Back in the groove

I'm back into my Regency menage and thrilled to be able to write forward! I realized what the problem was-it wasn't the transition chapter, but the second half of the book. I had a fourth added into the threesome, but really it wasn't necessary.

By removing this other man, I was able to retool the last 6-8 chapters to better suit the beginning of the story, the characters I created, and the plot I already had.

WHAT A RELIEF! It only took me, what, 6 weeks? Whatever it was, the time was well worth it because I'm so much happier with the story now!

Regency Bathing Machine

Bathing in Brighton and what I found in my Regency research.

It wasn't a foreign concept for Regency people to enjoy the beach. Their method just differed from what we do today. Note the full clothing from head to toe! And those  houses that roll into the water-Bathing Houses where you could change in complete privacy and bathe in equal privacy. Or, if you weren't into sea bathing, your sensibilities weren't offended by those who wished to.

Submitting

No, I'm not submitting my full length Regency threesome/foursome. It isn't finished yet, I'm still having trouble with the transition chapters. I know what I want to happen, but it isn't working to my satisfaction. Still playing with them so they work as a good bridge between the beginning and the way I want the ending told.

I'm submitting a post-apocalyptic modern day m/m story to Ravenous' Love Among the Ruins anthology.I just finished reading it one last time, adding in a few extra details about the world as it is now (story wise you understand) and am sending it off to Lori Perkins this morning. Deadline is August 1, so I feel quite ahead of the game!

In looking up where to send this (email wise) I found a few more blogs to follow, too! I love finding new people to stalk, er follow. Oh, the modernism we create!

Jumping into the wide world

In my case I mean facebook, myspace (is that still around?), twitter, etc. I have a blog, isn't that enough? A couple friends think I should expand, but clearly I can't even update this every day. All that other stuff? I'll never get anything done!

How do you all do it?  How do you keep up with all this social networking AND manage to write, have a life, sleep, eat? How do you survive?

Editing

Sucks. Editing sucks, big time!

On the other hand, reading your story for the fifth consecutive time, aloud, in a eerily quiet room and hoping no one walks in on you, does have its advantages.

Finished  second apocalypse story last night and instead of reading it just after finishing, I thought I'd read the first one, the m/m story. I missed a lot. Not in terms of grammar or spelling or such, not even in terms of plot cohesiveness.

It all goes back to that world building. I knew I needed to add stuff, I made that cool list and all, and used every point in the second story, a sexy m/f/m ménage. And then had to go back and add in all that in the first, the m/m one.

I really love this story now. There's more meat to it, no pun intended, more reasons, more world.

Lists

Apparently, I'm a list person. I have now created a list of things I'd like to see in my 3 current stories. Not specifics, but generalities that can be tweaked to fit into each distinctive story. I'm positive this list is not unique but I'm sharing anyway. If you have others, please feel free to add them!

Character background
Character growth
What's going on in this world
Why is it going on in this world
What the end goal is
Who the main players are
Is there an amorphous bad guy or specific one
External or internal conflict
How does the world affect the characters

As you can see, they're listed in the order I thought of them ad scribbled them down. Probably missing some, a other additions, suggestions, specifics?

Creating a world

Or world building, take your pick. In my first published story, Inamorata, the era was Venice circa 1690. I knew the city, looked up a couple canal names on a map, doubled checked the fashion, and bam! World created.
Making one up from scratch is a lot harder.

I'm working on two separate and distinct shorts for Ravenous' Apocalypse Today: Love Among the Ruins. They both take place in the same world, but in different areas with different experiences and different outcomes.

I had no idea it would be this hard! Taking a slice of the past and adding in a bit of historical intrigue and a heavy dose of romance and sex is one thing. Translating that heavy dose of romance and sex into a world of my own creating? More difficult. Not because, I think, of the transition itself, because of the world itself.

Coruscant from the Star Wars films, check it out. A city-world. Pretty cool!

So my questions in creating this brave new world are:
WHY is it a post apocalypse world? WHAT happened? WHEN did it happen? WHERE did it happen? WHO did it happen to? WHO made it happen? HOW did it happen?

Who, what, where, when, why, and how? Journalistic questions for an erotic romance. It all works. And after much frustration, I'll be using those questions from now on, whether going forward with this hell-world, or (finally) finishing my Regency ménage.

How do other people world build? I'm curious.

July 4, 1776

Happy Independence Day, America!