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kenneth M Gray's avatar

But having read them in reverse order I already knew more about Luke that's why I think I didn't notice till you mentioned it. I feel you should always learn more about a character as books progress it keeps you invested.

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Craig's avatar

Agreed - it was never meant to be a series. But in Luke 3, it's all about Luke's past.

But it's not backstory... it's still going forward.

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kenneth M Gray's avatar

My anticipation is cranked

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kenneth M Gray's avatar

An excellent peek behind the curtain you actually explained me what I felt about Surf City Acid Drop without my realizing it at the time.

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Craig's avatar

About the "pants" nature of it - or the fact that it just kept moving forward.

Books like Bent Highway, Correction Line, and to a degree Samurai Bluegrass, are playing with structure.

The Luke books are more linear (or I think so.)

Thanks for reading!!

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kenneth M Gray's avatar

The forward direction and that there was much about Luke Fischer left unexplored at that point

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Craig's avatar

A good friend of mine, a university prof, said to me... I want to know more about this guy.

Hmmm... okay.

Which was the only reason I wrote Manistique.

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Martine Proctor's avatar

Another cool craft talk... thanks for the links, by the way. I had a lot of fun with David Morrell's talk. He's very entertaining. I used to be a pantser. I wrote 4 SF books without knowing where I was going. Needless to say the revisions were heavy! I started my PI stories the same way; I didn't know any better! But, but ... I tended to ramble, weave and wander, which is not good in a mystery. That foot needs to stay on the pedal! So now, I do a half-assed outline, 4-5 pages where I tell myself what the story is about (what Morrell would call: conversation with myself). I don't always stick to it. The story, the characters have their say in this, but I don't get stuck anymore, and that is a huge improvement. As to the subject of re-reading at the halfway mark... I used to reread from the beginning to get the impetus to push forward, that was in the pantser days, when I wasn't writing full-time. Now it's full speed ahead, re-reading yesterday's entry and moving on. If I get stuck, I write a short story to clean my mind. It works!

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Craig's avatar

Yes - the thing about pantsing, is you need to expect a lot of revision. I am an underwriter, so a lot needs to be filled in on subsequent drafts, thought I will still wander.

If I do get stuck, I'll write a couple of lines that are the vaguest of outlines (hey, whatever works).

The idea of writing a short story as a cleanser is a great idea! I may try that.

Thanks Martine!

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