Since I got behind working on my latest novel, I had to go back to the beginning to put myself in the right place, so to speak. But that turned out to be good for the book because I “learned” some interesting facts about Rita (the main character) in the process.
For example: she was pregnant when she got married, which was why they had to push the wedding up. (Her husband wanted to finish his PhD but had to quit to get a job). This explains why his sister hated Rita and also the trajectory of Rita’s life: first a mother, then her mother’s caregiver, with no time to become “Rita.”
I didn’t know that detail when I started writing the book but now I do. And it makes perfect sense.
In many ways, this is a harder book to work on than Finding Fran. For one thing, Fran was a writer, whereas Rita is a “worker bee”: she works for the postal service but really has no driving focus or dream.
And Rita is more serious–about loss of those you love and letdowns from those who remain–something I know about (and wish I didn’t).
We’ll see what happens. My goal is have the first draft (technically the first draft of the revised version) finished by 3.1.12.
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I understand what you mean about one book being harder to write than the other. I, too, am working on my first historic fiction book covering a topic that I am learning about. I know a lot about my main character, but have to learn about the period and a bit of history. I’m a confident nonfiction writer who is having some difficulty with fiction. But when it flows, it is wonderful. Good post!
It’s those wonderful times that keep me going–and a desire to see what happens next!