Snowflakes

First there’s nothing in the cold, dark sky. Hollow wind. Distant traffic. Blowing clouds, low to the hills, lit eery red in city’s glow.

Tree branches clink, together, apart. Leaves rustle. Then, all is still.

A prick of fire on your cheek.

A feather on an eyelash.

Turn on the light! Turn it on! Let’s look!

Snow. The first snow is falling.

Crystals from heaven, first cotton flakes, hesitantly whisping to the ground. Disappearing in a moment. Then the skies open. The world’s a snowglobe. Thousands of fluffy flakes dance around you, alighting on your hair, clinging to your lashes, melting on your tongue.

Here Comes November

There are only a few days each year when Autumn’s leaves are burning up and still on the trees. Summer is hanging on, but in a month or two, it’s going to be cold and grey and gloomy.

That’s novel weather.

Fellow NaNoWriMo adventurers, whip out your pens (if you’re really actually going to try writing a 50,000 word novel in 30 days by hand), keyboards, and thinking caps. It’s time to imagine the possibilities! Not just that, but live them through the characters you bring into existence and tag along with as they live out their lives on your page.

Write your novel.

November’s Secrets (1/3)

I’ve written three NaNoWriMo novels in the past three years.

My first attempt was a dive into the unknown, and what a rewarding whirlwind it was! Soon my characters started guiding me through the story, not the other way around. Plot twists I never saw coming sprung into existence like spring leaves. It was wonderful.

My second two novels were flops.

What went wrong? The first time was such a lovely experience, and I wanted to repeat it. But alas, plot and character have eluded me for two years in a row. Much too long.

I’ve recently run a few diagnostics on this pair of 50,000+ word “failures.” The first is a prequel to my original novel, and I’ve now come to realize that every story needs an undeveloped backstory. If you try to fill in all the details—in my case, write a prequel to a novel without giving the prequel itself any solid backstory—you’ll get unmotivated characters and a pronounced lack of plot.

Everyone needs a history. My first novel had backstory—I knew what had happened in the past and why, and how these past events drove the plot forward. It provided inherent clash, and problems for my characters to solve. Next November, I’ll know that backstory is a must!