I have some characters. They have names. They have children, houses, issues. They have quirks. They have a beginning, most of a middle and a definite end.
They live in my mind and I am trying to bring them slowly to life on the page. During the daytime they are quite neglected. Totally neglected most days to be honest.
In the evenings I think about them a lot and occasionally visit them and breathe a little more life into their imaginary bones ? letter by letter, word by word, sentence by sentence, paragraph by paragraph, page by carefully crafted page. Occasionally they get my complete and undivided attention for a whole, entire hour and then we?re really off and running, until I realise I?m exhausted or someone wakes in their sleep and needs me, and I have to abandon my characters again.
And they wait.
And they wait.
And I wait.
And as soon as I go to bed and switch off the light, they spark into life. They speak dialogue to me, offer me interesting twists and turns in their lives; offer solutions to plot dilemmas. I occasionally switch the light back on and scribble a few illegible notes on my diary ? hoping I?ll be able to decipher them in the morning. I often wonder if I should just get up, turn the PC back on and start writing. But I?m knackered and have to be up soon to coax sleepy children out of their beds and coax breakfast into them and face the madness of another day - so I encourage my characters to go back to sleep and tell me more in the morning.
Unfortunately, just like my children, they are tough to wake the next day. I have to nudge them and nudge them to wake up as I sit patiently at the PC; the house quiet for a few rare hours, but they are hesitant. They shy away. Eventually, they stir and we?re off again; more words and more pages as I breathe more life into them. And then I glance at the clock and realise I am cutting it very fine to collect a child or other from somewhere or other, so I abandon my characters and hope they?ll wait for me. Again.
We will get there. I am determined to bring them fully to life in a complete manuscript. But it?s a bloody frustrating journey!
Unfortunately, just like my children, they are tough to wake the next day. I have to nudge them and nudge them to wake up as I sit patiently at the PC; the house quiet for a few rare hours, but they are hesitant. They shy away. Eventually, they stir and we?re off again; more words and more pages as I breathe more life into them. And then I glance at the clock and realise I am cutting it very fine to collect a child or other from somewhere or other, so I abandon my characters and hope they?ll wait for me. Again.
We will get there. I am determined to bring them fully to life in a complete manuscript. But it?s a bloody frustrating journey!
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If you are a writer, please read these two amazing posts about the joy and frustration of writing from Marketing to Milk and Rebecca at Ramblings of a Rusty Writer.
Source: http://hotcrossmum.blogspot.com/2010/10/bringing-them-to-life.html
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