Narratively Speaking

All right. I think for my latest writing attempt (i.e. Novel manuscript), I'm going to have to completely deconstruct what I've already done and realise what's there (apart from names and some basic plot-points) is just basically useless. It's sketchy and unfocused. And a bit rubbish, really. The idea's there, but it's not translating to paper. Or rather, Word doc.

I've agreed with myself that a big part of what I'm trying to write, and the point that I'm making (even in the title), is about isolation. Common sense then says the obvious option is to therefore isolate the narrative - it really should be in First Person. Not every-person, which is what ends up happening in Third Person works. Ones that I write, anyway.

Having it in First Person will keep it focused, bring in more though processes and characterisation of protagonist, and will make that person the driver of the story without getting sidetracked into others' thought-processes.

I was attempting to do this in Third Person. It wasn't working. I imagine because it logically made little sense. Also I think it didn't allow me to really "connect" with them (the protagonist) properly - with what I have in mind for this it would be very hard to make sense of some of the complexities of the character without they themselves being the one to describe them. After all, it's easier to get sucked into someone's mind, and someone's world - even with all their crazy and skewed logic - when they're the one telling you about it.

Unfortunately this means going all the way back to page one and deconstructing what's already there to accommodate this. And it's more that changing that lead character's name to "I" on the page. It'll change the dynamic, the observations, writing patter and probably all of the book all over again.

But I like the thought of this. It makes me hopeful it'll get me somewhere, and also allow me to move on past the mind-block I've had for about a week. All hard work, but surely a good thing? I'd like to think I have the capability of creating something that's actually rather decent - and that eventually I'll crack the key to my personal style and do just that. Just like with writing songs.

Just for once I'd like to prove to the voices in my head that they're wrong - and listen to the other voices in there. The ones who are good characters just waiting to be born and given full lives in the worlds of my future novels.