Halfway There -- Regarding Movies

Today's news on Darwood and Smitty is that I'm halfway to my goal of 65,000 words.

What's incredible is how the process feels. Have you ever seen a movie where SO MUCH HAPPENS that, halfway through the movie, you figure it's GOT to be almost finished. And at the same time, you're enjoying it so much that you wish it WEREN'T almost finished?

That's what this is like for me. The plot to Darwood & Smitty has so many twists that you figure it's GOT to be almost over, now that this one critical character is dead, and then the world finds out something about him, and then that starts driving the story in a new direction, but then everyone finds out that the thing the world thought they just found out about him is actually almost EXACTLY wrong.

And then, just as Darwood and Smitty are about to FINALLY get everything in order ... the story is only halfway finished; in fact, it's almost as if everything has been a prelude to the second half, where the action and the twists and turns are just about to RAMP UP like mad.

Yeah ... I have to talk through smoke like this because I don't want to sit here and give away the plot. But it gives you a sense of what this is like.

Of course I've got the rest of the book outlined. I know what's going to happen, even if the specifics are always surprising once they emerge through the writing process. But when I look at it, it's like a mountain that I can hardly wait to start climbing while, at the same time, I can't believe that I still have to climb.

Ok ... deep breath. Now on to future chapters.

Google and MySpace -- Predicted after the Fact

Well, I have to call this very interesting. I could say that Darwood and Smitty -- looking back from the future -- told me to include this in the book. But then you wouldn't take me seriously.

I was honestly looking at referencing a merger between Google and MySpace in this first book on Darwood and Smitty. I simply hadn't crossed that bridge yet in the writing. Then low and behold, I ran into this article today, and that promptly kills that idea for the book. The merger is happening. You can read the article here.

You know, inventors often come up with the same idea at the same time, and it's been suggested that this is because that idea is floating around in the mental sphere, and anyone working along a given line can snatch it out of the air, so to speak.

Even if that's the case, my prediction after the fact is probably a little more mundane. Google and MySpace are the two Internet giants right now. In a world of mergers, seeing them join probably doesn't take much imagination. Shame on me for thinking of putting it into a book.

An Aside, Regarding Death

I'm a writer. So it's been said, at least by myself, that I happen to notice certain subtleties about the written word.

This power of observation intact, I took issue with the following news headline. I wonder if you notice anything suspicious about it too:

"Men with Low Testosterone More Likely to Die"

Somehow, that just doesn't ring true.

Harley Rockets

FROM DARWOOD:

Hot dog! Steve's finally got us to my favorite part of our story, where we get to cruise on some Harley Rockets.

See, it's a funny kind of world we (Smitty and I) live in. Everything that happened to us already happened, but only potentially. Then we tell Steve about it, he puts it onto paper (or his computer, in this case), and suddenly it becomes actual, even though it already happened for us. See? A very complex world when you live inside a book.

And of course even when it's actual, it's not quite the same as when the book's actually printed. Then I'm going to feel the roar of that Harley all through my body.

Anyway, Smitty's proved himself as ideal and impractical as always, figuring there shouldn't be any kind of marketing going on around our story. I for one am happy to live a bit in limbo if it means that the story sells better in the end, because then we can hock some t-shirts and other products with our names or images on them. And that makes our world even more real. And for us, that rocks.

By the way ... just to make the story actually interesting for readers of the blog, I'm going to work on Steve, try to get him to publish a few excerpts on his website. A lousy publisher might mind, figuring that they don't then get "first publishing rights." But a publisher who cares about selling any books will think it's a good idea. And that's the kind I want him working with, for reasons pointed out above.

Oh, last point -- Smitty and I always enjoy a good debate, and it's especially good when I win. So if you have any questions for us, post 'em on this blog and we'll try to answer them. Remember, we DO live in the future. ...