Origins of The Sixth Precept - Part 6

So I decided to write a Kim Yoshima novel.

It seemed a logical step to progress from the short stories to a larger piece although it turned out that the way I set about writing the novel was anything but logical. In my infinite wisdom, I planned on combining all three short stories with their very different plots into one coherent narrative. I knew I could do it! I knew it could work!

Ha!

It was a challenge (as my writing group warned me it would be) but I threw caution to the winds and dove right in! I had written two previous novels – the first from fifteen years before that took me five years to finish. It was a science-fantasy comedy that, in the end, really didn’t work although I have taken out bits and pieces of it for other stories. The second novel I wrote is one that I’ve shopped around and still hold out high hopes for publication someday. It’s dark science fiction (of the soft variety) and does have blue-skinned aliens in it – I’ll sue the producers of Avatar!  J

Anyway, it wasn’t like I hadn’t taken on a big writing project before so I should have known better and certainly should have listened to my writing group whose advice I once again rejected.  Hindsight, you know.

The Sixth Path was envisioned as a very large novel divided into six sections, each one representing the six axioms of my unknown ancient philosopher and titled as such. Kim not only had to deal with comic book characters come to life but ETs, time travel, alternate dimensions, mental telepathy and my old friends Wing Toy and company! Yikes!

During this time, I also tried my hand at another Kim Yoshima short story but realized as I was finishing it up that it should also go into the novel. It was called “Shadow Hunt” and is now Chapter 9 of The Sixth Precept, the only short piece that actually fit and made sense for the longer work. In it I introduced Kim’s friend Lazo Sibulovich and the shadow-trackers who became integral parts of the novel.

I ended up with a 130,000 word novel that had way too much going on it. But, as the old expression goes, I couldn't see the forest for the trees.