The Writing Process or Where Ideas Come Originate
At a recent cocktail party I discussed the writing process with another author. As a few guests listened in, we described where our writing ideas originate. With that in mind I'll include a few posts about my personal process.
As a reader, you may not stop in the middle of your current novel to consider what force drove the author to make a character leap from a bridge, step in front of a fast moving train or murder an innocent bystander. As an author, everything that reaches my senses may trigger an event for any one of my characters. The sound of the rain pounding on the roof may cause me to write a drowning. The heat of the desert may result in a building burning to the ground. The repetition of a basketball dribbled across the street may conjure gunshots. The smell of orange blossoms may transport my character to an unexpected location.
In books one and two of the Jayne Stanford series, Menu for Murder and Cocktails at Sunset, I completely changed the ending halfway through the writing process. The characters took me in a direction I hadn't planned but the result was influenced by something I stumbled upon when I least expected my senses to give me the push.
In Cocktails at Sunset, I wanted one of the characters to ultimately poison the villain with a tea made from Oleander blossoms. This is highly toxic and yet a readily available poison. In fact, I have a lovely bush growing in my backyard which is where the original idea came from. Looking at the plant, I thought it would be a great way for my character to commit murder without it being easily traced back to her. Somewhere along the way, I decided I couldn't make that particular character murder anyone and so she didn't.
Take a look around you right now and think of how you might twist an innocent object into something that could be used for evil or vice versa. I would love to hear your thoughts.
Happy Trails,
Leslie
Visit my website Twitter Instagram Facebook
As a reader, you may not stop in the middle of your current novel to consider what force drove the author to make a character leap from a bridge, step in front of a fast moving train or murder an innocent bystander. As an author, everything that reaches my senses may trigger an event for any one of my characters. The sound of the rain pounding on the roof may cause me to write a drowning. The heat of the desert may result in a building burning to the ground. The repetition of a basketball dribbled across the street may conjure gunshots. The smell of orange blossoms may transport my character to an unexpected location.
In books one and two of the Jayne Stanford series, Menu for Murder and Cocktails at Sunset, I completely changed the ending halfway through the writing process. The characters took me in a direction I hadn't planned but the result was influenced by something I stumbled upon when I least expected my senses to give me the push.
In Cocktails at Sunset, I wanted one of the characters to ultimately poison the villain with a tea made from Oleander blossoms. This is highly toxic and yet a readily available poison. In fact, I have a lovely bush growing in my backyard which is where the original idea came from. Looking at the plant, I thought it would be a great way for my character to commit murder without it being easily traced back to her. Somewhere along the way, I decided I couldn't make that particular character murder anyone and so she didn't.
Take a look around you right now and think of how you might twist an innocent object into something that could be used for evil or vice versa. I would love to hear your thoughts.
Happy Trails,
Leslie
Visit my website Twitter Instagram Facebook
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