Writing a revolution

As you know, since two days after Ray Bradbury died I have been working on a story I conceived several years ago, in the form of a blog "written" by the story's central character. I'm creating the novel – perhaps novella will be a better word in the end – in the same manner Brian Wilson recorded "Good Vibrations" and Smile. The blog entries serve as modules of content to be rearranged into the final composition.

Especially early in the process but still somewhat at this stage, I may write a scene or part of a scene from the beginning, middle or end depending where the muse takes me on a given day.

On Wednesday night I printed all of the entries to date and sat down to put them in an order. I found with some satisfaction that this process is indeed telling the story that I wanted to tell oh-so-long ago. I thought it would take about 100 blog entries of 300-to-700 words each, and at Entry 75 I truly am about three-quarters of the way through.

This little sorting also identified what I have left unwritten to date, and that is an invigorating thought. Much as I wrote my earlier novella The Imaginary Bomb knowing how it would end and enjoying the ride from here to there, it's time to start writing the scenes that draw it all to that conclusion. And as these characters now write their own stories, I'm sure I sometimes will be surprised at how they reach their destination.

It is a time of civil unrest. An Earthian colony on Sirius 4 chomps against the bit of a colonizing force. Those who have chosen to lead a pioneering life in space did so because they desired independence and liberty. The ties to the old world were meant to be severed, not forged into strong cables. A revolution is inevitable – but one man, Raymond Kaliber, envisions something more than simply exchanging a far-off tyrant for a more local one.

I've set a goal of releasing a finished product on Dec. 15, which is Bill of Rights Day, the anniversary of a day when revolutionaries ratified a pact intended to protect individual freedom. In the meantime, the blog is a chance for you to get a sneak preview of the story and watch the process of its creation day by day. Check it out; we're getting to the good parts.