Chapter Three
I finished Chapter Three tonight.
I should have finished it several days ago, to be honest. But I had Terry and Judine's surprise anniversary party to attend on Saturday (was fun seeing Terry's old editor, Owen, who flew in for the occasion), Sunday was taken up with shopping and football, and Monday was spent working almost all day. That left me with last night and tonight, but the chapter was one of those that almost literally wrote itself.
It is another Bran chapter and the climax of the first three chapter arc. Going in I knew it would be one feisty action chapter, and it lived up to my expectations. Remarkably, not much changed from how I originally imagined the chapter in my outline to what made it on the page, but one unexpected element happened near the end and I like how it sprang up out of nowhere.
For those keeping score, here is the break down of words per chapter:
Prologue: 3197 words
Chapter One: 4059 words
Chapter Two: 3244
Chapter Three: 3633
And before anyone asks, yes I am going to keep doing this tally and yes it is important to me. I think a lot of writers who are unsure in the craft have a tendency to pontificate beyond what the story needs. By observing my word count, I am attempting to keep this growing writer in check. Of course, my lower word counts could be a result of what I spoke about in last post, but I still think it is a good idea to watch one's own work from a different angle.
Chapter Four is a Bran chapter as well and will be the beginnings of the fallout from Chapter Three. In it, I get to explore two of the coolest architectural buildings in Seattle. I'll begin outlining it tomorrow and start writing it on Friday—unless I decide to drive home for the holidays on that day. Then it will be just a lost day when it comes to my story.
After Chapter Four, I get to have some fun though. Chapter Five is the first real Richard McAllister point of view chapter, and Chapter Six is the first chapter from my Cardinal's point of view, who still does not have a name but will very soon!
Cool Things: More people who have read Fell Hammer's excerpts are demanding I make the book available as a download, which I am still considering. JK Rowling sold a tiny little book for 4 million dollars and gave it to charity. Christmas is only a few days away, and that means Christmas cookies! And George R. R. Martin has finally finished A Dance of Dragons—just kidding!
I should have finished it several days ago, to be honest. But I had Terry and Judine's surprise anniversary party to attend on Saturday (was fun seeing Terry's old editor, Owen, who flew in for the occasion), Sunday was taken up with shopping and football, and Monday was spent working almost all day. That left me with last night and tonight, but the chapter was one of those that almost literally wrote itself.
It is another Bran chapter and the climax of the first three chapter arc. Going in I knew it would be one feisty action chapter, and it lived up to my expectations. Remarkably, not much changed from how I originally imagined the chapter in my outline to what made it on the page, but one unexpected element happened near the end and I like how it sprang up out of nowhere.
For those keeping score, here is the break down of words per chapter:
Prologue: 3197 words
Chapter One: 4059 words
Chapter Two: 3244
Chapter Three: 3633
And before anyone asks, yes I am going to keep doing this tally and yes it is important to me. I think a lot of writers who are unsure in the craft have a tendency to pontificate beyond what the story needs. By observing my word count, I am attempting to keep this growing writer in check. Of course, my lower word counts could be a result of what I spoke about in last post, but I still think it is a good idea to watch one's own work from a different angle.
Chapter Four is a Bran chapter as well and will be the beginnings of the fallout from Chapter Three. In it, I get to explore two of the coolest architectural buildings in Seattle. I'll begin outlining it tomorrow and start writing it on Friday—unless I decide to drive home for the holidays on that day. Then it will be just a lost day when it comes to my story.
After Chapter Four, I get to have some fun though. Chapter Five is the first real Richard McAllister point of view chapter, and Chapter Six is the first chapter from my Cardinal's point of view, who still does not have a name but will very soon!
Cool Things: More people who have read Fell Hammer's excerpts are demanding I make the book available as a download, which I am still considering. JK Rowling sold a tiny little book for 4 million dollars and gave it to charity. Christmas is only a few days away, and that means Christmas cookies! And George R. R. Martin has finally finished A Dance of Dragons—just kidding!
Labels: The Dagda King
posted by Shawn C. Speakman | 10:17 PM
5 Comments:
Shawn, I only came across your site and work when you were finishing Fell Hammer, so I really knew very little of your actual writing process.
Let me just say it's exciting to see Dagda King going. Keep at it(so a bunch of readers can HAVE at it).
I was lucky enough to be able to read the prologue to The Dagda King, and I was impressed. While not perfect (it is still a work in progress) is still a good read. A nice start to hook a person in.
Now like I said, it is not perfect. There are flaws, but I'm sure Shawn can iron those out. The main concern is that some may see is a resemblance to Terry Brooks work. I will admit that there is a resemblance. However, the resemblance is superficial. There are deeper differences that create an engaging story
It is a good prologue that catches the attention and has the reader asking questions that can only be answered as the story progresses. Can't wait to see more.
That's my review, and I'm stickin to it.
Stephen: I don't know why you are excited. Why would anyone willingly want front row tickets to my particular brand of insanity?
In all seriousness, thank you for the kind words. I hope I won't disappoint you. And if you ever have any questions about my writing process, just ask them here. I really love talking about the craft as it develops for me.
Azhev: Yes, I gave Azhev a look at the Prologue. It was the unedited version, and many of the things Azhev caught are on a printed off copy covered in red marks from my editor. Those will be fixed, and it will be better for it.
As I said in one of my prior posts, in the very most superficial sense, Terry Brooks readers will think I am using Terry's ideas. It couldn't be farther from the truth. Richard McAllister is a knight; he can call a staff into being. That's where the resemblance ends.
And as Azhev pointed out, there are deeper things going on. Azhev asked all the right questions after finishing the chapter, and that tells me I have at least put in a good foundation for what comes next in the story.
But unfortunately, I don't think I can post the Prologue. Perhaps when I rebuild my website I will post it.
Speaking of, I wrote preeminent artist Michael Whelan today asking for permission to use one of his art pieces on my website redesign. The art is called The Crossing. I hope he'll allow me to use it, as I've loved that painting since 1999. I don't have much money at the moment due to the holidays, but I offered to purchase one of his signed Dark Tower prints for the usage license. We'll see what happens. Wish me luck!
Shawn,
Glad to see you trudging along.
Although you may call it "insanity" I think it is a show of great determination and spirit.
You have quite an interesting life. Dinner with world renown authors, meeting prized editors. Did you happen to loose a glass slipper on your way out the door at midnight? Just kidding :).
By the way what was for dinner?
Happy Holidays,
J.David Bodzin
J.David: Dinner with Terry and his wife was at one of Tom Douglass's restaurants here in Seattle. Tom likes seafood. But Terry had boar, I had shrimp pot stickers with dungeness crab cakes, and Judine had a fish plate of some kind. All of it was fantastic, and afterward we had several deserts. Good stuff.
And I'm happy you like my tenacity. If there was one thing I want to gain by doing this blog is to demystify how the industry works. There are so many questions a new writer must ask even after they've taken months to write a book, and I want to make that a bit easier for people to understand. That means more to me than you guys reading my inane posts, I can tell you that!
Happy Holidays back!
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