A while back I took the step of announcing the start of a new writing project
On Outlining A New Writing Venture (A post with no reason other than I was having fun with it)
The exercise was conducted to make sure that having ‘gone public’ I had better well carry on with this venture, there having been numerous other attempts which had faded away. The announcement was a boost to ensure my momentum kept moving to escape velocity. This is problem A Panster will often encounter. The process of not working from a true outline, or several pages of notes, but instead relying on ‘something’ popping into the imagination, or being inspired by the last few hundred words while only having maybe the vaguest of ideas as to where ‘this’ is going. Such an outlook can lead to falling prey to Life’s Daily Distraction or an attack of the Existentialist ‘What Is The Point Of It All’, or worse ‘Oh Heck…I’ve done all this before with different names and locations‘ (More about that problem a little later on)
My dependable notion of ‘Never Waste A Good World Build’ once more came to my aid. The Narrative would be set in the world of my previous trilogy. The fact that I could not decide whether in the Past, Present or Future of the previous trilogy’s setting was at the onset of little consequence at least there was a backdrop. As the narrative progress ‘The Future’ seemed the most suitable, this was made easier by the fact that in this ‘world’ of mine, Time was a flexible quality anyway, and there was the good old dependable ‘Ethereal’ an elemental force which is all things to all folk but woe to those who took it for granted or tried to control or expunge it. In this environment Continuity was not really a problem; and as a bonus enabled me to possibly sneak in the spice of a Hidden or Forbidden History factor. I kept the same Empire, Religion and some of the more powerful agencies as this would be useful for later on as to who was keeping what History from who and naturally for some stalwart characters to uncover ‘Stuff’.
Maybe it’s because of having strong stalwart women in my life; my wife of 51 years, two daughters, a granddaughter and daughter-in-law that I have always tended to place women at the forefront of my stories (also because it will annoy the heck out of those lesser males who object to strong women). Thus, as I started off, there were another three women being drawn into very unexpected situations, and meeting and bonding, even the rather same types as before; trouble? Not really; at the onset this suggested a link between the previous three books. Descendants? That might be stretching things a bit and requiring a lot of explanations out of character with the previous three central figures. No, what was required here was an element explored in the previous works- The Ethereal as a reactive force drawing certain types of folks together; this gave some of the more dogged lesser characters cause to explore into what was taking place and delve into that ‘Forbidden History’ and of course all reach different conclusions. That could be interesting, all manner of possibilities.
Now what was missing? Oh yes….
As usual I had forgotten a central plot. Yes, my BIG failing, getting so much wound up with the characters that their day to day events become the whole story, and whereas it is fun to write you can’t really expect folk to read an entire book’s worth, not in a fantasy background anyway.
Thus far though plenty of material to weave in….
1.One heir to a throne has to get married soon, two rival houses intending their daughters to be his bride. He is very agitated with the politics and takes a ‘gap’ to clear his head he goes out with a military border patrol; lots more politics there. Suddenly ambushed! Escapes! How will this work out? Will he survive and how will his character develop? (By the way there is an Ethereal link between him and the three central women characters- one that none of them really know about, him least of all. What kind of relationships?)
2.Somewhere else in the empire a very determined fundamentalist branch of the state religion are working up to a crusade. One fellow in particular. Note, don’t make him a pantomime villain. Give his side of things. Also they HATE the Ethereal. And let us not forget that no group is free from the whimsy of factionalism.
3. Where most of the characters live. Lots of local politics between two princedoms and one independent Dukedom, the latter favoured by the Empire. Also folk lurking in the wings there either barely seen or only thus far mentioned in name.
4. Also there’s The Empire, well a writer can certainly work with An Empire’s shenanigans.
5. AND – Of course The Ethereal and those forbidden / unknown histories.
6. AND EVEN MORESO – All the ‘stuff’ I mentioned above with the central characters.
7. Not to mention several lesser characters with promise to develop. And a few loose threads that need tightening.
Also
8, 9 & 10 – As write I don’t know what they are, but they are bound to be lurking around somewhere.
Plenty to work with. In fact so much I detect another trilogy. Too much colour and potential to spoil with a planned layout. In real life Wars and Politics never go to plan. One theme I am using again, the three central characters being swept up in events. Like real Life.
Also this is a first draft and a writer will know that’s a terrible version. There is plenty to be re-written, replaced, downright ditched. Onward- ever onward. To where I know not.
Gosh, this is fun….
Advice for Writers starting off and New Writers struggling……Keep all those scraps you have written or have buzzing around in your head, you never know when they will come in handy, get it down on paper or ‘doc’ and worry about the finer points later on.
Calliope (epic 
Thalia (comedy- displaying something of the understated approach here)
Melpomene (Tragedy – another fine example of understatement)
Only to end up a month later bereft of enthusiasm and material, like this ….
with not even a decent soliloquy lamenting on the capriciousness of The Muses)
Writing Despite Computers and Programmes 