writing

I write from my experiences

It is a truth that all creatives dig deep into their life’s fodder—be it true to life experiences, or even the emotions the experience produced.

Life is the best teacher of writing.

It is through those experiences that I can draw on to help spice my narratives.

Currently, I am working on a short story with my newsletter subscribers, showing the process of how I create.

Although a story plot is essential, characters are what readers want, a connection that draws them into a story and makes them care.

For my current work-in-progress, I am writing a short story, and the story goal is simple: How does character A defeat character B? This is the main gist of the story, but not the main plot. This thread of storytelling must be braided with the actual external plot that thrust the reader into the story.

The premise doesn’t have to be complicated, but an open question that causes one to ask ‘what if’ and dig deeper into options.

So, for this question, this what-if, we start with plot vomit! This means we free write ideas of what we think might could happen. All thoughts are welcomed at this stage.

What if the villain isn’t the real villain?

What if magic causes the villain and hero to switch roles?

What if the villain and hero must join forces to defeat and even the worst option?

What if the villain was an automaton, and a henchman was operating him?

What if the hero is placed under a love spell and goes to the dark side?

What if the hero’s lover dies, and it serves as a path for the hero to not only defeat the villain but to become the new villain?

The more questions you ask, the more your imagination starts to churn and think. There are no incorrect questions to ask. Here we are only trying to find the character’s goal for this story, as in how we see the character at the beginning and how they will be at the end.

By starting your writing process with such, it guarantees that the story will also have a significant character arc and change.

This is my professional opinion: story is more than just a plot.

What if I told you that the secret to a good story is finding the topic that intrigues you, personally?

It is no secret that I enjoy researching subjects that interest me, be it the humanities, history, or even mythology, every story that I create has a starting point, a spark of ‘what if’ interest.

Here is where I find a minute interest, can form a question, and then dive more into that topic.

When I wrote A Dragon’s Destiny, my first fantasy novel after transitioning from the darker crime fiction, I wanted to dive into what I knew from my good ole days of theology—no not liturgy, but the church history behind much of what shaped western society.

With this being fantasy, I knew that I had to take a look into how magic was perceived. Yet, even more, I wanted to make more of a critical view. Many books propagate the stories of the new religion and how it paved its way through Europe and then the world, but not much is shared about the pagans or followers of the more traditional religions. I chose Norse mythology due to my interest in this subject.

History is filled with –isms (racism, sexism, classism, to name a few), and many novels dive into those topics. For me, I wanted to deal with that of misplaced fear and prejudice, prejudice based on that of magic (magic-users versus those who regarded it as evil).

Having found a premise, and a subject of interest, I then dove in like I was rewriting my thesis work. Much of what I uncovered never ended up in the series. It helped me to world-build. It helped me to shape the secondary characters along the way.

Much of my world creation is based on history, mythology, and mixed with my colorful imagination, whereby I can touch on topics, and maybe leave a breadcrumb or two to lead you, the reader, to ask more questions about history, humanities, and mythology, too.

For me, before I can truly begin to create, I have to ask my story questions, figure out my why of the story: why is this story important? Why does it need to be shared? Why are these characters perfect for this plot? Why does this topic speak to me, and what is it trying to get me to deal with on a personal level?

When I can answer these questions, even on a subconscious level, I know that I can then begin the process of meeting and interviewing my characters, crafting them, and listening as they reveal themselves to me.

Yes, for me, a story is so much more than a plot. It all starts with the research.