I just finished writing my third novel, a book I started quite a while ago, and I'm having a hard time disengaging from the characters and moving on to the next book. Their voices have been inside my head for so long that I'm having separation anxiety, a feeling somewhere between loneliness and multiple personality disorder. (Yes, writers do hear voices – scraps of dialog colliding somewhere in your hippocampus. I've always believed that good writers are neurotic and great writers are schizophrenic.)
Anyway, the book's narrative weaves together the lives of ten people who would normally have nothing in common beyond the fact that they live in the same apartment building. They might say hello in the elevator, as neighbors often do, but they have no real reason to interact until their landlord gets thrown off the roof of the building. Because he was an unrepentant asshole who gave every one of them cause to want him dead, there is suddenly a very good reason for these ten people to get to know each other. And when they do, let's just say mayhem ensues.
But I'm drifting away from the question, which is how writers deal with saying goodbye to characters they've nurtured for so long, clean the attic of their mind and move on. Fortunately I have a deadline that will force the issue, but I'm taking a week or two off from writing to catch up on my reading, maybe hear some new voices in my head like those of my fellow MI writers with new books out.
After that I'll return to the keyboard and see what kind of characters decide to show up on the page. I hope I like them as much as the ones I just stuck in a box and shipped to my agent. We'll see...
6 comments:
Disengaging from our characters and their world is like walking away from old friends and familiar places. Sometimes the parting is a relief; other times it is almost heartbreakingly difficult.
What I find challenging is jumping from one novel into the next when the new project requires a radically different tone, setting, cast of characters, world-rules, etc. I recently completed a teen paranormal novel and then immediately switched to writing a humorous adult mystery. Whiplash, anyone? I think we need to feel a tad schizophrenic. Actors and other artists share that with us.....
Disengaging issues is one of the reasons I take several weeks off myself between projects or work on something entirely different. Then again, sometimes, when a particular character won't go away, I dig a little deeper to see if that character has more story to tell, perhaps in another book. In my third Odelia Grey novel, Thugs & Kisses, I brought back a character who I thought was done when I realized he wasn't. It was a lot of fun.
I've always wondered how authors could write stand-alone novels because I too have a problem with letting a character go. In fact, I brought a guy back to life because I wanted to do more with him! So being a series writer is a natural for me. I get to walk alongside the character as he lives his life - dangerous as it might be....
And the concept sounds fascinating Tim - the apartment building thing. It reminds me of the great
Sidney Lumet movie "12 Angry Men." People of all walks thrown together by a common incident. I look forward to reading it!
This is one of the advantages of a series. Like Mark said, you get to live with your "babies" for a longer time. The characters I find hard to separate from are some of the oddball secondary ones that are short-lived but so much fun to write. Problem is, if you bring them back, you may lose the original glitter. But like Bill S. said, "Parting is such sweet . . ."
A related problem is killing off a character you've come to like. I'm faced with that right now, or soon will be. Right now, this character's demise is the only thing that fits the plot.
I may have to shift things around so a more despicable character goes away.
GM~
You are the puppetmaster - bring the guy back to life! I did it. Okay, it caused all kinda hell with the plot but I think it makes for a more interesting plot. Although I clearly made more work for myself...
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