Hello!

I’m working my way through my Thai-riffic! manuscript, and have started to write the second last short story. Unlike the other ten short stories I’ve edited, this one is brand new. And I have no idea if this story is any funny or how it’s going to end.

So why am I still trying to write it?

Well, I trust myself to make it funny. When I further edit my stories, I’m usually just exchanging gags for stronger ones. Once I have an ending, I can re-visit previous scenes and tinker with them. I love having ‘callbacks’, jokes that refer to earlier ones. It’s a neat trick in stand up comedy, a reward for the audience who will laugh that an extra bit more. I look back on my previous stories, especially in my earlier drafts. With every draft, those stories became tighter, and the pace much more frantic. So I’m not too concerned that my story lacks funny stuff. By that I mean I haven’t pulled all of my hair out yet heaheahea

As for nailing that ending, I have a fair idea of what the final scene will be. I’m pushing myself to get through the middle, no matter how ordinary it is, so I can get to that final scene. It’s like having a GPS which has that arrow leading to your destination and it refuses to budge. If you followed the arrow, you’ll be driving through walls and buildings, so you try to find another way around it. And still that arrow is stubborn enough to point you where you need to go, but it doesn’t tell you how to get there. So I’m driving in my monster truck, smashing houses and taking off-road detours, trying to reach that ending.

There’s nothing more satisfying than the second edit, where you the groundwork has been laid. I’m confident that it won’t be as hard second time around.

It’s not like I’m writing blind, hoping something will stick. Other days, I’ll be in my limo, taking the backseat as the story writes itself.

But today, it’s monster truck madness!   

O.W