July 21st, 2010 | by Vonna Harper |
The picture uploading thingie doesn’t like me this morning so after two tries, I’ve given up. All you’re going to get is me doing a little confessing.
To set the background, I have a new Aphrodisia book due the middle of October. A month ago I had only the vaguest idea what it would be about. Okay, I knew I wanted to set it in Central Oregon and that’s that. Figured it needed a man and a woman (my erotica has always been m/f and I ain’t about to change) Then as has long happened in that secret part of my brain I can’t explain and sometimes freaks me out, things started coming together. Lots of research, bunch of notes, muttering to myself during my dedicated thinking time otherwise known as walking the dogs time. One day I got home from said dog walk, ran upstairs to my office and pounded out a couple of single spaced pages of plot notes, character motivation, the kind of nonsense that passes for a synopsis.
I started with Chapter One. Things cooked along. Then yesterday at the 11,000 word mark I hit a wall. Tried to tell myself that it was my son’s birthday, I was distracted by evening plans to celebrate, further distracted because both sons and grandson showed up, also a friend of one son. I pounded out 2K words, one sweated one at a time. I had to have my hero do some things that made me uncomfortable (poor soul is being taken over by an supernatural spirit). I told myself the problem was that I’m not yet clear about the supernatural spirit which impacts my hero in many ways.
Then after the dinner party, I turned my mind back to my problem. Slept on it. Thought about it when I woke up at 4 a.m. Thought about it some more in the shower.
As has happened enough times to keep me relatively sane, I done figured it out. The hangup wasn’t tied into the spirit. Instead, I didn’t know enough about my hero’s background. See, I was a social worker in a former life and dealt with a lot of people with disfunctional childhoods. My poor characters are always messed up in one form or another which, I believe, gives them depth and interest.
Ha! I know what brought my hero to this place in his life. Oh, you’d feel sorry for him. His parents were a mess and there was the violence thing and–Double ha! I love him. I’m mucking around in his psyche and putting him through the wringer and excited about having a grand old time.
One last thing. I’d called him Tyson but that never felt right. Now he’s Matt and I can wrap my mind about Matt. The Matt in my world is my youngest son’s best friend, scary smart with two young kids, a career in computers, and a part-time gig as a river fishing guide. Ah, an outdoorsman who loves and understands nature. Rugged. Competent. Independent. All the things both Matts are.
Look out world, I’m ready to write again.
As long as I don’t decide to play shrink with the supernatural spirit.
Vonna
www.VonnaHarper.com
Good thing Vonda. My muse is often on vacation lately…
by Sydney Molare · July 22nd, 2010 at 9:30 amI think it’s that process of getting to know the characters that makes this job so much fun! I’ve learned to fall asleep at night thinking about the story, and I’ll always have more answers come morning, but however we do it, the sense of discovery is such a rush when it all finally comes together, isn’t it? Congrats, m’dear!
by Kate Douglas · July 22nd, 2010 at 10:39 am