Going With The Flow

I haven't had a writing session since Sunday, but I pulled up that day's output yesterday and I really love it. There's a lot to be said for revenge. Not that my negative reviewers will feel my revenge, but I do. No, I didn't ponder how to write a perfect scene simply to "show them", but that was no doubt in the back of my mind. Really, I didn't plan out that scene at all. It's so good I reread it several times. 

Second Chance is hitting its stride. My new approach is working. No more scene jumps; each transition flows smoothly. No flash forwards; one scene naturally leads to the next. I've decided that this book will be a short novel, and thus I'm in no hurry. It does feel more organic. While I still hold that every scene should count, they kind of do, whether anything dramatic happens or not; usually not. But each one adds to the narrative of the main character's journey. 

Maybe when I was so focused on novellas being compact, I did tend to gloss over things that should have been explored more deeply. Sometimes less factual knowledge is good ~ had I not known the number of words an average novella contains versus the word count of a novel, I would have just written however long or short I wanted to write. And now that I'm writing just for me, who cares about word count?

I am, however, aware that once again I'm writing a passive main character. That needs to be fixed. I mentioned before that things tend to happen to my MC, rather than my MC making things happen. So far in Part 2 of the story, the only direct action she's taken, aside from firing her manager, was to lie to a hotel desk clerk that the reservation he pulled up was for her and her band, rather than the rich family who'd actually made it. But all the hotels in town were completely booked and she didn't want her group to spend the night in a city park. Plus, she did have a reservation; the clerk just couldn't find it. But I digress...

There is one character in Second Chance who dominates the story, and she's someone who only arrived by accident. If anyone ever does read the book, they'll come away in love with her, like I am. Therein lies the problem. The book's not about her! Her personality is so huge, though, that she overshadows everyone else. Overpowering or not, she stays. She's one of the best things I have going for me. None of my main characters could ever be like her; yes, she's larger than life, but how much could anyone take of an MC like that? It would be exhausting. And, you know, while as a secondary character, she's fascinating, I'd get horrible feedback about her if she was the book's focus. Because everyone seems to have multiple quibbles with my main characters to begin with.

When Second Chance is finally finished, polished, and ready for publication, I should dedicate it to "the haters", who spurred me on to write such a marvelous story. Thanks in advance!