FA+
Shop
Writing Notes: Blue and Gray - Ch. 3 (spoiler warning)
6 years ago
SPOILER WARNING: THE BELOW TEXT MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
Unorganized thoughts, that's pretty much what these notes are.
I started the chapter the way I did kind of as a bridge to chapter 2. I guess I should say, I described the way Calvin struck Flynn in chapter 2 as 'like a steam hammer' specifically because I wanted to use the metaphor I did to start this chapter. I just thought it was neat!
I felt like it was also a good way to describe the way the war had changed him to set up talking about his PTSD, his "Nostalgia" as it was called during the Civil War. The passage about how his PTSD developed -- him killing the badger as he was running away from him -- is very important both to understanding his character and his actions later in the book. *Throughout* the book, I should say, since his PTSD is something he has to deal with throughout the novel. Heck, it's important in explaining his actions when he first sees Flynn. Anyway, I wanted to get his part right and I spent a good bit of time working on the first few thousand words of this chapter. Hopefully that comes through.
I also didn't mention Calvin's name at all in chapter 2 since it was told entirely from Flynn's perspective. Likewise, Flynn's name isn't mentioned at all in chapter 3 until Calvin learns his name.
For the actual confrontation between Flynn and Calvin from Calvin's point of view, I wanted to make sure first and foremost that all the actions lined up perfectly between chapters 2 and 3. This ended up being a little more time consuming than I thought it would be! I was constantly flipping back and forth while I was writing this. Lesson learned.
Going back to Calvin's PTSD, it actually took me a while to figure out how to get from the beginning of this chapter to the point where Calvin is intent on saving Flynn. To take a step back, the way I typically write isn't with a 'first draft' and a rough draft' and all that; when I actually start writing, there's usually not much rewriting or editing that needs to be done. All that work, for me, is done in the outlining. So when I was outlining/storyboarding this part of the story, I really struggled to figure out how the heck to get Flynn on Calvin's horse from a motivational standpoint. I actually went through about half a dozen other ideas before I settled on this one, which I felt worked the best because it not only provided the best motive I could think of for Calvin to save Flynn, but also it deepened his personality a bunch, I think. I dunno, I didn't really like a lot of the other ideas I thought of first, but this one just felt like it worked, and it also helped to tie together a lot of the events I had in my head when I was first outlining.
Couple things on the actual confrontation, I wanted the anecdote from chapter 1 with Calvin saving the feral deer to be directly evoked in both it and the moment he killed the badger, kind of culminating when he sees the same face in Flynn and averting the action he would have otherwise taken. Related to his PTSD, Calvin trying to redeem himself is an ongoing theme, and not killing Flynn is kind of the first step on his journey to redemption, among other things. It's implied here, and a little more heavily later in the book, that Calvin was kind of on a knife edge at this moment, and that if he had killed Flynn he also would have died, doomed and unredeemed.
Calvin cries for the only time in the novel here too, right after he knocks out Flynn. I thought that was a good contrast to Flynn who pretty much cries in almost every chapter, ha. He's just an emotional boy, don't hate on him!
I had to go back and re-edit pretty much the entire sequence following the inciting incident to make sure I got some details right for things that come up later in the book, some in chapter 4, some much later on. I won't mention those details but they're there.
After Calvin gets to Carlisle and then departs into the woods I added that he was "carving his own Appalachian trail." I know that phrase was shoehorned in awkwardly, but I wanted to include it. I'm an avid hiker in real life and one of my bucket list items is to complete a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail. I've done some sections before but never spent more than about half a week on it at a time. Anyway, the AT runs right by Carlisle in real life, between it and where the Skirmish of Sporting Hill took place. I didn't realize that when I started writing but I thought it was neat enough to warrant a nod, ha.
Also, while talking about hiking, the portion earlier in the chapter where I talk about Calvin getting a feeling he wasn't alone after hours in the woods by himself... I added that because from my experience that's a real thing. Like, I seriously can't tell you how many times I've been hiking alone for hours and then I just FEEL like someone is watching me, or that I'm not alone any more, and every time it's happened I end up seeing someone else not long afterwards. Can't explain it!
The chapter title, clearly, is a reference to Caesar crossing the Rubicon, that point of no return. I added that Calvin cast his die and that he yelled 'hail' to get the attention of the Confederate guards as a sort of reinforcement of that nod. Also the Rubicon is a river, and rivers play a huge role in this novel both narratively and symbolically, so I thought it was a good fit.
The first confrontation between Calvin and Thayer was meant to be both a little tense and a little disjointed. Calvin has no experience lying or deceiving (and is really bad at it, which comes back in the narrative several times later in the novel), and Thayer is overeager but also inexperienced. I also wanted Thayer to be a kind of semi-inept proto-villain to frame... well, a much more cunning and dangerous villain that appears later in the novel. I'll leave it there.
I wish I knew more about medicine or doctoring, because I feel like that would have made the scene where Dr. Russell treats Flynn more believable. Sadly I don't, and although I did a bit of research here I kept getting conflicting information. I'm not entirely satisfied with how I described him treating Flynn, but I guess if that's the worst thing I can think of about this chapter that's pretty good.
Dr. Russell's mindset and some of the things he says to Calvin, while serving the immediate purpose of giving him confidence in what he is doind, are also kind of meant to be a guidepost for some of the lessons Flynn and Calvin will learn by the time their journey is over and some of the personal growth they will both accomplish. He's kind of a 'chaotic good' while Thayer is a kind of 'lawful evil,' and I kind of liked the contrast in their personalities.
I ended the chapter on a bit of a cliffhanger, showing that Calvin is in more danger than he might realize, while also trying to deepen that 'lawful evil' character of Thayer. I also wanted to show a but of his commanding officer, who regards him as fairly inept; again, this is partly to serve as a contrast between Thayer and another far worse villain later on.
Unorganized thoughts, that's pretty much what these notes are.
I started the chapter the way I did kind of as a bridge to chapter 2. I guess I should say, I described the way Calvin struck Flynn in chapter 2 as 'like a steam hammer' specifically because I wanted to use the metaphor I did to start this chapter. I just thought it was neat!
I felt like it was also a good way to describe the way the war had changed him to set up talking about his PTSD, his "Nostalgia" as it was called during the Civil War. The passage about how his PTSD developed -- him killing the badger as he was running away from him -- is very important both to understanding his character and his actions later in the book. *Throughout* the book, I should say, since his PTSD is something he has to deal with throughout the novel. Heck, it's important in explaining his actions when he first sees Flynn. Anyway, I wanted to get his part right and I spent a good bit of time working on the first few thousand words of this chapter. Hopefully that comes through.
I also didn't mention Calvin's name at all in chapter 2 since it was told entirely from Flynn's perspective. Likewise, Flynn's name isn't mentioned at all in chapter 3 until Calvin learns his name.
For the actual confrontation between Flynn and Calvin from Calvin's point of view, I wanted to make sure first and foremost that all the actions lined up perfectly between chapters 2 and 3. This ended up being a little more time consuming than I thought it would be! I was constantly flipping back and forth while I was writing this. Lesson learned.
Going back to Calvin's PTSD, it actually took me a while to figure out how to get from the beginning of this chapter to the point where Calvin is intent on saving Flynn. To take a step back, the way I typically write isn't with a 'first draft' and a rough draft' and all that; when I actually start writing, there's usually not much rewriting or editing that needs to be done. All that work, for me, is done in the outlining. So when I was outlining/storyboarding this part of the story, I really struggled to figure out how the heck to get Flynn on Calvin's horse from a motivational standpoint. I actually went through about half a dozen other ideas before I settled on this one, which I felt worked the best because it not only provided the best motive I could think of for Calvin to save Flynn, but also it deepened his personality a bunch, I think. I dunno, I didn't really like a lot of the other ideas I thought of first, but this one just felt like it worked, and it also helped to tie together a lot of the events I had in my head when I was first outlining.
Couple things on the actual confrontation, I wanted the anecdote from chapter 1 with Calvin saving the feral deer to be directly evoked in both it and the moment he killed the badger, kind of culminating when he sees the same face in Flynn and averting the action he would have otherwise taken. Related to his PTSD, Calvin trying to redeem himself is an ongoing theme, and not killing Flynn is kind of the first step on his journey to redemption, among other things. It's implied here, and a little more heavily later in the book, that Calvin was kind of on a knife edge at this moment, and that if he had killed Flynn he also would have died, doomed and unredeemed.
Calvin cries for the only time in the novel here too, right after he knocks out Flynn. I thought that was a good contrast to Flynn who pretty much cries in almost every chapter, ha. He's just an emotional boy, don't hate on him!
I had to go back and re-edit pretty much the entire sequence following the inciting incident to make sure I got some details right for things that come up later in the book, some in chapter 4, some much later on. I won't mention those details but they're there.
After Calvin gets to Carlisle and then departs into the woods I added that he was "carving his own Appalachian trail." I know that phrase was shoehorned in awkwardly, but I wanted to include it. I'm an avid hiker in real life and one of my bucket list items is to complete a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail. I've done some sections before but never spent more than about half a week on it at a time. Anyway, the AT runs right by Carlisle in real life, between it and where the Skirmish of Sporting Hill took place. I didn't realize that when I started writing but I thought it was neat enough to warrant a nod, ha.
Also, while talking about hiking, the portion earlier in the chapter where I talk about Calvin getting a feeling he wasn't alone after hours in the woods by himself... I added that because from my experience that's a real thing. Like, I seriously can't tell you how many times I've been hiking alone for hours and then I just FEEL like someone is watching me, or that I'm not alone any more, and every time it's happened I end up seeing someone else not long afterwards. Can't explain it!
The chapter title, clearly, is a reference to Caesar crossing the Rubicon, that point of no return. I added that Calvin cast his die and that he yelled 'hail' to get the attention of the Confederate guards as a sort of reinforcement of that nod. Also the Rubicon is a river, and rivers play a huge role in this novel both narratively and symbolically, so I thought it was a good fit.
The first confrontation between Calvin and Thayer was meant to be both a little tense and a little disjointed. Calvin has no experience lying or deceiving (and is really bad at it, which comes back in the narrative several times later in the novel), and Thayer is overeager but also inexperienced. I also wanted Thayer to be a kind of semi-inept proto-villain to frame... well, a much more cunning and dangerous villain that appears later in the novel. I'll leave it there.
I wish I knew more about medicine or doctoring, because I feel like that would have made the scene where Dr. Russell treats Flynn more believable. Sadly I don't, and although I did a bit of research here I kept getting conflicting information. I'm not entirely satisfied with how I described him treating Flynn, but I guess if that's the worst thing I can think of about this chapter that's pretty good.
Dr. Russell's mindset and some of the things he says to Calvin, while serving the immediate purpose of giving him confidence in what he is doind, are also kind of meant to be a guidepost for some of the lessons Flynn and Calvin will learn by the time their journey is over and some of the personal growth they will both accomplish. He's kind of a 'chaotic good' while Thayer is a kind of 'lawful evil,' and I kind of liked the contrast in their personalities.
I ended the chapter on a bit of a cliffhanger, showing that Calvin is in more danger than he might realize, while also trying to deepen that 'lawful evil' character of Thayer. I also wanted to show a but of his commanding officer, who regards him as fairly inept; again, this is partly to serve as a contrast between Thayer and another far worse villain later on.
