"They Also Breathe Fire" Progress Update
Things are moving slowly, but they're moving.
In today’s post, I want to give you a quick update on “They Also Breathe Fire” or TABF (the sequel to “The Good Killers” or TGK).
Update on “They Also Breathe Fire”
I notice other writers posting word counts on their Substacks. I have tried similar metrics and found that, for me, it’s a meaningless metric. It’s similar to “lines of code” if you’re a developer or “emails sent” if you’re a project manager or maybe “diapers changed” if you’re a parent. My target for TABF is around 80,000 words, which is roughly where TGK landed. TGK had a large cast of characters and a few subplots so it was a complex book (by my standards) and TABF has a similar level of complexity.
I counted up all the words I’ve written so far — which include drafts and notes — and I’m already at the 80,000 word mark. Now, I often write several versions of a scene and edit and combine them, like a movie director will shoot several takes and then use the editing bay to piece together the final cut. I’m not a write one line, make it perfect, and move on kind of writer. My style is probably more like Ridley Scott as a director. He likes to map out his entire movie and even draws little cartoon scenes to show blocking and camera angles. I like to write an outline and figure out all the plot points and character motivations. I like to have a lot of raw material to work with, like different phrasings of dialog, different actions during a scene, descriptions, that kind of thing. Then I start stripping away what’s not needed and keep the best stuff. I get a lot of happy accidents this way and it gives my characters room to develop organically.
Anyway… I’ve found that counting scenes and their status is better for me. I work on scenes as separate files. I use the Tag feature on my computer to apply different tags to each scene. Then, when I sit down for a writing session at 2 a.m., I can open up the folder that holds all the scenes and quickly see the status of each one.
Currently, TABF has 58 scenes. Here’s the status:
Not started (14 scenes): The first stage. I have created character notes, scene notes, motif and other notes, and a general outline for the book but I haven’t actually done anything specific for this scene.
Brainstorming (13 scenes): The second stage. I’ve created the scene file and I’m just noodling ideas, snippets of dialog, descriptions, actions, and other stuff that I want or need to have happen in the scene.
Outlining (16 scenes): Here’s where I map out the flow of the scene and the logical actions (Riley does this, Ben does that, Riley calls Ben a dumbass)
Drafting (15 scenes): Here’s where I settle down and start filling out the scene based on the brainstorming and outlining. I’ll write many versions of elements in the drafting stage.
First Draft (3 scenes): Here’s where I feel like I have a complete draft that is pretty close to what I was hoping would happen in the scene.
Each of these five stages are only rough indicators of where the scene is developmentally and isn’t really meant to imply that I have some kind of linear writing process.
Aside from raw numbers, the book itself is moving slowly. The book is part of a series and I’m making some changes to the book, and the series, based on feedback from readers and who my audience is vs. who I thought they would be. These changes have brought extra challenges to me as a writer. I’ve also had extra challenges around life and career.
I don’t want to give too much away, but I’ll just say a few things:
They Also Breathe Fire occurs about 8 months after the events in The Good Killers so there is continuity with the first book. The returning characters have had time to process some of the events that happened and have begun to deal with the consequences. It’s also summer, so expect a lot of sweating.
Some key characters from TGK appear in TABF. But there are new antagonists that are the focus of this book, along with other new characters.
TABF reveals a bit more about the secretive criminal organization, headed by the mysterious character “Dubs,” which appeared in TGK.
TABF is also set in western New York in the fictional Iroquois County and fictionalized versions of Rochester and other towns and cities. There are new settings compared to TGK.
You’re going to see a lot more of fan-favorite character Riley.
The MVP for this book is my Logi Wave Keys keyboard. After 30+ years of typing for work and hobbies, carpal tunnel issues are beginning to creep in.
I’m hoping to get the book out this year… Let’s see how this goes.
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