Like painting, writing is an art. Learned art. Learned by play, by rewrite, by frustration. However, it is what keeps us drawing and writing. An artist learns to mix colors, first possibly by wanting a blue, and then realizes it’s not right. So, they add white; it’s is nice but not right. However, if they add a touch of green…. Ahhhh perfect. A writer does the same.
First, it’s a story. They write it. Well, something isn’t right. So, they research the facts, opps. Nope not right, gotta change this or that like a title from ‘your excellency’ to ‘caesar’. Or that battle didn’t happen quite like that…change. Ahhhh now it’s right. Nope. The story works, the facts are right but…who wants to read this? No one. The characters are flat, dull. Too pale as the artists’ blue.
So back to the manuscript for possibly a complete rewrite because now you realize that that touch of green that makes it perfect. This write is for the reader who demands that…you must:
- Take hero and heroine out to sea and tie them to a buoy.
- Create a hurricane a Cat 10
- Bring that hurricane in and bash that buoy with its full force
- During the eye of the storm, you return to the buoy to see that h/h is fine. They are
- Return to the safety of land and let the second half of the hurricane come through
- When the seas calm, you return to the buoy to find h/h alive.
- Now if you have created a strong h/h, they will look at you and say, “Damn, that was fun. Let’s do that again.”
I am coming up on the hardest write I have ever done. Revenge. Book three of Red Fury. I have the story. I have the facts. But this is not going to be a picnic. Julius, Colin, and Calgacus must endure whatever hurricane I put them in. And this hurricane must end as a Cat10+. No mercy. No pity. Pure hell. And I’m just not that mean by nature. What’s more, I do not think I can think up that much misery, pain, suffering, and come out sane myself. If I do, God helps me. Who will I have become?
Correction: Rebellion is now book 3. Rage is now booked 2…and written and wow. I love it. But now for the edits. Rage cover coming in Jan; then the book coming Summer 2021)
