Hey! Hello! Hi! How you doing? (PS: You need to pronounce is like Joey does, it’s a requirement. I don’t make the rules here). It’s time for another update about the book and boy did these last three weeks fly by. I don’t understand how it happened. It was April like yesterday and I blinked and now look where we are, with step two sort of but not really complete.
A quick reminder what was on the list for step two:
- Create timeline
- Plan out chapters
- Do research
I did actually add two more things to my list but to be fair, I also took some shit off so it kind of balances out. I added:
- Character descriptions (main and (main)side-characters)
- Important buildings in the Sims 4
I’m going to keep this update short and sweet as I’m semi limited with what I want to share that I’ve created these last few weeks. I know that with the first draft already on here, any big surprises are off the table but I still want to keep some stuff unknown. So, I’m going to speed run through some of these bullet points.
Create timeline: The story takes place in 8 months, starting in January and ending in August. I went above and beyond with this timeline, it took me a good few hours, but it’s beyond detailed and should help avoid any big plot holes and help with the smoother transitions. It did pose as a challenge at one point as I started to overthink certain details. I got a bit stuck on the location of the story and how certain things would work as in the legal drinking age, but I committed on some rules/facts. The story takes place in Europe. There are mountains around them or in the area and there is also a sea/beach semi close-by. The legal drinking age is 18 and the year is 2019. I even went as far to plan out the school system. It’s very detailed, I might even argue it’s too planned out. I’ve never approached writing a book like this so it’s going to be interesting how it takes shape once I actually sit down and write.
Plan out chapters: As I pretty much planned out almost every single day (some days are open for possible filler scenes), I didn’t feel that a chapter-by-chapter thorough plan was needed. Yes, a small part of me was lazy considering how many hours the timeline took me, but a bigger part was mainly me planning myself into a writer’s block and I wanted to leave some flexibility for the story.
Do research: There was a small list of things I was able to research from the get go, the highlights from the first draft but honestly some things are difficult to research before I know the role it might play in the story. Yes, I could research every occupation or hobby in detail but if I’m going to mention it in passing here and there, I only need to know enough information for those small references. But the first thing I researched was boxing as it played a big role in the story and this is the source I used.
Character descriptions
Again, I want to avoid sharing to much, but here is a small hint.
I have 11 of these tables and there are still a few characters that I might add later on. I just haven’t figured out the smaller details yet so I’m waiting to see how they will take shape once I write them. PS: I haven’t finished any of these tables, that’s what the *** stand for.
Important buildings in the Sims 4
Here I can share only a tiny bit more. The reason why I decided to build the main important buildings in the Sims 4, outside the fact that on the day I started working on step two I just really wanted to play Sims but needed an excuse, but I have a real semi valid reason too. As I sometimes struggle with those tiny details as okay the character just made a cup of coffee but poof she is here now, how did that happen? So, I created the build to help myself with that, and it’s also for those small details like what color carpet does she have (incase M drops something on the carpet) or a guest is over, where is the bathroom? It’s those really small things that I definitely didn’t need the Sims 4 builds for but like I said, I only need an excuse.
M (the main character who might be getting a proper nick name in the final draft) has a beautiful tree house in the back yard which is basically her sanctuary. It has a very thrifted home-made vibe going on. And some of the furniture pieces Zack designed, build or fixed for her. This is the area M and Zack will spend a lot of time in, so definitely prepare yourself for adorable “filler” scenes.
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And that’s all folks, nothing to crazy. Next up, step three (time guess: 18-20 weeks):
- WRITE! Rough draft. Try to not stress about perfection. Get everything down from A to Z.
We have some cliff notes that go with this step. The main one being the total amount of chapters, how many chapters I will realistically be able to complete per month and of course, how long it will take me to finish. The original time guess of max 20 weeks is a bit on the ambitious side. Honestly, I think a minimum two chapters per month is the best we might get, there might be some weeks in between where I can pump out more chapters but I’m not going to put any money on those anytime soon. My hands are a bit full with you know, trying to get my degree in my third language and starting a new job in July. Oh, by the way, I did get that nursing student job in the end. I’m starting in July and I can’t be more excited.
So, if we take all that into account and we play with the lose idea of 15 chapters in total, the time guess can instantly be bumped up to 30 weeks (because 1 chapter = 2 weeks). I can’t commit to the total amount of chapters now before writing as…the first draft is 20 short chapters (4 pages per chapter) and the idea for the new version is either 5 pages per chapter or 8. All of these details impact the total amount of chapters which in turn impacts the time guess. It’s all interlinked because it’s one thing to rewrite the first draft and fix those transitions and small details, but obviously I’m adding shit to enrich the story. What I’m trying to say is, this might take a hot second and you’re going to need to be patient with me. I do intend to do a little mini check up every 4 weeks just to let you know where I sit so that’s something.
I really don’t have anything else to say so I’m going to round up this blog here and get back to studying or probably, and most likely, play some Sims. I hope life isn’t treating everyone to harshly and please take care and stay safe.
Thank you so much for reading and I will see you in a click!
