Writing Plans for 2021
After breaking down my short-term gaming plans for the next few months, it's time to focus on my other passion: writing. Or, more specifically, what I'm working on right now. I've got a few ideas right now, but I can at least lay out some specific writing plans for 2021.
Starting with short stories
Last year, I wanted to write 180,000 words. I started writing one novel, pivoted to a short story, and expanded that project into a full novel. So I'm already pretty sure any projects I start will veer towards the longer side.
That being said, I also know that my routines, habits, and life details are still in disarray. Parenting is fun, but it also takes a lot out of you; I have no idea how that will affect my creative writing.
Short stories just kind of make sense right now. Assuming I can keep them a reasonable length, I could tackle a few projects in the next sixth months. And in a perfect world, one of those ideas (which I'll share in a minute) excites me enough to write something longer.
I still want each idea to be a self-contained short story. But if I create a new setting or envision some cool characters, there's no reason why some of those details couldn't translate into my next full novel.
Writing plans for 2021
My three ideas are less creative than past projects. They're still original, of course. But they're much more about taking things that have stuck with me and finding clever ways to approach them. (I mean, that process turned "No Room in the Sky" from a short story to a series of novels. I know it can work.)
Here are my ideas, or at least how I'm pitching them to my internal editor:
A fantasy story set in a new realm: Sure, I spent like a year and a half crafting Varheim and planning stories in that world. But I was never fully content with the final product. Rather than spending more time worldbuilding, I'd rather cobble together a new setting (probably just a single town) and start completely fresh.
A SciFi story parallel to "No Room in the Sky": This one is pretty exciting. There are two different ideas I've wanted to explore, but none of them ever lined up with my novel-writing. A short story, however, might be a perfect excuse to try.
A Destiny fanfiction story: This game series has been a big part of my life for 7 years. And I'm deeper into the lore than I've ever been, largely in part to the game's continued evolution. But there are a thousand times as many unexplored characters, locations, and time periods as there are Bungie-written stories. Why not explore them?
Ideas worth exploring
First things first: Yes, I'm thinking about writing some fanfiction. Like most writers, my earliest projects were shameless fanfiction stories set in Middle-Earth or the Digimon universe. (I was a pretty cold 5th grader.) But I haven't actually attempted to tackle that sort of thing in like, 20 years.
I recently got introduced to a group that's working on a tabletop roleplaying version of Destiny. As I got to know that community and its founder, I defaulted to my natural habit and started daydreaming. Rather than default to my created characters in the video games, I wanted to explore new stories; fanfiction lets me do that in a somewhat serious way.
I know my project won't lead to the first ever Destiny novelization, a la the amazing Mass Effect books by Drew Karpyshyn. And that's okay. Sometimes, just putting ideas on a page is enough to be fulfilling for a writer.
As for the other two ideas? I don't think either one should come as a surprise. I'd like to dabble in a "traditional" fantasy world without having to delve into my created fantasy races. A standalone story is really my best avenue to do that, but also write something I could build onto later.
And I've had more than a few questions about the next "No Room in the Sky" sequel. The fourth book is a long ways away, unfortunately. But I'm definitely ready to jump back into that world and rebuild my excitement for the series. Given that my ideas have been simmering for a few years, it might be fun to give those a shot.
Which of these three ideas sound the most interesting? What do you think of my ideation process (or lack thereof) for coming up with this plan?