Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Writing: Novels

It felt good to take a break during February—after writing/editing a YA and a Dark Fantasy novel the past six months. Short stories are an easy breather, but the break is almost over. I’m getting ready to gear up and write the second book in the Dark Fantasy trilogy, Those Fragile, Forsaken. I don’t know how other people approach their novels, but I end up writing a lot of questions out in notepads before I begin—things I want to know about the characters’ backgrounds: what do they love and how would they react if what they love was threatened or taken from them? What was the best moment of their childhood and what was the worst? What in their lives gives them hope and what situations make them feel hopeless? Where do their faults stem from? What would they never do and how can I put them in the position where they’d do it?

A lot of other things too.

I’m excited to watch the characters as they change, act, react, think, and fight during this next book’s birth. I’m interested to see where it takes them. It’s usually to places I didn’t expect. It’ll be a fun two months, followed by a month of non-stop editing with the help of a couple valuable people that I trust whole-heartedly. But lately, after the last two novels, even editing is fun. It feels great to work out the kinks, spot weak areas, and pinpoint the heart of each scene. Around the 10th of March I’ll post the first chapter.

What are you working on? What are your goals for the next three months?

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