Monsieur Scattlocke - the Completion of Draft the 1st

*showers everyone with pizza and confetti*

In case the title didn't make it obvious enough:

I finished the first draft of my WIP Monsieur Scattlocke!!!

*screams forever*

So in celebration, I thought I could have some fun here, and actually tell you something about the book and pass out some pizza and snippets.

Yus. Snippets.

But we'll get to that later.

Now, technically I finished the first draft on Thursday the 8th, but I just took this long to get around to doing a post. Better late than never though!

I'm gonna put up allll the numbers and stuff of the finished 1st draft just for fun

Words | 62k

Chapters | 21

Pages | 174

Characters (no spaces) | 289,504

Paragraphs | 3,386

And, as you may have noticed from the picture, I've now named the series.  The Outlaw Legends (because basically everyone is an outlaw by the end. Mwahahaha). And I've admitted to myself that there's going to be (probably...maybe...hopefully) three books (*screams* I've said it now. I've admitted to myself that there's three books not just two. I can do this. I can *dies*). Monsieur Scattlocke, Agent Kit, and...Something Flint that I haven't a clue on yet.


Ooh hey, now we need to have a synopsis.

2556 days exactly.

Seven years was too long a time to be outlawed for. Yet here Will was, dismally remembering the day when the Great Federation had officially claimed him an outlaw. 

They’d even put six hundred ciphers on his head.

That was nothing to the six hundred million it was now.

William Escarlate, an outlaw running from his past, finds himself in the middle of Britain. Yet it is not the Britain most would expect. The Eastern Empire has forced it into a real life Robin Hood reenactment - their only hope to stall the world-wide war.

His hopes to begin his life afresh as a Frenchman under the name Monsieur Scattlocke are dashed when an enemy agent sees him and Will must go on the run once more.

This time he runs with the Sherwood Outlaws.

It isn't long before Monsieur Scattlocke becomes the outlaw leader, and his name is famous across the country for his daring escapes and rescues. Will hopes that perhaps there might be a chance that his past has left him behind.

But no one, not even the infamous outlaw leader, can escape the Great Federation forever.

Eventually, everyone is caught.

*epic soundtrack starts playing*

And now we need some snippets!!!

I was going to do the first paragraph and the last one (although, technically the first bit is at the beginning of the synopsis) but then I kinda realised that the last sentence is a pretty big spoiler and I don't want to ruin it all.

(Because yes. When beta-reading stage comes along...*grins like crazy*)

Wherefore I have spent another fifteen minutes scrolling through the document looking for some other random scene. 

And attempting to convince myself that you all know it's first draft, unedited stuff, so it doesn't matter how terribly terrible it is. *cringes*

So here's one from the beginning of chapter the 18th:

Will pulled down the wanted sign, screwing it into a ball in his fist without caring to look at it.

They were everywhere.

Allan, Ivan, Meldon, Kingsley and Tain.

Even Emir.

But most of them were Will.

Every week, every day that past, Will could feel the noose tightening.

He couldn’t last much longer.

Every day he left the camp half not expecting to return.

“They still can’t get my hair properly.” Emir squinted at his own wanted sign in his hand. “I mean, just look at that.” He pushed it under Will’s nose.

A smile danced across Will’s features at the sketch. “Maybe you should get a re-style,” he suggested, nodding at the sign. “It quite suits you.”

The Arab boy snorted through his nose. “Yeah right.” But a grin quirked up the corner of his mouth.

Another six weeks and Will would have been in Britain for a year.

But something inside him said that either one way or the other he wouldn’t be in Britain at the end of those six weeks.

Either he would have run, or be caught.


Hmm...that was a bit of a mixture of amusing and depressing...lets see if I can find one more. This one is from chapter 14.

There was no time to be careful anymore, if the coast was clear now, it wouldn’t be for long. Will flipped the trapdoor open the rest of the way, letting it thud softly against the ground.

Right in front of a pair of riding boots.

Will froze, slowly raising his eyes.

“What, I ask you, do you think you are doing here?” Merian put her hands on her hips, a scowl over her fair features.

Will gaped. “I...sorry, my lady,” he choked, shock and relief making it hard to get the words out.

She raised her eyebrows. “I should think so,” she remarked sternly. “Now, quick. Tell me what you’re doing here or I’ll tell father.”

“Rescuing Allan and Ivan,” Will said hesitantly.

She wouldn’t tell her father.

Would she?

She cocked her head to one side. “From our stables? Last I checked they were in the Sheriff’s prison.”

“They were but then we got them out,” Will shrugged awkwardly. “Through a trapdoor.”

“And why are you here now?”

“Because this is where the trapdoor went to,” Will said helplessly. “I had no idea.”

“Uh, Will...” Emir’s voice floated up from below. “Who are you talking to?”

“Don’t worry,” Will called down. Looking back at Merian he waited pleadingly.

“Why is there a tunnel from the Sheriff’s dungeon to our stables?” Merian demanded, crossing her arms in front of her.

“Long story,” Will said. “I'll tell you some time.”

There. Hopefully the 1st draft-ness doesn't make it too bad. I almost gave them an edit before posting them but I resisted because the whole point was it was a 1st draft thing. 

Speaking of editing.

*deep breath*

That's what's next up for me.

I took a three-day break after the finishing of draft the first, and then...

it

began.

The stage of dreaded editing.

Now. To be entirely honest I opened the document on day one and thought "Aw c'mon. It can't be as hard as they all say."

Ten minutes later I was slumped at my desk with my head on the keyboard, groaning like a wookiee.

And yes, I can make a noise like a wookiee.

But no. Don't ask me to now. Wait until I'm editing and I'll do it without having to be asked.

But!!! I'm not going to moan about the fact that I've done, like...one chapter so far (if anyone happens to have some editing inspiration, PLEASE HELPPP MEEE), because this post is about the finishing of draft the first! Which is a matter for celebration and pizza!

*hands out some more pizza*

Here's some random facts about Monsieur Scattlocke, because you totally wanted to know.


#1 | it's the longest novel I've ever written so far. (I've technically only done one other completed more-than-one-draft novel (The Bridge of Anskar - although it isn't quite long enough to count as an actual novel so it'll have to go by novella) so it's not a hard thing to do really)

#2 | I cannot work out what genre it's in...I mean, it's dystopian...except they spend most of the time in a forced-back-to-medieval setting. Is there a genre for Robin Hood Retelling?

#3 | the idea came to me about March this year.

#4 | the first scene I wrote when I first had the idea actually never happens in the story.

#5 | the sequel is going to be nothing like I had originally planned.

#6 | like, NOTHING.

#7 | there are cool flashbacks and melting slushy snow and Russia is probably completely different from how I imagine it. But that's their problem, right?

#8 | I really wanna tell you something, but it's a big spoiler so I can't. xD

#9 | they actually...kinda...fail at the story goal in the end.

#10 | hence there's a sequel. Which may or may not fail as well (I haven't actually worked it out yet). Hence there's also...(come on. Just admit it) there's also a third book.


Eeep. Basically, I'm so excited about finishing the first draft. And I'm very pleased at the length too. Like, 21 chapters is pretty cool.

And you guys are all so amazing for listening to my rant, and being excited with me, because that's just what you're good at.

*jumps up and down on one foot several times*

*noms on pizza*

That's it, I guess, then. But tell me all your own novelling experience, and I shall proceed to give you pizza and confetti. And if you're doing editing, we can cry together. And more pizza.

Basically, there'll be lots of pizza.

|| Jane Maree ||