A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Chapter 4

A week or so ago, around Thanksgiving, I wrote that I had started writing my second book. I was really excited. In two days, I wrote two chapters and had started on chapter three. Everything was humming along. The words were flowing, and they were good!

I got Eric out of this world and into the Hallway of Worlds. He met up with the Gatekeeper and a few old friends. He was given an Assignment and sent on his way. The book was on the runway ready for takeoff. Nothing was going to stop me! The book would be finished before the end of winter! Then it happened.

I took a detour. Eric went into the new world. Although I knew what his Assignment would be, and what he needed to do to accomplish it, I realized that I knew nothing about this new world. Trying to write about that new world was like trying to drive to Peoria without a roadmap, or Mapquest, or a GPS. I knew where I was going, but I had no idea about how to get there.

So, I stopped. It was late in the day on Sunday, and I had to post Kate Endria's interview on the blog. I did that and told myself that I'd get back to writing a history of the new world tomorrow. I mean, what the heck. It was going real well, nothing to it. I'd have it done in no time. That was over a week ago, and since then, I haven't done a thing.

Now, I do have excuses. I'm working on a lot of stuff at work (a lot). I've had a couple of Lions Club meetings (okay, one was a club Christmas party). I even (this is exciting) was interviewed twice for a couple of articles in the two local papers.

It was easy to get distracted, but the fact of the matter is that I have to stick my rear in a chair, buckle down, and write that background information. Without it, the book won't seem as real. I took the time and did that for Calendria, and now it seems as real to me as if I'd lived there for ten years. I know the people, what they think, and why they think it. I have to do that with this new place.



So, tonight I'm turning off my computer for a while, taking out a pencil and some paper, and writing out a history and a map. If I don't know where the heck everything is, then it's a pretty good bet that The Deliverers won't, either. I'll see you when the road is clear.