Story Train

Every Boy Scout troop has done it. Most summer camps have done it. Countless English classrooms have done it. "Let's all tell a story together, one line at a time!" Well, a discussion between myself and another writer recently yielded an expansion idea, based on that, which I would like to share.

First let me tell you the 'train' part of it. My wife does some couponing. I don't mean she clips a couple of coupons out of the Sunday paper to use at the store. I mean she plans deals and exploits sales with multiple types of coupons, stacking one on top of another until the store ends up paying her to take home a basket of goodies! Anyways, enough bragging. She is a member of a couponing site where other members, from all over the country, all do these deals and trade coupons with each other. "I don't need dog food, but I'll give you this dog food coupon for that pizza coupon." Once in awhile, she joins what is called a "train." Listen up, this is the important part. On a coupon train, several people sign up and the coupons go from one person to another, switching and adding coupons and everyone benefits. They have gotten really creative with the way the trains run and what gets on and off them, so to speak.

So, now that you understand "trains" and "stories," let's put them together and talk about this idea. What if several authors signed up (maybe even on a website made for this... hmm... more ideas!) to write a collaborative story. Say, just for the sake of explaining it, that we get 7 authors on this particular train. Perhaps we have not laid down a plot framework, but have limited it to a genre, perhaps Western? (Yee-haw!) and the going rule is that you have to work with whatever text you get. (You can't trash the main character halfway into the book and start telling the story of the cashier that got a cameo in Chapter 3.) At midnight on Sunday, the first author gets to start. He has 24 hours to write as much of the beginning of this novel as he can before handing it off to the next author. She, at midnight, takes what he wrote and moves forward with it. She has 24 hours to write all that she can before handing it off to the next author, and so on. The last author in the train is the caboose. This author has to get his caboose in gear and finish the novel! He, like the others, has 24 hours to do his work, but his job is to wind up the details, tie up the loose ends, and provide a satisfactory conclusion to the work. Voila, we've ridden a wild Story Train and written a novel in only a week! NaNoWriMo would be impressed!

Naturally, this probably wouldn't result in the next Great American Novel, but it could result in a lot of fun, and an interesting challenge for some writers. Naturally, like my wife's coupon trains, there could be all kinds of interesting rules and setups and designs of trains like this. There might need to be some artistic license questions to answer, but I'm sure we could find a reasonable method.

What do you think? Writers, would this be a fun challenge for you? Readers, do you think you'd enjoy reading something written by several authors all at once? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

I'm jealous.

Actually, I'm envious. Despite popular use, jealous doesn't accurately describe what I'm feeling. Last week, the movie Kick-Ass was released on DVD, and I got it and watched it and enjoyed it. (I wasn't thrilled with the particular treatment, but I loved the concept and story behind it.) I'm envious of Kick-Ass because it's such an obviously wonderful plot. As the main character says in the opening scenes: "I always wondered why nobody did it before me...at some point in our lives, we all wanted to be a superhero." It then goes on to follow the story of a guy who did it. He dressed up, he jumped around, he went out looking for trouble, and found it.


Two years ago, I was even more envious of the movie Hancock with Will Smith. I won't spoil that one if you haven't seen it, but what an incredible, brilliant, creative plot/characterization. It starts with a superhero that has amnesia and doesn't know who he is or where he comes from, and just gets better from there on in.

Since I'm currently working on a project that involves full immersion virtual reality, I'm also a little nervous of stealing from someone I can't help but be envious of: Piers Anthony. His novel Killobyte is one of my favorites.

I do occasionally feel a little down when thinking of, discovering, or watching what I consider creative brilliance, but mostly I am nervous of stealing the ideas. Shakespeare said there is nothing new under the sun. Considering the recent technological developments of the last century and a half, I'm not convinced he was in a good position to make this judgement. Nevertheless, even something as "recent" as superheros may not necessarily be "new."

"Gods. Angels. Different cultures call us by different names. Now all of a sudden it's 'superhero.'" -Hancock

There is even a book called Our Gods Wear Spandex by Christopher Knowles that discusses this concept of superheroes being a new incarnation of an ancient human concept.

I don't mind running along side creative brilliance in a similar, imaginative footrace, but I don't want to steal someone else's shoes trying to leave my own footprints. In the end, I guess it comes down to this:

Yes, I'm envious, but instead of standing in awe, or matching their footsteps, I'm trying to run my own race and, just maybe, I'll meet them at the finish line.

Excellent Post on Breaking the Rules!

Recently (July 24th), over on magicalwords.net (a website I have recently discovered and been loving, by the way), Edmund Schubert posted an article about the value of stylistic rules and advice. More importantly, the value of using those guidelines weighed against the value of breaking them!

This is excellent advice to any writer, whether a beginning novelist, or an 8th-grade, class-ditching, English-is-for-nerds essayist! Rules can be broken, but only if you know the rule to begin with, and then know when to break it!

Also (bonus!), imbedded within the article are some excellent clarifying ideas regarding grammar and punctuation. Among that part of the discussion, a few examples were dropped that invited widespread, rousing rioting in the comments section! Yes, I was part of it, but it was Edmund wielding the "very large dictionary!"

I NEED that!

So, one afternoon last week I get a call from one of my friends. She says that she has a friend that likes to read and pointed her to my website, where I have excerpts from much of my work. Now the friend wanted to ask me something. She hands the phone to the friend and the friend says:

"I NEED to read the rest of that book!"

Now, I'm still unpublished. In fact, she's lucky that the one she was interested in is even finished; not all of them are! So I arranged to get her email and email it to her, because it isn't currently under consideration by anyone.

So I have two thoughts on this situation, both of them very positive, and maybe they are just related.

1. How awesome a friend I have that apparently does regular word-of-mouth marketing for me? She claims it has nothing to do with being my friend, but hey, it feels pretty cool, either way.

2. What an amazing feeling to hear someone say "I NEED to read more!" I've had people read my stuff over the years, I'm not one that's shy about that, but very rarely have I had someone, especially someone I have never met, be that excited about my work.

So, this post isn't a deep insight into the mind of a writer, nor an exciting update as to what is happening with my work, but merely a very heartfelt thank you to my friend. Thank you, for bringing me that huge feel-good moment. Every fledgling writer could use more of those.

Stormy Weather

It's that NanoTime again! Time for the next of Derek Daniels's ongoing adventures as a Nanite Chaser. Stormy Weather is now available to read on the DavidJace website. If you haven't read the previous adventures, they can be found on the main page of the site, under Short Stories, along with the current episode.

I particularly liked this episode for a couple of reasons. One, the girl he meets; I love the dancing in the rain image. Two, the little hints that are embedded in the story. I'm not saying any more about that, though.

At the bottom of the story, as usual, is a Comment link. Please let me know what you think of it. Especially if you catch an inconsistency with previous episodes, or if you think the voice is not staying true throughout. Or if, heaven help us, you just happen to like it!

If it weren't for this thing called Life...

Yes, I'm posting late today. It isn't my fault! I did it! Someone must have snuck in and deleted it just to get me in trouble! (I must have been hanging out with my kids alot. They're rubbing off on me.)

Ah, Life. If it weren't for that silly millstone around our necks, we'd be able to get so much more done! I have been determined to get some writing down now that summer is here, and yet, *sigh* not a word. I feel like a horrible failure.

"The Microcosmic God" by Theodore Sturgeon is about a scientist that invents an entire race of little creatures to which he is, effectively, god. It's a wonderful little story with a lot more to it than I have described here. Highly recommended. However, at one point, he invents a drug that completely removes the need for sleep, so that he can spend 24 hrs a day with his little creatures! It has come to that. I must either invent a sleep-removing drug or become undead if I want to get anything done. This ridiculous Life thing is just too in the way.

Drastic as this decision is, I have decided to put it off and try one more thing first. Hero Games is my current, stalled, project. Instead of trying to finish the planning on it, I'm going to jump into it, and start writing. I'll use the plans I've developed so far, and see where the rest of it goes. When I'm done, I'll tear back through it, change it all up, and write it again. Let's see how this plan works for me. I'm aware that other authors do it like this all the time!! And if it doesn't work out, I've always got that undead thing to try.

Thyme Four Ace Mile

This week, I wanted to do something with a little less "deep thought." OK, I admit it, I was having too much fun with kids, summer camps, swim lessons, and Elvenfire marathons to manage a proper list. My dad sent me this list of puns and quips and I decided to share a few smiles with my readers. I hope you enjoy them.


1. How Do You Catch a Unique Rabbit?
Unique up on It.

2. How Do You Catch a Tame Rabbit?
Tame Way.

3. How Do Crazy People Go Through The Forest?
They Take The Psychopath.

4. How Do You Get Holy Water?
You Boil The Hell Out of It.

5. What Do Fish Say When They Hit a Concrete Wall?
Dam!

6. What Do Eskimos get from sitting on the Ice too long?
Polaroids.

7. What Do You Call a Boomerang That Doesn't Work?
A Stick.

8. What Do You Call Cheese That Isn't Yours?
Nacho Cheese.

9. What Do You Call Santa's Helpers?
Subordinate Clauses.

10. What Do You Call Four Bullfighters In Quicksand?
Quatro Cinco.

11. What Do You Get From a Pampered Cow?
Spoiled Milk.

12. What Do You Get When You Cross a Snowman With a Vampire?
Frostbite.

13. What Lies At The Bottom Of The Ocean And Twitches?
A Nervous Wreck.

14. What's The Difference Between Roast Beef And Pea Soup?
Anyone Can Roast Beef.

15. Where Do You Find a Dog With No Legs?
Right Where You Left Him.

16. Why Do Gorillas Have Big Nostrils?
Because They Have Big Fingers.

17. Why Don't Blind People Like To Sky Dive?
Because it scares the Dog.

18. What Kind of Coffee Was Served on The Titanic?
Sanka.

19. What is The Difference Between a Harley And a Hoover?
The Location of the Dirt Bag.

20. Why Did Pilgrims' Pants Always Fall Down?
Because They Wore Their Belt Buckles on Their Hats.

21. What's The Difference Between a Bad Golfer And a Bad Skydiver?
A Bad Golfer Goes, Whack, Dang!
A Bad Skydiver Goes Dang! Whack.

22. How Are a Texas Tornado And a Tennessee Divorce The Same?
Somebody's Gonna Lose a Trailer.