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My untitled 80s San Diego-based cinema-themed horror novel just passed 10,000 words.

I wrote a couple of weeks ago that I needed to get this book started because I could feel the enthusiasm battery starting to drain away and if it got much lower while I did prep and research there would not be enough juice to start the writing engine.

This has led me to writing a novel with even less of a mental outline than the last two books I completed, but I think it’s actually started.

My cast of characters is slowly revealing themselves as they step into the story, David Ludendorff, my gay movie theater owner and so far, the character at the center of this ghost story. The theater’s manager, Tram Nguyen, college student and reserved, Terrance, Dave’s best friend and occasional lover, and I just introduced Cyril Jones, long time projectionist at the theater but he’s going to be the first body to hit the floor in this plot.

I have a very rough idea of my 5-act breakdown. The numerous novels and stories I have constructed with this 5-act method I think plays a large part in how I can make the writing work without the aid of an outline. The structure gives me just enough guidance to keep me pointed in the correct direction, so I do not feel lost.

If things go as planned, I have high hopes of completing at least a first draft before Halloween.