Jay Lake: Writer

[process] Writing the second (or third) book

Greg van Eekhout (who has one of the coolest names, ever) is launching into writing the sequel to his novel The Osteomancer’s Son. He made an observation that:

I’ve never written a sequel or a continuation of a series, so this is new territory for me.

My response to this was:

I have been quite surprised by the change in my technique and internal thought processes brought about by writing second and third books in series (or at least in continuity). You will be too, I am confident.

This has got me thinking about those second and third books. Last year while I was drafting Kalimpura, the third book in the Green cycle, I made a passing observation on this topic [ jlake.com | LiveJournal ]:

This is the second time I’ve written a third book in series. (Pinion being the other, of course.) As I believe I observed while writing Pinion, it’s a rather different experience that writing a standalone or initial book. So much of the worldbuilding, characterization and discovery is in place. I have to touch on bits of it so a reader who’s starting with this book won’t be lost, but I have it internalized. That means that writing this book is a different experience for me. I am far more focused on plot and inter-character dynamics because that other stuff is already in place and not crying for attention. And much as I had this experience with Pinion, I think it’s likely to make a somewhat different kind of book.

Now if I could only figure out how to deliberately leverage this phenomenon in future projects.

Well, since then I’ve outlined all three volumes of Sunspin in one go, deliberately designing them to work as a three-book project. Which is, or should be, me attempting to deliberately leverage this phenomenon in a future project.

In a nutshell, I think it does come down to what I said before. After a first book has been written, much of the worldbuilding, characterization and discovery are in place. Unless the plot of the second book is “our heroes sail over the horizon to discover new, alien worlds”, it’s probably operating from much the same geography, culture and politics as the first book did. That means one’s focus as a writer actually narrows rather than broadens. We don’t have to do everything in the punch list for book 2 (or 3, or 23). There’s still a bit of obligatory effort to bring new readers up to speed, but mostly we can assume that anyone reading book 2 knows what the Castle of Inordinate Doom is, and what happened to the Lord of Bright Shadows in book 1. That means we don’t have to set all that stuff up again.

Fine. So far, so obvious. But what does this do the writing process, to address Greg’s not-quite-a-question?

I think first of all we have to make different kinds of promises to the reader. Book 1, any book 1, is in part saying, “Hey, look at me!” They usually begin with something sharp and memorable, a clash of cymbals to grab the readers’ attention and say, “Hey, I’m worth the next few hours or days of your free time.” Book 2 is saying, “Welcome back, old friend.” Reader trust already exists, at least in principle, and while it needs to be sustained, it doesn’t need to be re-established from scratch. That allows a lot more room to maneuver in building the opening scenes, which can serve different purposes in a book 2 than in a book 1.

Likewise how the characters are introduced and what is done with them. Subtlety and depth come to the forefront, in favor of the broad strokes often used to establish a brand-new protagonist. A book 2 character has a shared history with the reader, an account balance of well-established words and deeds and emotions that can be drawn on. They enter the stage differently.

Finally, as alluded to above, the need not to explain so much is powerful. The tapestry is already woven from book 1. We can assume so much more, and only introduced those things which are changing, as well as those things to either elucidate or camouflage the changes. It shifts the art and craft of world building significantly, allow tighter focus on selected elements, given what can be assumed the reader has brought forward from book 1.

Emphasis and focus can make book 2 as different from book 1 as book 1 was from some discovery short story that originally introduced the character and setting. It’s a softer, subtler art. The character and plot loom larger in the writer’s mind, written as they are across the established setting and tone.

Greg, does this make it any easier?

Tags: Books, Green, Kalimpura, Pinion, Process, Sunspin, Writing

Posted: 9:09 am Fri December 16 2011 | Comments(1) |

[publishing] Out of contract blues

Now I’m going to complain about something that will probably irk some of the aspiring writers who read this blog. It’s one of those established writer problems that can look ridiculous from the outside, but is perfectly real and serious from the inside.

I’m out of a trade publishing contract for the first time since 2006. And it feels very weird to me.

Mainspring was originally contracted by Tor in 2006 for a 2007 release, along with a second book to be named later, which was eventually Escapement. Near the end of that contract cycle, Green and Pinion were contracted. Near the end of that contract cycle, Endurance and Kalimpura were contracted.

Well, now it’s 2011 and I’ve delivered Kalimpura for 2012 publication and, well, here we are. It’s not that Tor and I have parted ways. It’s not that we haven’t parted ways. We simply haven’t had the discussions, nor have I entered into discussions with any other trade publishers.

Some of this is my own doing, as I decided to write the Sunspin series as spec books rather than proposing them to Tor. Some of this is the cancer, which has stolen half my writing time in past two years, slowing down my ability to deliver a spec book in time to propose it to Tor, or anyone else, within my usual contract cycle. Longtime readers may recall that had I not experienced another metastasis this year, I had planned to write all three volumes of Sunspin by this fall. The book package would have been ready to go to market last summer, except for cancer.

And now, thanks to the travails of chemo and my resulting inability to execute on important revisions recommended by la agente, Sunspin‘s first volume won’t be ready to go to market before next February or March at the earliest. So I’m going to stay out of contract for quite some time to come, unless we take the rather unusual step of trying to sell on proposal plus unrevised draft.

All of which makes me feel very weird and insecure about my career. I’m in danger of missing the 2013 publishing cycle. I’m going to take a financial hit, to boot, simply because of delayed contract and payment timelines. But mostly, I worry about simply disappearing from view.

So I’ve got the out of contract blues, magnified by my cancer woes. And it doesn’t make me very happy. Another penalty of cancer, another thing being taken from me by this disease.

Tags: Books, Cancer, Endurance, Escapement, Green, health, Kalimpura, Mainspring, Pinion, Publishing, Sunspin

Posted: 5:53 am Thu October 27 2011 | Comments(2) |

[writing] A bit more going forward

I got a lot done yesterday, almost none of it from my to-do list. Some short fiction revisions, some market submittals — I haven’t put anything out to market on spec submission since sometime last May, and this will be my least active year for short fiction in a very long time — then a bunch of time cleaning up my tracking spreadsheet and my actual story files. Which definitely counts as deep maintenance, and also writing avoidance for the book outline I’m trolling with right now.

Or possibly it’s a sign of the long-awaited chemo-induced attenuation of my writing brain, exeunt pursued by bears. Certainly most of my activity yesterday was left brainy stuff, and none of it was oriented toward laying down new words.

At any rate, today is an open schedule. I expect to be helping the_child with some of her homework, and a family burger outing is in the offing around midday, but otherwise my time is uncommitted. I’m going to poke at the outline and see if the brain is in gear. I also want to draft a blog post about how it feels not to have a novel to be written under contract for the first time in five years, and maybe some related thoughts on Sunspin.

The to-do list, cleaned up, mostly for my own reference. As usual, in no particular order.

• Revise a committed short story (finished this past week, now out with first readers)
• Send out the linked lost colony stories to market
• Draft a script on metastasis for a science podcast
• Participate in a podcast interview
• Make yet further notes on a proposal/outline for a mooted collaborative novel project with urban fantasy author J.A. Pitts
• Review Sunspin feedback from several of my readers
• Begin process a book proposal regarding my cancer blogging (index built)
• Revisit Antarctica project
• Some creative/academic critique for a friend (follow up as needed)

Tags: Cancer, family, health, Kalimpura, Process, stories, Writing

Posted: 7:06 am Sun October 09 2011 | Comments(0) |

[personal|cancer] Updatery of interest mostly to my family and immediate friends

Yesterday went well. I had lunch with Mary Robinette Kowal at an Indian place we like, and was careful what I ate. Day Jobbery was what it was, then I got some late afternoon writing productivity done, including the final turn-in of Kalimpura, which has now been formally accepted by casacorona for production by Tor. (Not really final, of course, because there’s copy edits and galley edits and so forth to come, but for most purposes I’m done with the book. And, out of contract for the first time since 2006. There are no more books due. Which is a post for another time.) Also finalized, or nearly so, two outstanding collaborations with specficrider that will probably go out to market this weekend.

Last night was lillypond‘s birthday dinner at a Nice Restaurant, for which I put on long pants for the first time since July. And ate very carefully. Coming home after the cake-and-presents, the_child asked some intense, constructive life questions of my Dad, after which she continued the conversation with me. Parenting, always a surprise. I never fail to be proud of that kid.

Today, I deal with finalizing my taxes, as the extension deadline expires this coming week. I’ve already paid the IRS long since, so this is just paperwork, but it’s still a stressful hassle. Depending on how long that takes and how fuddled I feel, I’ll be back on my writing to-do list. If not today, tomorrow, for the to-do list.

Tags: Books, Child, family, Food, Kalimpura, Personal, stories, Writing

Posted: 7:21 am Sat October 08 2011 | Comments(0) |

[writing] Catching up with the to-do list

Yesterday my story “You Know What Hunts You”, a Dark Towns story, was accepted by semiprozine The Edge of Propinquity for their final issue. Hooray! Also, I finished the current short story project, “That Which Rises Ever Upward”, which clocked in about 6,500 words, just where I originally expected. I’m pleased about that.

“That Which Rises Ever Upward” was my last piece of committed fiction for this year, in honor of the oncoming right brain shutdown expected from chemotherapy. That doesn’t mean I won’t write more if my brain somehow manages to stay awake a bit longer. It just means I haven’t made any more promises.

I do expect to do some more revision, on “That Which Rises Ever Upward”, and probably on Sunspin and possibly one last light round on Kalimpura. Also I expect to do some more brainstorming and outlining, on the Antarctica project and the collaborative novel outline with J.A. Pitts. Plus some miscellaneous other things.

This is how I cope through the chemo fog and cancer stress. I keep setting goals, making milestones, and doing my best to fulfill them.

And just for reference, my list from a week or so ago, annotated for achievement and expanded for continued goal setting:

• Transmit Kalimpura to my editor for formal turn-in
• Respond to an email interview
• Revise and submit a short story currently in draft (now accepted)
• Write a committed short story I haven’t yet been able to focus on (finished yesterday, now out with first readers)
• Doing some editorial work on an anthology proposal
• Draft a script on metastasis for a science podcast
• Participate in a podcast interview
• Make yet further notes on a proposal/outline for a mooted collaborative novel project with urban fantasy author J.A. Pitts
• Review Sunspin feedback from several of my readers
• Begin process of collating my last 3.5 years of cancer blogging into a book proposal (index built, proposal awaits)
• Revisit Antarctica project
• Some creative/academic critique for a friend

Tags: Books, Kalimpura, Process, Sale, stories, Sunspin, Writing

Posted: 5:52 am Fri October 07 2011 | Comments(4) |

[personal|writing] Getting back on the horse

It’s been a rough week. Began with the horrendous lower GI problems. That segued into difficult therapist conversations. Then the immune system crash and the postponed chemotherapy session. The the CEA levels thing. Really, I feel like cancer has been banging my skull against pavement all week, trying to shake the loose change out of my ears.

I’m out of pennies, dude. And parasites that kill their hosts are not evolutionarily successful.

In the middle of all this I got Kalimpura finished, but since then, a combination of post-novel ennui and cancer stress has kept me away from the keyboard. Today my plan is to work on one or more of a list of smaller projects I have committed to. In no particular order, these are:

• Transmit Kalimpura to my editor for formal turn-in
• Respond to an email interview
• Draft a script on metastasis for a science podcast
• Participate in a podcast interview
• Revise and submit a short story currently in draft
• Write a committed short story I haven’t yet been able to focus on
• Doing some editorial work on an anthology proposal
• Make initial notes on a proposal/outline for a mooted collaborative novel project with urban fantasy author J.A. Pitts

Besides all that, I have some Sunspin feedback to review, I want to start working on collating my last 3.5 years of cancer blogging into a book proposal, and I have a difficult blog post to draft on cancer, coping and terminal diagnoses. (No, that’s not code for something bad I haven’t admitted to yet. Don’t worry.)

Not that all or even most of this will happen today. It’s just the landscape immediately before me, at least pending feedback from la agente on Calamity of So Long a Life and what we need to do to finalize that book to market.

Also, if you’re expecting something from me and don’t recognize your project/commitment/whatever on the above list, this might be a terrific time to write and remind me. My attention to detail isn’t quite what it could be these days, thanks to chemo brain, and I expect to completely run out of capability and attention span sometime in the next 3-5 weeks as my chemo fog deepens.

Tags: Books, Calamity, Cancer, health, Kalimpura, Personal, stories, Writing

Posted: 6:44 am Sat September 24 2011 | Comments(0) |

[writing] Kalimpura

Despite all my health issues of the past week, my writing mind finally overcame my body’s chaff to lay down 2.5 hours on the book yesterday. Several significant inserted scenes. A detailed read-through of the troublesome portion of the middle act with corrections made. A walk through of every single edit swatting second-order typos, word echoes and other newly-introduced errors.

I think I’m done with this book. Going to let it steep for a few days before I send it in. Just because.

God I love being an author.

Tags: Books, Kalimpura, Process, Writing

Posted: 5:31 am Wed September 21 2011 | Comments(2) |

[writing] Kalimpura proceeds apace

Ahead of pace, no less. Since launching into this revision round, I’ve managed to put in about two hours per day on Kalimpura revisions. I’m currently doing line revisions and small to medium sized rat killing. Once I’m done with this pass, I need to write several new scenes, then I need to deal with a bit of a pacing issue in the middle act. I’m still not sure how I’m going to handle that last, but it will come to me. Then, well, I’m done.

This pace is happily a bit more than I’d originally budgeted, so I’m ahead of schedule. This is good, because in turn it means that given my light schedule this weekend, I can probably have the revisions wrapped before I drop back into chemo at the end of next week.

Which makes me feel a heck of a lot better. My original plan was to have Kalimpura fully revised and back to my editor casacorona by the end of September. Given my chemo schedule, after next Thursday 9/22, the next day I’ll likely be able to write is either 9/27 or 9/28. So being ahead of schedule really means I’m mostly on schedule.

In which case I’ll let everything steep until that week, then hopefully meet my original month-end deadline.

It’s been nice being back inside Green’s head. She’s one of my favorite characters, and she’s a strange one. She’s also been willing to supply both dialog and action where I’ve needed to make changes or expansions to the draft of this her third book. I like that feeling of knowing someone very well.

Kalimpura is my last contracted book about her. I’ve left myself some plot and character hooks to write more, should creative impulse or market demand drive me, but for now I’ll be leaving her behind once this book is done. I’ll miss her. I’d hesitate to call her a friend — and she’d be a terrible friend in real life — but she is a close associate about whom I’ve come to care deeply.

The best thing I can do for Green is finish her book well.

Tags: Books, Green, Kalimpura, Process, Writing

Posted: 8:24 am Sat September 17 2011 | Comments(0) |

[writing|cancer] Kalimpura revisions underway, other updates

Yesterday, despite a bit of lingering chemotherapy fog in the lowlands of my backbrain, I got through about 100 pages of Kalimpura revisions in the course of two hours. The fog finally got to me, along with the usual ongoing lower GI disturbances post-infusion.

This is the reading pass from my editorial notes per casacorona and la agente. There’s some deeper revisions needed in the midsection of the book, requiring at least another pass after this one, which is why I think it will take me into the end of next week to get through these revisions. Possibly a bit longer if I am ambushed by more chemo fatigue, or high-demand parenting moments, etc.

Still, it’s good to be back in Green’s head. She’s quite the ferocious young woman. And the reception to this book among my earliest readers has been good so far. I am pleased.

Once I’ve wrapped this revision, I have several smaller tasks to deal with, including participating in two podcasts, revising a requested short fiction draft, completing a much-delayed email interview, and, um, some other stuff. Then, depending on available brain power, I may stir the Sunspin pot some more, also assuming feedback from la agente has arrived in the mean time.

All of this, of course, preparatory to my likely shutdown of writing. When I was on a similar six-month course of chemotherapy in 2010, that occurred around session 8 of 12. I just passed 6 of 12, so I figure I’ve got about four more good weeks in me, interrupted for 4-5 days by the forthcoming session 7.

I truly do hate to see the time slip away from me. Still, this is my life, measured out not in coffee spoons but chemotherapy doses. Write to live, live to write.

At least I have Green to keep me company.

Tags: Books, canecer, Green, health, Kalimpura, Process, stories, Sunspin, Writing

Posted: 5:43 am Wed September 14 2011 | Comments(0) |

[writing] Flash me, baby

WRPA yesterday, which I could so some reading for blurb etc. even though my brain was still a bit foggy from chemo. Hope to work on Kalimpura today.

However, give me something to read from you. Post in comments a snippet, or even an entire flash. Show me and my readers what you’re working on. There might even be a randomly selected prize or two to be mailed out from my big basement full o’ books.

Tags: Books, Cancer, health, Kalimpura, Writing

Posted: 5:43 am Tue September 13 2011 | Comments(5) |