Rewriting the Novel: The Return

Well, I thought the next draft of the book was going to be easy, compared to erecting the scaffold and hanging all the plot points. But now viewed as a whole, the novel is a funhouse mirror of my injured inner child, and she is not pretty to look at. Then again, I'm on the other side of the keyboard, so if anyone sees it, they won't see me eye to eye, much less po9nt at me and say, "You have some whiny abandonment issues, get over it."

Awful people write awful books, awful, venal, transparent books. (The Bridges of Madison County.) How do you hide yourself, or do you? And I know it's strange that I am asking this on a blog where I don't hide myself. Maybe that's the thing - because I'm putting characters through my biggest issues I feel guilty becuase I'm dodging what I want to say directly. 

Maybe I need to write up a paragraph of the personal issues I want to paint with my broad brush and heavy hand. Then I won't feel guilty or transparent because then the book will seem subtle. Well, that's step one, anyway.

Comments

[KC]

Ah, the world of "the next step will at least be easier than this was!" "oh. Hard in a different way, instead. Got it."

Are any of your characters likable, though? Because if so, it's probably fine. (unless only One Character is the Perfect Golden Child who Everyone Mistreats All The Time and also oddly Somehow That Character Has Your Name. In that case: probably revise...)

[TheQueen]

KC - interesting question. So for a character arc, the person has to change, right? So to be one way at the end, they have to begin in a different place at the beginning, so if they are likable at the end, that means they aren't likable at the beginning. I am dealing with this by revealing a likeable internal monologue that she never expresses until she is past the dark night of the soul.

[KC]

I do not think that to have a character arc that ends with being likable, you have to start unlikable; you can have a character arc that goes from a-failure-but-likable (but frustrating, because none of their good intentions end up resulting in good outcomes, for instance) to competent-and-likable. And some character arcs are really them becoming more fully who they are; growing into aspects of themselves, gaining courage, etc.

Basically: character arcs can use different traits, not just unlikable-to-likable. (and, honestly, a lot of unlikable-to-likable successful character arcs use the fact that the person wasn't *as* unlikable as they looked, or had reasons the reader didn't know about for unlikable actions; Darcy, even Scrooge to some degree gets "explained" although he also has to hard-core reform; the balance of excuses-to-fundamental-change is different there vs. Darcy)

Anyway, yeah, likable internal monologue but failing to connect with people because the exterior she shows to other people is prickly: that would work!

[TheQueen]

KC - well, that's a problem for another week. I think this week I'm working on exposition.