Words like “Bright” and “Gloom” carry their own meanings and are powerful in their own right, both phonetically and semantically.  Together I think they have a certain weight that the old title lacked.

As the website is due for another overhaul, the name change will be reflected throughout the various pages at that time.

So that you understand the significance of that, I had only six complete chapters to show after six years of working on this project.  That’s a chapter a year, although honestly the vast majority of that was written this year.

Anyway, things are really coming along.  I’ve actually “reconfigured” the first six chapters, changing the setting to circumvent a rather troublesome situation that disrupted the story’s pacing and flow.  When I consider how much re-writing I’ve done on Poguri and the Land of Nou, I realize that I’ve probably written enough to fill ten novels.  And that’s fine, because once it’s all said and done, the final product will reflect all the hard work I’ve put into it.

Now it’s time to stop distracting myself with blog writing and to get back to story writing!

And the results have been promising.  It is getting to a point where I may actually be “outgrowing” the critique groups, because most of the feedback has been small nitpicks like ellipses at the ends of sentences requiring another period – that is, a fourth dot.  Or my occasional overuse of the word “that”.  In terms of content, flow, engagement – it all seems to be there, and that excites me.

Oh, right, and then there’s this minor development: I applied to and was accepted into Goddard College’s MFA in Creative Writing Program.  This is significant for two main reasons beyond the obvious:

1. It means that my writing has improved substantially in the year since I was rejected 4 separate times by MFA programs
2. The low-residency model of those programs that rejected me?  Goddard College invented it.  And they accepted me.  So how do you think I feel about those rejections now?  Couldn’t care less?  That’s right.

So it is my plan to either finish Land of Nou as my capstone for the program, or to finish it during the program.  Either way, what this means is that I can expect to produce a publish-worthy product in the not too distant future.

And that is exciting.

Poguri's Awakening

The chapter corresponding to this illustration can be read here:

Poguri’s Awakening
http://www.poguri.com/awakening/

Actually completed months ago, this chapter has gone through extensive revisions, some revolving around a struggle with point of view, and others a complete re-imagining of how to introduce our hero, Poguri.

I hope you all enjoy the chapter, and please feel free to leave me any feedback, as constructive criticism are the essential vitamins and minerals we writers need!

So then I decided to focus more on Maddie, as developing one character more thoroughly gave the story more focus than delving into the personal details of six or so. But as is my tendency, I tried to stuff too much “other stuff” into the novel that didn’t belong, such as some of my real life passions around certain social issues. I vowed from the start that Land of Nou would not be any sort of social commentary, but as I continued to write out Maddie’s story, that’s exactly what it was becoming.

And this created a schism between the Waking and the Dreaming, and a the problem of Maddie’s story having very little to do with the overall conflict in the Land of Nou.  Lest I forget, the story is called Land of Nou!  Now I have decided that the dreamers will be introduced as they were originally – their dreams opening paths to the Land of Nou – but that from there the setting will remain in the Land of Nou, and not delve into the Dreamers’ Waking narratives at all.  There will be a strong Waking component – something I cannot reveal – but it is directly relevant to the conflict in the Land of Nou, which makes for a more focused story.  With this decision I have been able to resume writing, although the going is still slow.  But one word at a time is better than no words at all.

On some level I think that maybe I’m not cut out to be the writer of this story. While I believe the concept to be sound, I am not certain I have the know-how to flesh it out fully into prose. Every book that I read for inspiration actually seems to have the opposite effect, that is making me painfully aware of how I am lacking as a writer.

Pony Ride

But there is hope. One of the things that usually always stirs my inspiration is new artwork. I’ve recently started a collaboration with an artist named Paul Davey, whose style coincides with a new desire to take the illustrations into a more “realistic” direction.  On top of that, his work also blurs the line between fantasy and reality, which is one of the main themes in Poguri and the Land of Nou.

Now tell me, did you notice the  two giant bears in the background?  If not, look again.

That I found Mr. Davey at all was nothing short of what Carl Jung would refer to as synchronicity, but that cynics might consider a mere coincidence.  Either way, I foresee a very fruitful partnership, and hope that I can draw some inspiration from his work and put it towards finishing the novel.

I’ve made some vital changes to Poguri, namely how he’s introduced, as well as making the critical decision to make Maddie the primary dreamer character.  Part of what had made the story overwhelming to write, I think, was that I was planning on jumping back and forth between the adventures in Nou and the real life troubles of five different characters.  It was just too much!  And if it was too much for me as a writer, then it certainly would’ve been too much for the reader.

The surge spilled over into the urge to make a few aesthetic changes here on the website – you may have noticed the top banner now uses a part of one of the scene illustrations instead of the black and white scheme.  On top of that, I’ve added the ability to toggle between a “Day” and “Night” theme – the former featuring brighter colors and the dreamers in the side bar, the latter using darker colors and featuring the bogeys in the sidebar.  The banners are different for each one, too.

So that’s all for now.  Here’ s hoping the streak continues and I’m able to get this book done sometime in the next year.