I wrote, yesterday, of going to town to buy another Japanese iris. And I did, but I also did a number of errands including handing over the manuscript of The Day of Small Things to FedEx for delivery to Herself in NYC on Monday.
So it's bye, bye, Birdie and hello Elizabeth as I get those opening chapters of Under the Skin in shape to send for a teaser.
So it's bye, bye, Birdie and hello Elizabeth as I get those opening chapters of Under the Skin in shape to send for a teaser.
One of the problems with writing a series, I'm coming to realize, is confronting the delicate balance of making the same material seem new and fresh without abandoning the elements that readers look for in a familiar series.
Writers of long-running series approach this in a variety of ways -- change of scenery; addition of new important characters; death or loss of a character important to the protagonist -- or some other life-altering event.
Writers of long-running series approach this in a variety of ways -- change of scenery; addition of new important characters; death or loss of a character important to the protagonist -- or some other life-altering event.
After only four Elizabeth books, I don't yet feel the need of anything so drastic. But I do want to play with point of view a bit.
In my first two books, the present day plot was told entirely in what is called 'limited third person' -- everything was from Elizabeth's point of view and if something was happening, she pretty much had to be there to see it -- or someone had to tell her about it.
This was growing annoying to me as a writer and it was a revelation when, in the subplot for Art's Blood, I had Lily Gordon describe her meeting with Elizabeth.
Wow! It was liberating to see Elizabeth through another's eyes -- and it gave a fuller picture of our girl than had been possible before. So in Old Wounds, some of the chapters were from Phillip's point of view and some from Rosemary's. And in Dark Season, there were more for Phillip -- so we could really get to know him (Or did we? Stay tuned.)
So the big change in Under the Skin will be that Elizabeth's chapters -- the majority of the book -- will be in first person. Like this:
"Gloria's. . . well, she's a complicated person," I said, putting down the phone and glowering at it as if it were responsible for this new and unwelcome turn in my life.
It's not FAIR! I wanted to shout, a whining echo from my childhood. She always messes everything up! I wanted to throw something, stamp my foot, fling myself on the floor and have a screaming, kicking tantrum.
Instead I made a strenuous effort to sound composed and adult as I began to explain things to Phillip.
In my first two books, the present day plot was told entirely in what is called 'limited third person' -- everything was from Elizabeth's point of view and if something was happening, she pretty much had to be there to see it -- or someone had to tell her about it.
This was growing annoying to me as a writer and it was a revelation when, in the subplot for Art's Blood, I had Lily Gordon describe her meeting with Elizabeth.
Wow! It was liberating to see Elizabeth through another's eyes -- and it gave a fuller picture of our girl than had been possible before. So in Old Wounds, some of the chapters were from Phillip's point of view and some from Rosemary's. And in Dark Season, there were more for Phillip -- so we could really get to know him (Or did we? Stay tuned.)
So the big change in Under the Skin will be that Elizabeth's chapters -- the majority of the book -- will be in first person. Like this:
"Gloria's. . . well, she's a complicated person," I said, putting down the phone and glowering at it as if it were responsible for this new and unwelcome turn in my life.
It's not FAIR! I wanted to shout, a whining echo from my childhood. She always messes everything up! I wanted to throw something, stamp my foot, fling myself on the floor and have a screaming, kicking tantrum.
Instead I made a strenuous effort to sound composed and adult as I began to explain things to Phillip.
I didn't feel comfortable doing this till now -- Elizabeth was too much like me. But now that she's taken on a life of her own and will be dealing with her sister (I, by the way, have only a brother), I think it's time to learn more about her. What do you all think?
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