August 3 - Well, here we are again. A few days after wrapping up Camp NaNoWriMo and my month-long blog about my progress on The Wolf & I, I’m shifting gears and finally getting into a different novel that I started nearly 21 years ago. Originally, I had called it Waiting For The Night (after one of my favorite Depeche Mode songs). It’s about a rookie in the music industry who’s hired to manage a rockstar’s comeback. The story was inspired by two district things: the movie Still Crazy, and my crush on Timothy Olyphant in the movie Go. After seeing him portray the “good drug dealer,” I decided to use him to embody my hot elevator guy/band agent who has spent most of his adult years caring for his famous-musician-with-a-tortured-spirit brother. Our heroine, Kate, is the daughter of his brother’s former manager, but when Nick meets her, he doesn't know this about her. They strike up a potential relationship to immediately have it doomed when Chris returns home to plan his comeback and hires Kate to fill the shoes her father left behind. From there, the story takes off. While I had written almost 70,000 over the last 21 years, this story needs a lot of work (I tend to scene vomit, and it needs structure). And over the next month, I hope to keep a schedule of working on it daily. So while each day it may look like I’m writing a lot, I’m actually in editing, but at least I’ll be getting it closer to done. I hope you’ll follow my journey. WORD COUNT: 4,542
August 4 - There is always a struggle when editing something you put a lot of time and effort into. On the one hand, you want to follow a formula, and sometimes that means cutting or moving scenes. On the other hand, you might be so attached to the way the story flows, you force yourself to find a way to make it work. In the beginning of Waiting For The Night, the heroine (Kate) has a panic attack at a club. She’s overwhelmed by her new job (that she’s pretty sure she got out of pity) and a bit lost with what she really wants to do with the rest of her life. Nick, our hero, recognizes her from the building they both work in and recognizes her symptoms. He escorts her to the hospital and at the end of the night, she thanks him…with a kiss. Neither character “has time for a relationship” but something draws them together. Nick thinks it’s because she works for a live entertainment firm and he has a band he wants to get on the lineup of a concert they’re producing. Kate agrees to see him again because he invites her to see a band that might fill the opening band spot, giving her some credibility with the firm. But then, Kate is thrown another curveball. The band Nick takes her to see is a band she used to be in, and the lead singer is someone she had a relationship with. Kate thinks all is lost, but this time, Nick ends the night kissing her. WORD COUNT: 9,683
August 5 - New scene written. I spoke about how hard it is to cut some of the work you’ve already done, but in order to set up the goals and motivation of characters, sometimes it has to be done. It was important for me to move up what’s called the inciting incident — or the moment when everything changes. For Kate, it’s the death of someone close to her. For Nick, it’s his brother coming home unexpectedly. A little background here about why I chose to write this story (21 years ago). I have always been a music lover. I remember some of the first albums my dad brought home, the house we’d spend listening to them at night, the radio stations I loved growing up, and singing into a fake mic while roller skating in my parents’ living room. It was my upbringing that led me to a career in music. First, as a DJ at my college radio station, then as a record company and radio station intern, until finally, I landed in Chicago radio at my favorite rock station in my late twenties. While I’m no longer in the business, I still curate playlists, I always have music on, and I’m still obsessed with rock stars. It only made sense to write a novel about a rock star’s comeback. Music is life. WORD COUNT: 10,921
“Every secret of a writer’s soul, every experience of his life, every quality of his mind is written large in his works.”
August 6 - If you’ve ever driven past me on the road, you’ve probably witnessed one of two thing: I’m talking to myself, or I’m singing. I spent a lot of time developing stories on the road. Driving gives me focus because I only have to do one thing, whereas at home, or in any other environment really, I am easily distracted. Like now, as I type this, I’m breaking between sentences to snack on crackers and gouda cheese spread. In the car, I can formulate scenes in my head and dictate them onto my phone. Or, I can sing along to my favorite songs. Usually, I have a playlist put together for the story I’m working on, and Waiting For The Night is no different. From Matchbox 20 to Led Zeppelin to Zero 7, these tunes put me in the mood of the story. Today, and for the rest of the weekend, I’ll be working through that inciting incident I mentioned above. This will be the things that catapults all of the characters forward. WORD COUNT: 13,187
August 7 - Ray Bradbury once said “Just write every day of your life. Read intensely. Then see what happens. Most of my friends who are put on that diet have very pleasant careers.” And while I didn’t write a word today, I did read this book. I couldn’t put it down, and I love when that happens. Sometimes the brain needs a break, I took my break following the story of a writer who teams up with another writer so they can both get out of their creative rut. Been there (in a rut, that is). I’ll be back behind the keyboard tomorrow. WORD COUNT: 13,187
August 8 - Author Natalie Goldberg nailed it when she said “Writers live twice.” There is no doubt that when you’re a writer, you live a sort of double-life. There’s your day-to-day, go to work, do the laundry, watch TV life, and then there’s the life you live that exists within your novels. When I write, I get to be the racecar driver, the musician, the forensic investigator, or the fairy princess (but only if she’s wearing black combat boots and wields a sword or something). The scenery I create doesn't take an airline ticket to get to, and I know the people inside and out, even if they’re imaginary. I’ve always been this way. When I was a teenager, I toured with Rick Springfield (in my head, of course). And I have found that sometimes, knowing people in your head is much less disappointing than knowing them in person; although I’m sure Rick is a top-notch human, I just think my ideal of him might be slightly skewed based on my teenage crush. So, as much as I’d like to curl up with another book by Emily Henry (The People We Meet On Vacation), I’ll be heading into my other life for most of the day. In the current scene, Kate and Nick are starting to develop a relationship and she discovers Nick is related to a famous rockstar. Sidebar: one of my favorite songs by The Cars is called Double Life. Thought it was appropriate here. WORD COUNT: 15,417
August 14 - It’s been a few days since I’ve written, and the guilt has been like an annoying splinter in the back of my mind. It’s been a week, as they say. Between work, dealing with my dad’s ongoing health issues, and being drawn into a series on HBO Max (Mare of Easttown, ohmygoodness it was so good), I’ve had little time to sit down and work on my novel. I’ve also been reading, which as the quote says above, is the key to being a great writer. Over the years, as I studied the concepts of storytelling, the process has become so clear to me that it makes me wish I knew this stuff twenty years ago. As I listened to “A Court of Thorns and Roses” by Sarah J. Maas on my ride to and from a work event in Michigan this week, I could see the formula unfold before me. I would equate this wonderful book as a “Beauty & the Beast” retelling. The romance between the two characters has been a very slow burn, but when love is finally realized and sacrifices are made for it, well, it makes an impact. It had me thinking about my two characters, and a scene I had just written last weekend. The one thing you don’t want to do is make love easy. My goal was to have them get together, then a betrayal happens. But I think I may cut out the scene, giving them the opportunity to get together, but denying them the satisfaction. The betrayal will still burn because they see what could’ve been, maybe they’re happy they didn’t “go for it.” It’s a missed opportunity that would later be used as a hurtful sentiment (i.e. I’m glad we didn’t because you were just using me). I just think it’ll flow better so that when they do finally get together, it means more. So, off we go. WORD COUNT: 18,466
August 22 - It’s been a hot minute since I’ve sat down to work on WFTN. Life has been busy, and well, Nine Perfect Strangers was released on Hulu and I was intrigued to see how they turned the book into a mini-series. So far, it’s passable. The book was far more interesting. That said, I took some time to add a thousand words today. I’m hitting the parts of the story that are still considered setup, where the main characters are burying their head in the sand, and ignoring the obvious. Something will happen soon that will send them to the point of no return and they must accept the quest before them. For Kate, the heroine, it’s taking a new job that will cause some conflict between her and the hero, Nick. In the meantime, I finished A Court of Thorns and Roses and dove right into book two, A Court of Mist and Fury. Plus, I’m reading Deeper Than The Ocean by Julie Ann Walker. So I’ve been doing a lot more reading than writing, but I’m okay with that. WORD COUNT: 19,534
August 23 - I have always been obsessed with rockstars. Not so much their lifestyles, houses, or cars, but their process and their brains. There’s no doubt some musicians feel things a lot deeper than us mere mortals. For example, I am a huge fan of Josh Tilman (aka Father John Misty) and his lyrics are so very poetic, if not at times disturbing. Take his song Bored in the USA:
How many people rise and say
"My brain's so awfully glad to be here for yet another mindless day
Now, I've got all morning to obsessively accrue
A small nation of meaningful objects and they've gotta represent me too
By this afternoon, I'll live in debt
And by tomorrow, be replaced by children?"
Something is going on in that man’s head. And most of his songs give you that feeling. So it makes you wonder, what experiences inspire him to write the songs he writes? And why do some singer/songwriters become successful while others wallow outside the mainstream hoping for their big break? Take my character in Waiting for the Night - Chris Logan - he had been one of the lucky ones. A world-famous rockstar with loads of album and concert sales. When his last album tanked, the media crucified him, and he had a pretty big blowup with his manager (our heroine’s father). The demons he’s battled most of his life caught up with him, he spent time in rehab, he escaped the public eye, and now he wants to try for a comeback because he’s got new music he wants to put out into the world. His younger brother, our hero, worries that Chris is headed for ultimate destruction and wants to shield Chris from all the bad stuff that might follow. I think one of the problems with being a celebrity, is knowing who to trust and having people in your corner that are going to be honest with you. I’m betting a lot of folks who’ve imploded over the years would’ve been better off with people who told them the truth, rather than people who tell them what they want to hear. I’m excited to see how this all plays out for both brothers, especially since the heroine will play an instrumental role in all of it. WORD COUNT: 21,326
August 31 - While I wasn’t as productive as I was in July, I’ve chipped away at a good chunk of the novel. I admit I’m lazy most days, but I also work a full-time job, and have other priorities (apparently binging Game of Thrones for the third time is one of those). Hopefully, September will give me more time. I’m grateful for those of you who continue to follow my journey, and look forward to getting this next book out into the world. <3