Plotting my stride

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Sometimes I progress faster when doing nothing at all.

Well, by nothing, I mean sitting and staring out the window while thinking about the plot and how I can make it richer. Any of you who have ever lived with a writer will recognize the suddenly dreamy, absent-minded look that steals over our faces.

Note: don’t even bother trying to talk to us–we’re in the zone.

So the other morning I’m staring out the window, coffee cup in hand, enjoying the crisp morning air when wham! All of a sudden, a brilliant character twist clicked into place and I almost smack myself on the forehead because it’s just so logical.

Of course, it all makes sense now. The only reason why one of my characters would do X is because he’s Russian, Lenin just toppled the Russian monarchy in favor of a communist government, and now all the western governments are in a tizzy. No one wants a newly emigrated Russian hanging around. What if he was a secret Bolshevik looking to topple the American government?

But let’s make it even more difficult for our character. He’s not just Russian, he’s Jewish–a refugee from the senseless, Tsarist peasant war-fodder conscriptions and Cossack pogroms. However, he’s now struggling to find work because he’s Russian and no one in the small American town where he lives, likes Jews. How else can he make a living but to take on the tasks others won’t?

Ah, now we’re talking. So with that realization in hand, I sat down and pounded out my prologue from start to finish this morning.

Tomorrow, I’ll start working over my main character. Now that’s someone else in need of an upgrade.

No editing, please–we’re writing.

Lately, I’ve been struggling with my internal editor. For example, I’ve been revamping my initial chapters over the past few days because I keep thinking, oh, this is a much better way to snag the writer. Do this instead. Clean up that sentence. Tighten the character’s angst more – yeah, that’s it.

Unfortunately, that’s the freelance writer/editor side of me talking–the part that  rudely butted into my precious writing time and has no idea what she’s talking about because she’s applying freelance rules to a novel. What’s the difference? Well for starters, freelance articles are short(er) and quickly completed. Ergo, I can write and edit almost simultaneously. But I can’t do that here. Not anymore.

Hello, internal freelance editor? Guess what? I’m writing a novel. Not a 1,800 word researched, non-fiction business operations article  but a N-O-V-E-L. So just stop what you’re doing, step away from the white board outline, and go away for a few months.  You are making me totally counterproductive–for now.

There’s plenty of time LATER for your visit and that’s when I’ll really need your expertise. Just not now.

Bits of paper

Bits and pieces of paper are jumbled in a pile on my desk, their scribbles ranging over a wide spectrum:

• One lists potential titles, including one that sounds too horror-novelly, a great title that unfortunately sounds too much like a romance novel, and a suggestion that’s almost on target.
• Another bit includes new plot twist suggestions such as, what if the ex-wife real estate developer, in a fit of peevish revenge, bought our hero’s house in a foreclosure sale?
• A third notes character enhancement comments: X is too angry – back him off a bit.
• And so on…

Looks like I’ve got a lot of sorting, updating, and organizing to do this weekend before plunging back into the fray.

But it’s all good.

The enforced time away from actual writing means my imagination got to re-examine the basic plot (still good), fiddle with character development (more believable) and incorporate some really neat lightning bolt twists that came out of nowhere.

Just a few more days…

Breakers ahead

The finish line is in sight. I can’t believe I’m actually saying this, but there it is on my calendar. That’s right, the last day of regular work–all highlighted, circled, and red pen starred.

It’s a beautiful sight.

Sure, I’m still 2+ weeks out, there’s still a lot of regular work to get done and there’s the usual reaction of, “You’re leaving? Oh, you need to get all this done first.”  It’s a familiar drill to anyone who’s ever resigned and moved on.

But it’s ok. It’s all part of tying things off and getting ready for the next stage. Besides, I have an extra bounce in my step (make that two) because A). I can see the finish line and B). I’ve gotten some wonderful recommendations on my work.

Aside from getting a juicy cash bonus, how much better could this get?

OK, I admit, the work load means I haven’t made much progress word-count wise on the novel but I’ve grabbed some amazing insights about my character. I guess it helps to lie awake on a Sunday night trying to think about anything but the pile of work waiting for you Monday morning. Sounds silly but just take a moment to think about your favorite characters and why they resonate for you.

For me, it’s the 5th Harry Potter book that hits home because that’s when Harry became really annoying. Typical teenage boy, incapable of controlling his temper, wracked by hormones, and completely self-centered. In fact, Harry’s character got so irritating, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to continue the series.

I just wanted to smack that kid silly.

I can’t speak for J K Rowling but I imagine that was precisely the reaction she wanted to elicit.

Now my character is not a teenager (although he does have a teenaged niece who sulks and stomps around a lot because she’s ‘misunderstood’) but he’s made some choices that have really locked him into a less than ideal situation. These are not bad choices but ones we can all recognize. For some of us, they will hit a little too close to home.

2+ more weeks and this can finally start falling into place. I can’t wait.