April Showers Bring May… Twisters?
Discovery writing brings more solace than plotting
Only a few blooms are peeking out of my garden beds, but the Mile High City sprouted a few tornadoes this month. It reminded me of a time when I was a teenager driving along in Denver and looked up to see a twister in the distance, judged the distance, then resumed driving and jamming out to the radio.
What’s been happening?
Editing. Editing. And more editing. But actual editing this time, rather than just proofreading and burning sentences containing poor English. I’ve been trekking through the first novel, highlighting, adding comments, and contemplating arcs. Not rewriting anything yet so I can keep a laser focus on the overlying forest rather than the individual trees.
Anything new?
I’ve discovered more about myself when it comes to writing this month. And it’s that I’m not a huge fan of plotting. With these novels, I went through and wrote down a comprehensive outline of all the arcs, then for each chapter I would create an outline of what would happen. Then when I’d sit down to write, I would fill in the fluff. But the story was already written. So the passion wasn’t there. And I was bored.
So I’ve flipped the script and switched back to discovery writing with the second novel, and lo and behold, two more characters immediately arrived on the scene. And now I’m holding on by my fingertips as the story speeds off, excited to see where it goes and what I’m going to discover along the way.
Finally, the status chart:
