Creating Continuum Universe The New Age Pt 2
Bringing so much together...
PAID MEMBERS! An audio version is available below.
When last we talked, I was left figuring out how to take 100+ characters, 12 separate storylines, and 632 pages of continuity and bring them together in one story set three years after the last published material. Free writing is essential for me. I can think about projects during the day and let them marinade in the back of my mind outside of that, but what I found helps the most was dedicated time to exploring what came before, what I wanted to do, and where it was all going.
So, I opened a new note and let it flow. With no agenda, I started writing about Continuum Universe The New Age. I already knew it would revolve around Relic & Ego and their big bad Mistress, but what had happened in those missing three years? How did the other characters and plot threads resolve or come together in the current story? I had a lot of ground to cover and limited space to do it in.
So free writing it was. Then more free writing, and then even more…
I didn’t rush into writing the script as much as I wanted to. I spent a lot of time fleshing things out with free writing, and as all the pieces began to fall together, I was able to outline the story from beginning to end. I knew where it would start, who would play what roles, and how it ended. This still left three years unresolved. Sure, I would be filling in some of those gaps through dialogue and events but it needed more.
That’s when I decided I would take intermissions to do flashbacks at relevant points.
Surprise, surprise! This led to yet more free writing. I’d already been exploring what had happened to the characters prior to these new chapters, what had been resolved plot-wise, and what I needed to incorporate into the new material. That left my goal to figure out the most important flashbacks. What needed to be seen, and what could be left on the cutting room floor? With this done, it was time to get to what I had been waiting so patiently for.
It was time to work on the script. FINALLY!
Except there was one more thing to figure out. From the beginning, Substack was the destination for these new issues. With an online platform I needed to determine how it was going to be presented. Keeping posts here, print versions, and trade paperbacks in mind, I chose 5-page chapters. I felt I could tell a short story at a minimum of five pages, and if I needed more, I could do a 2-parter. The 18 chapters, both current and flashbacks that I have written are a combination of both.
I started writing the script, but not where you’d think.
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