I sure hope the answer is yes, otherwise they'll be no quitting my day job. The challenge is the blank screen and the unforgiving whiteness of its empty space. Once I finally sit down, do the required fidgiting and actually touch the keys, the story does start to spill out. Of course, it is easy to get sidetracked with editing and polishing what I wrote yesterday or last week. Whenever I look at the existing work, it never is the way I want it and changing words to convey shades of meaning and rhythms is very enticing. Sometimes it is hard to push onward and get the story down, reminding myself that I can edit later.
Yesterday, I read about layering--structuring the story so that two or three stories are told at the same time. This was a technique that came naturally in my first novel. It is not coming so naturally this time. Going back and scanning each chapter has brought certain missing steps along the way that I must go back to butress some of the conflicting story lines. At least I have a summary now to work with that shows what happens in each chapter.
For now, it's time to go for a swim. I am glad it is summer and the pool beckons.
Yesterday, I read about layering--structuring the story so that two or three stories are told at the same time. This was a technique that came naturally in my first novel. It is not coming so naturally this time. Going back and scanning each chapter has brought certain missing steps along the way that I must go back to butress some of the conflicting story lines. At least I have a summary now to work with that shows what happens in each chapter.
For now, it's time to go for a swim. I am glad it is summer and the pool beckons.
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