Planning a Calming, Comforting Short Story with a Dark, Mysterious Undertone
Hello everyone and welcome to another blog! It’s been quite a while since I’ve done a laidback, ordinary day-in-my-life blog. Today’s going to be a writing blog where I fill you in on what’s been going on and what my plans are while I start eating breakfast.
Catching Up
Kind of hilariously, in the last article —the Q&A about getting a literary agent and plans for this year—I mentioned having bad luck with things going wrong and family members getting injured. Well, right after filming that, I got COVID. It wasn’t really, really bad, but enough to impact my work. I was on this couch for several days with my throat and voice just ruined. I think I’m entirely back to normal now. It’s been a few weeks, and I’m totally good. I even did a workshop the other night, which went well despite the lingering effects of COVID on my voice.
Today’s Plans
Today, I’m excited to be back to normal and getting back into writing. I’m going to be working on Project Teacup and maybe head to a café later to work on it. I love that café and might go there today. I’ll also be working on a short story—planning it out and showing you guys the early stages of how I do that visually. I’ve set a goal to write at least two short stories this year, and I’ll start on the first one today.
Breakfast and Preparation
Let’s finish eating breakfast and then grab some tea. I’ll show you the early stages of planning this short story. Creativity is a wonder, and finding the goal to make anything is always a journey. The short story I’m planning today is meant to be calming and comforting, with maybe a bit of a dark, mysterious undertone.
Planning the Short Story
Hello and welcome to my desk. We’re now at the fun part of the video where I share my story planning process. This is something you’ve asked about for ages, but it’s tricky because I can’t give much insight into Project Teacup without revealing spoilers. However, I can let you in on the early stages of planning a short story.
Using Milanote
I’m a visual learner, so I use digital tools for plotting. This process developed while working on Project Teacup and it’s what I’ll use for Project Spiegel Tent and my short stories. Today’s video is sponsored by Milanote, a product I love for organizing creative projects. It’s especially good for visual learners. I like having everything on one screen, color-coded and organized.
Setting Up the Story
I’m setting up a new story about a changeling—creatures in folklore where human babies are swapped for Fae or fairies. The story is set in 2024 in Australia’s countryside, with a plot reminiscent of Stardew Valley’s beginning where a disenfranchised office worker inherits a farm and starts a new life.
Creating Boards
I’ve set up various boards in Milanote:
- Mood Board: Filled with green, cozy imagery for a calming, comforting story with a dark undertone.
- Characters: Focusing on the main character, Max, and brainstorming his character journey.
- To-Dos and Plot Points: Including creating a mood board, planning the story, and drafting it.
Writing 300 Words
With the planning done, I’m aiming to write 300 words for the story. My goal this year is to write more short stories with small word count goals. This story will be different from Project Teacup, set in 2024 in Australia, which will be a new challenge.
Editing Work
I’ll spend some time going over Chapter 8 of Project Teacup, setting up what I want to do today, then grab lunch before heading to the café.
Goals for the Year
My goals this year include submitting Project Teacup to publishers, finishing the first draft of Project Spiegel Tent, writing two short stories, and achieving better work-life balance by finishing work at a reasonable time. I’m excited for the edits on Project Teacup and the challenges they present.
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed this laidback day-in-my-life blog. Thank you to everyone on Patreon for supporting my channel and all the things I make. By the time this video goes live, the workshop video should be up for everyone. We have so many things on Patreon, from our Discord server to our book club. If you want bonus content or just want to support my work, there’s a link to Patreon in the description. Take care, everyone, and I’ll see you next time. Bye-bye!
