The idea for this new book came on the heels of The House on Pancake Hill. So, yesterday I made the "commitment" to dive right in and get things started. As a writer, you go through phases - this cartoon captures it all! I don't have a title yet, but I made a list of twenty names each for males or females, sent them to my bestie, Kathleen and asked her to pick five each of her favs.
Then I needed a setting - I truly wanted to use St. Augustine as a backdrop, but there are other local writers who have already used it. And,since my budget is limited, I cannot afford to fly off to an uncharted destination to do research. Kathleen suggested someplace that I knew well. I made a few quick calls to chambers of commerce , convention and visitors' bureaus and tourism agencies. I requested packets of information to be mailed to me.
Next, I started a "story board" - complete with a column for each character's name. As ideas surface, I will write them on sticky notes and place them under the appropriate character. This is fun for me as I've never written fiction before. Little by little, I'm adding things such as personality profiles, clothing style, dialogue, skills, conflict, etc. I'm a visual person so I think this concept will work best for me. Then I can keep adding to the story board as I go along.
I published The House on Pancake Hill on Halloween so it's time to let my new ghosts emerge! Wish me luck!
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