h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hey,

Tell me about the novel you finished. . . if you have the time and inclination.

welcome. i've actually finished a few things, 4 movie scripts, a ton of short stories and the novel-- about computer addiction. it would have really sold when it was finished, back in '98, but now? dunno. why? have you also gone down that incredibly arduous road to writing a few hundred pages? man, the worst part was continuity, by far! did it all hold together? will anyone follow the winding trail of the plot? but truth, attempting to market it was even worse than the writing. but who knows? maybe i will happen to run into one of those mythical creatures known as Literary Agents, and he/she will accept just the first 2 chapters and be fascinated enough to look at the rest and then HOORAY! the sky's the limit! eeeehaaaaa!!!

It's nice to dream, isn't it.

Truth is, I've never actually written more than three chapters to a book. I've written two or three chapters to maybe 20 books, but that's as far as they have gotten. But for the first time I think I have a story that will fly, or could fly. The problem that I had before was that I had what I thought was a good idea, to light the fuse, but then I would lose the wick really quickly, I didn't know where the story should go or, worse, how it should end. But here's what I'm "working" on now:

A midwestern town in the middle of nowhere whose economy relies on its corn crop is stuck in the midst of a drought. There are corn stalks, but they aren't growing. Somewhat by accident, but mostly out of boredom and greed, the people of the town discover that they can attract tourists if it is believed that aliens have landed there. A few faked crop circles attract some attention, but it isn't until the FBI itself comes to investigate that people start to take notice. Pretty soon the town is full of people spending money on anything, and it's all a sham.
The twist is that, while the people in this town are pretending that aliens have visited their town, a group of aliens actually ARE visiting their town. In the end, the aliens try to come forward and confess, but nobody believes them because their story isn't as intresting as the fictions they have created.

I've got about two and a half chapters written, and I've got most of the rest of the book sketched out. There's a love story in there, of course, between a human and an alien. And all of the key characters actually grow through the novel.

But I still don't know how it should end. I figure if I write most of the book, I'll get a few people to read it, ask them what they think is going to happen next, and then do something completely different.

Gotta get back to work. 15 minutes isn't very long when you're typing.

great idea! some problems inherent in the plot, but hell, the only way to resolve them is to keep hacking away at them. best way to handle characters is give them freedom. they can actually take you places you hadnt even thought of, sometimes require you to change your best laid plans of plot and whatnot-- just write, andy. write everyday. you've got a general structure to build your house, so put up one piece of whatever at a time, use nails, glue, scotch tape, whatever it takes to keep the thing growing. ahhh, but you know all this, i'm sure.

someone recently pointed out a thin spot in one of my screenplays, where there was not enough at stake, for the action of the character in question. so that is proving to be a very useful tool-- find what drives characters, why they would say, do or think the things they do, then stick things in their way and see how they react-- does any of this help you?

i just got back from a couple of days at south lake tahoe. nice being up in the mountains. now i'm back, and still in the mountains! just a little lower. man, i love it here! gonna start work on the new project soon, just gotta put the old project into a presentable package. check you later. write!