March 2nd question - Have you ever been conflicted about writing a story or adding a scene to a story? How did you decide to write it or not?
The awesome co-hosts for the March 2 posting of the IWSG are Janet Alcorn, Pat Garcia, Natalie Aguirre, and Shannon Lawrence!
When I have a story idea, it takes time to form. It’s like a locked house. I walk around it,
looking at it from every angle possible, trying to find my way inside. All I have are random
scenes flying around, trying to coalesce into something. At this stage, I go back and forth
about what to have in, what direction to go in, what is crucial to my story and even what is
problematic.
The “flapping” around in my head has gotten worse since the recent movement of
#ownvoices and the heightened awareness of trying to not cross into territory that could
hurt others. I also grapple with trying to tell a story honestly but not wanting to get too
violent or too graphic. If I stay in this stage too long, the story dies. At some point I must
decide on my focus, toss out everything that doesn’t flow to it, and commit.
Once the locked door opens the flapping and noise cease; everything expands into that
exquisite feeling of abundant, creative joy.