What are you reading, right now...

[The Road Warrior]

I keep reading Stephen King's THE STAND, 'keep reading' because I never actually make it very far, so it's a long-term project. I'll get to the end one day.

But that aside, there's a very good essay at the beginning of the The Stand that anyone who's written can sympathize with, where King says he nearly abandoned the novel, but 80,000 words or so, in, it was too much of an investment for him to let it go.

So he went for a walk and it came to him, he needed to start killing-off characters, and set up oppostions, he'd also set up too many strands and storylines to contend with, and then the gem comes for us: to go with ON WRITING, there's some great advice on these struggles in The Stand intro essay, on say - plotted vs organic writing, and King explains why (even though he's written a number of plotted novels and doesn't always use a deus ex machina to conclude his plots) he prefers to do the latter. When you read King you can see there's really no choice for him, he's found his way over many years, and through experience.

I know we have run long threads here on this, plotted vs organic, and although this is screenwriting, it can be of use to writers of screenplays, I stuggle to outline, I have to work in my head a lot, before I get it down, there are quite a few downsides to that way in.

I keep trying to outline, but it takes off some of the shine and impetus to write, so I tend to think, well okay, the first draft is exactly that. I know that there aren't many writers who do this, if the book "101 Habits of Pro-Screenwriters..." is anything to go by, 1/10 of the contribs doesn't outline, neither does Alex Garland apparenty, except in the sense of a basic road map, (see his q and a entry in Moviemakers' Masterclass, Faber &F). I figure it's finding out how you work/write/think. And that's what really matters!

nb- King's advice is straddled between the reprint of THE STAND, and ON WRITING. for anybody who is interested in dipping in.

[Twofingeredtypist]

Originally Posted by The Road Warrior

I keep trying to outline, but it takes off some of the shine and impetus to write, so I tend to think, well okay, the first draft is exactly that. I know that there aren't many writers who do this, if the book "101 Habits of Pro-Screenwriters..." is anything to go by, 1/10 of the contribs doesn't outline, neither does Alex Garland apparenty, except in the sense of a basic road map, (see his q and a entry in Moviemakers' Masterclass, Faber &F). I figure it's finding out how you work/write/think. And that's what really matters!

I've always had a problem with outlines too, but the thing that works for me is not to become a slave to it. I've outlined my recent piece but only after, like yourself, rolling it around my head and jotting ideas in a notebook. I did actually employ the index card method, but I've found the piece took on a life of its own when I actually sat down to write. Some of the index cards didn't even make it to the page.

[Richmond Weems]

Not to turn this into a Stephen King thread, but I have a similar opinion to his latest works as others on here. However, I haven't read his latest, but Full Dark, No Stars was the best fiction he's had published in the last decade or so.

And it's kinda funny, but I didn't see the last couple of pages of this thread til now, but on the way home from work today my mind wandered to The Stand and a couple of scenes from that book stuck in my head.

Oh, and if anyone hasn't read The Stand, yet, don't bother with the "unedited" version. The one originally published is better than the 'director's cut'.

HH (who still has his original paperback that referenced a Howard the Duck comic--in subsequent publications, I think they changed the reference to a Superman comic book; I guess the publisher figured they needed a comic book character that was better known)

[The Road Warrior]

Originally Posted by Twofingeredtypist

I've always had a problem with outlines too, but the thing that works for me is not to become a slave to it. I've outlined my recent piece but only after, like yourself, rolling it around my head and jotting ideas in a notebook. I did actually employ the index card method, but I've found the piece took on a life of its own when I actually sat down to write. Some of the index cards didn't even make it to the page.

just a minor and further deviation...

yes, TwoF, have deployed ever-elaborate outlining systems in past, have 'worked in my head' since, but switch back to detailed outlining every so often (just to explain - always did lay out a basic road map, on paper, and like you, always deviated from it).

But recently, I wrote an idea down in story form, just to investigate, with questions along the way, sort of like talking to yourself, why this, what about that, or whatver raised its ugly head, but... it feels now as though, again, the impetus has been rocked a little by doing that.

And names, when to come up with character names? ... upfront, during, I find this tricky. May begin a sep. thread on onomastics/Names.


-back to books, and away from Mr King, and screenwriting, some interesting posts here, a wide selection of fiction and non fiction ->


@HH
nb, I'm stuck with The Stand, director's cut, HH, so too late for me, but makes sense, tinkering by authors seems to go wrong, even when they plead numerous reasons to the contrary.

[Twofingeredtypist]

Originally Posted by haroldhecuba

HH (who still has his original paperback that referenced a Howard the Duck comic--in subsequent publications, I think they changed the reference to a Superman comic book; I guess the publisher figured they needed a comic book character that was better known)

That's interesting. I must check my ancient copy of The Stand to see if it has that reference.

[Richmond Weems]

Originally Posted by Twofingeredtypist

That's interesting. I must check my ancient copy of The Stand to see if it has that reference.

It's towards the end of the book. One of The Dark Man's guards is reading it when one of the good guys goes by. I'd have to dig it out of a box of books to see for sure.

HH (who is probably going to do that anyway 'cause I've got this itch to read it again)

[brubenow]

Originally Posted by hscope

You have duplicated my own experience!

However, I just read the Kennedy novel, 22/11/63, and it's up there with his very best.

Agreed- just finished "11/22/63" by King a month or so ago and it's his best work yet. It has everything- could not put it down.

[Bobby Dazzler]

Winter's Bone screenplay by Debra Granik...

[ComicBent]

Currently reading War and Peace. As with The Road Warrior and The Stand, it is a long-term project. But I just started over recently, after having first started many years ago.

RE: A Confederacy of Dunces. A wonderful book. I have read it six or seven times.

[The Road Warrior]

I'd like to read Kafka again, it's been years since I read The Trial, or Metamorphosis. I don't think I nearly began to appreciate Kafka, too young at the time, but was fascinated by it.

@ComicBent. Tried to read War and Peace a long time ago but work got in the way, had just waded through all of Dostoyevsky for my sins, so was very good on the rarely abandoning a meaty classic front. Got further with Anna K, then began last year to chip away around a few works which I've always wanted to return to - you know - the heavyweights. W and P being one of them. Our local library has the Oxfore ed. but get the feeling it's best purchased as it will take a lot of time.

Ulysses, Joyce, had it once, read + abandoned it, but have read Dubliners, Finn. Wake, and Portrait, since and may try Ulysses again...

Proust, read some of the earlier books, 1 or 2 out of the 6 it's often divided up into. But this could require encampment on a deserted island to get through....

My favourite novel used to be Crime and Punishment, I've read it around 4 times, with 2 new translations knocking about it could slip up to 6. We'll see.