Well, I am home this week. Funny how something that loomed so large in front of me for so long, now looks so small in the rear view mirror. Even the twenty-four-hour return journey.
The effects of the trip aren’t small, but for now I think those are between me and the unspoken realm. I know sentences like that don’t bode well for a Substack newsletter built on the intention to share, but so it is—for now anyway.
Jet lag is still a thing, but at least today I “slept in” until just after 5:13 a.m. Tiny steps…
Right before I left for Germany, I had the unfortunate realization that the book draft I was working on was all wrong and I scrapped the whole thing. I don’t know why “the plot” is so hard for my brain to see, but I struggle with it, even though I know what I want to happen in the story.
Most writing resources out there for plotting offer diagrams, pie charts, timelines, stacks of different colored index cards, grid sheets for three-act structures, posters for four-act structures, worksheets for beginnings, middles and ends, etc etc.
But for whatever reason, I can’t seem to visualize plot. Maybe I need to feel it instead of see it? Or maybe I need to freehand it with a felt-tip pen and a piece of construction paper?
I have to find my own way to outline, and so far I haven’t had much success. Don’t ask me how I’ve managed to write eight books with plots, I can’t tell you. Magic?
While in Germany, I took the time to read Story Genius, by Lisa Cron. Well, I took the time to read most of it. I’m still going through it in fits and starts. But I got far enough to understand a little bit more about what I really need to plot. It’s less about what actions occur, and more about what the main character goes through, internally and externally. At least that’s what it seems like when you first start plotting your story.
I know, this is Writing a Book 101. But sometimes I have to go back to the basics. See: title of this newsletter.
Perhaps I’m on the right track now. At least I think I’m on a better track. I’d like to believe that with every book I write, my skills get stronger, and my stories become more compelling. If I could, I would hire a book coach to walk me through writing a novel from start to finish, so I could find my own personal path*. But I don’t have the money right now. Things like that are kind of a luxury, compared to, like, buying food and paying the mortgage. So on I go, plodding through my plot.
I’ve set a new deadline to finish my draft by December 10. This will delay all my publishing plans for 2025, but there’s nothing I can do about it. I have to put out a book I’m proud of. Otherwise what’s the point?
But I am home, and happy to be here. Onward.
*I did hire an author coach, someone to help me get clear on what I want and set up processes for increasing productivity while decreasing overwhelm, And that has been fantastic. Money well spent, and I plan to do it again. But that type of coaching is different from having an actual writing coach. Let’s just say I could use a lot of coaches.
From a non author, but a reader vantage, writing a book seems overwhelming. I’m impressed you have written eight so far. And you are getting better on each one. The last one was a really a leap from your previous books
I still struggle with the whole Wants/Needs thing - for some reason "I really, really, really want to be a successful artist" didn't seem to cut it with my first novel (at least not according to 60 agents), and I'll be damned if I can articulate what Lamb wants, other than to be loved. ;)