DONE!

Well, I did it, folks. I completed the rough first draft of Deep Water. It came in at 192,023 words. Thirty four chapters and an epilogue. My goal was to write 1,000 words a day. Let's see how I did. It took me 167 days to write (September 9, 2011 to February 22, 2012). That's an average of 1,149 words a day. Not too shabby. I expect I have a lot of work to do in the rewrite. I barreled through without ever really going back to check on things as I wrote.

So there you go. Our chapter titles: Metal Men, Water Dream, Wrath of the Patriarchs, Among Merchants, Lord-General, Dark Passage, White Fire and Gray Teeth, Ashes of the World, Agony and Bloodstone, Naresen, The Shattered Shield, On the Wall, Fire in the Sky, The Breaking of All Things, Lords and Madmen, On Calethis, Shadows in the Fog, A World Ever Broken, Nethil and the Wives, Blood and Fire, Hunger and Grief, Dekir's Town, Smoke and Ashes, Dream Sick, Words of Madness, Off the Cliff, Fading World, Washed Away, Hammer and Fork, A Quiet House, The Shadows of Setheria, Echoes and Memory, Descent, Lights in the Sky, Epilogue.

Those chapter titles are subject to change, of course, as are many things. I expect to add scenes along the way and pare down the excessive prose. Well, there you go. That, ladies and gentlemen, is technically the seventh novel I have written in my adult life. Is it the best? Possibly. Klowns might be better. We shall see.

Eppy's Log

Well, well, well, we're currently writing the epilogue, which unfolds as a series of very short chapters taking our surviving characters back across the tortured landscape to the uttermost end. If I carve out enough time, I will finish the novel tomorrow. There's about 2000 words left to write, maybe a few more, depending on how much I delve in. Deep Water currently stands at just over 190,000 words.

Magnificent Spinach

Well, I passed the 180,000 word mark. Not only so, but I am literally writing the climactic moment of the entire novel. We are right in the midst of it. 181,100 words is the exact count. We had a near drowning, and now we get to enjoy a near stomping and lots of terrible booming voices. And then, ladies and gentlemen, then we will be winding things down. We are looking at more like a 195,000 word novel, at this point. Very close to my original projection of 200,000. Deep Water is within a few days of being completed.

Odors and Such

It's possible I underestimated the length of the book in my last post. Deep Water now stands at 170,750 words, and the climactic chapters are only beginning to unfold. A creepy conversation is about to happen, followed by violence, another creepy conversation, more violence, a terrifying attempt at winning, revelations that shatter the fabric of being, and then the overly long denouement. So there you go. Still, that means we are closer than ever before.

Tapioca and Toast

Deep Water stands at 162,337 words. We are seriously exactly one chapter away from the climactic encounter. Touching conversations just took place and fateful decisions were made. That means our noble hero has only to walk a little bit more and then face the rancid heart of all things. I can see the book reaching about 175,000 to 180,000 words at this point, depending on how thorough I make the ending.

The Churning of the Butter Fever

Well, we press on, folks. Deep Water is finally reaching the climactic events. I would say we are exactly two chapters away from meeting a certain chief enemy upon his throne and discovering shocking things. But first a skinless dog must make a potentially last glorious appearance. Then there will be two chapters of absolute hell on earth. Then some bittersweet denouement and a slightly drawn out conclusion. And there you go. That's all that remains. We're at 157,651 words.

latest chapters:

27 - Fading World
28 - Washed Away
29 - Hammer and Fork
30 - A Quiet House

And, oh, that chapter 30 is going to end with such emotional turmoil. My stars, the turmoil. The boy, the girl, the request, the crushing grief, the guilt, my stars...

We Did It, Ethel! We Did It!

What did we did, Ethel? We hit 150,000 words. That's what we did. The magicalest number of all. Just hit it tonight. Deep Water now draws near the climactic moment. Since the last post, we had a beautiful showdown of blood and explosions, we had a long and tortured death scene with touching statements, we had ominous dreams, and we had love. Yes, people, we had love blossom in the middle of a field of ashes and madness. Isn't that special?

Well, Tea and Mustard!

The great and dreadful dream sickness continues, my children! Deep Water is now at 140,887 words. That's no small amount of words, ye wordsmiths of old. We've got some exciting chapter titles. Let's see here:

Chapter Twenty Two - Dekir's Town
Chapter Twenty Three - Smoke and Ashes
Chapter Twenty Four - Dream Sick
Chapter Twenty Five - Words of Madness
Chapter Twenty Six - Off the Cliff

Don't those sound like some thrilling latest chapters? Oh, yes, terrible things happened in Dekir's Town, but what can you do? Hovels full of wretched people and emaciated dogs are no place for magical battles, folks. My stars and garters!

Okay, that's all for now. We are mere chapters away from the climactic showdown and the revelation of various things and the tenderest moment of all. Tighten ye girdles and brace yourselves.

For the record, I started this book on September 9, 2011, which means I've been working on it for 135 days so far. It also means I averaged 1043.6 words per day. That may not be an impressive word per day average for a professional writer, but it does mean I have hit and surpassed my goal.

M'Hat Fell Off

So Deep Water is right around 130,000 words, ladies and gentlemen. Jeren just had a major showdown with some evil persons that involved lots of white fire, exploding buildings, bloody hands and crushed armor. There are two more showdowns to go and some beautiful discoveries along the way. Tender emotions must increase and blue light must replace crimson. Only then shall the glorious end be achieved.

Mo' Special

Well, I didn't get to write quite as much as I wanted during the Christmas holiday time. Spent a few days in Bartlesville with the old people and such, but I still managed to sneak away now and again to the computer room to peck out a few words. Deep Water now stands at 109,023 words.

It's interesting comparing the story that is now unfolding with the original version of Deep Water that I wrote back in 2001. They are very different stories in many ways, and it reveals some interesting things about how I have changed since then both as a writer and as a person. Many things about it are much darker and more violent this time, but the emotional arc of the characters is more believable. It's a much longer story as well. I tend to linger on things longer than I did back then. Not sure if that's a good thing or not, but that's how it is. I also feel much more confident crafting prose than I used to. Back then, I tortured my way through paragraphs, struggling to make sentences sound good and flow well. I write with greater confidence now (and, as a result, write much faster) and save all the grief about the prose for the rewriting process. We'll see how it all turns out.

So there you go. Live the dream.

A Banner Day

Well, it happened, and I thought I should mention it right here on this blog. I reached 100,000 words. Technically, I reached 100,135 words. The old man, Nethil, just did a super creepy thing, and it will continue to be even more creepy in the upcoming pages, so that should be fun to write. That'll teach people to eat dried fruit touched by crusty old fingers!

Moon Meat

98,140 words, that's how far along we are in the Deepest of all Waters. Star Wars: The Old Republic has not prevented me from meeting the daily writing goal. I've hit over 1000 words a day every day. I am currently at chapter nineteen. Let's see. We've had river adventures, creaky frameworks, bloated gray crows and the creepiest old man in the world. Fun times. Even another brief appearance of skinless dogs. Next, we'll see the creepiest old man in the world fulfill his creepiest of all destinies. That's for chapter twenty. Live the dream!

Disgusting Situations

Deep Water is now at 89,600 words. That's more words than you can shake a stick at. It's also probably not quite halfway, so we're creating a thick 'n pretty of a book here. In the paperback, I estimate I'd be around page 300 at this point, so if that's a little less than halfway, we're talking about a book somewhere between 600 and 700 words. They call that moderately epic, I suppose. Currently, the characters are floating down a river and seeing terrible things along the way. Soon, more really bad things will happen leading to near deaths and slightly disgusting situations.

What Are These Things?

Calethis? A river.
Naresen? A lowlander city
Ementus? A mountain village
Tesarium? A codex
Get it? Good. I just needed to clear that up. Deep Water is now 83,880 words long, and dagnab if it isn't getting longer day by day! Tonight I got to write a touching scene where one character helps another character take a piss. Seriously, folks. Seriously. People taking long walks across treacherous fantasy landscapes to defeat evil kings do sometimes have to peepee in the underbrush. It's better than skinless dogs.

The Gloaming

Gloaming is another word for twilight. I like the word gloaming. It has only a tangential relation to this blog entry in that the passage I just wrote took place in the gloaming on the day after a battle. So there you go. Deep Water stands at 77,500 words. The current chapter is a sad and reflective time for various and sundry characters, but it prefaces the beginning of our story's ultimate momentum. I think I'm right on track to hit 200,000 words with this novel by the time I'm done.

Crispy Critters

72,600 words is where the story stands. Two chapters of really terrible things just passed, and now we come to the pivotal moment in the story. Pivotal moments are the best. It's too bad some readers (for instance, my wife, when she reads the first draft) will hate what came immediately before the pivotal moment. But, folks, it had to happen, elsewise the pivotal moment ne'er would've come. Can't you see that? Rivers, waterfalls, more skinless dogs, wretched people, various showdowns and King Helathius are all waiting in the wings.

Deeper and Deeper Goeth the Water

Deep Water now stands at 68,430 words. Things just happened. Things. Current chapter titles:

1 - Metal Men
2 - Water Dream
3 - Wrath of the Patriarchs
4 - Among Merchants
5 - Lord-General
6 - Dark Passage
7 - White Fire and Gray Teeth
8 - Ashes of the World
9 - Agony and Bloodstone
10 - Naresen
11 - The Shattered Shield
12 - On the Wall
13 - Fire in the Sky
14 - The Breaking of All Things

Now, doesn't that chapter fourteen title sound ominous? It should. Because it says what it means, and it means what it says...thematically speaking, that is.

Everything is Terrible Forever

Deep Water stands at right around 64,000 words. We are at the point in the story where everything turns bad forever. That's always what people are waiting for in a novel, right? Everything turning bad forever. Seriously, though, there is the possibility that what must soon happen in the story will make readers angry, but the rewards will be great if they hang in there past the everything turning bad forever part.

Merciful Nerasen

Well, I dashed off about 1,900 words on this fine Thanksgiving night, with a bloated gut-sack of turkey and stuffing and smashed taters and crescent rolls rolling over the edge of the desk before me. Deep Water stands at just about 59,000 words as of this moment. Since the story is all set in my mind, and the characters are well known to me, I find I don't have to spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about what is to come. It is all unfolding as beautifully as a fruit roll-up.

Live the dream!

Another Milestone in the Road of Skinless Dogs

Just passed the 50,000 word mark with Deep Water. No recent appearances of skinless dogs, however. Lots of walking and character development, as well as a smelly medieval-style city of sewage streets and whitewashed buildings. So that's something, right? But events are unfolding toward the big turning point of the story, which should happen in another couple of chapters. See, the interesting thing about this novel is that people will believe the big turning point has already happened round about Chapter Six, but it's not true, people. That's just the set-up. The real turning point is actually round about Chapter Thirteen, and it's a doozy. From there on out, it's a Helt-fest of nightmares right up to the end. Can't wait to write it.