Friday, May 31, 2013

WIP It Good!!

I've joined the WIP It Good Blogfest, where I've decided to share my very first Work In Progress. Now, I'm always working on an article, because that's what I do for a living. But this is my very first novel. I've finally decided to go for it! Here are my answers to the blogfest questions:

WIP Title: No Time (although that is not set in stone)

Word Count (projected/actual so far): only about 4,000 so far, projected about 70K

Genre: Straight sci-fi (my favorite!)

How long have you been working on it?: I first came up with the idea about 20  years ago, before I became a writer. Now that I write articles for a living, I decided to go ahead and write a novel. I actually began the process of writing it last November, although I haven't written anything since. I'm just now getting back to it now that I have a large project from my old job off my plate, and will work on it a little each day.

Elevator Pitch (if you came across an agent in an elevator ride, what couple of lines would you use to summarize your book):

A group of scientists discover a secret of time travel that destroys everything we know about time itself. Governments and individuals around the world race to use time travel for their own benefit, resulting in a worldwide Cold War.

Brief Synopsis (250 words or less):

A small group of scientists from a number of countries discover a fairly easy way to travel through time. But when three of them take a trip back through time, a horrible mistake reveals an important secret of time travel that changes their perception of how time works.

The science team decides to reveal their findings to the world when they realize how much good the technology can do. They are surprised when governments begin using the technology to compete for control of the world.

The scientists from the original discovery team break apart and begin working for the governments with which they agree, not necessarily for the governments residing in the countries from which they came. Dr. Sands, originally from the U.K., leads a team for three countries which have teamed up: the U.S., U.K., and Canada. The facility is located in the U.S.

The group works to prevent other countries from using the technology for nefarious reasons such as a dumping ground for criminals and the mining of minerals that can give them an advantage over other countries. In some cases, the members of the team must follow criminals back in time in order to prevent them from committing their evil deeds. In other cases, they must work to prevent the other teams from sending people back in time in the first place.

Are you looking for a Critique Partner?: Yes, as soon as I organize my thoughts and get a little more of the story down.

Are you looking for a Beta Reader?: Definitely, as soon as I get to that point.

10 comments:

  1. Sci-fi is my favorite! This sounds like a great concept, and I'm glad you decided to go for it!

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  2. I really like your elevator pitch. It's really attention getting. But you should let people know some more details about the main conflict. Like, what's at stake if they fail? I get that giving other countries the advantage might be a bad thing, but maybe more specifics as to why. Anyway, great job. Happy writing!

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  3. Sounds really cool!

    Looking forward to reading more about it. Or just reading it!!

    Tim
    The Other Side blog.

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  4. That sounds interesting. And the Elevator pitch has me hooked already! :)

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  5. Big fan of time travel -- keep up the good work!

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  6. What a great premise! Maybe I've been over at Matt McNish's QQQE so much that I am always thinking of how a premise works as a query ... but I wanted to say that if you plan on querying agents, I'd go ahead and tell the secret about time that is discovered right in the query. I understand why you don't want to reveal it PUBLICLY, but if it is a "High Concept" idea, you will want to get it into the query to catch an agent's eye. (I mention this because it sounds like it might be!)

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  7. Very interesting! You drew me in! I love sci fi!

    Cannot wait to see more of this!!!

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  8. I love time travel conundrum stories!

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  9. Sounds like an awesome idea. I, too, would love to hear more about what is at stake. I'm working on a science fiction novel, too. They are so much fun!

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