A Braindrizzle; May 24 2020
Last Sunday, I got sick. Very sick. Naturally, given the times we live in, there was a lot of concern (and legitimate concern, too; all my symptoms lined up) that I’d caught Covid-19.
On Friday, though, my test came back negative! What I had was a flu and some severe panic attacks. I’ve never been so relieved to learn my anxiety has been badly exacerbated.
I’m still in self-isolation to be on the safe side. I haven’t been able to spend time with my kid for a week, and it physically hurts to be apart from her so much. Her health is more important than some missed hugs, though, and she’s being well taken care of in the meantime by my ex and her family. We’re still all in the same house, and my greatest comfort is hearing my kid laughing and having fun.
Hopefully I can continue the search and attempts to move out though, and as always, if you want to help out, you can donate to my Ko-fi here!
In my attempts to keep myself relatively calm and entertained, I’ve been brainstorming a new story idea. I have several on the back burner already, so I absolutely shouldn’t be pondering something else, and yet... I can’t help myself. ‘Tis the writer’s curse.
When I brainstorm, I generally come up with characters first. I have a cast list that’s a mile long, and I’m whittling it down to the ones who feel like have a story to tell. In the past, I’ve been asked about how I develop characters; my peers in writing groups have said that’s one of my strengths. I won’t go too into depth about my process right now (maybe in a later post, yeah?) but to sum up: I know what shape a character will take based on their voice first. They develop their personality, sense of style, and that leads right into worldbuilding!
Often, I decide the setting based on what I think a character looks like. How they dress, how they carry themselves. Does it feel right to have them in flowing gowns with sashes, or a practical sundress? Puffy shirt with an ascot, or neon mesh top under a leather jacket? I know what they’re comfortable in and I’m learning from that what their environment looks like as a result. For example, I immediately feel a fantasy setting from the gown, something modern and realistic with the dress, maybe a historical setting for the ascot-wearer, and a cyberpunk urban fantasy for the neon mesh. You can’t know your world without your genre, and vice versa!
So now I’ve got a bunch of characters and a world to play with them in. Before I get to plot, I do a lot of fiddling around with details, motivations... I want to make sure they all click. The great part about doing this is that the plot tends to happen along the way. My characters want different things, after all, and have to be willing to interfere with someone else’s desire to get it. Even if that goal is just to survive, you can bet that inconveniences somebody who’d rather you die or get out of their way.*
*Please note I’m talking about fiction. If you’re aware of someone trying to dispose of you, please contact the authorities. Unless... it’s the authorities that are targeting you... Maybe check in with different authorities, in that eventuality. Or else join a small underground resistance dedicated to keeping you, and others who know The Truth, safe. If you cannot find such a resistance, best to start your own.
Plot is always the part I have the hardest time with, when it comes to brainstorming. I worry they’re not complex or interesting enough. Or, even more often, I worry I’m not clever enough to invent a resolution to every problem in their way. And speaking of problems, are there enough of them? Are they too convoluted? Too simple? Plot and conflict are tricky, but it’s also the thing I spend the least amount of time brainstorming.
Because, well, that’s what the first draft is for!
I like to plot things out just a little, with most of my books. However, I give myself room to move, just in case a better solution or more natural character decision comes up along the way. But once I have the barest of bare bones down, I get started! Chapter 1 is a-go!
How do you like to brainstorm, fellow writers?