Turning Points

I've reached one of those moments in my new manuscript, the kind that writers encounter several times in the course of a story. It's a moment where the direction of the story must choose one path or the other. I like to think of it as a "Choose Your Own Adventure" moment. If this happens, then proceed to page so-and-so...but if this happens, then go here instead. 

These moments are potentially momentum killers because you can take so long considering the possibilities rather than just plowing through. Luckily, I reached this moment just before the long weekend where I knew I wasn't going to have time to write. Which is good, because it gave me time to think. Thinking through a situation is something I never did in my early career. Sometimes I think that was a positive thing, but I know it wasn't really. Without thinking it through, I've gone down the wrong road enough times that I know it's better to get directions first. 

I have a road map now....at least until the next "Choose Your Own Adventure" moment.

Finding the Groove

A few weeks back, I posted about starting a new project, the first completely new project I've attempted in far too long. As expected, it took a bit of time to get back into the swing of things. The first chapter was a lot of feeling my way around, not only with the story and characters, but also with the style in which I wanted to present them. Time being a commodity that is hard to come by these days, that process took a while. 

This week I had a string of breakthroughs. It started with a solid day of being able to write, which quickly allowed the story to begin taking shape. Once that happened, I was able to piece together some notes I'd taken and actually outlined the next thirty pages or so. I'm determined not to fall into some of the same traps that have blocked me in the past, and so far, I think taking my time has aided in that quest. It feels good to feel productive once again.

The New Reich

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.