It’s watching you!
Oh, blessed relief. Today I sat down, once again, to work on Chapter 24 of Video Rage, the sequel to my novel Reborn City. I’d been working on and off on the chapter for the past eight days or so, delayed by homework, exams, and the need to sit down and do something other than writing in order to relax. But today I sat down, and I finally finished it, meaning I only have a third of the novel left to write! Woo-hoo!
I’ve been enjoying my return to the world of the West Reborn Hydras. Not only has it been kind of therapeutic and relaxing to work on my novel after having to take a very long hiatus in order to focus on school, but it seems that the world of the story has expanded on its own, become more complex and astounding than when I first created it. When I was working on Chapter 22, the characters kind of took the reins away from me and played out a scene before me similar to a cop drama, where one character was poking holes in the story of the other two and showing just how flawed their seemingly-flawless version of events really was. I didn’t even think I could write a scene like that! And when I worked on Chapter 23, new characters and new situations kept intruding into the scene I’d originally envisioned. I guess it’s true what they say, that the characters really write the story and not the authors.
Well, it makes my job easier if they write it for me. And better yet, my characters don’t ask for royalties.
But I digress. Let me update you on page and word counts (and when I say page, I mean your standard 8″ x 11.5″ MS Word paper). In total, the number of pages has risen to 197 pages, while the word count has risen to 54,703 words. That’s about the length of a very short novel, and since I have thirteen chapters left to write, it’s probably going to rise another ten to twenty-thousand words (no, don’t be intimidated. Most of the Harry Potter novels are much longer than that).
For now though, I think I’ll take a very short break from writing VR. I’ll probably write an article for Self-Published Authors Helping Other Authors, I’ll apply for several scholarships offered through my university, I’ll spend a lot of time at work so I can afford to keep a roof over my head, and if my friend Angela sends any more chapters of Snake, I’ll work on edits. And after all that, I’ll start on Chapter 25 of VR. Trust me, it’s going to be awesome. Things will really come to a head in the final seven or so chapters.
For now though, I think I’ll make dinner and settle in with some TV, a nice reward for myself after some really hard work. Until next time, my Followers of Fear.
Rami Ungar The Writer 