RE: BANDING MINNOWS (SCIENCE FICTION)- CHAPTER TWO
Hey, @ronyxoxo.
I've read both chapters. Very intriguing so far, with lots to reveal. From the storyteller's point of you, that's a good place to be. Write in the present, and then methodically (but not predictably) dole out how we got there.
So far, feeling the loneliness, disorganization, desperation and exasperation of Gladys, the desire of KAI to help when it really needs help, too, and the friendliness of Danny to a complete stranger, which generally sends up warning flags.
Looking forward to discovering why she's trying to contact the past, how she hopes to bring her father back, how he died, who she and her father are and why they've been essentially hiding under garbage crates, how the planet they live on became a planet of rubbish and who Danny is and what his true intentions are.
Congratulations, too, on the curie. Always awesome when they show up. :)
So, how are you approaching this? Is the story basically done (even if only in your mind—you know where you're going and more or less how it ends), or are you going chapter by chapter?
Thanks. This feedback makes me soo happy.
Basically it's done in my head. I have a general outline of the direction this would take. But I'm taking it chapter by chapter also. Since it's my first go at writing a sci-fi I'm in no rush, writing only when I have connected the dots.
Any recommendations for me?
If you're asking about sci-fi in particular, it's pretty much like any other storytelling, in my mind, just with a futuristic slant. So continuity is still going to be a factor, and keeping things from getting anachronistic (unless, say, a rolex showing up in the story makes perfect sense), is probably a good thing.
I would say the biggest thing to avoid would be committing to any major plot twists or turns that you're not fully sold on because they're hard to retract or walk back if you're writing and publishing as you go. I've written a couple of novels, and it was actually kind of fun to write myself out of corners I put myself in, but depending on how things go, it could cause troubles with preceding chapters that have already been published if suddenly something else is introduced, or the background is changed, or something like that.
Otherwise, taking it slow, letting it breathe and settle as a story can't hurt. Committing to the story and making sure you're supporting your world building as much as you can is good. If you're not buying it, neither will your audience. People who read sci-fi are pretty used to suspending reality, so get daring if you want, but you still need to stay within the confines of the world you built. Stray from that and you will probably lose some folks.
Thanks for the solid advice.