The world is going to end on Friday, 21st December 2012, apparently. I was going to link to an article, but you're probably already aware of this. In fact, you're probably all reading this from your prepared bunkers surrounded by tins of food and cartons of long life milk...Wait... you're not?!
Actually, neither am I.
My overriding feeling about Friday is annoyance. Why are you annoyed, strange woman, you ask?
Because about eighteen months ago, before I was fully aware of the Mayan prophecy/non prophecy (delete as applicable), I had the idea for an apocalyptic novel. I spent a year writing and re-writing, finishing just before the April A-Z Blogging Challenge when I set it aside to come back to in May. But I didn't get back to it.
I had some great readers for it - who all gave positive feedback - but I wasn't happy with the ending. I'm still not happy with the ending. I know it could be something amazing, if I was able to do it properly, but at the moment my skills are lacking - it's there, this perfect idea, but just out of reach. Argh... so annoying.
So I moved on to the next novel.
And then everyone started talking about the end of the world, which is even more annoying because a book that tied it with that would have been great.
Now, I'm expecting 2013 to be full of apocalyptic novels. I know it's not a new genre, and these trends go around in circles, but it would have been great to have been just slightly ahead of the trend.
Have you ever missed out? Have you ever struggled to find the perfect ending?
Not yet but I think it is inevitable, its not subject but style, and I think you might get an ending when you least expect it....maybe you will be rapidly scrawling 15 minutes before the end of the world!
ReplyDeleteI definitely want to have an ending before the world ends!
DeleteGah! So annoying! Mind you, the world has been supposed to end many times and I'm not sure if it meant a load of apocalyptic novels were published each time. Re-jig that ending and get back to it anyway!
ReplyDeleteThat's true - the world will be ending again within a few years :-)
DeleteHi Annalisa - I can see your point in not wanting to let the novel go - if you weren't quite happy with it .. still next year might not be here!! I doubt it somehow though ... but I'm sure you'll succeed with a new publication ..
ReplyDeleteI think if we don't go and do what we do .. we miss out - quite often is the case ... saying wish we had ..
Good luck .. and relax and enjoy the festive season ... Hilary
I don't think I'll be able to let go of the story, Hilary, I'm hoping the ending will come to me while working on the new novel. Thanks :-)
DeleteI struggle with endings sometimes and absolutely miss out on trends. But I think apocalyptic novels right now sort of feed the panic, so maybe it is good to wait until all the hype is over. You may end up with some really good sales and maybe not so much competition as people move on over the whole issue. But in the same respect it would have been awesome to release the book on the 20th. Lol
ReplyDeleteLol, yes the 20th would have been a great publication day! Oh well, I'll have to wait for next time, and hope I've got the ending by then :-)
DeleteYes and yes. The book I'm working on right now is undergoing agent-requested revisions and the ending chapters were where the most significant changes had to go. Trying to find that perfect ending was hell.
ReplyDeleteIt must be even harder when someone else is asking for the changes, because you must have submitted the ending you thought worked. Good luck with the rest of the revisions!
DeleteThe apocalyptic end they have been talking about is a tricky one, not just for writers, but what if it doesn't happen at all? I have a conspiracy friend who has been hoarding stuff for the last year! As a reader, I agree with the endings which are important. I have read a few books lately that just left me as a reader hanging, because I am not sure if it signals another book coming. Great post, and Happy Monday!
ReplyDeleteThere must be a bit of a hangover feeling the day after when these people realise they hoarded for nothing. I like endings that don't tie everything up, but I do like endings that click. I will persevere, I love the characters too much to leave them hanging.
DeleteBummer!! Don't discard the idea though.
ReplyDeleteIt won't be discarded - I might even start a couple of rumours to tie in with a release date :-)
DeleteI'm with Alex. Just store it away for a bit until the furor died down. That way, you might get the spark you need to get the perfect ending.
ReplyDeleteYou might even end up with a best seller. Or better yet, a classic. ;-)
Oh Misha, I dream of a classic :-)
DeleteDon't bin anything yet! There might be a dozen apocalypse novels but yours could still beat them all.
ReplyDeleteI love that idea, Lizy :-D
DeleteOh no that sucks! But never say never, you may come up with a fantastic ending soon.
ReplyDeleteI've got my fingers crossed, Suzanne :-)
DeleteWhat a shame... but I don't think it's too late - if you work out the ending of course. I've felt like I've missed out on genres that had come and gone before i could finish what I had - Dystopia was one..:(
ReplyDeleteI'm far too individual to want to follow a trend, but the timing would have been so good. I don't usually write things that fall so neatly into a genre.
DeleteOh, I can imagine how frustrating this is. Bad timing, no doubt. But I agree with everyone else, I hope you don't discard the idea. I've no doubt it's a great story and I wouldn't be surprised if the perfect ending comes to you when you don't even expect it.
ReplyDeleteIt's safely in a large folder, and every so often I look through the pages in the hope the ending will jump out at me :-)
DeleteYour book might stand out from the rest. It doesn't matter the genre as long as it's a great story! Endings can frustrate me. I'm a pantser, so I just hope they work out in the end, but they can stump me at times.
ReplyDeleteI'm the same, Christine, a total pantser. Sometimes it's fantastic, other times not so much!
DeleteNot a fun surprise, is it?
ReplyDeleteI started writing this story when I was a teen about dogs that escape from a science lab. And then I read Richard Adams' book The Plague Dogs. Shot that idea right down the tubes.
Ah, that's a shame. But at least it didn't stop you writing!
DeleteI started writing a YA horror when I realized agents were looking for them. But then I fell in love with new adult stories and decided to write them instead. Because I can't write three books a year, I decided to stick with one brand. I'm just going to pretend I missed the YA horror trend. :D
ReplyDeleteSometimes you can't help what feels right, Stina.
DeleteTiming is everything, they say. However, there are undoubtedly more apocalyptic prophecies looming, so I'd go ahead and finish it. ;-)
ReplyDeleteIt will definitely be finished, just waiting for that elusive ending!
DeleteFrequently my endings come to me half-way through my first draft, but I've tweaked them before to make them fit better.
ReplyDeleteMaybe you can still get that novel out and submitted before the big craze hits...
I actually drafted this story a couple of times. The ending as it stands is okay, but it's not WOW! I think it ought to be WOW :-)
DeleteThey say there really are no new stories, but the ones told well will get attention. I'm assuming yours is done well, so don't give up!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your vote of confidence, again, Elizabeth :-)
DeleteKeep working on it! They say never to write to trends anyway. But I do know what you mean about wishing to be ahead of a trend. :)
ReplyDeleteI never write to trends, because I simply have no idea what my story is going to be until I start writing. My apocalyptic novel never started out that way!
DeleteEnding's are important for me, so I do struggle writing the perfect one. I like books to be complete but still have series potential, which can be a difficult thing to do!
ReplyDeleteAllison (Geek Banter)
Ooh... and I just shuddered as I saw that I wrote "Ending's" with an apostrophe :|
DeleteI prefer writing standalone books, but I don't like fully realised endings. I need to leave enough ambiguity that readers still have questions to ponder, but not enough to have them expect a sequel. That's difficult too.
DeleteIt's Christmas - I'll let you off the errant apostrophe :-)
I totally had that problem with my first novel. Now I know the ending, but I'm working on something different, so --- yeah.
ReplyDeleteAnyway... hang in there! That awesome book of yours can still have it's day!
The best thing about your situation is once you finish the second novel, you'll have another one finished almost immediately!
DeleteUgh! That is the WORST when you're just slightly ahead of a trend and you don't realize it until suddenly you're kind of behind it. That happened with me with zombies AND with steampunk. *shakes fist at universe*
ReplyDeleteExactly, it's the not realising that makes it worse. Twice is really bad luck though, Sarah!
DeleteAll the disaster preparedness stuff makes me laugh. If the world ends, it doesn't matter how well provisioned you are. :) I figure if it does, there's nothing I can do about it. So why worry? I looked at an asteroid passing by last week [thru a telescope] and they look pretty innocent.
ReplyDeleteI think the end of the world always appeals to some. So, it'll come back around. Have a wonderful holiday!
I've always wondered about those people who sell their belongings in preparation for the end of the world - surely it doesn't matter what you own/don't own? Out of everyone I know, I trust you the most on matters like these, Mary, so thank you for that :-)
DeleteI did have to rewrite the last few sentences of a novel the other day. But usually its the beginnings of my novels that need work. :)
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to find the right words to leave readers with sometimes, isn't it? Although the first sentence is important because everyone reads that before they buy! Of course, the middle bits are always quite tricky too :-)
Delete