Every writer has experienced the moment when a heretofore
unheard of, unknown character has appeared from the creative ether fully
formed, fully voiced. These moments usually occur in those quiet in between
times when our brains are uncluttered and open to the voices of characters,
both known and new. (For me it is in the shower.) Sometimes the voice may be a
gentle whisper introducing itself, other times it is loud and nagging: “Write
my story! Write my story!” We ignore them at our own peril. Angie introduced
herself to me loudly and insistently.
I put aside my WIP, and set to taking dictation from the
seventeen year old who seemed to believe her story was unique and the true path
to finding an agent. Yes, I believed this was the one. This was the story that
would put me on the Young Adult map. Novel, original, Angie’s story would
certainly lead to that coveted agent contract. And it was going to be so much
fun to write.
Fast forward about 25,000 words. I’m perusing the YA section
of a local bookstore and my eyes light on an attractive book cover that seems
to be rather evocative of Angie’s story. My hands are shaking as I take it off
the shelf and read the inside flap. Stomach flops. I flip to the first page.
Yes, this book has eerie similarities to Angie, though there is plenty that is
different, I tell myself. Ten minutes later I see another book with a similar
theme. Gulp. This bookstore visit is no longer any fun and I turn and leave.
Shaken, but undaunted, I continue to plod away on Angie. Day
job and life keep me from writing at the pace I’d like, but forward progress is
made.
Fast forward another 20,000 words. I follow the blogs and
tweets of several agents who represent children/YA writers. I open the blog of
one especially prestigious agent to read that if she sees one more manuscript
with the XXXXXXX theme (Angie’s story!) she will go crazy. She, and every other
agent in the world, receives at least five such manuscripts daily. Oh dear. Oh
dear. I had no idea. Truly, though I read YA, I had never read anything like my
book. How and when and why had this happened?
And what to do now? Abandon the story I’ve enjoyed writing?
Continue on just because? Continue on and self publish, since obviously there’s
a reason these books are being written and catch that wave while I can?
Any long time reader of this humble blog knows by now I
don’t easily give up. So I chose to finish the first draft of Angie, and am now
working on the first rewrite. I’m not sure what I’ll do when I finish, but at
least I will have finished another book. I’ll make my decision when that time
comes. And if you have any advice, please leave a comment. I welcome any
suggestions.
By the way, I know I disappeared from the radar for an
unprecedented length of time. Between the day job and a long and nasty bout of
pneumonia I fell behind on everything in my life. But I’m back and ready to
forge on.
Happy writing!
