Last week I started work on my first brand-new manuscript in almost three years. After some life-related issues, I'd chosen to focus exclusively on revising manuscripts for the past two years, with varying degrees of success and failure. The reasons for this were two-fold. First, I wanted to prove to myself that I could complete what I'd started. Too often in life, it has been easy to abandon things that felt too hard, or too overwhelming. The other reason was more complicated. Though I have a ton of story ideas stored away, I didn't have any stories that felt dear to me, or important. I began to wonder if I had anything left to tell teenagers that would be of value.
This election cycle has changed that. Over the past several months, we've seen the worst aspects of society emerge in dangerous ways. As I started to think about what that could mean for our world, or more importantly for the world that is left to my baby daughter, I realized I did have something to say that was meaningful. I don't want to write anything that is preachy, but I want to portray a realistic vision of the consequences if these aspects continue to gain momentum. My goal isn't really to force an opinion, but rather to make young people think about what's going on and consider the implications of these beliefs. It is they who must draw opinions and make the choice to no allow these beliefs to take hold in their own lives.
I've only just begun working on it, but so far I think I've found the right tone. Wish me luck in completing this story in the way I envision.
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