Back to Question Time, where you can ask me anything! Within reason! I may have a somewhat rare printed copy of the short story A CAT WAS INVOLVED, the Chet and Bernie origin story available in digital and audio, to give away sometime in the process.
And now over to Phoenix Giordano: “When you sit to write a book, do you have the entire plot already downloaded into your brain? Or at least the outline? Or does it come to you as you’re writing it?”
Great question! In the beginning of my career – this was before electricity – I’d plot an A-Z outline. It took weeks. The problem was that at C or D some character would blurt something unexpected that was way better than what I’d had in mind but involved scraping the outline. So now I’m at the stage where I’m flying the plane and building it at the same time. I start fairly fast, slow down in the middle, and speed up at about the two thirds point – where, believe it or not, some of the work goes on in my sleep. Freebies! Like last night (I’m working on the C&B that follows CAT ON A HOT TIN WOOF – preorders please and thank you) the whole wedding cake ransom sequence came to my sleeping mind.
7 Comments on “Answer Time (More)”
Always happy to hear about the next one in the works!
Stay warm and safe, everyone!
Greetings!
I have been enjoying “Answer Time.” Makes me wonder if OFA has ever considered writing a guide book on writing fiction.
Grizz and I stepped into the supermarket to get some things for dinner on Sunday, since that is when snow is expected in this neck of the woods. So many people were panic buying, as if they are expecting to be snowed in for weeks.
All those in the track of the storm, stay warm, dry and safe!
Wose, we lived in Bel Air, MD when the huge winter storm hit years ago. Everyone was house bound. I hope this storm is not as bad as predicted! We only have 30 degree temps and an inversion here in Eagle, ID. I am grateful!
Hi Rebecca!
The temperature here is starting to dip. We had a high of 36 degrees today. It is 21 degrees right now. At least this winter storm picked the weekend to happen. We should be good by Monday in this neck of the woods.
Unfortunately, it’s beginning to look at though we may have some freezing rain here in addition to a foot or more of snow, so it is time to buckle up and fly right. Freezing rain means likely power outages. As to shopping, it does seem as though a big storm cause everyone to crave French toast (eggs, bread and milk). The temperature here is now officially below freezing, and based upon the forecast, the earliest that we may see a temperature above 32 degrees again is a week from Monday, if we are lucky.
Oh boy. Will the next C&B be “For a Few Collars More” to complete your spaghetti kibble trilogy?
I am a big believer in the sleep/solution connection. I always think of dreams as a movie our brains put on to keep us occupied while it is busy filing away all of the data collected during the day. I find that if I have a problem of some sort if I sleep on it a solution will often be obvious in the morning. Also, if I have made a decision that I think is good but I have a bad night and wake up uneasy or unhappy, that that decision was a bad one and I need to go back and revisit/change it.
I like that dream as distraction idea!