Day Forty-three - 81,638 words and counting

I'm writing a novel. All my progress can be found on my private blog. The commentary for each day's work can be found below.

It was a mean and dirty trick I pulled yesterday, and I should feel bad, but I don't, I really don't. I think it was the right choice to draw out the resolution of that tension closer to the end of the chapter, and by telling the events somewhat out of order, I managed that. The ending of the chapter is a happy one, and so is the start of the next one. All I can say is, beware when things look like they're going too well.

I'm inventing freely in the early part of this scene, having never borne witness to teenage girls getting themselves ready for a dance. In such circumstances, I try to use what I know of human nature and extrapolate, while not falling prey to cliché or stereotype. Wish me luck in that.

Still, that's part of what makes this project all the more interesting to me, because it's forcing me to write outside of what I know. Yes, the writing cliché is "write what you know," but I think sometimes writing can be a way of learning about people in ways you couldn't otherwise. I'm going to try to maintain a healthy sense of doubt about the realism in my scenes, and try to make sure that upon revision, they become more accurate.

I'm trying to base the clothing styles on the Victorian era, since that age mirrors (in part) the thinking of the society in the story--mostly their thinking about technology, and the pride in Empire, plus the stereotypes against other ethnic groups. The structure of society is far more medieval, with a very defined feudal system among both the highborn and the middling.

In essence, I tried to predict how a feudal system could be maintained if there were magic to enforce it. The idea is that when feudalism began to naturally wane, it was propped up in increasingly strict ways by magic, creating actual physical distinctions among the ruling class, the middle class, and the laboring class. And so the class mentality is medieval, but attitudes toward science, culture, and progress are all very Victorian.

I think I figured out a good way to handle the confrontation with Kalocia. I'm stopping in the middle of it, but that confrontation, as well as chapter 21, will continue tomorrow.

Today's Total: 1,889 / 1,689 words (111.8%)
Nov. Progress to Date: 22,411 / 20,268 words (110.6%, 1.3 days ahead)
Nov. Total Progress: 22,411 / 50,670 (43.2%)
Est. Completion: 81,638 / 250,000 words (32.7%, 100 days to go)