I managed to continue to stray off the beaten path. I did some more writing on Tzipi’s Garden and added Candidate 03 into the mix. I am a believer of following up on inspiration when it strikes, after all. And while I still may spend some time with one, the other or both, I will try to at least get through Simona’s Chapter 4 before the weekend’s out. I’ve got a fair bit of homework to do but not so much that I shouldn’t be able to knock out a fair bit of writing too. Stay tuned.

Predictable results are predictable. I know, I know that if I want to properly meet quota and whatever writing goals I have for the day, it has to be one of the first things I do free of all other distractions. And yet I don’t do what I know I need to do. I managed to get some writing done on Candidate 03 and some work in the Space Arc peripheral materials, the former because as it’s still largely undeveloped, it’s easy to add content. It’s always a pain to do that final push to wrap up a chapter, but I’m going to hop on it this time. Stay tuned.

I was taken by a whim and did some writing on Candidate 03. I have very little settled about the story and should really try to work out the plotline more. Before that, though, I need to follow through on my plan to finish up Chapter 25 of Tico4. Something to hold my attention. Stay tuned.

I had one of my flights of fancy and decided to jot down some of the early dialog for Candidate 03. I also played around in the peripheral materials some to detail some of the changes to the social order as part of the formation of the Fifth Empire. A big part of it was just flipping the numerical order, but there was more to it than just that. Maybe when we actually get into the Aether War I’ll provide further insight into Imperial society. Stay tuned.

I made a little progress on Daphne’s Chapter 4. The main thing is that I envisioned the end game for the chapter, so I just need to focus and push through.

I also continued to build up the cast list for Candidate 03 and continued on my little mental exercise of spinning a story out of a Dragon Force campaign. It really does add to the addictive quality of the early stages of the game.

I’ve been doing more preproduction work on those stories I mentioned last time, especially Candidate 03.

I’ve also embarked on a fun little exercise. You see, playing Dragon Force, I’ve found that I’ve been inventing narratives to fill in the substantial gaps in the game’s rather sparse story and characterization. Well, I decided to take it a step further. Starting up a new campaign, I’ve been writing my own little story as I go. Yes, it’s basically just Dragon Force with the serial numbers filed off, so I don’t plan on ever publishing it to the site, but the main thing for me is the element of unpredictability. I’m very much a control freak as a writer, as evidenced by my abundant peripheral materials. I do try to leave the door open to serendipity, but that only goes so far.

I saw a documentary about Philip K Dick and how he would create branching options for his stories and let the luck of the draw (as it were) decide. Closer to what I’m doing here, I think of the narrative LP for X-COM by GuavaMoment and how the highly unpredictable battle scenes would have a major influence on the story. Like I said, this is just a way to play with my means of storycrafting. If I like it, I may try similar techniques in the future.