For a fiction writer, I’ve been spending an awful lot of time lately reading biographies.
First it was Sally Field’s autobiography In Pieces. Now I’m almost finished reading Julie Andrews’ second book in her autobiographical trilogy, called Home Work. Next in my reading pile is a brand new biography of Janis Joplin, called simply, Janis.
I’m not sure why I’m on this little non-fic reading kick. I like to read a biography or two a year, but three in a row? Not typically. Nevertheless, as a writer who enjoys focusing on character development, reading biographies and memoirs provides a tremendous resource for learning about other people’s lives straight from the horse’s mouth. They’re also invaluable for researching a character you might write in the future.
But the best place? Go sit in a hospital emergency room for a while, because these places are teeming with humanity. An ER is a window to the world of how people respond, cope, survive (or not), how they give and take, how they communicate and, well, everything in between.
I like planning. I like being organized. I like being methodical, chronological, practical, predictable. It’s not in my DNA to wander the literary landscape without a map, without a plan. And yet this is exactly where I find myself after recently having completed my 13th novel (due for publication this December by Bella Books).
Writing a novel is really like putting a puzzle together. Characters, plot, setting, theme, dialogue, emotion. Or perhaps it’s more like cooking a stew.
The title of this blog was originally, ‘Deadlines be Dammed’, which sounds brash, but that isn’t what I needed to write.
Saying goodbye is never easy, especially to something you’ve spent more than a year with, and almost every day. If not physically every day, certainly mentally and emotionally.
You already know how to write, so why should you take an online writing course?