That Watershed Moment

In talking with a few people, I realized that the title Watershed was confusing to them.  I decided to take today to explain a little about the title. 

Webster's gives two definitions for watershed:
1:  a region or area bounded peripherally by a divide and draining ultimately to a particular watercourse or body of water
2:  a crucial dividing point, line, or factor : turning point

The title of this book is taken from second definition.  As is revealed in the first few chapters of Watershed  the Master sees his actions as a turning point for humankind, and indeed they are.  The drastic changes that the shelter survivors go through in the book all stem from the watershed moments, the Master's blackout and subsequent terrors.

So there's the reason for the title.  Back to writing Chapter 4!

Thanks,

Matthew

The Basics of Watershed

As I said in the last post, I'm kind of letting Watershed write itself.  I have a general idea of the direction I want it to go in, but it is almost like a living organism; it chooses its own direction.  Nonetheless I do still have a general summary/synopsis of the prologue and 1st chapter to share.


Watershed opens on February 7 (tentatively of next year, but that can change).  We are quickly introduced to some of the main players:  John Walters, Rose Lowell, Isadora (Izzy) Poole, Joseph Williams, and Matthew Myers in the prologue.  As the five page intro comes to a close, a mysterious figure later known as the Master activates a computer program that causes a mass blackout around the world.


Chapter 1 picks up the next day as the main characters try to deal with the destruction caused by the black out.  Worse still, with the exception of short wave communications all transmissions are blocked.  With relief forces disorganized and spread thin, the survivors begin to migrate to two points:  St. Jude's Church lead by Father Michael and the local hospital.  St. Jude's was built on an old bomb shelter which becomes home to a few dozen people over the coming days.  The hospital is flooded with injured.  As the survivors begin to settle into the their temporary habitations, the Master activates another weapon.  With a massive earthquake levelling the city, Father Michael declares that the apocalypse is beginning.


Kind of scattered and not a lot of information there, but I just wanted to possibly tease some interest.

I'm behind on my writing goals for the day so I will not be posting any character bios today, but when I do I am thinking of throwing in an Easter egg for anyone who reads this and, hopefully, eventually the book.  I am normally against basing characters in my books on actual people, but I decided to throw in certain mannerisms or personality traits into a few characters so maybe, just maybe those will be revealed in character bios.

Stay tuned.

Thanks,

Matthew

Creating a New World

I thought I would begin this process by explaining the groundwork for Watershed.  I started this project only about a week ago, though the basic idea has been brewing in the back of my mind for five years.  I started a story back in high school called New World.

Though I've lost the outline for the story, I remember vividly the premise.  A deluded scientist detonates some kind of bomb that feeds on the planet's oxygen.  As the world is engulfed in flame the scientist activates a shield around a small South African city.  The rest of the book follows the lives of the survivors as they try to rebuild.  This latest project was initially titled New World as well, and though the inciting incident and level of worldwide destruction have changed, its strength lies in the same idea of rebuilding and renewal. 

So back to the beginning of Watershed.  After watching Shaun of the Dead for the twentieth time, I began to play around with the idea of a catastrophe that destroyed civilization, but without zombies.  As I worked out the base elements of characters and a general outline, I stumbled across a year old reality show called "The Colony", a social experiment that was very similar to my story.  I threw away some of my outlines and started again, trying to steer the plot away from events played out in "The Colony" so as not to seem like I was plagiarising.  Looking at my new draft however, I realized that it was a carbon copy of the short lived CBS drama "Jericho".  I tossed aside this copy as well and was about to give up on the idea all together.

Later that day I received a call from my girlfriend, Joy.  During our conversation I mentioned my attempt to start writing again, and she relayed to me that her roommate was taking part in the National Novel Writing Month (www.nanowrimo.org).  After the phone call I decided NaNo might be a good way to keep me focussed.  I joined up and began writing.

Though I now have a general idea of the direction the story will take, I'm letting it write itself.  I am sure elements of "The Colony", "Jericho", Shaun of the Dead, and numerous other disaster films, but that is going to happen with any genre that an author enjoys.  My goal is to produce a wholly original work, but I cannot escape my influences.  Hopefully, I can pay homage to them without stealing the work of other artists.

Tomorrow, I'll post a teaser summary and possibly include a character sketch or two.

Thanks,

Matthew

An Introduction to Writer's Block

I've been writing short stories since I was seven years old.  I started numerous noveling projects over the next fifteen years, but my craft and my drive were never up to snuff.  After graduating from Bryan College in May of this year, I realized that I could no longer just float about waiting for the life to catch me up in its flow.  I had to be proactive.  One of my lifelong dreams is to be a career writer.  This blog along with my first major novel attempt, Watershed, are the first stepping stones to that dream. 

I will begin chronicling my progress through Watershed as well as my personal thoughts on the state of the world, life in recession America, and other interests.  I hope you enjoy and stay reading what I hope will not be a waste of you time.

Thanks,

Matthew