HOW MY NEW BOOK CAME TO ME

 

 The last two books I have written took a long time coming to me.  I looked at current media coverage and how it related to young people and then worked on a few ideas until I found a story that I wanted to tell.  Cous Cous and Kippers, the book I recently finished, took so much 'thinking' time I wondered if it would ever materialise.  Then I suddenly found 'Gramps' and his story became the focus for mine.

This time around I wasn't even thinking of ideas when an image came to me.  Clear, distinct and the end of someone's story.  I have never worked from the end of a book to the beginning before so knew this was going to be a challenge.  I had no idea who this person in the image was but the scene was so powerful I started jotting down ideas.  Slowly, I discovered who she was and the story she needed to tell.  This character now has a name, a place to live, friends and a family.  I am juggling ideas as to how her story will be told.  First or third person.  Present or past tense.  Lots to think about.  But the most important thing is that I don' t lose sight of that image that grabbed me and pulled me in.

I am still at the note-making stage but the story is slowly taking shape.  It is a little out of my comfort zone but that in itself is a good thing.  I am pretty confident about the beginning now so will start the writing process soon and let the protagonist tell her story through me.
 
My sister is a writer and we discussed some time ago how she sees her characters and storylines as if they were in a picture or part of a movie.  I have always seen mine through dialogue and emotions.  The two totally different inways to writing fascinated me as it was something I had never thought about before.  'Seeing' the final scene for a new book blew me away because it was so powerful and instead of having to write down what the protagonist is feeling or saying I have this crystal clear image  sittting in my head: a wooden bench, a teenage girl and a story she is ready to tell.

I will let you know how it's going in my next blog post.