Tag: how to write

Writing Wiki: Not Wiki Writing

So if you’ve been following along with the madness that comes with my obsession with writing, you’ll know that I took the jump from excel spreadsheets to a writing wiki to organize my writing. If you haven’t been, well, today is a fantastic progress update so I’ll explain the methods behind the latest stint at the wheel of a ship called creative madness!

As you can see in the title, I am talking about creating a writing wiki. You may wonder why that is any different than writing for a wiki. There are indeed many parallels, and I have enjoyed learning the wiki syntaxes alongside my writing. It gave me the perfect reason to take a break and think about something other than the world I am creating. Also writing an article for a wiki is fun, but using it for a story to organize your thoughts is an incredibly powerful tool.

The wiki page is simply that of a text editor, but through valid and important linking you create actual notes and links from one section to another. Planning foreshadowing and adding layers of depth to the story has been easier than just writing. Normally I do what I would call “free writing” where I have an idea where I want the story to go and start off almost on the adventure myself. As I write, new ideas present themselves and I begin to get distracted. This is the first time I have ever managed to plan an entire novel (just completed the chapter summaries). The fun thing is making the beginning of the story have significant relevance to the end of the story while both tie into the title of my story: Fabled.

As the hero, Brennet Vanniston, stuggles to understand why his brother left him before his eighth birthday, his mother reads him the story of the three monsters of creation (A lore I adapted to my story from stories from history). Within a few years, he quickly finds his life spiralling upwards and beyond his control. Finding himself travelling the lands of Ethos and uniting the kingdoms against Death himself, Brennet quickly finds himself the protagonist of his own story.

The story at the moment has a few possible endings (One definitive for a one off novel, one to set up a single sequel and one to set up a trilogy), I have been focusing on the trilogy ending in hopes of writing another story in the same world. After all, I’ve done lots of planning in this world, why wouldn’t I want to make more stories in it? Also the Vanniston lineage is a history rich blood line with a rags to riches story. The evolution of the name from as far back as the little known Nistons to the destiny changing Vlad Van Niston shows how one moment can completely change a family’s course forever.

To give you a bit of insight into the great ancestor of Brennet Vanniston, Vlad Van Niston was actually originally a blacksmith by trade. A man who saw forging weapons and wielding them as one and the same, he quickly became known through tournaments in the King’s name. He practised often with the weapons he crafted, and this lead to his advantage with many different types of arms. Also he was secretly ambidextrous, but he was afraid to use his left hand as it was considered a sign of evil lurking within. Vlad found himself recruited into the Kingsguard for his skill as a blacksmith, but eventually found himself fighting on the front lines after single-handedly fending off attackers at their camp.

Vlad’s defining moment was in the great battle for the kingdom of Anglia. He had just turned twenty and before they could celebrate, shadows fell over the camp, slaughtering half the men in mere minutes. Alarmed by the ambush, Vlad with sword and shield, leapt haphazardly into the fray. He met a man who met his every swing perfectly, and matched his speed and accuracy. As the two men danced in the flickering light of the camp fire, all eyes turned to them. The blades sung out as they sliced the air perfectly, almost in eagerness for the taste of blood. Suddenly Vlad felt his sword turning unnaturally in his hand, it seemed the other man was about to disarm him. In his panic, Vlad dropped his shield and caught the falling sword in his left hand; his sword sang as it cleaved easily through his opponent’s wrist. The other sword’s slight blue glow landed in Vlad’s right hand, and with both blades, he ended the war.

Vlad’s story continues as he learns from his captive enemies that the sword is ancient, its old master called it Revenant. Adopting the sword as his own, he continued fighting with the King’s armies until he passed the sword down to his son upon his retirement. The sword then was passed down through the ages, usually to the first born son, but only when the father retired from battle. As Vlad’s skill dramatically improved his family’s wealth and reputation, the tradition of naming your son or daughter with the middle name “Van” became a popular practice. This eventually lead to the surname of Vanniston, which brings us to our hero, Brennet.

This is one of the many pieces of history and lore I’ve added into my stories to enrich the experience and through the use of a wiki, added more than I probably should have. You see, whenever you are writing a note, lore, description or anything really; You simply make a link of anything that sounds interesting or important to you. Eventually you create this web of links which build the story and the events for the most part. The history of my story shaped the direction and conclusion of its main plot, while the sub plots describe things I want to tell you about through the eyes of my characters. Some animals are fantastic, and I can’t wait to discuss them!

If anyone is considering using a wiki to start structuring their writing, please feel free to email more or comment here and I will help you as best I can. Not only that, but on my back burner there I can see that I would like to create a tutorial for using one as a writer. I believe this tool has been incredibly useful for making me seem more organized than I am and most likely saving a forest of trees with the amount of notes I usually scribble haphazardly only to require rewriting(read: translating) them. I hope you enjoyed today’s post and feel free to drop me a line! I’d be more than excited to hear from anyone out there!

Fabled Lore: The Three Monsters Of Legend

So I’ve been writing up a storm and I must say, I am feeling good about the world I am creating. I decided awhile ago not to let new ideas hinder me. One of my latest ideas was that of a Knight Templar hunting Behemoths from the game Final Fantasy in a futuristic setting. I did a little research into them and then turned the majority of that idea into some more lore and possible story elements for the world of Fabled. Also, I decided on the name Ethos for my world, I had heard it before, but I only had an inkling of what it really meant.

e·thos   [ee-thos, ee-thohs, eth-os, -ohs]
1.
Sociology . the fundamental character or spirit of a culture; the underlying sentiment that informs the beliefs, customs, or practices of a group or society; dominant assumptions of a people or period: In the Greek ethos the individual was highly valued.
2.
the character or disposition of a community, group, person, etc.
3.
the moral element in dramatic literature that determines a character’s action rather than his or her thought or emotion.

I felt that was damn fitting for my world and the name will be pronounced “Eth-ohze”. After converting some ideas into the world of Fabled I felt excited enough to post them on this thing called the interwebz. The Wiki format for organizing my ideas has actually been an incredibly useful tool and I seriously recommend anyone who has trouble sticking with one idea to give it a try. Every time you get a new idea you can convert it into a whole other Wiki page, or you can begin linking it into your current story idea.

Even as I type this, I feel these words are wasted. Who will see these? Who will care? Why aren’t I writing? Hope you enjoy a bit more insight into the world I am creating and if anyone has any questions about using a Wiki as a writing tool feel free to email or comment. Also I might just go ahead and make an article on how to get started with that. It is not even half as hard as it sounds. Enjoy!

The Monsters of Legend

The Monsters of Legend are the three original creations created by the gods to help them shape the world they had created. After the world had been perfected by the Monsters, the Gods themselves began the Creation of Humans to act as empty shells for them to inhabit while they visited the world. Upon their arrival, the Gods became obsessed with their own creations and acted carnally upon them. Because of the power of the Gods, these Monsters of Legend are the Mothers of all living beings in the world. All three monsters were female, being decided to be a nurturing force for the world they were creating. However due to the involvement of the gods, the nurturing nature of these three creatures had been suppressed in their various offspring.

As the world of Ethos was created, that was considered the first day or Day One of its existence. The stories and lores speak of the creation of these mothers of all the world’s creatures in the proceeding days.

Behemoth

The Behemoth was created on the Second Day to help shape and tend the land. Often depicted in images as an ox, The Behemoth is actually a giant reptilian wolf, with large horns and cupped hooves. It’s fangs were made to tear through trees and its hooves were actually meant to be able to shatter diamond and various other ores. Its powerful body was enough to dig a trench into the world for the next creation from the gods, Leviathan.

Leviathan

The Leviathan was created on the Third Day to produce the water for The Behemoth. The water was meant originally only to help plants and beauty flourish on the main land, but as The Leviathan helped The Behemoth, a bond formed and the two wished to remain together. The Behemoth dug its hooves into the world and dug a trench so the Leviathan could maintain a constant body of water instead of only helping grow the plants. Often depicted as a large serpent, the Leviathan is actually the original dragon in history. As all lizards, fish and water creatures were born from the Leviathan, they all share some of the godlike characteristics of their mother creature.

Ziz

On the Fourth Day the gods needed something more. Eden was a beautiful place, and both of the creatures they had already created had done fantastically. As they surveyed the world from their realm, the Gods decided that the space above the land and the sea was bleak. Neither of the creatures they created could effect it. The Behemoth forged mountains, and The Leviathan forced hot liquid exploding upward, but the gods had created gravity to keep their creatures on the world. Now they needed something to defy that creation. The Gods created together a beast large enough to fully encompass their world. As the blues turned to hues of red, purple and violet eventually turned into a shimmering blackness. The gods pushed onward with this beast who would circle the world for all eternity. They released their creation into the air and named it the Ziz. As the Ziz opened its eyes for the first time, its eyes burned brightly enough to completely light Eden. However its eyes also presented a problem, the Ziz couldn’t control the heat from its eyes, and scorched a part of Eden. The Leviathan offered its aid to the Ziz and used its waters to put out the flames of one of its eyes. The Ziz went blind in that eye, but the Gods agreed that the Ziz would have to keep a watchful eye over the world and to do so would have to circle the world.

Ziz being the final creature made exclusively for the creation of Eden was given the gift of flight. This in turn made the other two creatures of legend envious at its ability to ignore their restriction to gravity, but they grew accepting of their third sister. Although the Ziz represents the night sky as well as the day, the Ziz is often depicted as a bird. Truth lies in a creature that rests in the seas, a Manta Ray is the actual closest relative to the Ziz which is half made up of shimmering darkness and its middle represents sunset. The tips of its wings represent sunrise. The Ziz keeps a watchful eye over the world which had given Eden a day and night cycle due to its burning eye. Once every thousand years the tail of the Ziz can be seen streaking across the sky in all the colours of the rainbow.

After Creation

As the three creatures finally began to work together, Eden began to flourish. When the Gods created the lifeless shells of the humans so they could enjoy their masterpiece, the three creatures were overwhelmed with joy to have their creators among them. However as the Gods became twisted and corrupt individuals, they turned their attention upon their own creations. As the Gods took each other and their beasts alike as lovers, soon the world became populated with “bastard sons and daughters of the gods” As war tore at the world, the Ziz watched helplessly as Gods killed their brothers and sisters, and turned their bastard children against one another. The Behemoth grew upset with the Gods and tore a trench so deep the Gods could no longer harm The Leviathan. Then it too went into hiding, leaving no trace of itself behind except for large mounds of stone for miles. The Ziz was upset that its companions had to go into hiding, however after being lusted after by the Gods for almost an eternity, The Ziz cleverly hid itself with clouds turning the skies dark with gloom and remained there until the end of the War for Eden. Once the war ended it now circles the world searching for The Behemoth and The Leviathan amid the land and the sea.

How To Plan Out Your Story: The TJ Edwards Way

It’s 3 AM and my mind is elsewhere. After just watching Star Wars IV, I have found myself thinking about what a great side story would be. As I ponder the events behind the scenes of Luke Skywalker’s eventual secret apprentice, I also wonder how many people don’t know where to start writing. Am I a master wordsmith? Do I forge a scene with only the greatest of words? Hardly. In fact, I am just like most who have taken up writing: A hobbyist. Does that mean you can’t be organized? No! In fact organization is key to being able to continue on with your writing. Trust me, I’ve tried many kinds of writing and thus far organized is the best. Why? Well I’m glad you asked!

If you travel back through the posts on this blog you will find some articles, some posts and some works of short fiction or as I penned it, episodic fiction. I hated the idea of knowing where my story was going to end up, so the episodic content was fantastic for keeping me entertained as a writer. This kind of writing is very enjoyable but the issue is without knowing where you’re going, you simply cannot tie it all together.

For Example: In some of the best books, there is a lot of foreshadowing. This makes for even more realistic worlds and also it makes you think back to earlier times in that same world. This makes the story more engaging and through clever uses, very potent. For example if you’ve read the Harry Potter series (If you haven’t, shame on you) then the entire sequence of events involving Hermoine and her Time Turner pendant is the greatest and most fun example. The events were set up with certain things in mind, and then later on relived through the other view point. JK Rowling is a fantastic author and the Harry Potter series is a fantastic example for any budding writer, no matter what genre you write for.

Rowling-Planning
This may get the ball “Rowling” but she already knew where the story was going by this point. It didn’t work for me!

Now, how did JK Rowling plan that out? There is a good question. I’ve been searching online for answers and I swear that will be the only question I ask her when I meet her… eventually. But I have seen one of her cryptic note sheets for Order of the Phoenix and what I have gathered was her penmanship was terrible for that page, and she is also very organized. She did set herself time goals as this was a later book, but by this time she was already experienced. I’m putting this out there because it may help one of you out there get organized. What I really want to see is how she organized straight from “Who is Harry Potter” to Philosopher’s Stone publication.

That aside, I really believe her writing to be a great tool for any budding writer. But we’re not here to talk about how she managed to organize herself. You still have to get organized! Even when I did my episodic fiction, I had an idea of what was going to happen at least in the next episode. I have managed to write hundreds of pages, I’ve even written seven chapters of a story I’ll never finish, but the hardest part has been completing a single novel. It’s no simple task. Even finishing the planning phase weeds out many wannabe writers.

To start, I decided I needed to figure out how I could organize and what made sense to me. I searched for timeline creators online and eventually broke down and made my own excel timeline with character sheet. It’s not pretty, but I’ll be damned if it hasn’t done well in organizing my thoughts. As with all the information here, these are just tools. This may work for you, this may not. But what I hope these do is give you an excellent idea or inspire you to your own crazy “Rowling-style” sheet. Also, I would seriously recommend even using another spreadsheet on there to make family trees. It may seem ridiculous at first but the more you know about your world, even if it seems irrelevant at the time, the more control and the richer your story becomes.

Plot and Character Template (This is a very rough template, its in Excel!)

The hard part! This is important. SCOPE, SCOPE, SCOPE! Do not get lost in the side stories and there will be plenty. Try and limit yourself to going too far off topic. I have the most trouble in this area. I have been writing a story and get caught up in someone’s back story that suddenly I am writing a story within a story. “Inception-ing” my own story doesn’t keep me productive. Yes, if I eventually ever make it back to my main story it will be very story rich, but if something seems more interesting it is hard to go back to the main idea. For families go back only one level or two farther than you have to, or else you could draw up the very lineage of all of your families. Not that all that information wouldn’t come in handy, but it will steal your attention from the main idea.

Plot focus first. As you sit down decide who your main character is, what their goal is and plot their path. Do the following for every plot point: Push the story forward, ensure relevance, add any new characters into the tracker, feel free to add any cities or items into the tracker as well. Any relevant information should be recorded and put forward.

Okay, well for now that is where I am up to. As I continue to write I will post some progress on here and feel free to give me feedback or let me know if you’re using the template. If you make any additions to it let me know and please do me a favour and point people back to this website! I could use all the traffic I can get! I’ll write again soon!