So this is where I am...

It's about 1 AM Saturday. I am well awake and listening to oldies (songs from the 50's and 60's). Currently playing is "Ain't Too Proud To Beg."

My thoughts were so strongly focused on "House On Hickory Hill" for so long but now my mind has wandered over to "Skin and Bone." This back and forth is quite common. However, I started re-reading what I wrote of SB and I'm astounded. I don't have the same problems in this one as I do in HHH (such as several big holes that need filling, a huge revision of chapters and/or sections). No, the biggest problem I had with this novel was double spaces after a period. I've fixed that all in the first section of the book. That was step one. I need to add a scene at the end of this one chapter then after that I can go back, fix all the god damn adverbs I've used, and then delete a few things (there are several parts where I say the same thing but in three different ways. As a reader I am annoyed). The writing, though, is fantastic. My style, as far as mechanics go, is pretty steady from when I started writing this (freshmen year of college). I've got good sentence variation, good flow. Sure, I've learned stuff since then but I'm still impressed with myself.

Now this book is divided into three sections, each section representing a different key location. I've actually modeled these three distinct locations after my trip to and from school and home. Basically the story starts out at "home" and my protagonist ends up going to a mid-point town in part two, called "Frankton," which is a real town. My friends and I have nick named it the "Zombietown," because often when you drive through there, you never see anyone around. It's eerie but cool in a way. The third and final location is a mixture of my college and college town. I haven't actually written part three. Part 1 is essentially finished (just needs some mop-up) and part two has a good leg up, but part 3 is just in my mind for now. I know some things though that I will share with you:

In this third part, my protagonist, James, has finally arrived at his university. This was his ultimate goal because he knew that his school had some really advanced bio-labs, top scientists/professors, and such. He hoped against hope that it would still be standing and that people would still be there, working hard on a cure. At the end of part 1, we hear a radio broadcast affirming that this place is a refuge and that it is, indeed, still standing. James is hoping to help find a cure. That is about all I can tell you. Oh, and of course, when he gets there...it isn't at all what he expects. Cliche in a way but also, true in life as well as fiction.

Now "Stay (Just A Little Bit Longer)."