The Illusion of Control

"Writing gives you the illusion of control, and then you realize it's just an illusion, that people are going to bring their own stuff into it."

David Sedaris, interview in Louisville Courier-Journal, June 5, 2005

This was quoted to me by one of my Facebook friends when I said a new and unplanned character had just introduced himself in my WIP, and I knew immediately how he was going to fit into the story.

25 people left comments, and I thought it was worth sharing some of them with you:

I'm a pantser too. I have the most inconvenient plotlines/characters come in and mess things up. (Sheila)

That, for me as a writer, is why I write - those moments when the character/s take over. If I'm surprised, then I know my readers will be, too. Glad others have this joy/magic in their creative day. (Astrid)

I'm a pantser also. I love it when I find out how my book ends. (Maggie)

The best part of being a writer is the surprises. (Bernadette)

Strong characters do this and it's best to get out of the way and allow them to, isn't it? (Linda)

Oh, yes, I keep the door open for everyone who comes along. But, by the same token, I also cull them or fuse them if they don’t quite earn their keep. (Mira)

Love it when that happens! The guy who turned out to be the nemesis of my main character just showed up one day, leaning on my MC's car! I had no idea where he'd come from, or who he was, now I know the book/s wouldn't have existed without him! However, I've described myself as a "happy pantser with a twist of obsessive plotter," because I tend to lean either way depending on my mood. (Terri)

Love it when that happens. My hero and heroine are running away with my book - mind you I don't usually plot at all - just have a vague idea in my head. (Fenella)

I love it when a great character decides to appear. Helps the story no end. (Barbara)

I love those characters who amble in unannounced! (Glynis)

I love minor characters who decide to become far more important than you planned. (June)

Oh yes! Love those unexpected arrivals or links. Happened to me the other day when I was doubting a whole section of the prequel, until I realised that Character A could so easily have been Character B's tutor in University and so would come into the story again later .... sorted! (Ailsa)

I'm a plotter, but unexpected characters walk in all the time, and I welcome them and integrate them. Plotting doesn't destroy spontaneity for me - it gives me a roadmap as I juggle multiple projects. Doesn't mean I can't go on tangents if the mood strikes.(Devon)

Have you had a 'new' character appear unexpectedly in your story?

Back In The Groove

My kids went back to school yesterday (finally!!) and I spent the day writing! It was fabulous.

Okay, I couldn’t spend the whole day writing; I had to get a few things done in the morning. But I was finally able to spend a good chunk of the day working on the manuscript I want to pitch to agents at the NJRW conference next month. I’m a bit stressed and not sure I’ll be finished in time, but at least I have a goal that I’m shooting for.

The end is in sight; I just have a few more loose ends to tie up and weave through and then hopefully, I’ll be done. I’m at the point that when I’m not writing, I want to be, which really excites me. There are so many times when I know I need to do something, but I’m not sure how to do it and it becomes a chore. I hate when my writing gets like that, so when I’m inspired and want to keep writing, it’s wonderful.

Off to write some more!

Emotions

I woke up this morning thinking about things that happened this summer in my world that were emotionally and physically trying--and how I've dealt with them. Specifically, how I've worked to purge negative emotions from my weekly CSA newsletters.

Was I raised not to value my emotions? To suppress them?  Act 'grown-up'--is this healthy? Is it better to have an honest freak out session and then reclaim one's composure?

I've read that depression is anger directed inward. That doesn't sound good. Neither is selfish anger, intended to intimidate and over power.

What about "approved" emotional reactions: grief...happiness...falling in love?

And in the pre-dawn dark, I wondered: as romance writers, do characters with heightened emotional reactions stand out more? Or is it best to put "normal" characters into emotionally charged situations?

Coming Soon...

...to the book venue of your choice.

This week I got lots of great release information for This Feels Like Home!

The book, the third in my "The Corral" series, will be available in Kindle from Amazon starting September 25, 2013. That's just a couple of weeks away!

It will have it's Kindle freebie days from November 19-23, 2013.

And then the most exciting news, it will be released world-wide in paperback and e-format on January 24, 2104!

It's been a long time since I've had a paperback book available, so this one is really fun for me. And I'm so thrilled to have finally written, sold, and have in book format the third book in my series. I've been dreaming about this moment for many, many years. When I first wrote This Time for Always, I always envisioned it as the first of three books in a set/series. This Can't Be Love came next, and now it's almost time for This Feels Like Home.

Anyone who wants to join in the Happy Dancing is more than welcome!

Until next time,

Happy Reading!

Debra
www.debrastjohnromance.com

Trying to get Unstuck

After submitting ‘Irish Inheritance’ at the beginning of last week, I thought I might take a week off writing, after spending 9 months writing and editing. However, I couldn’t resist taking a peek at ‘Different Worlds’, the novel I've abandoned twice, once when I got to Chapter 13, the second time when I got to Chapter 15. I started reading Chapter 1 again and – you’ve guessed it – that was the end of my ‘week off’, because I immediately started revising it.

 

I’ve had some time to think about why this novel didn’t seem to be working, and I think I’ve realised the reason.

 

The hero and heroine each have their own reasons for not wanting to become involved in another relationship, following the unhappy endings of their previous relationships (a couple of years prior to the start of this story). Obviously I can’t have them immediately forgetting their past experiences once they meet, but at the same time, I can’t have endless inner agonising by either of them, as this becomes repetitive (and boring) for the reader. So I was faced with a dilemma. It was taking too long for them to ‘get together’ – but speeding up the ‘falling in love’ process was unrealistic.

 

Another problem was that the heroine was only supposed to be in the Lake District (where the hero lives) for a couple of weeks, and was then going home to London - hence the title, 'Different Worlds'. In my original drafts, I invented two different scenarios as reasons for her to stay in the Lake District, and it was at this point that the story (in both versions) ground to a standstill. It was still too soon for them to accept a new love in their lives, and also there seemed to be no major turning point that would make them realise it was time to move on from their past experiences.

 

As you know, I’m basically a pantser, so all this is based on my ‘gut feeling’ about the way the story was going, rather than on any plot outline. I have a vague idea in my mind of how the story is eventually going to work out, but now I need to sort out the order of events, and this is the point at which I need to haul my characters back from the side roads they have taken me down. Maybe I’ll be able to use some of the ‘dumped’ events and scenes in a different novel sometime.

 

So far, I’ve combined Chapters 1 and 2 into one chapter (with less internal dialogue), and tidied up and slightly revised a few more chapters. Now, at Chapter 9, I’m diverging from the original drafts, and inserting an event that was in Chapter 13 in the 2nd draft.

 

The other big change will come when I take the heroine back to London (for a short time) much sooner than in the first two drafts. The idea of doing that came in one of those blinding flashes of inspiration!

 

I’ll see how it goes now – and hope I don’t get stuck on Chapter 13 or 15 again!

Opening Lines

This is from my current WIP. What do you think?

In The Moment

Chapter 1

The lawn mower wouldn’t start. Again. Cassie sighed and wiped a straggly piece of hair off her forehead, blowing it away at the same time. She yanked the starter cord and grunted. Nothing.

“Stupid idiot!” She kicked it. “Ow!”

“Want me to give it a try?”

She shrieked as she grabbed her foot and hopped. Her heart raced, but whether from pain or from fear, she couldn’t tell.

“Jeez, you scared me. Um, can I help you?”

She’d hopped far enough away from the stranger to give herself the illusion of feeling safe. There were enough tools and sharp objects within arms’ reach that she could defend herself if she had to, but as she looked toward the man standing in the doorway of the barn, she really hoped she wouldn’t have to.  A crew cut showed off the chiseled bones in his face and the cleft in his chin. A white T-shirt clung to his body and emphasized bulging biceps, a well-sculpted chest and what she assumed would be “six-pack abs.” Worn jeans clung to well-toned legs. This guy was not only in shape, he was gorgeous. Her heart skipped again, this time from lust, and she blushed.

Critique my retirement letter

For years I have written a CSA newsletter each weekend of the growing season. I poured out my reverence through the words--the unique fragrance of tomato plants, the thrill of helping a just-born calf to nurse, the reassurance of a crop thanks to the swish-swish of the rainbird sprinklers during a drought.

For the past three weeks I've labored over my farewell letter to my CSA members. I got up early this morning to tweak it again. Most members do not know the CSA is ending. Frankly, seven still owe their final installment payment for the season, and I don't want them to have an excuse to not pay it.

I'd appreciate your critique of the letter. I've tried to be honest, edit out any negative emotions. I've never made a big deal with CSA members about my romance writing--it didn't seem appropriate for a business newsletter.

Ana

Lakes and Valley CSA News September 8, 2013

We did it!  Dewane dug all the potatoes. I’ve put in your veggie boxes the onions, melons, brassicas and cucumbers; and yes, just about all the zucchini, peppers and tomatoes. This week I’ll bring you the remaining sweet corn.

This week will be the last CSA delivery of the 2013 season. And sadly, after twelve seasons, it is time to retire the Lakes and Valley CSA.

Dewane’s body needs to do less after forty years of beloved but intense labor. I will turn sixty-three in November. It’s time for a graceful and grateful acceptance of our reality.

We have not been able to recruit a trained organic or biodynamic farmer or gardener to take over the CSA. Informed sources repeatedly remind us that northcentral Minnesota is remote. If we lived in Oregon, Washington, California or New York, if we were located near a metroplex or closer to a university with a sustainable ag program, we’d be overrun with workers.

And despite our sustained efforts, we have not been able to “grow” a gardener. The work is physically demanding, and the hours are not traditional nine to five. Any farmer will tell you their work is physically and mentally demanding. If you are not engaged in growing pot, the pay is relatively low. And ag work in general is not prized as an occupation.

Working in and with Nature, especially in high north latitudes where the growing season is short and intense, requires a commitment that can be described as, ‘my will becomes Thy will.’ This is not easy to learn or accept; one intern summarized it this way: “Working on a farm is hard because you can’t call in sick when you don’t feel like getting up in the morning.”

So what’s next for us? We will return the garden to U-Pick raspberries and small scale specialty produce—pickling cucumbers and dill, basil, tomatoes. Granddaughter Hannah and her cousin Lexi feel this would be the perfect summer job. Lexi loves raspberries, and Hannah loves selling at the Park Rapids farmer’s market.

I will keep my job at The Secret Garden and embark upon writing a how-to book for home gardeners (working title: Gardening on a Living Earth) that will present the insights and tricky tips I have learned over forty years of gardening. Thank you for encouraging me to write, and for the demanding schedule of CSA newsletters. Nothing trains a wanna-be writer like a recurring deadline.

Dewane and I want to thank Mary Louise Hershberger and Deb Pullen for their years of dedicated service to the CSA keeping track of the memberships and the checkbook.

Thank you, too, to our long-serving site hosts—Brigitte von Budde, Brenda & Pat Nistler, Paul & Jean Sando. Without you, the CSA would have been impossible.

A heartfelt thank you to all members for your participation over the past twelve years. Eating seasonally is hard work, but I am certain that your commitment has changed you for the better as much as it has me.

If you ordered an egg share, I will mail you soon a bill for the season.

I’d love to stay in touch, so if you’d like to receive periodic newsletters on Midheaven Farm life (and the gardening book), let me know.

p.s., Dewane and I will be at the Fort Ransom craft show at the end of September, sampling and selling Secret Garden soups, dips and jams. Stop by, if you go, and say hi.