New tweak to my current literary writing plan. I mentioned it briefly with my screenwriting partners last night at a meeting. Ever since my last post here I have done some thinking on that plan. While I am still on board with writing three novel series, I am wanting to add to that. Ambitious, I know.
While I will remain available to work on screenplays, my focus has turned to literary work. Previously I had mentioned three novel series, with one of those series having its origins as a two-volume screenplay. As I was making preparations and revisions on those three series, I realized that I have two dozen screenplays to draw from and that limiting script to novel focus on just one might be postponing the inevitable.
Therefore, I came up with another idea, or a tweak to the previous plan. This new one allows me to work on up to three projects at once. Screenwriting has become a bugaboo. I love the thrill it gives me to be working on something new but I loathe the remorse I feel when nothing comes of hard work. It's a classic catch 22.
The new idea allows me to work on rewriting one previously written screenplay into a novel series, while also writing a "new" story. I am reluctant to say they are new stories as all these stories have been on back burners for several years now. So the material is not necessarily new to me, but the writing of these stories would mark them as being newly written.
It is the last part of the previous paragraph that leaves wiggle room for screenplays. As an artist, and after twenty years of writing I am no longer reluctant to call myself an artist, I need NEW thoughts and ideas sparking through my circuitry. While transforming a screenplay into a novel has its own set of creative challenges that I welcome, I am moved to do so for one simple reason. I love these stories. And I fear if I do nothing with them you will not have the opportunity to take the journey as well. Whether you find it worth your time is another thing all together. All I can do is make it so you have a chance to decide for yourself.
This plan is fluid and may change yet again. However, it is exhilarating for me to shift from work on a new novel from scratch, to work on a new screenplay, to work on transforming a previously written screenplay into a novel series. It will surely keep me on my toes for some time.
The fact that two of these four novel series are screenplays should, in theory, speed up the process. Working on one of them while also working on a from-scratch novel series should keep me creatively invested and moving in the right direction.
First set of two novel series and any subsequent new screenplays (2-3 years)
-1st Screenplay to Novel series: There are four parts to this series and the transformation is underway. Each of the four parts will be released individually.
-1st From-Scratch Novel Series: There are three parts to this series and each of them will be released individually.
-The writing of any new screenplays during this time shall be weighed against current literary writing needs.
Second set of two novel series and any subsequent new screenplays (2-3 years)
-2nd Screenplay to Novel series: There will be four parts to this series. Each of the four parts will be released individually.
-2nd From-Scratch Novel Series: There will be three to four parts to this series and each of them will be released individually. This is the least developed story and thus it will be released last.
-The writing of any new screenplays during this time shall be weighed against current literary writing needs.
I figure it might take up to six years to finish the above, while continuing to work full time. Should things change that time frame could also shift. Within a few months I hope to start talking in more detail about the first of the screenplays turned novel series. Until then, I have some work to do.
Now, as a writer who is always organizing and planning for the future, I have also begun to make plans beyond what I have just laid out. Work that would begin six to seven years from now. Hopefully I will still be around for that next stage in my writing career, because it promises to be filled with work I have put very little thought towards as of yet.
Much of the work I have laid out above will be on a grand, world-changing scale. These stories became so grandiose and intricate because of all the story ideas I've had through the years. I needed a place to house all of those ideas so I could get them on to paper and move on to other stories. The novel series, much like a multi-chapter screenplay, is perfect for this. They provide a wonderful format to deal with multiple stories that are in some way related to each other.
Since it is so far off it is hard to put into words as yet what the next evolution of my writing will be. If I were to be asked what I thought it might be, I would say it will be a return to simplicity. The novel series is a tool for all the ideas I've had up until now. While I could serialize a lot of my work, past and present, I also enjoy a one-off. A story in and of its own. A stand alone novel. I'd like to venture down that path when the time is right. We'll see if and when that time comes.
