Discoveries on the way

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I've been rather quiet on here this week. It's half term and my husband is off work too (voluntarily - kind of - he caved to pressure to spend quality time with the family) so a lot of my time has been taken up with family trips and board games.

Progress on my novel has been slow but I have managed a couple of hours and I've come to a conclusion. There are some things you just can't plan before you write. However in depth your chapter plan and character outline may be, your literary friends will still hang onto their secrets until they think the time has come to have a quiet word with you.

My writing this week has brought me just such a revelation. A character who has been with me since I first came up with the idea for this novel decided to tap me on the shoulder and say, "By the way, did you know I could do this?" I didn't know before that moment but now it all makes sense.

Make up your plans, by all means, but don't forget to also converse with your characters. They may just surprise you.

Comments

  1. Kelly Hashway16 February 2012 at 11:42

    I just had a surprise like this earlier in the week. A character I thought I'd gotten rid of let me know he wasn't going anywhere. Damn him! But as I typed the words and said, "Oh come on. He can't come back." I knew that it was best for the story. Why do our characters always know better than us? ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Fi16 February 2012 at 12:16

    It's called creative intuition. I should listen to mine more often.

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  3. Anonymous16 February 2012 at 14:35

    "There are some things you just can't plan before you write." I so agree with this Fiona! It can be such a trap to hold yourself to the outline when your characters are leading you elsewhere.

    ReplyDelete
  4. brenda21 February 2012 at 19:24

    I love when this happens, it's magical really when the imagination takes flight. I hope writing continues even during the slower times.

    ReplyDelete

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