I Wrote 16,000 Words Yesterday and Here's Why

( Originally I was going to title this "16,000 Words Under the Sea", but I was like, uh, that's not gonna tell anyone anything.)

So I was thinking at one point "what would be cool is writing 10,000 words again." My maximum has been a little over 12,000 words in one day. Anyway,  woke up one day and said, "Let's try." I woke up at 9:00 AM and said I would have 10,000 words before Nautical Twilight (because pirates), and then I wrote 10,000 words. 

I wasn't tired yet.

So I thought I'd beat my previous record, and before 7:00, I managed to get out 3000 more words for 13,000 words. Friend goes to sleep, no one else here rooting for me, everything is equilibri-balanced in this world.

Well anyway, I wasn't tired yet. 

After watching a show, I realized that midnight hadn't fallen yet, I still hadn't finished the rough draft, and I had two more hours, so I knocked out another 3000 words. 

Exactly 16,000 words wrote. 

"So you're saying you did this mad dash to write 16,000 words for no reason." 

Yup. I already had a couple thousand words written for N:Era: Tunnels Under Wysdom, the next mainline novella, but I was like, "Well let's get 10,000 words and we might be halfway or so finished". And so I realized there was only a little bit left and that got me to finishing. Admittedly, I did try to aim for 16,000. 

"So is that major progress?" 

Eh, sorta and not really. For example, after each rough draft, there is a whole lot that needs to be structurally fixed, because an outline is a theory of what you want to do, but a rough draft is the field practice of what does or doesn't work. 

For instance, I can theoretically make 36 peanut butter cookies in an hour. In practice, I go " . . . am I baking in the oven, what do I smell?" 

So essentially, I get to experiment with things such as "should this character be here" or "does this actually have the feel I'm going for". In a story that's going to be about liminal spaces and about healing, so far the rough draft doesn't really have much of that liminal feeling, as more of an "odd and eldritch architecture" sorta sense. This is about isolation and being alone as a means of finally processing without anyone else's influence, but that main emotional core hasn't been fully realized yet.

Then there's plot aspects, such as "is this the right time to introduce this major player", or "does this person actually add anything". 

I'll have to review and see what parts failed for me and what parts went right.

"Was this hard"

The odd benefit of not having much planned out for Tunnels Under Wysdom is I had the wide flexibility needed to do this, but I also happened to have enough of a plan that I knew what to fall back on. 

That's the importance of knowing general story structure, because you have to keep building on the last part. Nothing extraneous. What's the logical flow of the story, and when you get to a high part on one end, you need to move on to the next plotline, "back at the ranch" and all that. So I was always interested to getting back to another perspective because I'm like "okay now what's going on with these people". 

I don't really think this was hard. 10,000 words over the course of eight hours, 13,000 words over the course of ten hours, and 16,000 over the course of fifteen hours. 

"Any advice for someone else who wants to try this". 

Whenever I've done this before in the past, I've realized that there can be this thought to rush through but that will give you carpal tunnel. 1,000 words each hour is a relatively safe and strong pace, and will likely garner good results. 

That being said, right now my middle finger (the driver finger) on my left hand has an ache in the knuckle. So I suppose I have to rest that a bit.

Uh, so I dunno if I'd really recommend this of course, but that's not the point of a challenge is "should I" as much as "would I?" 

"Last notes" 

I'm not exactly burned out from this experience, in fact, I feel totally fine. Other times, I've literally forgotten everything I've wrote, and this time, well, I at least know the general thoughts. I wasn't blitzed out. 

So you know, just be safe, be aware. 

(20,000 words next goal.)

 

Spongebob's Girl Squad Doesn't Work - A Talk About Character Chemistry

So I was watching some of the more recent Spongebobs on TV a while back, and they introduced a new group of the cast known as the "girl squad", a mixture of Mrs. Puff, Karen, and Sandy. I think they put in Pearl for one episode but I don't know if that carried over. 

I do appreciate the more experimental groups they've been doing lately. Why haven't Sandy and Squidward been at the shared center of an episode? 

Chemistry. 

(Warning: Another infamous JAC tangent where he talks about something that seems completely different that he tries to fit back to the main argument.)

Sandy and Squidward in the first three seasons actually were very similar. They both usually get themselves involved in a situation due to their prides that ends up being their own downfalls. Such as "Spongebob, Sandy, and the Worm", wherein Sandy believes she can wrassle and wrangle a giant worm pestering and eating Bikini Bottom, versus "Club Spongebob", where Squidward thinks he can get into Spongebob's club only to get launched into the wilderness. 

Sandy was just a more positive and friendlier version. However, she's the main antagonist of episodes such as "Pressure" or "Pre-Hibernation Week" because her emotions get the best of her. 

At some point, "Karate Island" airs, and I think this is roughly when Sandy's role in the show is way different. Instead, Sandy saves Spongebob from several gurus of karate with wits, strength, and power. How "OP" she is as a character was never addressed prior because she has so many faults and flaws that get in her way, but as the series goes on, those flaws are smoothed over. 

In one episode in the middle seasons, I can remember she ends up trying to impress the scholar-chimps who fund her research at the ocean floor, and the plot felt more like something you'd see Twilight Sparkle get involved in. Like really, a nerd trying her damndest to get approval for something, fearing she can't.

Anyway, so in the first three seasons, Sandy was just as flawed, yet instrumental as the rest of the cast. She was on the more reasonable and intelligent side of the aisle but still a harbinger of pain. Later on, she became the hero, culminating in this upcoming movie in about a year where she'll literally be the main protagonist.

Therefore, now, there's a recent episode about Squidward and Sandy wherein Squidward has Spongebob and Patrick play dangerous sports for his amusement, so Sandy comes in to whoop his ass. Or one episode where Squidward is stalked by a burly weirdo, so he learns karate from Sandy, but uses the sacred martial art for revenge.

The evolution/flanderization (whatever you prefer) tries to fit these characters together in new roles that wouldn't have worked in the first three seasons. But at the very least, there is a chemistry between these two. 

(Tangent over). 

The girl squad still lacks that. 

When you look at Spongebob and Patrick, you've got a neat and ruffled dichotomy. Patrick is relatively relaxed and stupid, while Spongebob is uptight and anxious. Both aren't very smart, but they're not very smart in different ways: Spongebob is more likely to cause a shenanigan by himself, while Patrick is more likely to keep a shenanigan going. That's what makes them work. They are a perpetual motion machine for idiocy. 

Add Squidward, and the dynamic shifts slightly. Instead, Squidward is usually the one who's making the most sense, while Spongebob and Patrick are both bringing unending suffering and torment. Patrick supplies the best off-hand remarks, while Spongebob provides a moral and "reasonable" center. 

Spongebob, Mr. Krabs, and Squidward instead has a boss-servants relationship. Mr. Krabs usually has a salaryman comedy-esque way with them, employing them on near impossible tasks. Mr. Krabs and Spongebob is framed more like Krabs is trying to take advantage of an oblivious employee. 

This is chemistry. To get the most entertaining reactions, you've got to mix in the right chemicals. Characters who are complements to one another are, like in art, opposites. A well-composed group is usually crafted by several of these opposites. 

Patrick's lack of ambition and uncleanliness is oppositional of Mr. Krab's lofty goals and slick businessmanship.

Spongebob's neuroticism is oppositional of Patrick's laziness and stupidity or Squidward's "I don't care, just get the job done nhe nhe nhe" versus Mr. Krabs "we're gonna have to bury him, boy". 

Squidward's intelligence and easy-to-anger personality is oppositional of Patrick's "put stuff in mouth" attitude. 

So looking at the Girl Squad, what do we have?

Karen is logical and efficient, usually dealing with her stupid husband Plankton.

Mrs. Puff is smart, usually dealing with her stupid student Spongebob. 

Sandy is intelligent . . . Wait a minute. 

Are you seeing what I'm seeing? These are all Analogous characters. They all look and act the same. They're all "straight men". 

How did this happen?

This looks like bad planning. None of them really bring out one another's traits. Another issue with chemistry is they have to actively provoke the personalities, otherwise they all just blend in. Even if they're "good characters" on their own, bad support is bad support. 

Like, the one episode they have is about pranking Spongebob while he's asleep. But, does this seem like something any of them would do? Karen isn't even in support of her husband half the time, Sandy is best friends, and Mrs. Puff doesn't want to be near the cheesy little nutcase. 

Uh, okay, well, then there's the episode where they bring Pearl to the woods and prepare to prank her by pretending to be a monster--wait, okay, this also doesn't work but like also, why is there another dayum prank? 

These characters don't have strong reasons so the plot comes along and says "here, do something". 

If we wanted to make this work, what opposites are there? I don't know, Mrs. Puff is anxious, Karen is blase, and Sandy is prideful. Try to make plots about that mixture. 

Like, let's say Mrs. Puff is afraid of dogs, so Sandy is like, "I can show you dogs are nothing to be afraid of" and ends up being mauled by a seaworm or something while Karen watches in the background. 

But even then, that's only one plot and I'd really struggle for more. In fact, that's not an episode, that's just a joke.

You can't really make plots with these characters because they're just not that interesting together. 

Anyway, so that's my rant about character chemistry. Uh, yeah.

Chapter 6 is out!

 https://www.deviantart.com/saviorfoxowlis/art/N-Era-Worlds-Call-of-the-Wolves-P6-Tears-of-a-God-983153696

Tears of a goddess. 

Wherein Raynfall reveals that she thinks the world sucks in general and that we cannot trust Owlis because she will break you. 

This chapter took 26 days. That's low-key shocking. While I wasn't paying attention, I had no idea this was 26 days!

Well regardless, I know that the final parts will be out within this month according to my scheduling. They've already been written mostly.

 https://www.deviantart.com/saviorfoxowlis/art/N-Era-Worlds-Call-of-the-Wolves-P6-Tears-of-a-God-983153696https://www.deviantart.com/saviorfoxowlis/art/N-Era-Worlds-Call-of-the-Wolves-P6-Tears-of-a-God-983153696

Your Writing Isn't Too Subtle

For N:Era: Call of the Wolves, Cyras hasn't mooned anybody yet. She hasn't done that thing where she licks somebody or bites them playfully, or sits too close to them. 

I don't know if anybody has noticed this yet. 

The obvious reason is she's undergoing depression and while I haven't had her say anything out loud, I've left many minor hints throughout the story she's not feeling well. However, lately I've been feeling like my art is too subtle. 

There's plenty of other moments where I go through this, where I'm not sure if anybody notices all, or even any, of the layers of my stories. For example, I posted one called "Little Owlis' Utopia". And here's an excerpt. 

"I wish I knew some of that magic," Owlis says, though she only speaks up because Knowledge looks serious during these meetings. "I already know, Fire, Lightning, and Earth. Ryvoh knows Water, maybe I'll learn from her."  

"Please Owlis, I'm focusing on this for now, alright Sweetie?" The sternness of [Knowledge's] expression is hidden with a light smile, however Owlis knows that lacks genuineness.

So beneath the surface, we can tell she's not really in need of focus. What is actually being said in this scene is: "Oh, you look like you're not having fun and are too morose about something. There is an awkward silence. Here, let me speak so I can alleviate your stress." 

 "Please stop talking to me, and I'm going to pretend I'm happy when I'm actually emotionally distant and/or upset."

And if you read more of the story, you'd know that even deeper, the story is about how Knowledge's previous main student Ramseas tried too hard to learn four elements and nearly destroyed the academy and the library that Knowledge is repairing with psychic magic right now. Owlis is proposing to learn Water, and that would mean Owlis knows all four magics Ramseas knows. So in other words, Knowledge is cutting her off because Owlis is starting to make her think of Ramseas. 

But, generally speaking, I'm not sure how many people ever caught onto that.

I shouldn't care. And neither should you. 

Look, subtlety is something that people miss. Whenever someone calls a story or plotline "generic", half the time what they're really saying deep down is that they couldn't be assed to engage with the text or movie in question to analyze key traits. 

There's one review by this weird dude on Youtube known as Schaffrilla's Productions wherein he claims that Elsa is a boring character without any traits. Even if you hate "Frozen" with a burning passion (irony leaves a tingly feeling on my tongue), you know that's not the case.

But wow if you can't go without seeing lamebrain takes. Harry Potter is too much of a main character to have personality traits, besides the fact that he resents authority figures, primarily because of abuse, except Albus Dumbledore, or the fact he's usually pessimistic. Hot-tempered, impulsive, heroic even to the point of defending his bullies. And after Goblet of Fire, he goes through bouts of depression. 

("But most of his traits are just generic traits that anybody would have, especially any hero character!") 

To be honest, I think what a lot of people are really saying is they wish every character outright amused them like a court fool, and was juggling pins. Something more important than personality is a character's, well, character. Their convictions and beliefs. 

Regardless of how you feel, Harry had a logical characterization marked with legendary characteristics. 

Something that I think everybody should be forced to do, under penalty of being sent to the mines, is read something from Ernest Hemingway. If you want subtle, that's definitely your man. Even to the way his prose will shift in "The Snows of Kilimanjaro". Make them read John Steinbeck's "The Pearl" and how he talks about how in parables there must be black and white, good and evil, when the story proper isn't black and white, or good and evil. 

Essentially, look, people aren't going to do a critical analysis of your writing and are going to judge based on characteristics like "slow pacing" and "generic characters". 

Eat them. 

Your job, your focus, is to present a story. Some audience members won't "get" what you're selling. I've seen people do re-draws of fine art pieces, and make them "technically better", all while forgetting the soul and motion of the original piece and not understanding a dayum thing about symbology. And if that's the case, well that's a whole world they don't get and you do. 

Your writing isn't too subtle.

How To Get Story Ideas

 So I was reading a story by an author I follow and my goodness, was this story just a retread of what the author usually writes. Come to think, that's the third or fourth time I've said that this week . . . 

Alright, so time for JAC to talk about something near and dear to him--using the same plot repeatedly. 

Now I'm not talking about parallelism, where an author might use the same storyline in a novel twice to compare two different characters. I actually think that's a poignant way of getting a theme across. What I'm talking about is when this is the seventh time that dastardly author has written about dungeon delving into an ancient mysterious temple with a dark hideous secret. 

I'm so bored of that, I wish anyone who wrote that fell into a dark hideous ancient temple.

Or is this the ninth time we've gotten the amnesia plot? Is this the fourth character who has self-esteem issues and needs some therapy?

Okay, but idle complainism isn't going to fix anything. Where can writers get ideas from? 

Usually, the real source of this is that people typically only read the same general genres or ideas, and therefore grow stagnant. If you only read science western operas, all you're going to write is science western operas. 

You know where I like to get ideas from? History. 

History is relatively realistic (eh not really most books are actually a lot more sane but like . . . ) and powerful. I like to read about companies hiring Pinkertons to fight protestors. Isn't that a rip-snorting good time to you, too? Or how a general set out a bunch of scarecrows on a boat and how when the enemies fired at the 'crows, he just took the arrows and resupplied his army.

You don't just need history. Listen to people. They're everywhere. 

I saw one of my neighbors stop her car and she walks out. She yells at her daughter, "Why did your teacher say you have fourteen missing assignments!?" 

What happened? I dunno. 

Saw one of my neighbors shout at someone, "He's no brother of mine!" 

Now that's a story, right. 

What about those neighbors who seem to be awake at 2 AM and yet are awake in the middle of day? Or those neighbors always causing a party? 

Go to the store, you'll find an entire freak show fit for the entertainment of an emperor. 

Sometimes I just look at people's houses and I go, "I wonder how that window got cracked?" Ever wonder that?

And if you're really pressed, there's play pretend. Don't tell me you've never been in deep fog and went "what if I was the only person here?" You're in Silent Hill.  

Or even been on the floor doing something and looked up and been like "you know I bet this is what my cat sees from her perspective." 

When all else fails, rip-off Spongebob. 

Anyway just a random PSa.