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Wednesday, April 19, 2006
When the book goes one way . . .
I expect to be brief today. I have a hero waiting for me -- and he's impatient and tapping his foot. He's got ideas and plans and he's recently had a Very Big Plan thwarted, so he's a little more impatient and stressed than he would normally be.
In short, he's driving me crazy.
Heroes tend to do that. At least mine do. I think I'm the writer -- and they think it's THEIR BOOK. Well, yes, but it's the heroine's book, too. And they agree. Eventually. But usually it takes them a while to come around to that. And in the meantime, they drive me crazy.
I don't do a plot outline. Sometimes I know better than others where a book is going. But very often I think I know -- and in fact, The Hero is busy taking it somewhere else. Where? Well, basically that's something that God -- and The Hero -- only know.
Over the years I have tried a bit of Plot Management, which might be described as efforts to collar whoever the current Hero is and say, "Nope, buddy. You're doing THIS!" Doesn't work. Ever. Heroes always have better ideas. And they're determined -- that's one of the things that makes them heroes.
When I was writing Shane's story in The Cowboy Steals A Lady, I thought we would come to blows. If ever there was a man who wanted to do things "his way," it was Shane. "Remember the chicken," I told him. "Remember how that turned out." But Shane was as hard-headed as they come. Loved him. But I wanted to kick him off the mountainside a time or two, believe me!
Same goes now. Happens with almost every book. I think I know what the story is about -- and then I sit down to write and The Hero says, "You know, I've got a better idea."
Or sometimes he doesn't even say it; he just takes over my fingers and makes them type stuff that I can't imagine ever thinking. Remotely controlled fingers. Weird.
So then I dig in my heels and say, "Hang on. Just wait. I'm not saying you can't do that, but I have to know why you're doing it!" And then I make him tell me. "No more remotely controlled fingers until you let me in on the story," I tell him. And I jam my hands in my pockets and refuse to let them type.
He fumes. He scowls. He cajoles. Sometimes he tries charm. I'm stubborn too. And eventually he talks. Sometimes it comes out in a rush. Sometimes it is like pulling teeth that have roots in his toes. The words come out one ...at...a...time...a...very...long...time...apart. But if he really wants to take the book where I can't imagine it going, he has to convince me.
And usually he does.
My current hero did that last night. He told me he had A Great Idea. A Way To Fix Things.
Frankly, I think his idea still sounds a little half-baked, but I'm sort of counting on him getting himself into deeper hotter water here (think plot complication, but don't tell him!). So last night I said, "Let me sleep on it, and I'll tell you in the morning if I'll go along with it."
He's pacing around out there now. Waiting. And, like I said, he doesn't wait well -- unless he knows it's crunch time. Then he has all the patience in the world.
I just heard him say through the door, "Take your time. Take all the time you want. I'm not going anywhere."
Uh-oh.
Guess we'd better get to work.
ps: Did you see Flynn showed up? He reads blogs now? And makes comments? That's weirder than remotely controlled fingers.
posted by Anne McAllister at 8:52 AM
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3 Comments:
christa said...
So then the herione has to straighten his half baked ideas but we won't tell him.
3:42 PM
Charlene Sands said...
Dear Anne,
Does my hero know your hero? Mine does the same thing! He takes over my fingers. But so does my heroine. She ususally says the most outlandish things, and try as I might, I can't always rein them in. Funny how that works, isn't it? We thought WE were the writers!
Charlene
7:23 PM
Anne McAllister said...
Christa -
Absolutely! That's her job -- in this case, literally. But she hasn't told him that yet. She's just told him something else that has him reeling.
Charlene,
I think heroes all lurk there together plotting (because heaven knows, I don't!) trying to think of ways to upset the apple cart, take over the book and run away with it. I haven't had a well-behaved one yet. I think it goes with the territory.
My heroine, in this case, is sort of a still-waters-run-deep girl. Sadie is just there in the background making sure everything runs smoothly -- until she has to drop her bombshell. Fortunately she told me about it ahead of time. But she really knocked the socks off Spence, Our Hero.
Anne
9:09 PM
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