The voices in my head
Everyone has their own writing style. I've tried over and over to write my books with the thought out, prepared outline style a lot of authors employ but it just doesn't work for me. I have a general idea of where my story's heading when I start to write but beyond that, I have no idea. I don't actually know what's going to happen to the characters until it happens...in my head.
I just start writing and they start talking. The story unfolds for me much as it would if I were simply the reader and not the writer. In fact there's been many times that a character I'd intended to be minimal ended up being quite integral and sometimes even a lasting element to the series, and then there are those who I'd intended to have greater roles who somehow just fade away. They really do their own thing and I merely record the events, hopefully with some panache.
This has made writing a very enjoyable experience for me, with moments where I'm typing away gasping at the behavior of some character who I'd thought would never do or say such a thing. I actually stopped typing once to say aloud "What the hell, Thor?"
I love finding out how my story is going to end by the process of writing it. It actually shocks me how well everything ends up flowing together, like when something from an earlier book finally explains itself and I'm sitting there shocked, "Wow, so that's why that happened." I keep expecting my luck to run out, for something to pop up that doesn't meld with the earlier story line, but so far everything has continued to make sense. It feels magical sometimes.
I get very attached to my characters, feeling as if I've lived the adventure with them and I hope my readers feel the same way about them. All that being said, writing the way I do causes some problems. Mainly, my attention span with reality has lessened and focusing on something other than my artwork or whatever is happening in my head, can be difficult at times.
When I'm not writing it's like the story, and therefore my characters lives, are on hold. They kind of just sit around in my head waiting for me to let them out. So when I'm out, say at dinner with friends, and one of them asks me a question, sometimes I just stare at them blankly because some scene has already started to push its way into existence, demanding that it be put down in writing. I've found myself uttering the excuse, "Sorry, Trevor was talking," or "I haven't come out of my story for days and my brain is trying to catch up, what did you just say?"
Luckily I have friends that are patient enough to put up with this and not have me committed. What's become even more difficult is the addition of other story lines when I made the decision to branch out into historical romance and erotica, bringing with them more characters trying to talk to me all the time. I flit from group to group until I'm able to sit down and let them have at it.
It's really made me look at people differently, especially those people I see talking to themselves on the side of the road. Is that what happens when you don't have an outlet for the voices? Or maybe when you don't have enough interaction with real people. I sometimes wonder if that's going to be me someday, walking down the road talking to the voices in my head. I'm not worried though, if I ever go truly insane and end up living my books, at least I'll be in a world I love.
I just start writing and they start talking. The story unfolds for me much as it would if I were simply the reader and not the writer. In fact there's been many times that a character I'd intended to be minimal ended up being quite integral and sometimes even a lasting element to the series, and then there are those who I'd intended to have greater roles who somehow just fade away. They really do their own thing and I merely record the events, hopefully with some panache.
This has made writing a very enjoyable experience for me, with moments where I'm typing away gasping at the behavior of some character who I'd thought would never do or say such a thing. I actually stopped typing once to say aloud "What the hell, Thor?"
I love finding out how my story is going to end by the process of writing it. It actually shocks me how well everything ends up flowing together, like when something from an earlier book finally explains itself and I'm sitting there shocked, "Wow, so that's why that happened." I keep expecting my luck to run out, for something to pop up that doesn't meld with the earlier story line, but so far everything has continued to make sense. It feels magical sometimes.
I get very attached to my characters, feeling as if I've lived the adventure with them and I hope my readers feel the same way about them. All that being said, writing the way I do causes some problems. Mainly, my attention span with reality has lessened and focusing on something other than my artwork or whatever is happening in my head, can be difficult at times.
When I'm not writing it's like the story, and therefore my characters lives, are on hold. They kind of just sit around in my head waiting for me to let them out. So when I'm out, say at dinner with friends, and one of them asks me a question, sometimes I just stare at them blankly because some scene has already started to push its way into existence, demanding that it be put down in writing. I've found myself uttering the excuse, "Sorry, Trevor was talking," or "I haven't come out of my story for days and my brain is trying to catch up, what did you just say?"
Luckily I have friends that are patient enough to put up with this and not have me committed. What's become even more difficult is the addition of other story lines when I made the decision to branch out into historical romance and erotica, bringing with them more characters trying to talk to me all the time. I flit from group to group until I'm able to sit down and let them have at it.
It's really made me look at people differently, especially those people I see talking to themselves on the side of the road. Is that what happens when you don't have an outlet for the voices? Or maybe when you don't have enough interaction with real people. I sometimes wonder if that's going to be me someday, walking down the road talking to the voices in my head. I'm not worried though, if I ever go truly insane and end up living my books, at least I'll be in a world I love.
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