My twittering ping pong dreams

[pjthompson]

Some of you who have known me for a long time, and read my stuff for a long time, may remember Hortensia Bustamante. She’s the strong-willed sister of the Bustamante Brothers of Dos Lunas County, the first white settlers to invade the Kintache Indian homeland.

Ever since I finished Venus in Transit, my Dos Lunas County novel, strong-willed Hortensia has been bugging me. “Where my novel?” she’s been asking.

I’ve explained patiently that I’m working on other things now, to make a change from Dos Lunas, but Hortensia has never been one to listen to the reasoning of her writer when she’s made up her mind about something. “Where’s my novel?” she repeats at every chance.

I staved off her insistence some time back by writing a 30k plus novella, but—although she liked it quite well—she’s informed me that it isn’t sufficient. Her story deserves expanding and exploring. I have been thinking along those same lines myself for some time and even had several ideas on how to do that, but I hadn’t thought of taking on that challenge at this juncture.

“It’s time,” Hortensia insists.

I find myself sighing fatalistically a lot these days. My imagination ping ponged all last week between chapter two of the Carmina novel and a short story, and I’ve been considering that maybe it’s time to start the rewrite on Venus in Transit. All the while Hortensia kept crooning in my ear: “It’s time. Where’s my novel? It’s time.”

I pulled the novella out today just to, yanno, look at it. Hortensia squee’d with glee. I told her not to get her hopes up. She scoffed.

So I don’t know what I’m working on now. Perhaps Hortensia would be the antidote to my restless. I’m sure Venus would be. Maybe I’ll let Venus and Hortensia and Carmina and Sea Eyes from the short story fight it out amongst themselves. Just let me know when you’ve figured it out, gang. Only, don’t start sending me tweets advocating for yourselves. That would be one step too far over the line.

Mirrored from Better Than Dead.

Comments

[darkspires.livejournal.com]

Lol, welcome to my world. Actually it isn't so bad now as I am down to writing two WIPs and not three, having finished Raven.

It is annoying when you are deeply into something and something else rears its head and demands attention. I have been half hearing from Angelus and resisting valliently.

Well, you know I adore Time in a Bottle and Carmina, but I also loved Hortensia.

[pjthompson.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it's crazy. I usually hyperfocus on one idea, but that's not been happening lately. I'll be glad when something settles down and takes me for a ride!

Well, you know I adore Time in a Bottle and Carmina, but I also loved Hortensia.

You're too kind... :-)

p.s. I vote for Angelus! I want to know how that one comes out. 'Course, I want to know how Wild Things and Widdershins turn out, too. Not helpful, I know.

[frigg.livejournal.com]

My characters do the same, but I found that they do quiet down when I write on two POVs at once, so I think that's going to be the plan from now on. :)

[pjthompson.livejournal.com]

Four out of the six novels I've finished and most of the ones I've started have had two or more POVs, but some characters just aren't satisfied with that. Hortensia is a lot like Ramona, another Dos Lunas character, in her insistence to have a story. They aren't related by blood, but they have the same incredible focus. :-)

[frigg.livejournal.com]

*grin*

Having them in different books might help, a novel of their own tend to be a major ego-stroker. ;)

[pjthompson.livejournal.com]

Ramona finally got hers--Venus in Transit. Although I think it belongs mostly to the characters of Sam and Marian, Ramona says it's all hers.

[mnfaure.livejournal.com]

'Tis the season, it seems, for story sap to be rising, to be bubbling and a-stirring. I'm not 100% ready to write again, but the ideas are starting to whisper, softly, like the breeze in the last tenaciously-clinging leaves.

[pjthompson.livejournal.com]

'Tis the season. The story mechanism is never quiet for long, it seems, even if one is not in a place to want to write. The Dream Factory keeps producing product. :-)

[kmkibble75.livejournal.com]

My word... your characters get out of control, don't they?

[pjthompson.livejournal.com]

*sigh* They do. Mostly in Dos Lunas, it seems...