Writer’s Journey: Perspective
Let your story grow organically.
Ever since I began writing, I’ve always worked on several projects at the same time. I jump between projects to give my writing a breathing space, which allows me to gain perspective. Without that space and time between drafts, I don’t think I would have been able to give my characters and their story enough time to evolve, change and grow. When I’m not working on a project, I think about it quite a lot, linking and intertwining plot points, events and action. Over the years, I’ve learnt that time away from projects helps me make my projects so much better.
For instance, I came up with Maggie and Patrick characters in 2005. From 2005 until 2017, I wrote several different versions of their story. But I couldn’t find the right angle. I loved the characters so much and I wasn’t willing to let go of either of them. But after another unsuccessful attempt at giving their story body and legs to stand on, I decided to step away from it altogether.
Then something happened, something clicked, and in the fall of 2018, I started writing “2 People” stories from the Ecotopia Universe. All of a sudden, all the puzzles came together, the story became alive, and my beloved characters thrived. What I needed was time away from constantly trying to figure out the story. That time enable my story to grow…
