Certy's Musing Tree

I always get a good idea, get excited, and then I try write it and my mind goes blank. Starting is always the hardest part for me. I have the same problem as you- I'm always lost after I finish filling everything in.

Pics of my outline revision process:

CU: OMIGAWD I'M SO EXCITED!

Ji: *laughs* I'm glad you are. It makes me excited too.

CU: I wanna start right now? Is that bad?

Ji: No, not really. *smiles brightly* To be honest, I'm surprised you haven't. The goal is to write everyday, right? 

CU: Yeah. *nods, squeaks happily*

Ji: Then why not go ahead and write something? *shrugs* No one would fault you for it.

CU: Because I need to learn patience. I often rush into things without thinking it through, you know? Like, if I write that one scene right now, what if I'm not able to write when I need to later?

Ji: Why wouldn't you be able to write? I mean, you're really psyched right now.

CU: *stares, blinks* ........... *pouts* I dunno.

Ji: See? I think that's what impatience and indecisiveness looks like when mixed together. *laughs*

CU: >////> I'm glad I amuse you, Jiyong.

Ji: ^____^ What's really on your mind? 

CU: ....*looks down at her fingers, biting her bottom lip* I'm a bit nervous. I don't know if I'm actually scared, but I'm definitely nervous.

Ji: That's normal. It's no different than performing on stage - stage fright. *smiles tenderly and holds her hand* There's absolutely nothing to be afraid of. This isn't about being perfect, doing things right on the first try. It's about you getting comfortable with writing again! That's all I care about, to be honest. The story itself is awesome - very romantic, with funny parts. The cast is colorful, with a wide variety of personalities. Any issues you have should be noted and dealt with after November. *squeezes her hand* You're eager to write, but afraid to mess up. You do not have to be perfect.

CU: *blushes* Thank you, Ji. It feels weird to have you give me a pep talk.

Ji: *blushes, hiding his face behind his hand* It felt weird giving it! But... I really want you to write - and finish! You're so full of wonderful and unique ideas, and the only thing stopping you from getting them all out is you. 

CU: *gets sad* I hear that so much... Sometimes I really feel bad about it. 

Ji: *pulls her into a hug, presses his lips to her temple* You're also used to being alone when you write. It'll take time to adjust to and come to believe the good things people tell you. You're not alone anymore. So, you don't have to stand in your own way anymore.

CU: O___O *light bulb moment* 

Ji: *leans away* That look is a bit scary. Are you okay?

CU: *nods excitedly* I can do this. Just like with Free Falling and every other story I've ever written and finished - I can do this! I've done it before, a-and I'll do it again! And again, and again, and again... Because I can. 

Ji: *gives her his best and brightest smile* That's my girl...

---

No worries. The idea was formed from combining a few ideas like Absolute Boyfriend, The Vision as presented in Age of Ultron (spoiler alert), and a few other works.

The concept for this particular story is still being ironed out so I don't expect it to be a solid plot just yet, but as it stands, the main character is dumped by another guy. It's pretty much exactly the same scenario as in this video.

Annnnnnd I'm back! I don't think anyone checks the forum posts anymore, so I'm hiding my nugget here. If you do so happen to see it, you're welcome to post comments, questions, and other bits.

With Saints Row, I've been researching/exploring what logically would have come next in the franchise after SRTT. Yeah, we were saddled with aliens, but after doing some digging, I learned that Ultor was supposed to be the same company that's used in Red Faction. However, when THQ went bankrupt, Red Faction was sold to a different company than Volition, so the link was severed between the two games. Given Volition's quirky sense of humor, it would make sense to simply destroy Earth rather than try to undo all of the setup they've done since the first Saints Row game. Lazy but they were short on funds. So, what if Volition had continued with their plot? Well, since Hughes in the first game, there's always been a plan to rebuild Stilwater into the ideal paradise. The goal of the true antagonist of each game is to have the gangs fight among each other to thin their numbers, then send a private military to round up and dispose of the winner.



At the moment, the events of my universe are like this. (WARNING, RAMBLING AHEAD):

-- The Saints start off as vigilantes, determined to protect Saints Row from the gang war. The police don't provide much help and Hughes gets the Saints to take out the one person who is a threat to his plan to relocate the lower class citizens. While Ultor builds its reputation and gathers more investors, they go to the last gang standing, and offers the leader and main lieutenant "a way out", manipulating them into destroying the gang.


-- In Saints Row 2, three new gangs surface under the careful supervision of Ultor, now a mega corporation. Ultor needed to prove that violence isn't something that cures itself but allowing criminals worse than the gangs before them to terrorize the city. However, the Samedi, Ronin, and Brotherhood weren't enough. Ultor - Vogel - kept an eye on the Saint who'd been left in a coma. I'm not yet sure how well Vogel orchestrated the whole thing, but Carlos being able to get into prison around the same time the Boss comes out of the coma and get him off of the island is freaking incredible considering how hard it was for him to dig up information on the Brotherhood. Ultor secretly fuels the battle for Stilwater, letting the new Boss of the Saints demonstrate why Stilwater needs to change. Vogel's mistake was believing the Saints could be taken out as easily as the first time. Gryphon and Dex gun for Vogel's position leading Gryphon to go to the Saints, using them to take out his competition as he tells the Saints that Dex is the bad guy - in truth, there is no "good guy". Hearing that the Saints are helping Gryphon, Dex sets up the Boss to meet Julius after revealing the truth of the yacht bombing, hoping that his rage will be enough to distract him long enough to let the Ultor's military force to kill the new Boss (Dex was the Head of Security at the time). When that failed, he transferred to a new branch out of town. With his plan accomplished, Gryphon takes over Ultor and offers a truce to the Saints, creating the Saints-Ultor Media Corp.


--At the beginning of SRTT, the Saints are now tamed guard dogs. They're allowed to do as they wish, but within reason and rules - thus the less serious, more silly antics. Trouble comes when Ultor attempts to deal under the table with the Syndicate, with hopes that the bigger, more powerful company will take care of their Saints problem by arranging for them to purchase the bank in Stilwater. This leads to territory protective Saints to show the newcomers who's boss, leading to the events and ending of SRTT... With the Saints concentrated in Steelport, the Syndicate move into Stilwater, into Ultor's open arms. Once the Saints claim Steelport, they prepare to go home, only to realize that it's no longer theirs. The Syndicate has multiplied and thrived with Ultor's help, creating the home of their American base of operations. With new tech, Ultor and the Syndicate build an indestructible shield around Stilwater and rename the city inside of its borders St. Claire. The citizens not chosen/approved to live within the city rebuild around the borders, thus expanding the Stilwater we've come to know while connecting it with Steelport. They also create areas in between to leave the new map as massive as Los Santos in GTA V. (Yeah, I'll end up doing a map to share and show others.) At the moment, I dunno if I want the syndicate set up the same way (Morningstar, Luchadores, Deckers) as Killbane is the only gang leader left. I do know that Loren is alive (cloning technology insures he never has to put himself in direct danger) and that Ultor could replace the Deckers. The sequel I plan to write in April - Broken - will cover the events after SRTT, with the Saints discovering they've only scratched the surface of the Syndicate then proceeding to finish destroying them and that Ultor has betrayed them.


--The final sequel will be the Saints directly taking down Ultor and reclaiming Stilwater, this time keeping in mind their original purpose.


Whew! If you're still reading, omfg give yourself a hug or a cookie or something. You're awesome! I ended up info dumping but it helped sort my thoughts and fill in some details. It looks and sounds like some serious/not funny stuff, but I do plan to stick with the humor and parody I loved in SR2 and SRTT. So far, my list includes The Walking Dead, iRobot, Robocop, Resident Evil (Umbrella Corp? Too easy.), Serenity, Guardians of the Galaxy, Warm Bodies (romance and zombies?), Wall E, and the recent games in the COD franchise, from Black Ops 2 through Blacks Ops 3. I dunno if I'm rude enough to slap readers with a Terminator plot twist yet.