The Keeper — a novel
Front page for the project. Slim on purpose: this points to where the detail lives, it does NOT duplicate it. Started as a short story 2026-07-12, revealed itself as a novel 2026-07-13.
Where things live (single sources of truth):
- THE BOOK ITSELF →
Chapters/— three act folders with title pages; one file per chapter. To add prose: open the day’s chapter, drop it in THE PROSE section. Ch1 = chapter-01-monday, ch2 = chapter-02-tuesday.- Nyra → NYRA-character-sheet · Lirien → THE-SISTER-character-sheet · The father → THE-FATHER-character-sheet
- The world, glow, cosmos, family truth, the ch1 pair → the-keeper-glow-and-family-canon · The library/ship economy → the-keeper-library-engine
- Structure → the-keeper-four-signposts + the-keeper-structure-decisions · Method → the-keeper-writing-method
- Full map → _INDEX
What this book is
Nyra, a half-elf woman, is Keeper of records on a small merit-gated world — accepted only if you’re useful; inside, no money, everything provided; fall below the contribution line and you’re removed. She fled a cosmos where being “half” is taboo, to somewhere no one can read her. Then her full-elf half-sister Lirien crosses the cosmos and finds her — arriving as a visitor with a ticking clock: the ship leaves Sunday, ~6 days — and Nyra’s skin glows with kin-recognition for the first time in her life. Single POV (Nyra’s). Book one of a planned pair. Science-fantasy: engineered blood-glow biotech, candlelit hand-written ledgers, starships.
The shape
Three acts, each with its own section page: The Planet (built — roughly a chapter per day, Monday to Sunday, ending on the ship: does she go?) → The Journey (seed) → The Destination (seed). Stasis → motion → arrival = the arc of her flaw.
The working principle
Nobody writes “a book.” You write the next scene, then the next, and the book is what you turn out to have made. Structure is learned backwards — recognised in the work once written, not obeyed as rules beforehand.
What kind of writer Jess is (discovered)
- Discovery writer / “pantser” — finds the story by writing it.
- Watch-and-testify — pictures the character, watches, transcribes. When stuck: stop writing, start watching.
- The layering method — sketch forward thin, layer back to furnish the rooms; follow the fuel.
Parked ideas (safe here — not to work on yet)
- Book two: Lirien’s story — standalone-readable. Strong, PARKED.
- Working title: The Keeper (confirmed, loved). Series potential.
What’s next
- Grow chapter 1 inside chapter-01-monday — the plan is right there under the prose.
- Open seeds: where the ship goes on Sunday; signposts 3 & 4; the ch1 pair’s true relationship; the daily-tech question. (Full list in _INDEX.)