I’m currently writing “Through Lines” on A Memory of Light , meaning I’m taking one character or group and going beginning to end.
I’ll end up writing the ending a number of times through different eyes, each separated by a short book’s number of pages. Odd experience.
How do you do that without diminishing the impact of the “big finish” (I mean there’s denouement anyway, but the climax)?
Careful planning, followed by a lot of reads-through of the entire book to smooth and enhance.
Did you do that with Rand/Egwene in The Gathering Storm and Mat/Perrin Towers of Midnight ?
Yes, I did.
At about 20 scenes and 50k words, the first “Through Line” of A Memory of Light is done. I can’t tell you who it is, but I’m very pleased.
Why wouldn’t you be able to tell us who it is? Is it a real secret who all of the characters in the book are at this point?
Some people don’t want any kind of spoiler. Knowing there are 50k words of someone means they don’t die at the start.
If you look back through my Twitter feed, you can figure out who it is. [It was Perrin.] I might do a blog post on it too, with a spoiler warning.
Do you find it easier to write “through lines” and then tie it all up together later?
For a very big, complex book, it’s basically the only way I can do it. Otherwise, I lose character voices.
Is this your style, or how RJ wanted it? Just curious.
What specifically are you asking about? The writing of “Through Lines?”
You mentioned writing the same ending multiple times. I’m taking it as the same ending being reviewed from different POVs?
Different pieces of what, together, will be the ending sequences of the book.
I’m guessing that with one through line at 50k words, A Memory of Light will be a massive book?Will chunks be taken out during editing?
I always edit down, rather than up. I overwrite intentionally on first drafts. But the book will be big.
I might just be ignorant here, but what’s a “Through Line”?
Where you write one character’s parts, all the way through the book.
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