Talk about the process you go through when formulating new storylines for your muses. Let us in on how you process a new storyline. What excites you and what makes it fall flat?
I have to admit that Sariel, in general, doesn’t fall into the slot where she has longer storylines anymore. It’s a bit of a shame, as I’ve the whole of history to explore with her, but at the same token I’ve realized that she just isn’t suited to carry a long story on her own. She’s always been in the supporting cast role, and probably always will be.
Certainly she’s a part of three much longer plots. However, these plots have never really made it to her journal, mostly because they’re all a part of the comic scripts that myself and my artist are working on – admittedly very slowly. The scripts for each are all well over 100 pages, and in all three, she’s directly involved with events (but mostly through being named dropped in discussion in relation to major events.) Lucifer’s always been the main character of those larger stories because I feel he’s a stronger character than Sariel and more compelling in terms of motivations. Sariel’s pretty simple in comparison, and, by comparison, is pretty static compared to the rest of the cast.
There’s also the very honest fact that I just don’t have the skill to pull of a longer plot line in prose format. No harm in that. I’ve always been a dialogue writer. Description is VERY tedious for me and I have little skill at it. One aim of this journal has been to improve upon that, and while I feel that I have, I’ve much longer to go.
Of course there’s exceptions, and I blame the wonderfulness that is/was/I’m not sure where it stands at the moment known as
unter_allen’s mafia verse. This was probably the first and only time I ended up getting completely and utterly enveloped in a plot that wasn’t just me sitting and hacking at a computer all day, and it was something I enjoyed primarily because it was so not what I normally do. I got to develop and play with characters I’d never use normally (my usually neglected account for Lucius Vorenus [
l_vorenus] is a nice example). Sometimes I like going back and playing with this verse, although usually interest from other people who were involved wanes and waxes, as it does.
Really when it comes to collaborative plotting, I like just being able to sit down and bounce ideas back and forth off of a person. The more enthused their response, the more excited I become and eventually the session results in this hyperactive game of volley ball. But with plotting. I know of one person that I do this with a lot can either love it or hate it depending on the interest level she has at the moment, which can make me a pain to work with.
If I’m plotting by myself, it’s usually a lot more simple. I have a beginning point and I have an end point I want to reach. I start with the one scene I know that kicks everything off, and I just let whatever happens next fall out onto the page. I don’t put a lot of forethought into an initial draft. It isn’t until I reach my end point, whatever that may be, do I sit down, look and everything and go, “Huh. Does that make sense? Am I proud to have written this?” And then it’s time to revives.
It’s all about enthusiasm for me, in the end. And if you aren’t enjoying a plot, why the hell are you even doing it?
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