Thursday, February 18, 2010

Torn Between Two Lovers


I've been working on book two of my romance trilogy for a while now and I'm down to the last couple of chapters, but all of a sudden I've hit a wall. It's not that I'm out of love with my characters because I'm not...I adore them desperately. It's just that I can't figure out how to finish this book. The denouement is eluding me. I know what needs to happen, just not how it will.

Enter the bright shiny new idea. Now, Frankie was talking about this the other day at her blog, Frankie Writes. But my shiny new idea reared its (not so) ugly head before I read her blog, she just solidified my angst over it.

Mind you, I'm just now trying to finish book two of a trilogy. I still have to edit books one and two and write book three. This is no time for a new love affair. Up til now I've been a nose-to-the-grindstone writer. I've got a goal and purpose and I've worked hard to always move forward toward reaching it. I love my characters and I'm committed to the story.

But, oh my god, this new idea is so sexy. I've made some notes about it so I won't forget it, but it's teasing me. Flirting with me. So now my trouble with finishing book two has only multiplied.

On top of all that a couple of the characters in the trilogy are whispering to me that they think instead of being a romance they should be a YA novel. Maybe a YA romance. I'm not fond of that plan. That doubt coupled with my inability to just ride the wave and finish off the second book is making it easy to be distracted by the new idea. And paying attention to it only solidifies the characters, makes them evolve from shadowy what-ifs into fully developed characters with back story and everything.

What am I supposed to do with these people? They need to butt out and let me finish what I started. Is it possible to work on two projects at once? I mean, really, I've got enough on my plate already. Seriously. I do not have space in my life for another novel.

Advice?

3 comments:

Frankie Diane Mallis said...

LOL, glad you enjoyed the post and hmmm. I had trouble with my ending too--I knew what needed to happen but actually sorting it out and writing it down was something I kind of avoided getting to for weeks. Somestimes you just need a little extra time for the right words to come, because I waited and then when I finally did write it---way later than I wanted to, it was perfect and I realized I couldn't have written the ending that way if I'd tried to do it any sooner.

And don't be afraid to jump genres with your book...mine started as a middle grade, then a young YA and now its definitely upper YA.

Unknown said...

I wrote a post about just this. You just don't want to leave the place you've created, do you? If you're interested the post is here

Jenni James said...

Good luck! As a multiple book writer during multiple times, I'm here to say it's possible, to work on more than one... but man, what a toughy. It's interesting you're at a halt at the last two chapters... those are usually the downhill stretch for me... Sounds definitely like something in the story is supposed to change... maybe that sexy thing after all?

Jenni