I started a short story last week. It will be part of an anthology for the holidays (more on this as we get closer to the release date). I am beyond excited to be part of this anthology as some very talented and really cool authors are involved in the project.
So in the meantime, my full-length work has been placed in the back burner (for just a little while) as I try to hang out in my own head and figure out how to meet my newest characters. The good thing about having a hyper active imagination is that coming up with ideas is the easy and fun part, but putting them down on paper is a bit more painstaking.
Creating new characters is like dating. Your first date, you get excited at the prospect of getting to know someone, which is exactly how I feel about my characters. I cannot wait for them to show me who they are, what they are and where their stories will lead me. Then, by the time the third or fourth date comes around you become more comfortable with the other person. Same here, where after several thousand words, I get a better idea of who my characters are. And just like dating, they never quite behave the way I hope or want them to be—which is not necessarily a bad thing but it can be surprising.
With this current anthology, because of the certain parameters I have to work with, coming up with my characters took a little bit of work. I brain stormed for days before I finally decided to “date” the heroine and hero. So far, its working out well for me but they’re beginning to act on their own. They’re not quite listening to me. Rather, they’re forcing me to listen to them. I suppose it’s not so bad because uncooperative characters can make writing so much more fun. It’s a reason why I keep “dating” my characters.
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