rthstewart | Big Bang Update

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Big Bang Update

So, it's errrr, almost there. We have to submit a summary of our Big Bang story and 85% completed rough draft tonight and I just submitted the following:

Introduction, Glossary, Cast of Characters, Maps [about 50% complete, 1787 words]
Chapter 1, D-Day Minus 16 Months To D-Day Minus 1 Year [complete draft, 5988 words]
Chapter 2, D-Day Minus 11 Months To D-Day Minus 7 Months [complete draft, 8133 words]
Chapter 3, D-Day Minus 7 Months To D-Day Minus 6 Months [complete draft, 8243 words]
Chapter 4, D-Day Minus 2 Months [complete draft, 8243 words]
Chapter 5, D-Day Minus One Month To D-Day Minus One Day [complete draft, 7883 words]
Chapter 6, D-Day [about 5400 of maybe 10,000 words complete]

I realized that I consistently screwed up my east and west. I feel like more than a beta, I need a proof of concept. Should this be buried to never see the light of day? Darned if I know. I don't like writing so blind.

Here! Have something WAY FAR OUT THERE:

“What is it?” al-Masri asked, hovering, again.
“Rat sent a message personnel.”
“Are you sure it is Rat?”
“It’s too fast and inaccurate to be anyone else. If she’d been captured they would have done it accurately.”
shecantflyintheforest
She/cant/fly/in/the/forest
“What does that mean?” al-Masri asked. “Did you set up a fallback code?”
“Yes,” Tebbitt said, standing and grabbing his coat. “Call Tarrant Rushton and tell them we have new intel and are working to decode it. Major Howard will need to know and the glider command. I’ll call RAF Benson and tell photo recon to get another plane in the air and over those bridges.”
“And Rat’s message? What about that?”
“We’re driving to Reading to speak to Crow.”

Also, while I am learning who is uploading user pics, my LJ notifications of new postings are still not working so if you've posted and I've not said anything, it's because I don't know you are out there.

That's about it. Writing writing writing. How are you all doing?

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Oooh. Just looking at those chapters and seeing the timeline you've set up is very daunting even if we're not the ones writing it. That last line is very tantalizing (am very pleased to see Crow getting involved!).

I'm just happy that after tomorrow, I can stop looking at all this red carpet nonsense. This year has been one of the busiest awards show season for me in all the years I've worked here.

I also really, really need to get back to writing fic again. It's been an off-week for me as I'm dealing with work stuff, non-work but semi-profession related stuff and am still trying to finish reading Wuthering Heights (the Yorkshire is worse here than in Lady Chatterley).

Just observing you all pouring yourselves into this project with such vivacity and heart and painstakingly trying to complete everything for this deadline just makes me well up inside with admiration. Also...you're all CRAZY and I'm glad I'm not involved. ;)

Heh. I'm really glad I'm doing it. It's a story I was going to do anyway and I wanted to support the first ever Big Bang. Writing long is never a problem for me. I do hope you contribute art for it! There should be some FUN stories and such variety too. I'm pretty good at pacing my output and I don't... hmmm how to put it... sweat some of the small things? I don't get hugely wrapped in worldbuilding. I DO get VERY wrapped up in the need for a logical progression. Even a story skips around in time, as this one does, I HAVE to HAVE every scene move from Point A to Point D -- it's a mechanical thing. It's one reason why I write so long. Well that and lots of internal dialogue.

I killed lots of people the last 2 days so that's been fun.

So glad to hear you're having fun. It just seems so stressful to me! But then again, I struggle to hit 2,000 words a chapter...so a Big Bang would destroy me. Haha. Logical progression and internal dialogue -- just don't know how you do it the way you do! :)

VERY daunting. Gawd, what WAS I thinking? But I killed people today so, uhh, yeah? Go me?

I've decided I really DO NOT like waiting until the whole thing is done. I really miss the ongoing interaction. And as for the beta-I'm still worried about the whole proof of concept, whether it's BORING. I can send you the google docs link if you want to start getting a feel for it, but I know you're busy now (AWARDS!!!) and it's not ready for an editorial beta. proof of concept, yes.

I'm sorry to hear about the off week. I hope all is well? It was a bad week for me as well, which is I had to push a bit the last two days. All The Crazies began bothering me. Just ugh. Really, if clients are that crazy, they need something other than what I can provide.

I hope things quiet down after tomorrow.

Rth, one thing I am sure of is that your writing could never be boring! Seriously, the Lone Islands tax schemes in Harold and Morgan had me on the edge of my seat, and that stuff is the bane of my existence!!

Speaking of which, I have just finished rereading everything. Both Narnia and Spare Oom. EVERYTHING. And now tigers are growling in my dreams and I am staring at knots in wooden doors trying to see as Morgan does (you do such a tremendous job of getting inside their heads, and so gently - I really envy you that), and I can't wait to pour over this new tome! Just the tiny, tantalizing glimpse above has me readying the Soundtrack. (Bet you didn't know you had one, did you?)

~Syrena

P. S. If LJ lets me post this, you should check out the St Paul Pioneer Press and its brief article about crows: http://www.twincities.com/sports/ci_20015138

Aww, thanks! Soundtrack? You're going to have to tell me more about that! I am neither visually oriented, nor musically oriented. I hardly ever listen to music and cannot write or work to it at all. I can't even read while listening to music. And you have soundtracks? I know that fan music mixes are really popular but it's not something I've ever done!

Oh Morgan. I'd like to wrap up that part of the story arc next, actually, the next part of H&M. I just need to get them back to Narnia and was thinking that maybe she would want to see Seth. I've also got this whole thing I've wanted to do forever involving a businessman who tries to "buy" Morgan's services and Edmund gets all confused and angry about it, leaving to a little bit of DRAMA.

Errr and t his has nothing to do with World War 2 where I need to kill some more people and wrap up the story!

Thanks so much!

That snippet has me very excited...is there anything I like more than Rat and Crow getting deep into spy business (with added Tebbitt)?! I think not.

Also, having recently obtained a real life of my own, I am blown away by how you manage to get so much research and writing done while maintaining your own life. You're so impressive, really.

1) I can't wait to read it. 2) I could never write anything as intricate as you do, or as long. I am constantly amazed by how wonderfully clear your world is, and how you manage to pull us in. 3)Yessssss on Crow getting involved. So much yesssssss!

Is it bad that I'm FLYING LIKE A MADMAN IN ORDER BECAUSE EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE EXCITING, or not.

I'm going with not.

Also, that is intriguing, and worrying, (where is Susan, what's happened, how does Al-Masri know Tebbit, SO MANY THINGSSSSSSSSSS), and yes, basically I love this idea and cannot wait to get my grubby little hands on it :)

Ehft, pretty cool thanks :D Went to Edinburgh and and the renovated Portrait Gallery which was AWESOME (Oh my God, the room when you walk in, absolutely amazing - it has constellations, and a frieze of famous Scots :DDDD), but off to work this morning, so ffffffffff no writing >_>

It hasn't been a bad off-week, just that it's been very, very busy. Awards show season is one of our biggest money making/high profile time of year. At least I no longer have to go into the office and cover it into the early hours of the morning (I used to do that for several years; it was not fun at all).

I'm hoping to get back into writing a bit today or later this week. If this is your proof of concept, it doesn't look boring at all! Side note - I had a minor book discussion with a coworker Friday and told her about The Irregulars; she may now put it on her to-read list for the future. (I still need to go get that new one by Conant about Julia Child; saw that it's available at the main library so I'm going to try to get that one soon too.)

Good luck with the awards! it is cool to hear and read about this from your perspective! I sent you a google docs link, so you can take a look at it. Thanks SO MUCH.

At some point, I will read Conant's next book! Right now I'm reading Hunger Games and really enjoying it in a brutal sort of way.

I LOVE that the crows have their own Facebook page! And that they may be gathering together "to share information." They are amazing.

Yep, with added Tebbitt. It's another of those things that ended up being happy coincidence. The SOE used poems for their codes and so Tebbitt, being a poet, is very useful. Hence my need for poems. It was best that they use poems that were original because otherwise the Nazi codebreakers could decipher them with a book of English verse. The British landing zones on D-Day and the names of the beaches are another one that just floored me. It was wild enough that the British landed at codenamed "Sword" Beach, but they designated LZs named, among other things, King, Queen, and Peter. Really.

And thanks! I'm good at multitasking. The uptick in writing did coincide with the falling economy so I was not hugely busy the last 2 years. It's picking up, which means the writing is slowing down.

Thanks! We'll see how it goes! I really miss not floating things a chapter at a time and getting feedback. Readers always make such superb points and it really helps with the overall story.

THAT room is AMAZING. OH MY GOSH. it is GORGEOUS. Are you still interested in looking at the story? at least military stuff and the Brit slang, or are you too busy? It's cool either, way, just let me know.

Wow, nearly there, that's really cool. Like the snippet, and I can't wait to find out what happens next (and before, and later, and.... Yeah, you get the picture).

This is a few stolen minutes of early-morning fun before the work week starts, and it's going to be mental, what with the performance reviews for my team, interviews for a new starter, plus tax. Next week, I'm going to fall into a heap. Sorry to hear about your nutters - why is it that they never seem to arrive in ones, but you get a few at once?

Sorry, late again, because lj keeps trying to eat my signon for reasons unknown to anyone with a functioning brain. Apparently, if you call it enough bad names, and persevere for long enough, it will eventually relent. Gahhhh!!!

Good luck! Performance reviews really suck. My spousal unit had to them this week. My crazies were all people in the office calling on the phone with a range of demands that really seemed best answered by "But yes we have no bananas today." Just... out there. And they do travel in flocks.

Good luck!

Best of luck with your Big Bang!
I gave up on mine, but still hope to write the story eventually. Just not with a deadline. At the moment I'm RPG'ing instead - Narnia-Middle-earth cross-over ...

I like your snippet - and I'll be glad when you're back to frequent chapters again, rather than all in one go! But the Big Bang is a great idea, and having art with the stories will be wonderful. I like to hear more about Tebbit, too ...

I stood in awe for AGES, and seriously, I wish they could have at least allowed photos for that room, because it was BEAUTIFUL :D

... YES. DEFINETLY. I can give a go through on if it sounds okay and stuff, so just email when you're ready :)) <333

I grinned madly when I saw that email from you. Am looking forward to reading it later and comments will definitely be forthcoming if not today, then hopefully tomorrow.

I am really missing the regular feedback. I feel very isolated in this writing process, which I realize now is one reason why I've liked collaboration and posting chapters at a time -- because it allows for interaction and refinement. I am sorry you are not participating but the RPG sounds fun!

I've decided I really DO NOT like waiting until the whole thing is done. I really miss the ongoing interaction.

I suppose if you're not just desperate to have it all done with, you could complete it on the big bang timeline and the post a chapter at a time, and revise the subsequent chapters as needed. Still not the same thing, though.

I for one, am breathlessly awaiting and will gleefully tear through the whole story in as close to one sitting as I can manage. I'm taking vacation for the first full week of March and really hoping to get some Eustace and Jill after TLB fic written. Even if just a few isolated scenes. I haven't been up to writing yet despite being out of the crazy zone for a few weeks, so I'm hoping the week off provides the necessary space.

You're visiting Edinburgh and managed time for things other than the Scotland galleries of the National Museum? You have greater self-control than I do :-)

That and we wanted to go bookshop hunting :DDD But seriously, need to go back soon to look at more art and then go to the History Museum! :D

Oh, good grief, I am really, really looking forward to this. It will arrive just as I am moving to Berlin. *groan*

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