chapters 1-3, possibly chapter 4...or at least part of chapter four.
So...I have this one possible plot idea that won't really happen towards the end of the book, but maybe it could be expanded enough that like...I'd need to have certain events happen in the chapters before it in order to get to that point.
[spoiler]Archer is supposed to disappear/die at the end of the book. She'll come back in the second book, but everyone is supposed to think she's disappeared/is dead.
So I'm thinking that at one point during the book, the outcasted Alaycian's and the third party have to get together to "discuss" things "calmly and rationally." And there'll be a sort of...test, which is ultimately what makes Archer die/disappear. So I need an idea for this test. I kind of feel like...maybe when she "dies"/disappears, she goes to this other place to receive some sort of training. KIND OF like Gandalf in Lord of the Rings, minus the training part as far as Gandalf is concerned, and minus the beard and coming back with pretty much no memory (...unless I make that pretty much happen, but she has to focus on one task until it's done).
...I think I just got an interesting idea. The "test" could be that...by the end of this book, Weaver will have taught her how to insert herself in to the dreams of others. So she could have to insert herself in to a dream/realm-type-place (everyone will still think she's disappeared- she'll go in to some chamber or something where she'll meet someone, and that'll be where she has to insert herself in to the dream/realm-type-place), and she'll have ONE mission, and won't be able to come out of the dream until she's completed it.
So I would just have to figure out what that one mission is.
I was thinking that Weaver wouldn't be able to insert himself in to the dream that Archer would be in, but maybe he still can. He would just be disguised to Archer and she would have no clue who he was until after they both woke up.[/spoiler]
If you guys have any other ideas, I could really use them. x.x I'm sure if I was just given some ideas I could play around with them and see if they'd fit in to any ideas I all ready have and stuff. I got a few other ideas thanks to one of the members at Inspired Writers, but I could always use some more.
(This is a cross post from a post I made at LJ and my Inspired Writers board, which is why you may or may not be seeing a repetition of this.)
Edit: edited to add in a mini spoiler.
[spoiler]
I'll give you an example of one thing I'm going to have happen in probably chapter four that will hopefully help with giving me ideas, which is that Archer (Kaliyah) is going to go to an abandoned Alaycian palace where she is going to meet...probably her grandmother on her father's side for the first time. Beyond that I really don't know anything about that part of the chapter.[/spoiler]
I finished chapter three, but I haven't started on chapter four...and the September writing month thing I'm participating in is almost over. Part of the problem with that is that I signed up for the writing month thing maybe a week after it had started (or rather, only a few days now that I think about it), so I lost a few days of writing.
I was able to get 342 words written tonight in one word war, and that was it. I think that if I write 3k tomorrow, 3k Saturday and like...4k on Sunday, I should be able to reach 10k, which is what I changed my goal to for the September thing.
I started to think about the main character of book three tonight. Not too much, because I don't want to start planning before I know it's ready. But I decided that I want her name to be simple, and not like...I don't know. Obviously it needs to fit in the medieval/fantasy sort of time period, but I don't want it to be one of those "unique" names. Kaliyah is a "unique" sort of name. Same with any other character in Archer's Legend.
Writersdomain has a character named Creiah (I think I'm spelling it right) in her book that she wrote. I kind of want a name like that. Short, simple...
So I guess what I'm going to do is try to make a list of the names I like that I find at name sites so that I can print them out and choose the one(s) I like best when the time comes. Maybe this will just be the first step to slowly starting to develop the main character.
Now...I'm pretty sure that book three is kind of going to continue with the theme of dreams- the main character is a Dream Keeper, though I don't know what that means yet. So maybe I'll be able to find a name at least a little similar to that in meaning.
My notes about certain names will be in italics.
Ariliviel nickname would be Ari Kaecien
Aridia nickname would be Ari Arianna
...That list really wasn't as long as I thought it would be. I seem to like names that would mean having the character's nickname be Ari.
The first is hard to pronounce. Kaecien (Kaeci) is kind of pretty sounding. And I think I like Arianna better than Aridia, but I think I could see myself choosing either one.
I definitely need to stay away from "K" names...although I really do like the name Kaecien, so maybe I'll end up going with that.
I don't know- it's not a decision I need to make right this second, especially since my bed is calling me and I need to sleep.
I changed the title for this to something more fitting and generalized. Yay me.
Why do I feel like, lately, my "default plot" has to be a quest? I mean, lately I've been semi-thinking about Shards of Alaycia, and my mind seems to be automatically thinking that I need to have a quest involved, despite knowing that not every fantasy plot automatically means it's a quest.
The other thing I've realized is this. What in the hell does a Dream Keeper have to do with "shards," either literal or figuratively? I mean, I almost feel like the plot should have at least a LITTLE to do with the title. And there's nothing coming to mind.
I think I keep imagining like...you know how in The Never Ending Story, the land keeps breaking up because of The Nothing? (I'm basing this on what I remember of the first movie, which I sadly do not have a copy of) I think I keep imagining something like that, but I'm not sure if it would really be the same thing. Alaycia is being broken apart in to pieces. So I guess the next question is, how do I make a plot from that? How do I keep the Dream Keeper thing connected to the "Shards" thing? I have no ideas for how to do this, and NaNo is looming closer.
It doesn't help that over the past few days, I've come up with a few ideas for something new- not any plots, really, but new species/races and stuff. But I'm pushing that stuff in to the back of my mind, writing it down for later use. I can't wait until I can get to the point where I can just...randomly write the starts to stories and not necessarily worry about finishing them, or making them in to some epic novel or whatever. But unless I take a break and don't work on book two for a while (which I more than likely will not do), that won't happen for a long time.
I don't know what else to make SoA about besides having it be a quest...but I also don't know what the quest would be for. I really, really need some new ideas, it seems. It would be great if any of you guys could reply and help me. -Pokes at people-
HELP ME FELLOW WRITERS, YOU'RE MY ONLY HOPE!
(...Sorry, the Star Wars geek within made me do that. Seriously.)
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