Writing Ideas - New Novel, part 404, Technology Imagination Creativity and Entertainment in Scenes Developing the Rising Action

19 May 2015, Writing Ideas - New Novel, part 404, Technology Imagination Creativity and Entertainment in Scenes Developing the Rising Action

Announcement: Delay, my new novels can be seen on the internet, but the publisher has delayed all their fiction output due to the economy.  I'll keep you informed.  More information can be found at www.ancientlight.com.  Check out my novels--I think you'll really enjoy them.

Introduction: I wrote the novel Aksinya: Enchantment and the Daemon. This was my 21st novel and through this blog, I gave you the entire novel in installments that included commentary on the writing. In the commentary, in addition to other general information on writing, I explained, how the novel was constructed, the metaphors and symbols in it, the writing techniques and tricks I used, and the way I built the scenes. You can look back through this blog and read the entire novel beginning with http://www.pilotlion.blogspot.com/2010/10/new-novel-part-3-girl-and-demon.html.

I'm using this novel as an example of how I produce, market, and eventually (we hope) get a novel published. I'll keep you informed along the way.

Today's Blog: To see the steps in the publication process, visit my writing website http://www.ldalford.com/ and select "production schedule," you will be sent to http://www.sisteroflight.com/.

The four plus one basic rules I employ when writing:

1. Don't confuse your readers.
2. Entertain your readers.
3. Ground your readers in the writing.
4. Don't show (or tell) everything.
5. Immerse yourself in the world of your writing.

All novels have five discrete parts:
1.  The initial scene (the beginning)
2.  The rising action
3.  The climax
4.  The falling action
5.  The dénouement

The theme statement of my 25th novel, working title, Escape, is this: a girl in a fascist island nation will do anything to escape--a young cargo shuttle pilot not following the rules crashes on the island.

Here is the cover proposal for Lilly: Enchantment and the Computer.  Lilly is my 24th novel.

Cover Proposal

The most important scene in any novel is the initial scene, but eventually, you have to move to the rising action.  I've just started on the next major run-through of my novel, Escape.

I'm an advocate of using the/a scene input/output method to drive the rising action--in fact, to write any novel. 

Scene development:
1.  Scene input (easy)
2.  Scene output (a little harder)
3.  Scene setting (basic stuff)
4.  Creativity (creative elements of the scene)
5.  Tension (development of creative elements to build excitement)
6.  Release (climax of creative elements)

I can immediately discern three ways to invoke creativity:

1.  History extrapolation
2.  Technological extrapolation
3.  Intellectual extrapolation

Creativity is like an extrapolation of what has been.  It is a reflection of something new created with ties to the history, science, and logic (the intellect).  Creativity requires true study and true reading. 

Yo, my gig is technology.  I've spent over 30 years of my life in the study of aviation and other technology.  For me, technology really gets my creativity going.  I live at the forefront of aviation technology, but because aviation touches so many other fields, I know a great deal about the edges of that technology.  I can think up something new and extrapolated in moments.  I can imagine a world of extrapolated technology--especially in my fields.  Not only that, I can write about it.  I invented the electronic book (I called it an ebook) in 1984.  My book, A Season of Honor was finally published in 2008--long after the ebook was a reality.  I proposed new technology for spaceships and shuttles in my Dragon and the Fox Chronicles.  In my unpublished novels, I extrapolate even more technology.  The point is this--I can create all kind of new ideas and unique ideas in technology because I have spent years and years of study in technology.  I am immersed in technology.  I live in technology.  This is the entire point of extrapolating a subject area.

If you don't understand the relationship between study and reading and creativity, you won't ever become a creative person.  Creativity comes out of understanding.  Every creative person knows this.  Perhaps a blind squirrel may stumble across a nut every now and then, but a person can't develop a creative idea without a background of study and learning.  This is why every business should encourage some degree of eccentricity in their engineers.  I've found that the more eccentric, the more studied and the more creative.  It might not be always true, but wouldn't you want to take a risk like that?  The newest and most exciting product.            

More tomorrow.

For more information, you can visit my author site http://www.ldalford.com/, and my individual novel websites:

http://www.ancientlight.com/
http://www.aegyptnovel.com/
http://www.centurionnovel.com
http://www.thesecondmission.com/
http://www.theendofhonor.com/
http://www.thefoxshonor.com
http://www.aseasonofhonor.com  

fiction, theme, plot, story, storyline, character development, scene, setting, conversation, novel, book, writing, information, study, marketing, tension, release, creative