I’ve recently started jogging again and since I’m not a distance runner (yet!), it’s always hard for me to get started. I know that if I can just convince myself to put on my workout clothes and tie my sneakers, then I won’t have a reason to be lazy and sit in my big comfy chair with my laptop. I jog about 1.5 miles right now and I swear the hardest part for me is the first and last quarter mile. If I can just get going and struggle through the first few minutes, I fall into a groove after that first quarter mile and the middle is usually my legs moving on autopilot while my brain reads or daydreams. Then by the time I hit the last quarter mile, I’m usually drenched in sweat and convincing myself to just finish. Writing feels surprisingly similar!
If I can manage come up with an idea, characters, and setting, then I have no excuse not to sit down and tell the story. If I can muddle my way through the beginning few pages (which I’ll later go back and edit), then I’ll eventually hit my groove and sail right through the middle. And by the end, I’m ready to get the story wrapped up with a happily ever after bow!
I’ve been working on my spring short story — tentatively called Books in Bloom — for a little over a week and I’m proud to say I’m officially a quarter of the way through my word count. My goal is a 20,000 word novella by the end of August and as of tonight I’m sitting 5400. Not too bad!
I had a little trouble trying to figure out exactly who my characters are and what motivates them with this story. With my book, it was easier because I’d spent some time before I started writing plotting out the characters and what they were like, so by the time I sat down to write, I had a pretty good overall sense of who there were and they felt like real people. Of course they developed and changed over the course of the book, but their roots were clear to me from the start. With this short story, I came up with the idea and started plotting right away. I had a clear idea of what I wanted the story to be about, but the characters were too fuzzy and simple; not nearly complex enough to be real people. I found myself pausing a few times while writing to put myself in my characters shoes so I could figure out what they’d do or say in their current situation. Slowly I started to see them take shape.
I think at about 4000 words, I finally realized a pivotal character trait about my Heroine. So I spent some time going back through what I’d already written to make sure that she was coming across the same way throughout. I was surprised to see that even in the first few pages, she was already trying to show me who she was, I just wasn’t listening well enough.
My Hero followed in her footsteps and finally became clear to me at about 4500 words. I thought of him as someone very specific, but he always felt a little forced. I needed him to fill a roll so that I could round out my story with a beginning and end that felt complete and satisfying. But the relationship between Hero and Heroine always felt contrived, like they were both good characters, but they were stuck in the ‘just friends’ zone — not at all what you want in a romance! Once my Hero decided to tell me who he really is, I could see him clearly. And thank goodness, they’ve moved out of the comfortable friend zone and into the hot and desirable ‘wanting to date you’ zone instead!
Now I can see how my original thought for the end will actually be more fitting as a short scene in the middle. It will function to give us a little insight into both characters, make us (and the Heroine) fall in love with the Hero’s sensitive side, and it will provide an answer to a question from the first few pages of the book. My new ending will actually be the old middle. Does that make sense?!
I’m excited to work on my story more today! I’m anxious to see how my characters will interact now that I know who they really are as people. I know I have a lot of work left ahead of me, but it’s work I enjoy. And now that I’ve found my groove, I’m ready to sit back and watch as the story comes to life through the middle. Maybe I’ll check back in with an update when I hit the halfway mark, but more than likely, I’ll be back when I hit that last tough quarter mile marker. Until then, my sneakers are laced and I’m ready to fun. Happy writing and good luck to you on reaching your own mile markers!
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