When You Can’t See the Forest for the Trees.

It’s a good thing I’m writing this latest novel for spec and not on contract. If I had a deadline, I might turn gray overnight. Oh, wait, I am gray. Okay, bad analogy. That’s fine. The novel is still a hot mess no matter what color my hair may currently be.

I love this book, and the characters. It’s tentatively titled No Return. Here’s the blurb: The North Maine woods keeps its secrets close. When Sassy Romano inherits the Tremayne Lodge and Artist Colony, she knows it has been vacant for the past five years. She isn’t prepared to find it occupied by a body in the pottery studio, or that her childhood home is now the epicenter of a crime wave. Someone is using her properties as half-way houses for illegal immigrants and the narcotics trade. A lot has changed since she’s been away. The deeper she pries into local secrets, the more she realizes they are rooted in her past. And the past can be deadly.

Sounds straightforward. There’s a beginning, a middle, and an end. I know who, what, where, and when. I even know who dun it. That’s epic for me. Often my villain isn’t revealed until sometime into the second (or third) draft. This time, I’ve nailed that sucker. So, what’s the problem?

This is the first book in a new series. That’s a blessing and a curse. It’s fun to create new worlds and meet new imaginary friends and foes. It’s great to explore and take inspiration from new locations. The north Maine woods are made for mystery. It would take a lifetime or two to explore it all. That’s yeast to the creative spirit. The problem, then, is not the setting, or the characters, it’s the story.

The hardest and the most enjoyable part of writing comes after the explosion of words on the page. I’m a “discovery writer.” That’s a nice way to say I travel back roads and paths without a roadmap. I write it as it comes, sometimes multiple chapters at one sitting. Sometimes a few words or sentences. Then I string them all together, stir twice, and see what perks. What usually floats to the top is…a hot mess. That’s where I am now.

I’m deep in the editing process. I spend time sussing out each chapter’s purpose, fixing plot holes, and making sure the foundation supports the overall structure. Multicolored highlights, red ink, and sticky notes cover my pages. In short, right now I’m in the weeds of writing. I know the story is there, but darned if I can make it out.

In another few weeks, all of this will be behind me. I’ll have taken this hot mess and transformed it into a well-ordered story. In the meantime, though, will someone pass the wine?

Writers, do you have a hot mess stage for your works in progress?