On Novel Writing II

Now a couple sentences shy of 40,000 words. Still not sure if my initial draft will hit 50,000, but it may end up being close, I hope. I’ve got three major plot points yet to write, with at least two minor transitional scenes in between them. And I’ve still got rough, broad ideas for three scenarios I’d like to go back and insert into earlier sections of the story, and that’s all to be done before I re-read it and start making revisions. For a while now I’ve wondered to myself if I’m being too blunt or pretentious with my effort to build thematic, narrative, and symbolic depth into the story. I want the story to have some subtext. I want it to reveal more meaning and depth on a second read-through, but I don’t want my symbolism and analogies to seem forced or embarrassingly obvious, like they’re trying too hard. I do realize, of course, that no one can answer this rhetorical question until I actually allow someone else to read the work. I’m just expressing my own anxiety to relieve some stress. After not writing (much) for a few days, instead just mulling ideas, I was struck by inspiration this evening and incorporated a vignette analogy to the four horsemen. I had one idea in mind, but after reinvigorating my familiarity with Christian myth, I realized that certain parallels between my protagonist and a particular horseman of the apocalypse were even more significant than I initially imagined. I’m particularly pleased because these numerous parallels allow me to use the analogy while still leaving enough unsaid that someone that does a little research, like I did, will actually be able to glean even more out of the book’s imagery than what I overtly stated. The sudden use of Christian symbolism in a story steeped in Shinto mythology may suddenly seem incongruous, but I’m hoping that it’s subtle enough, and organic enough to the narrative to be acceptably passable. I am a bit disappointed, however, that I haven’t yet found an organic opportunity to use the chess term ” j’adoube.” I think it’s neat, both as a term and as a figurative plot device, but I don’t want to manipulate my story just to appease my covetous desire to use one particular slightly pretentious word.