Pruitt Day 33
I am not quite done thinking about the first two parts of the book, those covering the events of the morning and the afternoon. They are not parts as much as counterparts, in that they are explained by one another. Like two heads of a coin, each section is incomplete without the other, and neither can properly see the other. Everything is the same and everything is different. They balance each other in a way that is difficult to describe without reading the story entirely. I am certain of how I expect these two parts to be received. The trick lies in not making it look that way, and I am doing a very tricky so far of being a tricky storyteller.
If you read What I See regularly, you know that I never get writer's block, that I can always find something to write about. However, I've had Pruitt block for over a week now, and I discovered exactly why.
The resolution of the first part fuels for the second part. A scene takes place that alters everything about how Richard behaves in the second part. I cannot reveal what takes place at that moment in its proper chronological order. I would prefer to save it for the end of the second part, and reveal the catalyst of the story at the end of the second section. I have to do this in such a way that will force the reader to think back on, or possibly even re-read, the entire second section to gain an understanding of what exactly just happened. If I reveal the crux of the first two parts in the proper sequence, the story will be like knowing the score of a game before you watch it.
I have to come up with some mechanism to withhold this crucial situation until the end of the second part, but I would hate for the audience to feel as though I pulled a fast one on them. I have an idea as to how to accomplish this, but it's quite a rudimentary concept at this point. If it is not done with absolute effectiveness, it will completely ruin the story. So I'm taking my time with it, and nurturing it along very carefully and deliberately.
I have some preliminary ideas for the third part of the book, which tells of the evening of Rich's death, but I am posed with a struggle here as well. I have given thought to pirating a completely different story I've been contemplating for some time. I did not think I would have to do so when I started outlinig Pruitt, but the other day it dawned on how much the guy in the second story is very similar to Pruitt.
This other story was meant to be another volume important to a keystone book whose idea actually predates the Pruitt idea. Over the summer, I had a vision for a kind of story in the round. Basically, there will be several stories about the lives of different characters, and these different characters will be the main characters in a keystone story, tentatively titled "Scenes." The individual stories will intersect and overlap in the keystone story. I would prefer to write them in such a way that there will not be a suggestable order in which you ought to read the stories. By reading them all, you will understand the broader story that is only partially revealed in the keystone story.
The concept of circular novel writing has always fascinated me. I'm not sure who else has done it, or if anyone has for that matter. It could be an interesting exercise on many levels, and not just in terms of linking several good story ideas. Since there will be many of these stories, the order in which one reads them will effect one's view on the other stories individually. This will not be a series in the traditional sense.
Consider this: Since the reader's feelings about one will effect their feelings about the others, there will be many different reactions to the same stories, depending on the order one reads them. One's understanding will change as the result of considering each story in light of the others. One person might read volume six, then two, then one, then four, and the keystone. That person will have a completely different reaction than someone who reads volume one, then two, then the keystone, then five, then seven. The reader will bring themes from the other stories into each of the additional stories, and this will effect the understanding of the stories on the whole. In other words, you can create drastically different paintings using the same paints.
In all honesty, I don't know that much about Rich's personal life just yet. This will require some serious thinking, and it could take a while. It is still dawning on me who the Richard Pruitt is exactly. The first two parts will help us to understand him as a human being; the third part will shed light on his true humanity but also exhibit his downfall. On one hand, Pruitt will survive in an arena in which he has more to lose but, on the other hand, his demise results from a situation when he should feel mostly secure. The reader will love me for helping Rich get through a terrible predicament, then hate me for killing him off at the end.
For now, I must fill in the blanks of the first section. Strangely, I am apprehensive about shaping my notes into prose. During the planning stage, the story is mine to do with as I please. But once I start properly composing, I will be forced to relinquish control over the story, and it will take on a life of its own. It will be a bit of a sad day, like sending your kids off to school for the first time.
If you read What I See regularly, you know that I never get writer's block, that I can always find something to write about. However, I've had Pruitt block for over a week now, and I discovered exactly why.
The resolution of the first part fuels for the second part. A scene takes place that alters everything about how Richard behaves in the second part. I cannot reveal what takes place at that moment in its proper chronological order. I would prefer to save it for the end of the second part, and reveal the catalyst of the story at the end of the second section. I have to do this in such a way that will force the reader to think back on, or possibly even re-read, the entire second section to gain an understanding of what exactly just happened. If I reveal the crux of the first two parts in the proper sequence, the story will be like knowing the score of a game before you watch it.
I have to come up with some mechanism to withhold this crucial situation until the end of the second part, but I would hate for the audience to feel as though I pulled a fast one on them. I have an idea as to how to accomplish this, but it's quite a rudimentary concept at this point. If it is not done with absolute effectiveness, it will completely ruin the story. So I'm taking my time with it, and nurturing it along very carefully and deliberately.
I have some preliminary ideas for the third part of the book, which tells of the evening of Rich's death, but I am posed with a struggle here as well. I have given thought to pirating a completely different story I've been contemplating for some time. I did not think I would have to do so when I started outlinig Pruitt, but the other day it dawned on how much the guy in the second story is very similar to Pruitt.
This other story was meant to be another volume important to a keystone book whose idea actually predates the Pruitt idea. Over the summer, I had a vision for a kind of story in the round. Basically, there will be several stories about the lives of different characters, and these different characters will be the main characters in a keystone story, tentatively titled "Scenes." The individual stories will intersect and overlap in the keystone story. I would prefer to write them in such a way that there will not be a suggestable order in which you ought to read the stories. By reading them all, you will understand the broader story that is only partially revealed in the keystone story.
The concept of circular novel writing has always fascinated me. I'm not sure who else has done it, or if anyone has for that matter. It could be an interesting exercise on many levels, and not just in terms of linking several good story ideas. Since there will be many of these stories, the order in which one reads them will effect one's view on the other stories individually. This will not be a series in the traditional sense.
Consider this: Since the reader's feelings about one will effect their feelings about the others, there will be many different reactions to the same stories, depending on the order one reads them. One's understanding will change as the result of considering each story in light of the others. One person might read volume six, then two, then one, then four, and the keystone. That person will have a completely different reaction than someone who reads volume one, then two, then the keystone, then five, then seven. The reader will bring themes from the other stories into each of the additional stories, and this will effect the understanding of the stories on the whole. In other words, you can create drastically different paintings using the same paints.
In all honesty, I don't know that much about Rich's personal life just yet. This will require some serious thinking, and it could take a while. It is still dawning on me who the Richard Pruitt is exactly. The first two parts will help us to understand him as a human being; the third part will shed light on his true humanity but also exhibit his downfall. On one hand, Pruitt will survive in an arena in which he has more to lose but, on the other hand, his demise results from a situation when he should feel mostly secure. The reader will love me for helping Rich get through a terrible predicament, then hate me for killing him off at the end.
For now, I must fill in the blanks of the first section. Strangely, I am apprehensive about shaping my notes into prose. During the planning stage, the story is mine to do with as I please. But once I start properly composing, I will be forced to relinquish control over the story, and it will take on a life of its own. It will be a bit of a sad day, like sending your kids off to school for the first time.
posted by Pat at 12:55 AM
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