Diary of a Novel - Week One

Some folks said they thought it would be interesting for me to keep a little log of what it's like to write a novel. If you think this sounds terribly self-indulgent and self-focused, you're not alone, so do I. But because some are attracted to the creative process and think it's cool, I'll give it a try.

At the moment I'm calling the novel, The Vortex. I generally read anywhere from 10-60 books on various subjects, underlining and taking notes of things I should remember or can use. I've been doing that since December. I also keep a notebook lying around dedicated to ideas. At the moment I'm finishing up a screenplay, so most of my research and noodling is spent in the evenings when the family is downstairs watching TV...and also later when I'm drifting off to sleep. I also keep that notebook with me in the orchard during my devotional time with the Lord (20-40 mins of reading, worshiping and praying once the wife and kids head off to school). In fact the very spine of my last novel, The Presence, came during my deepest worship times. I wish I could manipulate God to make it happen the same way each time, but that Lion just won't be tamed.

I've got some pretty strong "hooks" for the story, but at this stage of the process my two biggest struggles always are finding an interesting bad guy who's not a cliche, and a relevant spiritual message. Now is when I start to panic...and call up my three prayer intercessors asking for them to start focusing on the project. Now is the time I'm sure it will be a total flop and there's nothing I can do to fix it. And now is the time I start pacing back and forth in our orchard, pleading for God's anointing. (He's never let me down yet, but we humans have pretty short memories when it comes to His faithfulness).

So there you have it. I'll try to keep this up to date...the good, the bad, the neurotic.

Blessings,
Bill
www.Billmyers.com