Good Things Take Time, But Great Things Happen All at Once.
From the movie Rat Race.
At least that’s what it feels like sometimes. But in my experience, I would amend the above statement. That the steady, persistent movement toward the good things ultimately rouses the great things.
Spontaneity in Writing
Along my way of turning the manuscript into a published novel, I understood that spontaneity is critical to crafting the adventure. When a mood strikes me, I must immediately write it down to preserve the content.
Otherwise, it slips away. The mechanics of it can be untimely and often inconvenient. Example: If I’m driving and an inkling suddenly comes to mind, I repeat it over and over until I can pull over and get the “bones” down on paper. Otherwise, it may be gone by the time I get home to my computer.
I have been asked why don’t I just use a voice recorder? I have never been able to capture my concepts on a recorder. It’s too distracting to hold a recorder in my hand, interrupting my unconstrained ideas. There is also something so tangible to old fashion paper and pen. As I mentioned in Part 1, at the beginning of my writing Back to One, I’d handwrite much of it then retyped it into the computer. Allowing my thoughts to flow through my hand onto paper was freeing.
The Time Between Writing & Finding a Publisher
Over time as I tried to locate a publisher, my experiences shaded the minor tweaks to the manuscript I would make, giving it more warmth and humor. Life and maturity have a way to influence your thoughts with amusing possibilities.
When I decided to put myself through law school while still working full-time and raising a college-bound son, Back to One made a comfy home in a drawer beneath my bed.
Unfortunately, this stage of life left little time to be creative or market my manuscript. I successfully sped through law school, passed the State Bar exam on the first attempt, and continued to grow my business as a master tax advisor/enrolled agent, adding new clients nearly daily during tax season. I call this my left-brain period.
How COVID Impacted the Writing of Back to One
Then came the first summer of COVID-19. My son, now living in New York, returned home to serve the pandemic lockdown in the friendlier environment of “mom’s home.” His main concern was he didn’t want to spend hours parked in front of the 70” flatscreen with me, watching endless programming and movies. At his suggestion, it was time to rescue the manuscript from its hiding place and update the 1995 story to 2005.
Some readers ask why I didn’t update the manuscript to the present day. Originally I did. As I rewrote the different sections of the manuscript to modern-day, my creativity was rekindled, and a second book began to appear. To make the timeline work, I needed to stage Back to One in 2005, which would allow Back to One Take 2: Ambient Light to begin in 2009. Suddenly my simple tale of love and friendship had wings, and through at least one future book, it would soar into the present in an invigorating way.
Once my fantastic publisher and editor entered Back to One’s world, my writing became prolific.
Back to One Style
I found in my editing of Back to One and my writing Ambient Light, my main focus was to tell the story while fresh in my imagination. To accomplish this, I write the dialogue first. As an actress, the dialogue was my lifeblood. The words from the characters’ mouths reveal more than the story. It exposes in intricacies of the spirit of the narrative.
The action—She rose from the chair and walked to the door— comes after. I have a specific way that it all comes into being. The action plays in my mind as if I am watching a movie. I simply write what I see as each sentence or phrase of dialogue is spoken.
Imagine all this as a beautiful painting being drawn on a blank canvas. The dialogue is the sketch, design, and layout of the artwork. The action is the strokes of color that fill in the sketch to complete the painting. It is not finished artwork until all elements are inspirationally applied.
I further play my movie in my mind several times to make sure each essence and flavor is captured on the page.
Reading something repeatedly, even if you find it entertaining—-for me it must entertain me, or else I cut it—can stale if you are not careful. I have a unique way to keep the spice in my relationship with my words alive. In part three I will elaborate on my device to stay intrigued while writing Back to One series of books.
Part 1: Back to One & Discovering Antonia Gavrihel
Part 3: The Back to One Series
Order Back to One from Barnes and Noble